Tidbits of History

January 13 is:

Make Your Dream Come True Day“Ancient people often believed that dreams were messages from a higher power. In fact, the Ancient Egyptians believed this so much that they actually induced dreams to receive more messages. They would lie on special ‘dream beds’ in the hopes that a dream would give them advice, comfort, or even healing. Ancient people even practiced dream interpretation, if records are any indication. Ancient Sumerians, Babylonians, and various other cultures all kept records of religious texts featuring interpretations of various dreams.”

Tyvendedagen, the official end of Yuletide in Norway.

1559 – Elizabeth I was crowned Queen of England in Westminster Abbey. She was the last Tudor monarch, daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. Sometimes called “The Virgin Queen”. Succeeded to the throne on the death of her sister, Queen Mary. She reigned until her death in 1603. The colony of Virginia was named for her.

Anniversary of the death of George Fox in 1691, founder of the Society of Friends (Quakers).

James Oglethorpe and 130 English colonists arrived at Charleston, SC. on the ship “Ann” on January 13, 1733, and settled near the present site of Savannah, Georgia. Oglethorpe was granted a royal charter for the Province of Georgia.

On this day in 1794, President George Washington approved a measure adding two stars and two stripes to the American flag, following the admission of Vermont and Kentucky to the union. This flag was the only U.S. Flag to have more than 13 stripes

On this date in 1815 British troops capture Fort Peter in St. Marys, Georgia, the only battle of the War of 1812 to take place in that state.

Stephen Foster Memorial Day commemorates the anniversary of his death in 1864. Foster wrote more than 200 songs, including “Oh! Susanna”, “Hard Times Come Again No More”, “Camptown Races”, “Old Folks at Home”, “My Old Kentucky Home”, “Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair”, “Old Black Joe”, and “Beautiful Dreamer”.

1888 National Geographic Society founded in Washington, D.C. in 1888. From its website:
“It is one of the largest nonprofit scientific and educational institutions in the world. Its interests include geography, archaeology and natural science, and the promotion of environmental and historical conservation.”

1906 – First radio set advertised (Telimco for $7.50 in Scientific American). It claimed to receive signals up to one mile.

1920 New York Times editorial (falsely) reports rockets can never fly.

Mickey Mouse” comic strip first appears. Mickey was created by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks in 1928. Beginning in 1930, Mickey has also been featured extensively as a comic strip character. His self-titled newspaper strip, drawn primarily by Floyd Gottfredson, ran for 45 years.

Marshal Josip Broz Tito was chosen as President of Yugoslavia in 1953, a position he held until his death in 1980.

1968 – Johnny Cash performed live at Folsom State Prison in Folsom, California.

I hear the train a comin’
It’s rollin’ ’round the bend,
And I ain’t seen the sunshine,
Since, I don’t know when,
I’m stuck in Folsom Prison,
And time keeps draggin’ on,
But that train keeps a-rollin’,
On down to San Antone.

January 12 is:

National Pharmacist Day There were approximately 316,500 pharmacists in the United States as of 2016.

Feast of Fabulous Wild Men Day; Henry David Thoreau wrote the famous phrase, “In wildness is the preservation of the world.”

Birthday of John Winthrop (January 12, 1588), American colonial leader, first governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony.

Birthday of John Hancock (1737), American Revolutionary patriot, signer of the Declaration of Independence. He served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He became very popular in Massachusetts, especially after British officials seized his sloop Liberty in 1768 and charged him with smuggling.

Mission Santa Clara de Asís was founded in what is now Santa Clara, California in 1777.

Birthday of John Singer Sargent (January 12, 1856), considered the “leading portrait painter of his generation”. See examples of his work at Wikiart

Birthday of Jack London (January 12, 1876), the American author best known for his novel“The Call of the Wild”, Available at Wikisource

1915 – The Rocky Mountain National Park was formed by an act of U.S. Congress.

The United States House of Representatives rejected a 1915 proposal to give women the right to vote.

1926 – Original “Sam ‘n’ Henry” aired on Chicago, Illinois radio. The ten-minute program is often considered the first situation comedy. It was renamed “Amos ‘n’ Andy” in 1928.

All in the Family, the famous situation comedy premiered on CBS in 1971. Carroll O’Connor as Archie Bunker; Jean Stapleton as Edith Bunker, his wife; Sally Struthers as Gloria Stivic, their daughter; and Rob Reiner as Michael “Meathead” Stivic, Gloria’s husband. The show ran for nine seasons, ending April 8, 1979. The show broke ground in its depiction of issues previously considered unsuitable for a U.S. network television comedy, such as racism, antisemitism, infidelity, homosexuality, women’s liberation, rape, religion, miscarriages, abortion, breast cancer, the Vietnam War, menopause, and impotence.

Gulf War: An act of the U.S. Congress authorized the use of military force to drive Iraq out of Kuwait in 1991.

January 11 is:

Step in a Puddle and Splash Your Friends Day

Birthday of Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755), a founding father of the United States, chief staff aide to General George Washington, one of the most influential interpreters and promoters of the U.S. Constitution, the founder of the nation’s financial system, and the founder of the first political party, first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, co-author of “The Federalist Papers”.

Publication of Federalist Paper #37: Concerning the Difficulties of the Convention in Devising a Proper Form of Government written by James Madison in 1788. Here Madison relates some of the difficulties the Convention had in forming a new government. He speaks of the dichotomy of Energy vs. Stability, both necessary for the public good. Energy requires frequent elections; stability requires duration in power. The Convention also had to define the balance of power in the three branches of government and how they were determined. And finally, Madison describes how the states vary in population, wealth, and location. The writing of this Constitution was indeed a balancing act.

1805 – The Michigan Territory was created when President Thomas Jefferson signed legislation separating what would become part of the state of Michigan from Indiana Territory.

Birthday of Sir John D. Macdonald (January 11, 1815), first prime minister of Canada.

“Popular Mechanics” magazine was published for the first time in 1902.

Grand Canyon National Monument was created in 1908.

In 1922, the first time insulin was used to treat diabetes in a human patient.

1927 – Louis B. Mayer, head of film studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), announced the creation of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, at a banquet in Los Angeles, California.

Amelia Earhart became the first person to fly solo from Hawaii to California in 1935. She disappeared in 1937.

In 1964, the United States surgeon general reported that cigarettes cause lung cancer.

1973 – Major League Baseball owners vote in approval of the American League adopting the designated hitter position.

January 10 is the 10th day of the year.

Houseplant Appreciation Day

National Bittersweet Chocolate Day

Peculiar People Day According to Holiday Insights.com” “Peculiar People Day is in honor of uniquely different people. Un-ordinary, extraordinary, unusual, strange, odd, uncommon, intriguing, different, abnormal, and quirky…. These are all things that we think of to describe the word “peculiar”. Most of these characteristics can be viewed as good, or not so good. Today is a day to look for the good in your peculiar acquaintances.”

Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon on this day in 49 BC. According to: Eye Witness To History.com

The crossing of a small stream in northern Italy became one of ancient history’s most pivotal events. From it sprang the Roman Empire and the genesis of modern European culture. Born with unbridled political ambition and unsurpassed oratory skills, Julius Caesar manipulated his way to the position of consul of Rome in 59 BC. After his year of service he was named governor of Gaul where he amassed a personal fortune and exhibited his outstanding military skill in subduing the native Celtic and Germanic tribes. Caesar’s popularity with the people soared, presenting a threat to the power of the Senate and to Pompey, who held power in Rome. Accordingly, the Senate called upon Caesar to resign his command and disband his army or risk being declared an “Enemy of the State”. Pompey was entrusted with enforcing this edict – the foundation for civil war was laid.

It was January 49 BC, Caesar was staying in the northern Italian city of Ravenna and he had a decision to make. Either he acquiesced to the Senate’s command or he moved southward to confront Pompey and plunge the Roman Republic into a bloody civil war. An ancient Roman law forbade any general from crossing the Rubicon River and entering Italy proper with a standing army. To do so was treason. This tiny stream would reveal Caesar’s intentions and mark the point of no return.

1776 – Thomas Paine published his pamphlet Common Sense. It challenged the authority of the British government and the royal monarchy. The plain language that Paine used spoke to the common people of America and was the first work to openly ask for independence from Great Britain.

Publication of Federalist Paper #29: Concerning the Militia written by Alexander Hamilton on January 10, 1788. Hamilton recommends that each state have a small but well-trained militia. The federal government would establish a standing army to provide uniform training to all members, with approval and funding every two years from the representatives of the people.

Hamilton foresees the Second Amendment: “…if circumstances should at any time oblige the government to form an army of any magnitude that army can never be formidable to the liberties of the people while there is a large body of citizens, little, if at all, inferior to them in discipline and the use of arms, who stand ready to defend their own rights and those of their fellow citizens.”

Anniversary of the Underground Railway.  One estimate suggests that by 1850, 100,000 slaves had escaped via the “Railroad”.  More than 30,000 went to Canada.

In 1870 John D Rockefeller incorporated Standard Oil.

1901 – The first great Texas oil gusher was discovered at Spindletop in Beaumont, Texas.  No oil field in the world had ever been so productive

League of Nations Day 1920. The League of Nations ratified the Treaty of Versailles, officially ending World War I with Germany and held its first meeting in Geneva.

Anniversary of the first session of the General Assembly of the U.N. January 10, 1946

In 1949, RCA introduced the 45 RPM record.  It was a great boon to the music market as pre-teens and teens could afford a single record and did not have to buy a more expensive album which may or may not include other songs they wanted.