Today in History: Lehman Brothers files for bankruptcy protection, triggering the global financial crisis in 2008

The following is a chronological list of notable events that occurred on September 15 throughout history:

1776 – British troops under General William Howe land at Kip’s Bay in Manhattan during the American Revolutionary War, beginning the British occupation of New York City.

1821 – The countries of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua officially declare their independence from Spain.

1857 – William Howard Taft, who would become the 27th President of the United States and later Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, is born in Cincinnati, Ohio.

1858 – The first transcontinental mail service to San Francisco begins in the United States, marking a major milestone in American communications.

1890 – Agatha Christie, best-selling crime novelist and creator of Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, is born in Torquay, England.

1916 – Tanks are used in battle for the first time in history by the British Army during the Battle of Flers–Courcelette, a phase of the Battle of the Somme in World War I.

1940 – The Battle of Britain Day takes place as the Royal Air Force decisively repels a massive Luftwaffe attack, marking a turning point in World War II’s air campaign over Britain.

1963 – Four young African-American girls are killed in the Ku Klux Klan bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama — a defining moment in the American civil rights movement.

1981 – The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approves Sandra Day O’Connor, paving the way for her confirmation as the first woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

2008 – Lehman Brothers files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, triggering the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history and accelerating the global financial crisis.