Sept. 8 (UPI) -- On this date in history:
In 1565, the first permanent European settlement in what is now the continental United States was founded on the site of the present St. Augustine, Fla.
In 1900, more than 6,000 people were killed when a hurricane and tidal wave struck Galveston, Texas.
In 1935, an assassin shot U.S. Sen. Huey P. Long, D-La., at the Capitol in Baton Rouge, La. Long died two days later.
In 1941, the Siege of Leningrad -- the Russian city now known as St. Petersburg -- began. The Germany army held the blockade for more than two years during World War II, resulting in the deaths of about 1 million civilians and Soviet troops.
In 1966, Star Trek premiered on NBC-TV.
In 1974, U.S. President Gerald Ford granted former President Richard Nixon, who had resigned a month earlier in the wake of the Watergate scandal, a full pardon for any offenses he may have committed during his years in office.
In 1994, a USAir Boeing 737 (Flight 427) suddenly rolled to the left, spiraled out of control and fell 6,000 feet in a crash near Pittsburgh that killed 132 people. A problem with the plane's rudder control system was eventually cited as the probable cause of the disaster.
In 2005, more than 1,000 people attended the Washington funeral of U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist, who died of thyroid cancer just before his 81st birthday.
In 2013, Australian voters chose the Liberal/National coalition headed by opposition leader Tony Abbott over the Labor Party and Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. Abbott was sworn in as PM on Sept. 18.
In 2014, the Baltimore Ravens terminated star running back Ray Rice's contract and the NFL suspended him indefinitely after the release of a video that showed him punching his future wife in the face in a hotel elevator in Atlantic City.
