1. In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Compensated Emancipation Act, which freed 3,100 slaves in the District of Columbia. The law provided up to $300 in compensation to slave owners who released their slaves.

2. On August 31, 1907, the Washington Senators baseball team played a double-header against the Philadelphia Athletics. The Senators won both games, 8-7 and 4-2, at American League Park.

3. In 1942, a wartime blackout was ordered in Washington, D.C. to protect the city from enemy air raids. Street lights, advertising signs, and other lights were turned off or covered with shades to prevent any light from being visible to the sky.

4. On August 31, 1964, the Washington Senators baseball team played a game against the Kansas City Athletics at DC Stadium. The Senators won 5-4 in 10 innings.

5. In 2018, protests took place in front of the Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C. during the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. The protests were led by women's rights groups and other activists who opposed Kavanaugh's nomination.