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The 1940 census indicates a United States population of 132,164,569. This represented an increase of 7.3% since 1930, the lowest rate of increase in the 20th century.
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The attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, commences at 7:55 a.m. when Japanese fighter planes launch a surprise attack on United States soil, destroying the U.S. Pacific Fleet docked at the base.
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The development of the first atomic bomb is signed into agreement between the Prime Minister of Great Britain, Winston Churchill, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt in Hyde Park, New York.
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The United States encounters its first major defeat in the European theater of World War II at the Battle for Kasserine Pass in Tunisia.
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The G.I. Bill of Rights is signed into law, providing benefits to veterans.
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President Harry S. Truman gives the go-ahead for the use of the atomic bomb with the bombing of Hiroshima. Three days later, the second bomb is dropped on Nagasaki, Japan.
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The Atomic Energy Commission is established.
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Secretary of State George C. Marshall proposes aid extension to European nations for war recovery, known as the Marshall Plan, which would lead to Congressional approval of $12 billion over the following four years.
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Executive Order 9981, ending segregation in the United States military, is signed into effect by President Harry S. Truman.
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United States withdraws its troops from Korea.
