Today in History

This day in History May 13th

1938 "When the Saints Go Marching In" was recorded by Louis Armstrong and his Orchestra.

1940 Churchill makes First Speach As Prime Minister

1985 Philadelphia Police Department drop a bomb containing C-4 and Tovex from a helicopter onto MOVE's residence part of a row of tenements on Osage Avenue
 

1923
author,Willa Carter wins Pultizer Prize for her book'One of Ours', about Nebraska farm boy who dies in France during WWI.She based the story on letters written by a cousin who died in WWI,took her 4 yrs to write the book
1958
trademark'Velcro' is registered
1991
Apple Corp releases Macintosh system 7.0
2019
actress,Felicity Huffman pleads guilty with her involvement of the U.S. college admissions cheating scandal
 
This day in History May 14th

1940 The British Secretary of State for War Anthony Eden announced the creation of the Local Defence Volunteers ( LDV ) name changed in July of to "The Home Guard".

1942 Congress creates the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps ( WACS )

1948 The independent state of Israel is proclaimed as British rule in Palestine came to an end.

1957 Petrol rationing, which has been in force in Britain and France for five months following the Suez crisis ends.

1991 Winnie Mandela, the wife of Nelson Mandela, is given a six-year prison sentence for her part in the kidnap of four youths suspected of being police informers, one of the kidnapped boys later died of his injuries.
 

1607
English colonists establish 1st permanent English settlement in Jamestown.Today its known as Williamsburg,Virginia
1853
Gail Borden,land surveyor,newspaper publisher,inventor patents his invention of condensed milk
1942
U.S.Women's Army Auxillary Corps{WAAC} is established
1973
Skylab,the 1st U.S. Space Station,research laboratory is launched.It was the final launch of Saturn V rocket..The Apollo Command&Service module transported crews to&from space lab,remained attached to the station throughout crew's occupancy
 
14th May

1796 Edward Jenner became the first British physician to carry out a successful vaccination on an eight year old boy against smallpox. His pioneering work laid the foundation for modern immunology techniques.

1856 The trial of William Palmer, doctor and poisoner, began at the Old Bailey. Palmer's victims were poisoned with strychnine. They included creditors, at least 14 of his illegitimate children, his mother-in-law, his wife and ohter relations. Palmer was found guilty and executed in his native Staffordshire.

1957 The lifting of restrictions on fuel consumption imposed during the Suez crisis.

1965 The field at Runnymede, the signing of the Magna Carta, was dedicated as a memorial to the late John F Kennedy, US President.
 
This day in History May 15th

1918 U.S.A. Airmail Service

The first flights for the new U.S. airmail service begin between Washington, Philadelphia, and New York.

1939 U.S.A. Food Aid

A new plan is to be tested in Rochester New York for providing food aid to the 14,000 families on relief, A number of foods that are designated in surplus will be provided with the blue food stamps issued by the government these include Butter, White Flour, Fresh Oranges, and Eggs.

1940 U.S.A. Nylon Stockings

Nylon stockings from DuPont went on general sale for the first time in the United States.

1948 Israel Independence
Israel declares independence on May 14, 1948, and one day later the new state of Israel is attacked by Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, and Iraq which lasted almost a year, a cease-fire was declared and temporary borders, known as the Green Line, were instituted. The creation of Israel as an independent state had been rejected by The Arab League from the very beginning.

1957 Britain H Bomb Testing
Britain tests the first hydrogen bomb on the Christmas Island area in the Pacific Ocean, the arms race between countries continues to escalate as each country tests bigger and more destructive nuclear devices.
 
1718
James Puckle,a London lawyer patents world's 1st machine gun
1756
England declares war against France which begins the 7th Year's War,in the U. S. its known as French/Indian War.It was a struggle for North American territory.When it ended in 1763,England received Spanish Florida,Upper Canada,various French holdings overseas.France lost all claims to Canada,gave Louisiana to Spain
1942
1st gas rationing began in 17 Eastern U.S. states
1948
horse," Citation" wins horse racing's 'Triple Crown'{,Kentucky Derby,Preakness,Belmont Stakes} with jockey Eddie Arcardo aboard. He is the only jockey to win Triple Crown twice,he previously won in 1941 aboard 'Whirlaway'
2019
Jeff Koon's sculpture'Rabbit' sells at auction a new record $91.1 million for a work by a living artist
 
This day in history May 16th

1927 Following the floods in Louisiana rescue workers have so far found over 20 people dead with more coming as they continue to check homes flooded due to the flooding

1929 The First-ever Academy Awards of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards were handed out at a banquet held at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.

1943 Resistance in the Jewish ghetto in Warsaw has ended as SS Police and Wehrmacht units using tanks and other armored vehicles take back control of the ghetto crushing resistance after 1 month of fighting.

1969 Rioting and protests against the war in Vietnam continue on campuses throughout California with local National Guardsman patrolling the Berkeley campus of the University of California area with fixed bayonets to keep peace and order.

2005 Army Specialist Sabrina Harman was convicted at Fort Hood, Texas, for her role in the mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib.
 
1866
U.S. Congress authorizes 5 cent nickel to replace the silver half dime
1929
The 1st Academy Awards were held at a private party with 250 guests in a ballroom at the Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles,The winners were:
Best Picture- Wings
Best Actor-Emil Jannings
Best Actress-Janet Gaynor
It lasted 15 min,Douglas Fairbanks,Sr was the Academy's 1st President
1965
Campbell Soup Co introduces'SpaghettiO's" under its Franco-American brand
1991
Queen Elizabeth II becomes the 1st British monarch to address U.S. Congress
 
This day in History May 17th

1875 U.S.A. First Kentucky Derby

In front of an estimated crowd of 10,000 people, a field of 15 three-year-old horses contested the First Kentucky Derby in 1875 at Churchill Downs, Louisville, Kentucky.

1925 Germany Mining Disaster Dortsfeld

A major mine disaster in Dortsfeld in Germany has now claimed the lives of 43 men, rescue attempts are still continuing but are hampered by the deadly gasses in the mines with rescue workers collapsing from the fumes in the narrow passageways.

1936 U.S.A. New Deal
A number of proposals are being looked at to finance " The New Deal " program including a flat tax on all corporate income, and also an increase in the normal income tax rate from 4% to 5%.

1943 Germany Dam Busters Raid
Lancaster bombers use the revolutionary bomb designed to bounce on the water to bypass dam defenses. The bombs were invented for the task by aircraft engineer Dr. Barnes Wallis with pilots flying the Lancaster bombers just 100 ft above the water. The destruction of the dams two on the rivers Möhne and Sorpe, and a third on the River Eder caused floodwaters to sweep through the Ruhr valley, damaging factories, houses, and power stations.

1948 Israel Statehood
Following the formation of the Jewish State of Israel, Russia has now extended recognition of the Hebrew state and 4000 Arab fighters have surrendered in the old walled city of Acre weakened by a major outbreak of Typhoid.
 
17th May

1861 A group of holidaymakers set off from London on the first foreign 'package trip' arranged by Thomas Cook. It was a six day holiday in Paris

1890 The first weekly comic paper, Comic Cuts, was published by Alfred Harmsworth in London.

1969 Tom McClean from Dublin left Newfoundland aboard Super Silver and completed the first transatlantic solo crossing in a rowing boat on 27th July when he arrived at Blacksod, County Mayo.

2000 Two Royal Marine commandoes became the first Britons to reach the geographical North Pole.
 
1792
24 merchants form the New York Stock Exchange at 70 Wall St in NYC
1900
'The Wizard of Oz" 1st published by L.Frank Baum with illustrations by William Wallace Denslow in Chicago
1973
U.S. Senate Comm headed by Sen Sam Ervin began the Watergate TV hearings on the June 1972 break in at the Watergate office complex in Washington,DC.The DC police arrested 5 men for unlaw entry to the Democratic National Comm HQ's.The hearings riveted nation esp after former White House counsel,John Dean testified Pres Nixon knew about the crime& cover-up
2007
trains from North&South Korea cross the 38th Parallel in test run agreed by both govt's.Its the 1st time trains have crossed the Demilitarized Zone since 1953
 
This day in History May 18th

1921 Typhus on Ellis Island

Following a case of Typhus, Ellis Island has been under quarantine. More than 1,700 immigrants who may have come in contact are also in quarantine while the island is fumigated and cleaned up, it will several days before the island is opened again for immigration.

1929 U.S.A. Al Capone
Al Capone is today in prison following his plea of guilty to the minor charge of carrying a concealed weapon, it is believed he pled guilty to these offenses to help him stay safe in prison, he is best known for his domination of the Chicago Beer Runners and is believed to have been behind the St Valentines Day massacre.

1930 U.S.A. Strengthening Prohibition Enforcement
Following pressure from the temperance movement, President Hoover has recommended strengthening the prohibition enforcement by moving enforcement to the justice department. This places the day-to-day dry rules under Attorney General Mitchell, It is also proposed to strengthen and unify border patrols.

1940 World War II

Germany continues in its quest for control of Europe and has captured Antwerp and continuing its push to Paris with a multi-pronged attack, the allies are fighting hard to keep control of Flanders, but Germany has superiority in the air and flame-throwing tanks. In the USA President Roosevelt is asking industrialists to increase the production of aircraft to help the allies.

1950 England NATO
12 nations agree to the creation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation / NATO a permanent organization for the defense of the United States and Europe. The 12 nations included in the beginning are Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Britain, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, and the United States
 
1897
novel'Dracula' by Irish author,Bram Stoker is published in London,England
1927
Grauman's Chinese Theatre opens in Hollywood,Calif
1934
TWA{Transworld Airline} begins commerical service,it ceases in 2001 when company filed for bankruptcy.
1980
Mount St Helens in Washington State erupts causing the largest landslide in history,killing 57 people $ 1 billion in damage
 
This Day in History May 19th

1921 U.S.A. Emergency Quota Act

The Emergency Quota Act was passed into law which limits the number of immigrants admitted into the US.

1923 U.S.A. Harry Houdini
Harry Houdini ex medium, magician, handcuff king, disappearing artist denounced spirit mediums, clairvoyants in a radio interview and has said his good friend Sir A Conan Doyle (creator of Sherlock Holmes) has been duped by tricksters and fraudsters.

1932 U.S.A. 30% Pay Cuts
As relief funds in the city after city is coming to an end and with over 8,000,000 now unemployed and many close to starvation, the federal government is putting through plans for major construction projects on public works the total is in excess of 1 billion dollars but are still waiting for a vote for funding. Also because of the large-scale unemployment cuts in up to 40 cents per hour or a 30% wage cut are now in force for 12 months to help together with the mass funding into banks to help keep them solvent and supply much-needed capital for businesses to survive.

1964 Soviet Union Hidden Microphones
The State Department told the press that 40 hidden microphones had been found in the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.

1967 Soviet Union Nuclear Space Weapons Treaty
The Soviet Union joins most of the world's major powers by ratifying the treaty banning nuclear weapons from outer space.
 
1845 Captain Sir John Franklin and his ill fated Arctic expedition departed from Greenhithe in Kent. The entire crew of 129 perished from starvation, hypothermia, tuberculolis, lead poisoning and scurby whilst attempting to chart and naviage a section of the Northwest Passage in the Canadian Arctic.

1935 T.E. Lawrence, English soldier and writer (known to the world as Lawrence of Arabia) died from injuries sustained in a motorcycle crash.

2013 At 1:00pm. BST the aircraft carrier Ark Royal left Portsmouth Harbour for the final time, to be towed to Turkey for scrap.

2014 Britain's longest serving postmistress retired, after 61 years in the job. Esther Brauer,83, ran the business first from her home in Kylesku in Sutherland, Scotland and for the last 31 years from a wooden shed in her garden. She said she had finally made up her mind to stand down because of her computer "going doolally".
 
1536
Anne Boleyn,Henry the VIII's 2nd wife,is beheaded after being charged with adultery,treason
1857
William Francis Channing,Moses G.Farmer patent electric fire alarm
1900
The Simplon,world's longest railroad tunnel linking Italy &Switzerland opens
1982
actress, Sophia Loren is jailed in Naples,Italy for tax evasion.She voluntarily surrendered,claimed her deceased tax preparer made an error.Her sentence was 30 days,she served 17
2020
a study published in 'Nature Climate Change' in April 2020 greenhouse gas emissons dropped 17% due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandempic
 
This day in History May 20th

1862 U.S.A. The Homestead Act

President Abraham Lincoln signs into law the original Homestead Act on May 20th, 1862. The Homestead Act gave an applicant freehold title to up to 160 acres of undeveloped federal land outside the original 13 colonies.

1927 Britain Saudi Arabia
Britain recognizes the independence of Saudi Arabia.

1927 U.S.A. Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh who many called the "flying fool" has set off from Roosevelt Field in Long Island, NY, today flying the "Spirit of St. Louis" on an epic flight from New York to Paris and is a milestone in flying aviation history, he is expected to arrive in Paris sometime late tomorrow. His plane A Ryan is expected to travel up to 125 MPH as the fuel load decreases. He completed the 33-hour, 30-minute flight and landed at Le Bourget Airport, Paris on the evening of 21 May.

1936 U.S.A. Largest Bond Issue In History
The US Treasury has announced the largest bond issue in history for June 15th of 1 Billion Dollars, this is in addition to treasury floating $100,000,000 of treasury bills issued each week. The bonds will help pay for the large-scale public works putting millions of Americans back to work.

1956 U.S.A. H Bomb Tests
The first hydrogen bomb dropped from an aircraft is exploded by America over Bikini Atoll in the South Pacific.
 
1609
William Shakespeare's sonnets are 1st published in London,England
1873
Levi Strauss,Jacob Davis patent 1st blue jeans with copper rivets
1930
Amelia Earhart departs Newfoundland on her historic journey as the 1st woman
to fly non-stop across the Atlantic Ocean landing in Ireland
1967
BBC bans The Beatles'A Day in the Life' because of drug references
2015
5 of the world's largest banks,JPMorgan,Barclays,Citigroup,RBS,UBS are fined $ 5.7 billion{U.S} for manipulating currency markets.Its the largest fines ever
 
This day in History May 21st

1881 American Red Cross Founded

1927 Charles Lindbergh landed in Paris, completing the first nonstop trans-Atlantic flight

1932 Amelia Earhart becomes the first woman to make a solo air crossing of the Atlantic Ocean, from Newfoundland to Ireland

1991 Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi is assassinated

2010 Scientists in the United States successfully created artificial life by creating the first live cell to be controlled by synthetic DNA.
 
1881
American Red Cross was founded by nurse/humantarian,Clara Barton
1941
SSRobin Moor 1st U.S.ship sunk by a U-Boat during WWII
1977
horse,'Seattle Slew' wins horse racing's Triple Crown with jockey,Jean Cruget
2007
Cutty Sark,last surviving tea clipper was badly damaged in a fired in Greenwich,England
The ship was undergoing a $25 mil pound restoration,small part of the 3rd deck&hull timbers were damaged.The cause of fire was an industrial vacuum cleaner that was left on for 2 days
 
This is an interesting thread, thanks! However:
1927 Charles Lindbergh landed in Paris, completing the first nonstop trans-Atlantic flight
No, that actually happened much earlier, two Brits did it in 1919, see https://www.cam.ac.uk/Transatlantic100

Lindberg was just the better promoter and managed to take the credit. I believe he was the first solo crossing.
 
This day in History May 22nd

1927 An earthquake measuring 8.6 on the Richter scale strikes Xining in the eastern part of Qinghai province It was one of the deadliest earthquakes on record with a total count of 200,000 deaths.

1965 Berkeley University Anti Vietnam Protests

1972 Ceylon changes its name from Ceylon to Sri Lanka

1981 The Yorkshire Ripper Peter Sutcliffe found guilty of killing 13 women

1989 Students occupied Tiananmen Square in Beijing
 
1819
The,SS Savannah a hybrid sailing/side wheel steam ship became the 1st vessel to cross the Atlantic Ocean,left Savannah,Georgia landed in England
1892
Dr. Washington Sheffield invents the toothpaste tube
1906
The Wright Brothers were granted a patent for their'flying machine' 3 yrs after they applied for it
1961
The 1st revolving restaurant opens,'Top of The Needle' in Seattle, Washington
1992
Johnny Carson's last appearance as host of 'The Tonight Show' no guests just did an hour of reminiscing with Ed McMahon,Doc Severson.He hosted the show for over 30 yrs,42 million viewers tuned in
 


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