1. The first major race riot in Chicago occurred on July 16, 1919. The riot began when a black teenager named Eugene Williams accidentally swam into a whites-only area at a beach on Lake Michigan. Whites on the beach began throwing rocks at Williams, and when he drowned, tensions escalated and violence erupted, leading to 38 deaths and hundreds of injuries.

2. On July 16, 1957, the state of Illinois abolished the death penalty. However, the law was later reinstated in 1974 and remained in effect until 2011, when Governor Pat Quinn signed legislation abolishing it again.

3. In 1988, the Chicago Cubs played in their first night game at Wrigley Field on July 16. The game, against the New York Mets, was delayed by rain and didn't actually start until after 10 p.m.

4. On July 16, 1945, the world's first atomic bomb was detonated in Alamogordo, New Mexico. The bomb was developed in secret as part of the Manhattan Project, which had a major research facility in Chicago.

5. The Great Flood of 1996 began on July 16 when heavy rains led to record-breaking flooding in parts of Illinois. The flood, which lasted several weeks, caused 17 deaths and an estimated $320 million in damages.