On August 1 in …

30 BC -– Octavian, later known as Augustus, enters Alexandria, Egypt, bringing it under the control of the Roman Republic.

1498 –- Christopher Columbus led the first European group to visit what now is Venezuela.

1774 –- British scientist Joseph Priestley discovers oxygen gas, corroborating the prior discovery of this element by the German-Swedish chemist Carl Wilhelm Scheele.

1876 –- Colorado is admitted as the 38th U.S. state.

1981 –- MTV begins broadcasting. Its first video is titled “Video Killed the Radio Star,” by The Buggles.

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