Today is Saturday, July 9, the 190th day of 2011. There are 175 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight:

On July 9, 1951, President Harry Truman asked Congress to formally end the state of war between the United States and Germany. (An official end to the state of war was declared in Oct. 1951.)

On this date:

In 1540, England’s King Henry VIII had his 6-month-old marriage to his fourth wife, Anne of Cleves, annulled.

In 1776, the Declaration of Independence was read aloud to Gen. George Washington’s troops in New York.

In 1816, Argentina declared independence from Spain.

In 1850, the 12th president of the United States, Zachary Taylor, died after serving only 16 months of his term. (He was succeeded by Millard Fillmore.)

In 1896, William Jennings Bryan delivered his famous “cross of gold” speech at the Democratic national convention in Chicago.

In 1918, 101 people were killed in a train collision in Nashville, Tenn. The Distinguished Service Cross was established by an Act of Congress.

In 1947, the engagement of Britain’s Princess Elizabeth to Lt. Philip Mountbatten was announced.

In 1974, former U.S. Chief Justice Earl Warren died in Washington, D.C., at age 83.

In 1982, a Pan Am Boeing 727 crashed in Kenner, La., killing all 145 people aboard and eight people on the ground.

In 1986, the Attorney General’s Commission on Pornography released the final draft of its report, which linked hard-core porn to sex crimes.

Associated Press