Today in History: September 3, Treaty of Paris ends Revolutionary War

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Today in History

Today is Thursday, Sept. 3, the 246th day of 2026. There are 119 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Sept. 3, 1783, representatives of the United States and Britain signed the Treaty of Paris, which officially ended the Revolutionary War and recognized U.S. sovereignty.

Also on this date:

In 1861, during the Civil War, Confederate forces invaded the border state of Kentucky, which had declared its neutrality in the conflict.

In 1894, the United States celebrated the first federal Labor Day holiday.

In 1935, Sir Malcolm Campbell became the first person to drive an automobile more than 300 mph (480 kph), speeding across the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah.

In 1939, Britain, France, Australia and New Zealand declared war on Germany, two days after the Nazi invasion of Poland; in a radio address, Britain’s King George VI said, “With God’s help, we shall prevail.”

In 1943, Allied forces invaded the mainland of Italy during World War II, the same day Italian officials signed a secret armistice with the Allies.

In 1976, America’s Viking 2 lander touched down on Mars to take the first close-up, color photographs of the red planet’s surface.

In 1999, a French judge closed a two-year inquiry into the car crash that killed Princess Diana, dismissing all charges against nine photographers and a press motorcyclist, and concluding the crash was caused by an inebriated driver.

In 2019, Walmart said it would stop selling ammunition for handguns and short-barrel rifles, and the store chain requested that customers not openly carry firearms in its stores; the announcement followed a shooting at a Walmart store in Texas that left 22 people dead.

In 2025, a picturesque electric streetcar that is one of Lisbon’s big tourist attractions derailed and crashed in the Portuguese capital, killing 15 people and injuring 18 others.

Today’s Birthdays: Singer-musician Al Jardine (The Beach Boys) is 84. Filmmaker Jean-Pierre Jeunet is 73. Rock guitarist Steve Jones (The Sex Pistols) is 71. Actor Steve Schirripa (TV: “The Sopranos”) is 68. Author Malcolm Gladwell is 63. Actor Charlie Sheen is 61. Filmmaker Noah Baumbach is 57. Actor Garrett Hedlund is 42. Olympic gold medal snowboarder Shaun White is 40. Model-actor Kaia Gerber is 25. Actor Jack Dylan Grazer is 23.