| Events of 1948 |
| Date |
Event |
| Jan 04, 1948 |
Burma granted independence by Britain. |
| Jan 30, 1948 |
Gandhi assassinated in New Delhi by Hindu fanatic |
| Feb 04, 1948 |
Ceylon granted independence by Britain. |
| Apr 01, 1948 |
The Soviet Union begins its land blockade of the Allied sectors of Berlin, Germany. A counter blockade by the west was put into effect, as well as a British and U.S. airlift of supplies and food, until both blockades were lifted on September 30, 1949. |
| Apr 30, 1948 |
The Organization of American States was founded by twenty-one nations to provide a mutual security pact after World War II. Founding nations were Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Columbia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, the United States, Uruguay, and Venezuela. |
| May 14, 1948 |
Nation of Israel proclaimed; British end mandate at midnight; Arab armies attack |
| Jun 24, 1948 |
Berlin blockade begins |
| Jun 26, 1948 |
Allied airlift of Berlin begins |
| Jun 28, 1948 |
Stalin and Tito break |
| Jul 26, 1948 |
Executive Order 9981, ending segregation in the United States military in signed into effect by President Harry S. Truman. |
| Aug 15, 1948 |
Independent Republic of Korea is proclaimed, following election supervised by UN |
| Nov 02, 1948 |
President Harry S. Truman rallies from behind, capturing his first president election from the supposed winner Thomas E. Dewey, the governor of New York. Headlines in national newspapers had overtly announced a Dewey victory, only to be proven wrong. Truman won the Electoral College vote with 303 to Dewey's 189, with Strom Thurmond, running as the States' Rights candidate, receiving 39 Electoral votes. Truman won the election with less than 50% of the popular votes, with additional candidate, Henry Wallace, siphoning off over one million votes in the four man race. |
| Nov 12, 1948 |
Verdict in Japanese war trial: 18 imprisoned |
| Dec 15, 1948 |
Alger Hiss, former State Department official, is indicted for perjury in connection to denials of passing state secrets to a communist spy ring. He would be convicted of the conspiracy on January 21, 1950 and receive a five year sentence. |
| Dec 23, 1948 |
Tojo and six others hanged |
| Dec 27, 1948 |
United States of Indonesia established as Dutch and Indonesians settle conflict |
| , 1948 |
Truman ends racial segregation in military |
| , 1948 |
Alfred Kinsey publishes Sexual Behavior in the American Male. |
| , 1948 |
Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire wins Pulitzer. |
| , 1948 |
Communists seize power in Czechoslovakia |
