1. On August 28, 1963, the famous civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his iconic "I Have a Dream" speech at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. The speech became a defining moment of the American civil rights movement and inspired generations of activists to fight for equality and justice.

2. In 1862, the Second Battle of Bull Run was fought near Manassas, Virginia, just a few miles from the District of Columbia. The Union Army, led by Major General John Pope, was defeated by Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, which paved the way for Lee's invasion of Maryland.

3. On August 28, 1814, during the War of 1812, British troops marched into Washington, D.C., and burned down many government buildings, including the White House and the Capitol. The incident, known as the Burning of Washington, was a major humiliation for the United States and a significant event in the history of the country.

4. The National Memorial to Martin Luther King Jr., located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., was dedicated on August 28, 2011, to honor the legacy of the civil rights leader. The monument features a 30-foot-tall statue of King and inscriptions of some of his most famous quotes.

5. In 2008, then-presidential candidate Barack Obama delivered his acceptance speech for the Democratic nomination at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado, on August 28. Obama famously declared that "change has come to America" and went on to win the presidency later that year.