Today In History: What Happened This Day In History

A chronological timetable of historical events that occurred on this day in history. Historical facts of the day in the areas of military, politics, science, music, sports, arts, entertainment and more. Discover what happened today in history.

January 18

1486		Henry VII marries Elizabeth of York.
1701		Frederick III, the elector of Brandenburg, becomes king of Prussia.
1778		Captain James Cook discovers the Hawaiian Islands, naming them the ‘Sandwich Islands’ after the First Lord of the Admiralty, Lord Sandwich.
1836		Jim Bowie arrives at the Alamo to assist its Texas defenders.
1862		John Tyler, former president of the U.S., is buried at Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond.
1902		The Isthmus Canal Commission in Washington shifts its support from Nicaragua to Panama as a favored canal site.
1910		Aviator Eugene Ely performs his first successful take off and landing from a ship in San Francisco.
1916		The Russians force the Turkish 3rd Army back to Erzurum.
1942		General MacArthur repels the Japanese in Bataan. The United States took the lead in the Far East war criminal trials.
1945		The German Army launches its second attempt to relieve the besieged city of Budapest from the advancing Red Army.
1948		Ghandi breaks a 121-hour fast after halting Muslem-Hindu riots.
1962		The United States begins spraying foliage with herbicides in South Vietnam, in order to reveal the whereabouts of Vietcong guerrillas.
1964		Plans are disclosed for the World Trade Center in New York.
1978		The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) isolate the cause of Legionnaire’s disease.
1991		Iraq starts firing Scud missiles at Israeli cities.
Born on January 18
1782		Daniel Webster, congressman from New Hampshire, Massachusetts senator, and secretary of state before the Civil War.
1813		Joseph Glidden, inventor.
1858		Daniel Hale Williams, physician who performed the first open heart surgery, founder of Chicago’s Provident Hospital.
1882		A.A. [Alan Alexander] Milne, novelist, humorist and journalist (Winnie the Pooh).
1892		Oliver Hardy, film comedian, one half of Laurel and Hardy.
1904		Cary Grant, U.S. film actor (Gunga Din, Bringing Up Baby, The Philadelphia Story, North by Northwest).

– See more at: http://www.historynet.com/today-in-history#sthash.w8Qkv4d6.dpuf

Today In History. What Happened This Day In History

Today In History. What Happened This Day In History

A chronological timetable of historical events that occurred on this day in history. Historical facts of the day in the areas of military, politics, science, music, sports, arts, entertainment and more. Discover what happened today in history.

January 17

1601		The Treaty of Lyons ends a short war between France and Savoy.
1746		Charles Edward Stuart, the young pretender, defeats the government forces at the battle of Falkirk in Scotland.
1773		Captain James Cook becomes the first person to cross the Antarctic Circle.
1819		Simon Bolivar the “liberator” proclaims Columbia a republic.
1893		Queen Liliuokalani, the Hawaiian monarch, is overthrown by a group of American sugar planters led by Sanford Ballard Dole.
1852		At the Sand River Convention, the British recognize the independence of the Transvaal Board.
1912		Robert Scott reaches the South Pole only a month after Roald Amundsen.
1939		The Reich issues an order forbidding Jews to practice as dentists, veterinarians and chemists.
1945		The Red army occupies Warsaw.
1963		Soviet leader Khrushchev visits the Berlin Wall.
1985		A jury in New Jersey rules that terminally ill patients have the right to starve themselves.
Born on January 17
1504		Pius V, Pope 1566-1572.
1706		Benjamin Franklin, statesman, diplomat, scientist and inventor who helped draft the Declaration of Independence and wrote Poor Richard’s Almanac.
1860		Anton Chekhov, Russian playwright and short story writer famous for The Seagull and Three Sisters.
1863		David Lloyd George, British Prime Minister during World War I.
1899		Al Capone, U.S. mobster known as “Scarface Al” who ran most of Chicago and the surrounding area.
1922		Betty White, actress; created memorable characters in TV sitcoms from the 1950s into the 21st century (Life with Elizabeth, Mary Tyler Moore, The Golden Girls, Hot in Cleveland) and was a popular guest on TV games shows. At age 88 and a half she became the oldest person ever to host Saturday Night Live (2010).
1942		Muhammad Ali [Cassius Clay], U.S. boxer, “The Greatest,” who is the only three-time heavyweight champion..
1964		Michelle Robinson Obama, wife of US President Barack Obama.

– See more at: http://www.historynet.com/today-in-history#sthash.hxRqeQ1F.dpuf

today’s birthday: George Vancouver (1757)

George Vancouver (1757)

Vancouver was an English navigator and explorer who sailed on Captain James Cook’s second and third voyages. In 1791, he set out for the northwest coast of America, traveling east. He rounded the Cape of Good Hope, explored the coasts of Australia and New Zealand, and visited Tahiti and the Hawaiian Islands. He then reached the American coast and surveyed it for three years. In the course of his journeys, he circumnavigated the island that now bears his name. What was it originally called? More… Discuss

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