US President Benjamin Harrison signed the landmark Sherman Antitrust Act into law on July 2, 1890. The law changed the landscape of American industry as it prohibited the establishment of trusts (agreements to restrict trade among the several states) and monopolies. John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil and the Bell System of telecommunications were two notable entities that were broken up as a result of the Sherman Antitrust Act.

The Nazi purge known as the Night of the Long Knives came to an end on July 2, 1934. During the intra-party struggle, Adolf Hitler consolidated his power using his SS paramilitary to eradicate rival Nazi Ernst Röhm's Stormtroopers (SA). The putsch resulted in over 150 killed, including Röhm, who was executed on July 1.

On July 2, 1698, the first steam engine was patented by Thomas Savery. However, the machine had only limited power. Thomas Newcomen in 1712 and James Watt in 1774 would later make the steam engine truly useful, revolutionizing travel. Learn more about the Steam Engine from Michigan State University.