Event:
Ian Smith, espousing racial segregation, wins Rhodesian general election with 80% of overwhelmingly white electorate's vote
More Notable Events on August 31:
1988 5-day power blackout of downtown Seattle begins
1980 Poland's Solidarity labor union forms
1955 1st solar automobile demonstrated, Chicago, Illinois
1886 1st major earthquake recorded in eastern U.S., at Charleston SC, 110 die
1842 U.S. Naval Observatory authorized by an act of Congress
