January
1
William Lloyd Garrison founds abolitionist newspaper, The Liberator (1831)
Ellis Island Immigration Station officially opens (1892)
The Emancipation Proclamation goes into effect (1863)
2
Russian sci-fi writer, Isaac Asimov, born (1920)
Brigham Young, the 71-year-old leader of the Mormon Church, was arrested on a charge of bigamy. He had 25 wives (1872)
3
Stephen Austin received a grant from the Mexican government and began colonization in the region of the Brazos River in Texas (1823)
The Shogunate was abolished in Japan and Meiji dynasty was restored (1868)
4
Jakob Grimm, German fairy tale writer, is born (1785)
The Soviet satellite Sputnik fell to the earth from its orbit (1958)
5
Yahya Ayyash, a member of the Hamas in Israel, is killed by a booby-trapped cellular phone (1996)
An Austrian newspaper reports that Wilhelm Roentgen discovered a new type of radiation called X-ray (1896)
6
Saint Joan of Arc is born (1412)
President Franklin Roosevelt delivers the Four Freedoms speech (1941)
Off of South Africa, the British seized the German steamer Herzog (1900)
7
Galileo discovers first three Jupiter satellites (1610)
Zora Neale Hurston, African-American novelist, is born (1891)
8
Jackie Robinson announced his retirement from major league baseball in an article that appeared in “LOOK” magazine (1957)
In Egypt, archeologists entered a 4,300 year old pyramid and discovered the mummy of Queen Sesheshet (2009)
9
Kate Middleton was born (1982)
The state of Mississippi seceded from the United States (1861)
10
League of Nations established (1920)
In France, the “Official Journal” reported that all women could get the morning-after pill for free in pharmacies (2002)
11
Mary J. Blige was born (1971)
The first shipment of rhubarb was sent to the United States from London (1770)
12
Nigeria’s civil war ended (1970)
Yassar Arafar was re-elected as head of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (1973)
13
Japan apologized for forcing thousands of Korean women to serve as sex slaves during World War II (1992
Michael Jordan announced his retirement from the NBA (1999)
14
Revolutionary War ends; Congress ratifies the Treaty of Paris (1784)
An earthquake killed over 1,000 people in Jamaica (1907)
15
Martin Luther King Jr. was born (1929)
Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority became America’s first Greek-letter organization established by African-American college women (1908)
16
18th amendment, prohibition, becomes law (1919)
12 year long civil war ends in El Salvador (1992)
17
Yaqui Indians in Texas proclaimed their independence from Mexico (1900)
Mormon Brigham Roberts was denied a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives for his practicing of polygamy (1900)
18
Louis Armstrong and his orchestra recorded “Jeepers Creepers” (1939)
Willie O’Ree made his NHL debut with the Boston Bruins. He was the first black player to enter the league (1958)
19
In protest against the Russian invasion of 1968, Czech students Jan Palach set himself on fire in Prague’s Wenceslas Square (1969)
General Robert E. Lee was born (1807)
20
Women’s rights advocate Elizabeth Cady Stanton becomes first woman to testify before Congress (1869)
Nazi officials held the Wannsee conference, during which they arrived at their “final solution” that called for exterminating Europe’s Jews (1942)
21
Martin Luther King Day
It was announced by the U.S. Census Bureau that estimates showed that the Hispanic population had passed the black population for the first time (2003)
22
Cuba’s membership in the OAS was suspended (1962)
The U.S. Senate confirmed Madeleine Albright as he first female secretary of state (1997)
23
Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman in America to receive a medical degree (1849)
Nixon announced that an accord had been reached to end the Vietnam War (1973)
24
Thurgood Marshall, the first African American Supreme Court Justice, dies (1993)
Japan launched the first probe to be sent to the moon since 1976. A small satellite was placed in lunar orbit (1990)
25
Eliakim Spooner patented the seeding machine (1799)
In the U.S., American Airlines had the first scheduled transcontinental flight of a Boeing 707 (1959)
26
Hindi was made the official language of India (1965)
Russian president Boris Yeltsin announced that his country would stop targeting U.S. cities with nuclear weapons (1992)
27
Abraham Lincoln delivers Lyceum Address (1838)
Soviet troops liberated the Nazi concentration camps Auschwitz and Birkenau in Poland (1945)
28
Louis D. Brandeis was appointed by President Wilson to the U.S. Supreme Court, becoming its first Jewish member (1916)
Iceland became the first country to introduce legalized abortion (1935)
29
The first successful petrol-driven motorcar, built by Karl Benz, was patented (1886)
French President Jacques Chirac announced the “definite end” to nuclear testing (1996)
30
Indian leader, Mahatma Gandhi, assassinated (1948)
Japan’s last coal mine was closed. The closures were due to high production costs and cheap imports (2002)
31
Jackie Robinson was born (1919)
The Houses passes constitutional amendment to abolish slavery (1865)
1
William Lloyd Garrison founds abolitionist newspaper, The Liberator (1831)
Ellis Island Immigration Station officially opens (1892)
The Emancipation Proclamation goes into effect (1863)
2
Russian sci-fi writer, Isaac Asimov, born (1920)
Brigham Young, the 71-year-old leader of the Mormon Church, was arrested on a charge of bigamy. He had 25 wives (1872)
3
Stephen Austin received a grant from the Mexican government and began colonization in the region of the Brazos River in Texas (1823)
The Shogunate was abolished in Japan and Meiji dynasty was restored (1868)
4
Jakob Grimm, German fairy tale writer, is born (1785)
The Soviet satellite Sputnik fell to the earth from its orbit (1958)
5
Yahya Ayyash, a member of the Hamas in Israel, is killed by a booby-trapped cellular phone (1996)
An Austrian newspaper reports that Wilhelm Roentgen discovered a new type of radiation called X-ray (1896)
6
Saint Joan of Arc is born (1412)
President Franklin Roosevelt delivers the Four Freedoms speech (1941)
Off of South Africa, the British seized the German steamer Herzog (1900)
7
Galileo discovers first three Jupiter satellites (1610)
Zora Neale Hurston, African-American novelist, is born (1891)
8
Jackie Robinson announced his retirement from major league baseball in an article that appeared in “LOOK” magazine (1957)
In Egypt, archeologists entered a 4,300 year old pyramid and discovered the mummy of Queen Sesheshet (2009)
9
Kate Middleton was born (1982)
The state of Mississippi seceded from the United States (1861)
10
League of Nations established (1920)
In France, the “Official Journal” reported that all women could get the morning-after pill for free in pharmacies (2002)
11
Mary J. Blige was born (1971)
The first shipment of rhubarb was sent to the United States from London (1770)
12
Nigeria’s civil war ended (1970)
Yassar Arafar was re-elected as head of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (1973)
13
Japan apologized for forcing thousands of Korean women to serve as sex slaves during World War II (1992
Michael Jordan announced his retirement from the NBA (1999)
14
Revolutionary War ends; Congress ratifies the Treaty of Paris (1784)
An earthquake killed over 1,000 people in Jamaica (1907)
15
Martin Luther King Jr. was born (1929)
Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority became America’s first Greek-letter organization established by African-American college women (1908)
16
18th amendment, prohibition, becomes law (1919)
12 year long civil war ends in El Salvador (1992)
17
Yaqui Indians in Texas proclaimed their independence from Mexico (1900)
Mormon Brigham Roberts was denied a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives for his practicing of polygamy (1900)
18
Louis Armstrong and his orchestra recorded “Jeepers Creepers” (1939)
Willie O’Ree made his NHL debut with the Boston Bruins. He was the first black player to enter the league (1958)
19
In protest against the Russian invasion of 1968, Czech students Jan Palach set himself on fire in Prague’s Wenceslas Square (1969)
General Robert E. Lee was born (1807)
20
Women’s rights advocate Elizabeth Cady Stanton becomes first woman to testify before Congress (1869)
Nazi officials held the Wannsee conference, during which they arrived at their “final solution” that called for exterminating Europe’s Jews (1942)
21
Martin Luther King Day
It was announced by the U.S. Census Bureau that estimates showed that the Hispanic population had passed the black population for the first time (2003)
22
Cuba’s membership in the OAS was suspended (1962)
The U.S. Senate confirmed Madeleine Albright as he first female secretary of state (1997)
23
Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman in America to receive a medical degree (1849)
Nixon announced that an accord had been reached to end the Vietnam War (1973)
24
Thurgood Marshall, the first African American Supreme Court Justice, dies (1993)
Japan launched the first probe to be sent to the moon since 1976. A small satellite was placed in lunar orbit (1990)
25
Eliakim Spooner patented the seeding machine (1799)
In the U.S., American Airlines had the first scheduled transcontinental flight of a Boeing 707 (1959)
26
Hindi was made the official language of India (1965)
Russian president Boris Yeltsin announced that his country would stop targeting U.S. cities with nuclear weapons (1992)
27
Abraham Lincoln delivers Lyceum Address (1838)
Soviet troops liberated the Nazi concentration camps Auschwitz and Birkenau in Poland (1945)
28
Louis D. Brandeis was appointed by President Wilson to the U.S. Supreme Court, becoming its first Jewish member (1916)
Iceland became the first country to introduce legalized abortion (1935)
29
The first successful petrol-driven motorcar, built by Karl Benz, was patented (1886)
French President Jacques Chirac announced the “definite end” to nuclear testing (1996)
30
Indian leader, Mahatma Gandhi, assassinated (1948)
Japan’s last coal mine was closed. The closures were due to high production costs and cheap imports (2002)
31
Jackie Robinson was born (1919)
The Houses passes constitutional amendment to abolish slavery (1865)