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What happened on January 04 Please support our Sponsors - They help us keep this site Alive! 0046 BC - Titus Labienus defeats Julius Caesar in the Battle of Ruspina. 0274 St Eutychian begins his reign as Catholic Pope 0871 Ethelred of Wessex is defeated by Danish forces at Reading, gains a brilliant victory 4 days later at Ashdown, is defeated January 22 at Basing, triumphs again March 2 at Marton in Wiltshire, but dies in April 1357 Flemish Earl Louis & Luxembourg Duke Wenceslaus sign peace treaty 1490 Anna of Brittany announces that all those who would ally with the king of France will be considered as guilty of the crime of lese-majesty. 1493 Christopher Columbus leaves the New World, ending his first journey. 1493 Columbus left new world on return from first voyage 1519 First Altenburger sermon (Luther & Karl von Miltitz) 1570 Spanish viceroy Alva banishes Zutphen City's only physician, Joost Sweiter, "because he is a Jew" 1618 In France, Samuel de Champlain receives the dowry of his wife Helene Boulle. 1642 King Charles I of England sends soldiers to arrest members of Parliament, commencing England's slide into civil war. 1698 Most of the Palace of Whitehall in London, the main residence of the English monarchs, is destroyed by fire. 1717 Netherlands, England & France sign Triple Alliance 1717 The Netherlands, England, and France sign the Triple Alliance. 1725 Benjamin Franklin arrives in London 1754 Columbia University founded, as Kings College (New York City NY) 1780 Snowstorm hit Washington's army at Morristown New Jersey 1781 André Méchain discovers M80 (globular cluster in Scorpio) 1821 Elizabeth Ann Seton, the first native-born American saint, dies in Emmitsburg, Maryland. 1832 Insurrection of Trinidad negroes 1843 Royal Academy (Technical Hague court) Delft opens 1847 Samuel Colt sells his first revolver pistol to the United States government. 1854 The McDonald Islands are discovered by Captain William McDonald aboard the Samarang. 1861 President Buchanan appoints a fast on account of threatened succession 1861 US Fort Morgan, Mobile, seized by Alabama 1862 Battle of Fort Hindman, AR (Arkansas Post) 1862 Romney Campaign-Stonewall Jackson occupies Bath 1863 4 wheeled roller skates patented by James Plimpton of NY 1877 Cornerlius Vanderbilt, millionaire entrepreneur and the richest man in the world at the time of his death, dies. 1884 Last sighting of an eastern cougar (Ontario) 1884 The Fabian Society is founded in London. 1885 Dr W W Grant of Iowa, performs first appendectomy (on Mary Gartside, 22) 1885 The first appendectomy is performed by Dr. William W. Grant of Davenport, Iowa. 1887 Thomas Stevens is first man to bicycle around the world (San Francisco-San Francisco); 21,700km 1893 US President Cleveland grants amnesty to Mormon polygamy 1894 France ratifies Duple Alliance with Russia 1896 Following Mormon abandonment of polygamy, Utah admitted as 45th state 1896 Seven members of Prime Minister Mackenzie Bowell's cabinet resign over the Manitoba Schools Question. 1896 Utah is admitted as the 45th U.S. state. 1902 France's Panama Canal Co. offers to sell its interests to the United States and reduces its asking price from $109 million to $40 million 1902 Hugh Trumble takes a hat-trick vs England at the MCG 1904 Supreme Court rules Puerto Ricans cannot be denied admission to US 1906 South Africa beat England by one wicket, their first Test win 1910 Commissioning of USS Michigan (BB-27), the first U.S. dreadnought battleship. 1912 Smallest earth-moon distance this century, 356,375 km center-to-center 1912 The Scout Association is incorporated throughout the British Commonwealth by Royal Charter. 1915 Trans-Caucausus Russian defeat Turkish troops 1920 Amsterdam actors decide to strike for retirement benefits 1923 Lenin's "Political Testament" calls for removal of Stalin 1926 Theodorus Pangalos resigns as Greek dictator 1932 Bradman scores 167 for Australia vs South Africa at the MCG 1932 British East Indies Viceroy Willingdon arrests Gandhi & Nehru 1935 Bob Hope first heard on network radio as part of "The Intimate Revue" 1935 Fort Jefferson National Monument, Florida established 1936 Billboard magazine publishes its first music hit parade 1936 Grimmett becomes world record wicket taker with no 190 vs South Africa 1936 Mickey's Polo Team, a short animated film featuring Charlie Chaplin, Oliver Hardy, Stan Laurel, and Harpo Marx in a polo match against various Disney characters, is first released. 1939 Frieda Wunderlich elected first woman dean of a US graduate school 1939 Hermann Goering appoints Reinhard Heydrich head of Jewish Emigration 1941 The animated short Elmer's Pet Rabbit is released: it marks the second appearance of Bugs Bunny and the first to have his name on a title card. 1942 Premier Churchill & General Marshall fly to Florida 1943 Head SS office writes to all concentration camp commanders, requesting them to forward human hair for processing at the firm of Alex Zink, Filzfabrik A.G. near Nuremberg. A half-mark would be received by the Commandant for each kilo of human hair. 1943 Tom Wilkinson football player; CFL QB, Edmonton Eskimos, was born 1944 Operation Carpetbagger, involving the dropping of arms and supplies to resistance fighters in Europe, begins. 1944 Ralph Bunche appointed first Negro official in US State Department 1945 Germans execute resistance fighters in Amsterdam 1945 US jeep-aircraft carrier Ommaney Bay sinks after kamikaze attack 1948 Burma gains its independence from Britain. 1949 Visitor posting - James Paul Geiger born in Melbourne Florida 1951 North Korean and Communist Chinese troops capture the city of Seoul, during the Korean War. 1954 Soap Opera "The Brighter Day" premieres 1957 "Blondie" situation comedy premieres on NBC TV (later on CBS) 1957 After 69 years the last issue of Collier's Weekly magazine is published. 1957 Dodgers buy 44 passenger twin-engine airplane for $775,000 1958 Sputnik 1 falls to Earth from its orbit (launched on October 4, 1957). 1959 Luna 1 (Mechta) becomes first craft to leave Earth's gravity 1960 European Free Trade Association forms in Stockholm 1961 Longest recorded strike ends-33 years-Danish barbers' assistants 1962 New York City introduces a train that operates without a crew on-board. 1962 The first automated (unmanned) subway train (New York City NY) 1963 Soviet Luna (4) reaches Earth orbit but fails to reach Moon 1965 Author T.S. Eliot dies in London at age 76. 1965 Fender, a favorite guitar and musical instrument manufacturer of the surf rock crowd, is sold to CBS for $13 million. 1965 LBJ's "Great Society" State of the Union Address 1966 Doug Walters scores second Test century in his second Test 1967 UK hist Donald Campbell dies attempting to break his world water speed record on Conniston Water – his body and Bluebird recovered in 2002 1968 Duck hunter accidentally shoots endangered whooping crane in Texas 1968 Leo Fender sells Fender Guitars for $13 million 1969 France begins arms embargo against Israel 1970 Beatles last recording session at EMI studios 1970 Walter Cronkite ends hosting weekly documentary 1971 Dr Melvin H Evans inaugurated as first elected Governor of Virgin Islands 1971 Ohio agrees to pay $675,000 to relatives of Kent State victims 1971 Philadelphia's Veteran Stadium dedicated 1971 The Canadian goverment in Ottawa withdraws troops from Montreal and other areas in Quebec in wake of FLQ crisis. 1972 Rose Heilbron becomes the first woman judge to sit at the Old Bailey in London. 1973 The world's longest running sitcom Last of the Summer Wine was first transmitted on BBC's Comedy Playhouse and is still running to date. 1974 Nixon refuses to hand over tapes subpoenaed by Watergate Committee 1974 President Nixon refuses to hand over documents and tape recordings subpoenaed by the Senate Watergate Committee. 1975 Elizabeth Ann Seton becomes the first American-born saint. 1975 Ford Executive Order on CIA Activities within the US (No 11828) 1975 Ice thickness measured at 4776 m, Wilkes Land, Antarctica 1975 Montreal Canadiens shut out Washington Capitals 10-0. 1979 An out-of-court settlement awards $675,000 to the victims of the Kent State massacre of 1970 (made famous by the CSNY song Ohio). 1981 "Frankenstein" opens & closes on Broadway 1981 Visitor posting - Tasha Miller Kistler born - USA 1981 British police arrest Peter Sutcliffe, the "Yorkshire Ripper" 1982 Bryant Gumbel became co-host of NBC's "Today Show" 1982 Chris Wallace becomes co-anchor of the Today Show 1983 Criminal Code changes replace rape with 3 categories of sexual assault; equal protection to men and women; women allowed to charge their husbands with sexual assault. 1984 "Night Court" starring Harry Anderson premieres on NBC TV 1986 David Boon's second Test century, 131 vs India at Adelaide 1987 16 die in a train crash in Chase MD 1987 An Amtrak train en route to Boston from Washington, DC, collides with Conrail engines, killing 16 people (Chase, Maryland rail wreck). 1987 Sixteen people die when a Washington-bound Amtrak train collides with Conrail locomotives in Chase, Maryland. 1987 Thomas Stevens became first man to bicycle around the world 1989 Aircraft (VF-32) from USS John F. Kennedy shoot down 2 hostile Libyan Migs. 1989 Comet Tempel 1 at perihelion 1989 Second Gulf of Sidra incident: a pair of Libyan MiG-23 "Floggers" are shot down by a pair of US Navy F-14 Tomcats during an air-to-air confrontation. 1989 US F-14s shoot down 2 Libyan jet fighters over Mediterranean 1989 Vice President Bush is first since Vice President Van Buren to declare himself President 1990 A crowded passenger train collides with a standing freight train in Pakistan's Sindh province, killing 300 people. 1990 Canada defeats Czechoslovakia 2-1 to win World Junior Hockey title. 1991 AT"T workers in Newark accidentally snap a cable everyone wonders what happened 1991 Iraq agrees to send Aziz to Geneva to meet Baker on Jan 9th 1991 Jan Krzystof Bielecki becomes premier of Poland 1995 Denis Lortie released on parole after serving 10 years in prison for 1984 shooting in the Quebec National Assembly, where he killed three people. 1995 Newt Gingrich (R) becomes speaker of the House 1995 Visitor posting - Victoria Head was born january 4th 1995 - Canada 1996 Visitor posting - Charles Bynum was born 1997 Canada wins the World Junior Hockey title in Switzerland. 1998 Wilaya of Relizane massacres in Algeria; over 170 are killed in three remote villages. 1999 Former pro wrestler Jesse Ventura is sworn in as Governor of Minnesota. 1999 Visitor posting - Spencer White was born - USA 1999 Gunmen open fire on Shiite Muslims worshipping in an Islamabad mosque, killing 16 people and injuring 25. 2004 Dr. Mikhail Saakashvili is elected the President of Georgia. 2004 Spirit, a NASA Mars Rover, lands successfully on Mars at 04:35 UTC. 2006 Many American media outlets erroneously report that 12 miners have been found alive in the Sago Mine Disaster. 2006 Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel suffers a second, apparently more serious stroke. His authority is transferred to Acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. 2007 The 110th United States Congress convenes, electing Nancy Pelosi as the first female Speaker of the House in U.S. history. More historical events added daily - keep checking back Add your own Personal Historic listing FREE! - Click Here Return to Daily Calendar Contact us at: info @ datesinhistory.com (remove the spaces) "This site contains links to other Internet sites. These links are not endorsements of any products or services in such sites, and no information in such site has been endorsed or approved by this site. We are not responsible for the content of external sites. We do not vouch for accuracy of the dates listed on this site." Privacy Policy . What happened on my birthday? Search other websites with Google If you added a Personal Historic listing - Find it on Google Get a HOUSE for $23,000 ?? 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