TODAY’S HISTORY LESSON – JAN 1
45 BC The Julian calendar takes effect for the first time
404 Last gladiator competition in Rome
630 Prophet Muhammad sets out with his army towards Mecca, capturing it bloodlessly
1500 The Portuguese explorer Pedro Alvares Cabral reaches the coast of Brazil and claims the region for Portugal.
1698 The Abenaki Indians and Massachusetts colonists sign a treaty halting hostilities between the two.
1772 1st traveler’s checks issued (London)
1788 The Times, London’s oldest running newspaper, publishes its first edition.
1808 A U.S. law banning the import of slaves comes into effect, but is widely ignored.
1830 William Lloyd Garrison publishes the first edition of a journal entitled The Liberator, calling for the complete and immediate emancipation of all slaves in the United States.
1862 1st US income tax (3% of incomes > $600, 5% of incomes > $10,000)
1863 Emancipation Proclamation issued by Abraham Lincoln to free slaves in US confederate states
1895 In Battle Creek, MI, C.W. Post created his first usable batch of Monks Brew (later called Postum). It was a cereal-based substitute for caffeinated drinks.
1907 The Pure Food and Drug Act becomes law in the United States.
1912 Sun Yat-sen forms Chinese Republic
1934 Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (US bank guarantor) effective
1937 At a party at the Hormel Mansion in Minnesota, a guest wins $100 for naming a new canned meat–Spam.
1944 Army defeats Navy 10-7 in football “Arab Bowl”, Oran, North Africa
1958 The European Economic Community is founded The EEC was a predecessor of today’s European Union (EU)
1959 Fidel Castro seizes power in Cuba as General Fulgencio Batista flees.
1961 Largest check issued, National Bank of Chicago to Sears ($960.242 billion)
1966 All US cigarette packs have to carry “Caution Cigarette smoking may be hazardous to your health”
1971 Cigarette advertisements banned on TV
1975 John Mitchell, H. R. Haldeman, and John Ehrlichman were convicted of obstruction of justice in the Watergate affair.
1976 Liberty Bell moves to new home behind Independence Hall
1979 US & China (People’s Republic) begin diplomatic relations
1980 Mob storms Russian embassy in Teheran
1985 US’s 1st manadatory seat belt law goes into effect (NY)
1985 VH-1 made its broadcasting debut
1986 As the United States builds its strength in the Mediterranean, Libyan leader Muammar al-Qaddafi threatens to retaliate if attacked.
1991 Iraq rejects peace proposal from Egyptian President Hosi Mubarak
1993 Czechoslovakia is dissolved The country was peacefully divided into the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic.
1998 US Census Bureau estimates population at 268,921,733
1999 The Euro becomes the official currency in 11 countries
1999 In California, a law went into effect that defined “invasion of privacy as trespassing with the intent to capture audio or video images of a celebrity or crime victim engaging in a personal of family activity.”
** history.net, onthisday.com, infoplease.com, timeanddate.com, thepeoplehistory.com, on-this-day.com **
