Explore items in the Smithsonian's collections related to 1974. In January, the television sitcom Happy Days premiered on the ABC network. On March 1, a grand jury in Washington, D.C., indicted several former aides of President Nixon for conspiring to hinder the Watergate investigation. On April 8, Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth's home run record while playing for the Atlanta Braves. On August 8, Richard Nixon became the first U.S. president to resign due to his involvement in the Watergate scandal. The inauguration of Gerald Ford as the 38th president of the United States was held on August 9.
