1968
Dr Benjamin Spock jailed for two years for encouraging draft-dodging
America launches first manned Apollo mission
Senator Robert Kennedy is shot in the head in Los Angeles after winning California primary
President Johnson signs the Civil Rights Bill
US Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King is assassinated in Memphis
80,000 demonstrators against the Vietnam War attempt to storm the American embassy in London
50 students are arrested during an anti-Vietnam demonstration in Martin Place, Sydney, Australia
A civil rights protest in Orangeburg, SC turns deadly with the death of 3 college students
Students from Harvard, Radcliff, & Boston University held a 4-day hunger strike to protest the war
10,000 West Berlin students held a sit-in against American involvement in Vietnam
500 NYU students demonstrated against Dow Chemical National
"Turn-In Your Draft Card Day" inspires draft-card burning
"Year of the Pitcher" McLain wins 30, Gibson 1.12 ERA, Drysdale 58 scoreless innings
1969
The Woodstock Music Festival opens with 500,000 rock music fans going to this Peace and Harmony Music Festival. Thirty Two of the world's best known musicians appear during the festival including The Who, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Janis Joplin, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Grateful Dead, and Jimi Hendrix. Many believe it was the greatest gathering of 60's musicians and is still thought to be the greatest live concert ever staged.
Hurricane Camille a Category 5 hurricane makes landfall near the mouth of the Mississippi with winds estimated between 150 and 205 mile per hour. The hurricane was responsible for the death of nearly 300 people and the destruction of thousands of homes in Alabama, Mississippi, Virginia and Louisiana.
Britain Deploys Troops Northern Ireland. Following a number of days of violence in Londonderry, Belfast and other cities in Northern Ireland, the British Home Secretary James Callaghan announces troops will be deployed in Northern Ireland to restore law and order.
Sharon Tate Found Murdered. Five people, including actress Sharon Tate, were found murdered in the wealthy Bel Air suburb of the city Los Angeles, California, Cult leader Charles Manson and several of his followers were later convicted of the killings.
Apollo 11 takes off for the Moon. Second Apollo mission lands on Moon and Neil Armstrong makes Famous quote "That's one small step for man but one giant leap for mankind.
Anti Vietnam Demonstrations. One of the greatest coordinated demonstrations in modern times starts on this weekend against US involvement in Vietnam with demonstrations in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and other major cities. Just in Washington alone were believed to be over 250,000 in protest at the Vietnam War
Biafra fight for independence. Food aid and medical supplies from the International Committee of the Red Cross to war torn Biafra have been banned by Nigeria. It is estimated as many as three million people who are going to starve to death in the next few weeks unless something is done. Two weeks later due to International Pressure Nigerian leader, General Gowon, allowed the Red Cross to airlift urgent medical supplies and food to Biafra. Biafra is forced to give up it's fight for independence shortly afterwards.
Student Protests Police forces in the United States crack down on student protests on campuses across the US using a number of means at their disposal including warrants and an increased police presence. The universities include some of the most well known institutions including Columbia, Harvard, Cornell and Stanford Universities.
Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy and the Chappaquiddick Affair. A car driven by Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy plunged off a narrow wooden bridge into a tidal pond after leaving a party on Chappaquiddick Island. Kennedy escaped the submerged car but his passenger a pretty blonde secretary ( Mary Jo Kopechne )who was riding with him drowned in the accident. Kennedy was later convicted of leaving the scene of an accident.
An underground nuclear test is carried out at the Atomic Energy Commission's Nevada test site.
Concorde Maiden Flight The supersonic airliner a British / French joint project, Concorde, has it's maiden flight reaching 10,000ft and 300mph . It would be 7 years before Concorde started commercial flights on 21 January 1976 and flew commercial Trans-Atlantic flights until 23 October 2003 when it was retired from service
The Stonewall Riot A police raid of the Stonewall Inn a gay club located on New York City's Christopher Street turns violent as patrons and local sympathizers begin rioting against the police this was known as The Stonewall Riot.
Altamont Rolling Stones Concert. A free concert organised by the Rolling Stones featuring Santana, Jefferson Airplane, and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young and The Rolling Stones at the disused Altamont Speedway in Livermore, Calif., is marred by the deaths of four people, including a man who was stabbed by a Hell's Angel, The stage, which was only four feet high, was surrounded by the Hells Angels, who acted as security for the concert.
Brian Jones Former Rolling Stones Guitarist Drowns The inquest into the death of rock and roll star Brian Jones the former Rolling Stones Guitarist has recorded a verdict of death by misadventure, after he had drowned when taking a cocktail of drink and drugs.
Jim Morrison was arrested by Dade County a few days after his performance in Miami. He was charged of one felony and three misdemeanors related to indecent behavior he displayed on stage.
James Earl Ray Verdict. The verdict had been decided. James Earl Ray pleaded guilty of the crime of assassinating Martin Luther King, Jr. a major civil rights leader of the times. King was killed in Memphis Tennessee on April 4, 1968. Ray was sentenced 99 years in prison.
Pontiac Firebird Trans Am. The Pontiac Firebird Trans Am the epitome of the American muscle car is introduced.
US Institutes Draft Lottery The U.S. government holds its first draft lottery since World War II when the Selective Service System of the United States held a lottery to determine the order of draft (induction) into the U.S. Army for the Vietnam War.
Apollo 12 The astronauts Charles "Pete" Conrad and Alan Bean of Apollo 12 land on the Moon with their lunar lander, Intrepid, and become the second set of American astronauts to walk on the moon’s surface.
President Richard M. Nixon: "I have decided to order the immediate redeployment from Vietnam of a divisional equivalent of approximately 25,000 men."
1970
Paul McCartney announces that the Beatles have disbanded
Apollo 13 mission to moon abandoned
US Invades Cambodia
100,000 people demonstrate in Washington DC against the Vietnam War
California becomes the first US State to adopt "No Fault" Divorce law.
Large floods in Vietnam, kills 293, leaves 200,000 homeless
Chicago Seven defendants found guilty of intent to incite a riot in 1968 ( later overturned by Court of Appeal )
The Isle of Wight Festival takes place. 600,000 people attend the largest rock festival of all time. Artists include Jimi Hendrix, The Who, The Doors, Chicago, Richie Havens, John Sebastian, Joan Baez, Ten Years After, Emerson, Lake and Palmer and Jethro Tull.
Jimi Hendrix dies of barbiturate overdose in London
Janis Joplin dies in a cheap motel from a heroin overdose
The first New York marathon is run in New York
Simon and Garfunkel release their final album together, Bridge Over Troubled Water. The Title Track won the Grammy for song of the year.
