January 30 is:
National Inane Answering Message Day
National Croissant Day
1661 – Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England was ritually executed two years after his death, on the anniversary of the execution of the monarch he himself deposed.
According to Wikipedia:
Cromwell died on Friday, 3 September 1658. On 30 January 1661, (the 12th anniversary of the execution of Charles I), Cromwell’s body was exhumed from Westminster Abbey, and was subjected to the ritual of a posthumous execution, as were the remains of Robert Blake, John Bradshaw and Henry Ireton…. His disinterred body was hanged in chains at Tyburn, and then thrown into a pit. Cromwell’s severed head was displayed on a pole outside Westminster Hall until 1685. Afterwards it allegedly was owned by various people and was publicly exhibited several times. Afterwards, the head changed hands several times, including its sale in 1814 to Josiah Henry Wilkinson, before eventually being buried beneath the floor of the antechapel at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, in 1960. The exact position was not publicly disclosed…
However, many people began to question whether or not the body mutilated at Tyburn was in fact that of Cromwell. These doubts arose because it was assumed that between his death in September 1658 and the exhumation of January 1661, Cromwell’s body was buried and reburied in several places to protect it from vengeful royalists. The stories suggest that his bodily remains are buried in London, Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire or Yorkshire. It continues to be questioned whether the body mutilated at Tyburn was in fact that of Oliver Cromwell.
Publication of Federalist Paper #47: The Particular Structure of the New Government and the Distribution of Power Among Its Different Parts written by James Madison in 1788. It was argued that there must be total separation between the branches of government per writings by Montesquieu. Madison concludes by implying Montesquieu did not mean there had to be total separation of distinct branches of government only that the same person or group could not directly control the actions of more than one branch. Madison considers separation of powers to provide “checks and balances”. He examines the state constitutions and finds that none have absolute separation of the branches.
1835 – In the first assassination attempt against a President of the United States, Richard Lawrence, an unemployed house-painter from England, attempted to shoot President Andrew Jackson, but failed and was subdued by a crowd, including several congressmen. He aimed a pistol at Jackson, which misfired. Lawrence pulled out a second pistol, which also misfired. Historians believe the humid weather contributed to the double misfiring. Lawrence was restrained, and legend says that Jackson attacked Lawrence with his cane. Others present, including David Crockett, restrained and disarmed Lawrence.
In 1847 Yerba Buena, (good herb) California was renamed San Francisco. (“I left my heart in Yerba Buena” has a pleasant ring to it!) San Francisco was called Yerba Buena because of a fragrant, mint-like herb (Clinopodium douglasii) that grew abundantly in the area,… and was used for tea and medicine by native Ohlone people and early settlers. The Spanish named the area and its bay anchorage “Yerba Buena,” and the settlement that grew there retained the name until it was officially changed to San Francisco in 1847.
“The name was officially changed to San Francisco on January 30, 1847, for two primary reasons:
International Recognition: The town’s American alcalde (mayor), Lieutenant Washington Allon Bartlett, noted that the name “Yerba Buena” was only known locally. International maps already labeled the area as “San Francisco,” named for the nearby mission and bay; changing the town’s name allowed it to take advantage of this existing global recognition.
A Rivalry with “Francisca”: A competing town being planned nearby (at the mouth of the Sacramento River) was intended to be named Francisca to capitalize on the bay’s fame. By quickly claiming the name “San Francisco,” Bartlett effectively eclipsed the rival town before it could establish its identity. As a result, the other town was renamed Benicia, after the middle name of the same noblewoman it was originally trying to honor.”
The first American ironclad warship, the USS Monitor was launched in 1862.
Birthday of Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882), thirty-second president of the United States
Adolf Hitler was sworn in as Chancellor of Germany on January 30, 1933.
Birthday of Richard Bruce (Dick) Cheney (January 30, 1941), vice-president during the administration of George W. Bush (2001-2009). VP Cheney died Nov 3, 2025.
On January 30, 1948, Indian political and spiritual leader Mahatma Gandhi was murdered by a Hindu extremist.
1959 – Danish liner, MS Hans Hedtoft, said to be the safest ship afloat and “unsinkable” like the RMS Titanic, struck an iceberg on her maiden voyage and sank, killing all 95 aboard.
Birthday of William McKinley (January 29, 1843), twenty-fifth president of the United States.
Henry VII was born on Jan 28, 1457.
1624 – Sir Thomas Warner founded the first British colony in the Caribbean, on the Island of Saint Kitts.
Birthday of (Sidonie-Gabrielle) Colette (January 28, 1873), French writer of “Gigi” It was made into a movie in 1958 starring Leslie Caron, Louis Jourdan, Maurice Chevalier, and Hermione Gingold and featuring songs “Thank Heaven for Little Girls” and “I’m Glad I’m Not Young Anymore”.
On Jan. 28, 1986, space shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after liftoff from Cape Canaveral, killing all seven crew members. (front row) Michael J. Smith, Dick Scobee, Ronald McNair; (back row) Ellison Onizuka, Christa McAuliffe, Gregory Jarvis, Judith Resnik.
In 1825 the U.S. Congress approved 
Birthday of Jerome Kern (January 27, 1885), American composer who wrote the score for the musical version of Edna Ferber’s novel “Show Boat“. The lyrics were written by Oscar Hammerstein II. Songs included “Ole Man River” and “Make Believe“. Show Boat was made into a movie three times: 1929 starring Laura LaPlante (a semi “talkie” movie”); 1936 starring Irene Dunne; and 1951 starring Kathryn Grayson and Howard Keel.
Birthday of John Roberts (January 27, 1955), Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, nominated by President George W Bush.
Birthday of Julia Grant (1826), wife of Ulysses S Grant; First Lady 1869-1877. Per Wikipedia: 
Anniversary of the discovery of gold in California in 1848. James W. Marshall found gold at Sutter’s Mill near Sacramento, starting the famous Gold Rush which brought 300,000 people to California, called “forty-niners”. The sudden influx of gold into the money supply reinvigorated the American economy, and the sudden population increase allowed California to go rapidly to statehood, in the Compromise of 1850.
1902 Denmark sold Virgin Islands to USA for $25 million in gold. The Virgin Islands are divided between the United States and the United Kingdom. The U.S.Virgin Islands consist of 4 larger islands: St. Croix, St. Thomas, St. John and Water Island, and some 50 smaller islets and cays. The total area of the U.S.Virgin Islands is 133 square miles.
On Jan. 24, 1965 Winston Churchill died in London at age 90.
Birthday of John Hancock (January 23, 1737), American Revolutionary statesman. He is remembered for his large and stylish signature on the United States Declaration of Independence. 
Birthday of Edouard Manet (January 23, 1832), French Impressionist painter.A sample of his work can be viewed at 
1666 – Shah Jahan, a descendant of Genghis Khan and Timur, died at the age of 74. He was the Mongul emperor of India and he built the Taj Mahal as a mausoleum for his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal. 
Queen Victoria died January 22, 1901, at age 81 after 63 years on the British throne.
January 22, 1973 Death of Lyndon Baines Johnson, the 36th President of the United States. He became president upon the death of John F. Kennedy. Johnson died at his ranch in Johnson City, Texas, at age 64 from a massive heart attack.
Birthday of