July 1, 2 and 3

On the 1st in 1999, the Scottish Parliament convened for the first time in nearly three centuries. That would explain all the newspapers piling up on the porch.

July 2nd 1982, thirty-three year old Larry Walters tied 45 weather balloons to a lawn chair and used this aircraft to rise to an altitude of 16,000 feet. The FAA immediately took an interest in him.
July 3, 1844 saw the last pair of Great Auks killed on Eldey Island, which sits off the coast of Iceland. All surviving reports indicate that they tasted like chicken.