History of the Day for:
June 17
- 1775: The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought.
- 1824: The Bureau of Indian Affairs was established.
- 1856: The Republican Party held its first national convention.
- 1882: Composer Igor Stravinsky was born in Oranienbaum, Russia.
- 1885: The Statue of Liberty arrived in New York City from France.
- 1917: Singer/actor Dean Martin was born in Steubenville, Ohio.
- 1940: France asked Germany for terms of surrender in World War II.
- 1942: The Army weekly newspaper "Yank" coined the term "G.I. Joe" in a comic strip drawn by Dave Breger.
- 1944: The republic of Iceland was established.
- 1950: Dr. Richard H. Lawler performed the first kidney transplant.
- 1963: The Supreme Court ruled mandatory reciting of the Lord's Prayer or Bible verses in public schools was unconstitutional.
- 1969: The raunchy musical review "Oh, Calcutta" opened in New York.
- 1971: The United States and Japan signed a treaty under which the U.S. would return control of the island of Okinawa.
- 1972: Five robbers broke into the Democratic National Committee offices in the Watergate Hotel and were arrested for trying to install eavesdropping equipment.
- 1986: President Reagan announced the retirement of U.S. Chief Justice Warren Earl Burger.
- 1994: O.J. Simpson was charged with murdering his ex-wife Nicole and her friend, Ronald Goldman.