August 15th 1899
Henry Ford resigned as chief engineer at the main Detroit Edison Company plant in order to concentrate on automobile production. On call at all times, Ford had no regular hours and could experiment in his free time. His tinkering was fruitful, for he completed his first horseless carriage by 1896. After turning to automobiles full time, he would revolutionize the automotive industry with the Model T, also known as the "Tin Lizzie."
August 15th 1945
World War II gasoline rationing in America ended on this day. Rationing was just one of the special measures taken in the U.S. during wartime. Civilian auto production virtually ceased after the attack on Pearl Harbor, as the U.S. automotive industry turned to war production. Automotive firms made almost $29 billion worth of military materials between 1940 and 1945, including jeeps, trucks, machine guns, carbines, tanks, helmets, and aerial bombs. After the war, rationing ended and the auto industry boomed.
August 15th 1947
On 3 June 1947, Viscount Louis Mountbatten, the last British Governor-General of India, announced the partitioning of the British Indian Empire into a secular India and a Muslim Pakistan. At midnight, on 15 August 1947, India became an independent nation.
Source:
The History Channel
Wikipedia