TODAY’S HISTORY LESSON – JAN 11
1569 England’s first state lottery was held.
1805 The Michigan Territory was created.
1813 1st pineapples planted in Hawaii
1843 Francis Scott Key, author of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” dies in Baltimore.
1862 Lincoln accepts Simon Cameron’s resignation as Secretary of War.
1867 Benito Juarez returned to the Mexican presidency, following the withdrawal of French troops and the execution of Emperor Maximilian.
1887 At Fort Smith, Arkansas, hangman George Maledon dispatches four victims in a multiple hanging.
1902 “Popular Mechanics” magazine was published for the first time.
1904 British troops massacre 1,000 dervishes in Somaliland.
1922 Insulin first used on humans to treat diabetes, on Leonard Thompson, 14, of Canada
1928 The legendary Bing Crosby records one of his first hits – “Ol’ Man River” – with the Paul Whiteman Orchestra.
1934 The German police raid the homes of dissident clergy in Berlin.
1940 Benjamin O. Davis, Sr., becomes the U.S. Army’s first black general, his son would later become a general as well.
1941 Adolf Hitler orders forces to be prepared to enter North Africa to assist the Italian effort, marking the establishment of the Afrika Korps.
1948 President Harry S. Truman proposes free, two-year community colleges for all who want an education.
1964 The first government report regarding the dangers of cigarette smoking was issued by the U.S. Surgeon General, Luther Terry.
1973 Baseball’s American League adopted the “designated hitter” rule which allowed another player to bat for the pitcher.
1977 France released Abu Daoud, a Palestinian suspected of involvement in the massacre of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics.
1980 Honda announces it will build the first Japanese-owned passenger-car assembly plant in the United States–in Ohio.
1988 U.S. Vice President George Bush met with representatives of independent counsel Lawrence E. Walsh to answer questions about the Iran-Contra affair.
1994 The Irish Government announces an end to a 15-year ban on broadcasting by the IRA and its political branch, Sinn Fein.
2000 The U.S. Postal Service unveiled the second Vietnam Veterans Memorial commemorative stamp in a ceremony at The Wall.
2001 The Texas Board of Criminal Justice released a review of the escape of the “Texas 7.” It stated that prison staff missed critical opportunities to prevent the escape by ignoring a fire alarm, not reporting unsupervised inmates and not demanding proper identification from inmates.
2002 The first prisoners arrive in Guantanamo Bay
2003 Illinois Gov. George Ryan commutes the death sentences of 167 prisoners on the state’s death row in the wake of allegations that Chicago police detective and commander Jon Burge tortured confessions from some 200 suspects over a 19 year period.
2007 Nearly 18 months after Hurricane Katrina a “Mississippi federal court judge” has ruled that Insurance companies are liable for payment to claims by victims of the hurricane.
2008 As the fallout continues from the sub-prime mess and pending foreclosures in Countrywide customers, Bank Of America has announced it will buy Countrywide Financial for $4.1 billion in stock making Bank of America Corp. the nation’s biggest mortgage lender and loan servicer.
2009 11 days after the dispute between Russia and the Ukraine started, Russian, Ukrainian and European Union officials have signed a deal enabling a resumption of Russian gas deliveries to European countries through Ukraine.
2011 The Arab Spring movement begins in Tunisia when demonstrators take to the streets to protest chronic unemployment and police brutality.
** history.net, onthisday.com, infoplease.com, timeanddate.com, thepeoplehistory.com, on-this-day.com **
