Category Archives: History

History

On this day January 15

Today in History

  • 2001 Wikipedia goes online

    The online encyclopedia has since become the largest reference work on the internet.

  • 1992 Croatia and Slovenia are internationally recognized as independent nations

    The Yugoslav federation effectively collapsed as a result.

  • 1973 Nixon orders ceasefire in Vietnam

    The fighting continued anyway until the capture of Saigon by the Vietnam People’s Army on April 30, 1975.

  • 1892 The rules of Basketball are published

    Canadian James Naismith invented the sport for his gym class at YMCA in Springfield, Massachusetts.

  • 1759 The British Museum opens

    Its collection comprises 8 million items and it is one of the most comprehensive collections in the world.

History

On this day January 14

Today in History

  • 2005 The European Huygens space probe lands on Saturn’s moon Titan

    It was the first ever landing in the outer solar system.

  • 1967 The Summer of Love is launched with the Human Be-In

    San Francisco was the epicenter of the Hippie Revolution, which soon influenced cultures around the world.

  • 1953 Tito becomes President of Yugoslavia

    The authoritarian leader became a unifying symbol in his country and is still known by many today.

  • 1943 Churchill, Roosevelt and de Gaulle meet in Casablanca to discuss their WWII strategy

    During the secret Casablanca Conference, the leaders agreed that the allied forces would accept nothing less than the unconditional surrender of the Axis powers.

  • 1559 Elizabeth I is crowned Queen of England

    “The Virgin Queen” was the daughter of Anne Boleyn and King Henry VIII.

History

On this day January 12

Today in History

  • 2010 An earthquake kills 316,000 in Haiti

    Most of the country’s capital, Port-au-Prince, was destroyed during the disaster.

  • 1991 The U.S. Congress votes for war in Iraq

    President George H. W. Bush was given the authority to use military force to expel Iraq from Kuwait.

  • 1969 Led Zeppelin releases their debut album

    The album was imaginatively named “Led Zeppelin”.

  • 1967 James Bedford is frozen with intent of future resuscitation

    Bedford was the first human to be cryonically preserved; his body awaits resuscitation in Scottsdale, Arizona.

  • 1908 The first long-distance radio message is broadcast from the Eiffel Tower in Paris

    Scientist Lee de Forest’s broadcast was heard by an audience of 50.

History

On This Day – November 29

On This Day – November 29

  • 1972 Atari Releases Pong

    One of the very first arcade games to hit the market, Pong was a 1 or 2 player video game similar to tennis, where the goal is to use a paddle to hit a ball. Around 35000 Pong consoles were sold around the world.

  • 1951 Silent Coup in Thailand

    The Thai military took over the country’s governance and reinstated the 1932 Constitution.

  • 1929 First flight over the South Pole

    American explorer Richard Byrd became the first person to fly over the South Pole. The flight took just over 18 hours. 3 years ago, Byrd flew over the North Pole, though there is some debate whether he actually accomplished the feat.

  • 1899 FC Barcelona founded

    The popular football (soccer) club was founded by footballer Hans Gamper. Informally known as Barça, the club is thought to be one of the top 5 richest football clubs in the world. The club has won 4 European Cups (1978-79, 1981-82, 1988-89, 1996-97) and is a 5 time Champions League winner (1991-92, 2005-06, 2008-09, 2010-11, 2014-15).

  • 1777 City of San Jose Founded

    The first city to be settled in California, San Jose was founded as San José de Guadalupe. Before the Spanish settled in the city, the area was inhabitated by the Ohlone people. San Jose was the first capital of the state of California, which was established in 1850.