On February 20th 1962, from Cape Canaveral, Florida, John Hershel Glenn Jr was successfully launched into space aboard the Friendship 7 spacecraft on the first orbital flight by an American astronaut. Glenn, a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps, was among the seven men chosen by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in … Continue reading February 20 1962 John Glenn First American To Orbit Earth

On February 19th 1945, Operation Detachment, the US Marines' invasion of Iwo Jima, was launched. Iwo Jima was a barren Pacific island guarded by Japanese artillery, but to American military minds, it was prime real estate on which to build airfields to launch bombing raids against Japan, only 660 miles away. The Americans began applying … Continue reading February 19 1945 US Marines Invade Iwo Jima

On February 18th 1885, Mark Twain published his famous and controversial novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Twain (the pen name of Samuel Clemens) first introduced Huck Finn as the best friend of Tom Sawyer, hero of his tremendously successful novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876). Though Twain saw Huck's story as a kind … Continue reading February 18 1885 Mark Twain Publishes Huckleberry Finn

On February 17th 1904, Giacomo Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly premiered at the La Scala theatre in Milan, Italy. It was not received well, and lasted only one performance. The young Puccini had decided to dedicate his life to opera after seeing a performance of Giuseppe Verdi's Aida in 1876. In his later life, he would … Continue reading February 17 1904 Madame Butterfly Premieres

On February 16th 1923, in Thebes, Egypt, English archaeologist Howard Carter entered the sealed burial chamber of the ancient Egyptian ruler King Tutankhamen. Because the ancient Egyptians saw their pharaohs as gods, they carefully preserved their bodies after death, burying them in elaborate tombs containing rich treasures to accompany the rulers into the afterlife. In … Continue reading February 16 1923 King Tut’s Tomb Opened

On February 14th around the year 278 AD, Valentine, a holy priest in Rome in the days of Emperor Claudius II, was executed. Under the rule of Claudius the Cruel, Rome was involved in many unpopular and bloody campaigns. The emperor had to maintain a strong army, but was having a difficult time getting soldiers … Continue reading February 14 278 St Valentine Beheaded

On February 14th 1779, Captain James Cook, the great English explorer and navigator, was killed by natives of Hawaii during his third visit to the Pacific island group. In 1768, Cook, a surveyor in the Royal Navy, was commissioned a lieutenant in command of the HMS Endeavour and led an expedition that took scientists to … Continue reading February 14 1779 Captain Cook Killed In Hawaii

On 13th February 1633, Italian philosopher, astronomer and mathematician Galileo Galilei arrived in Rome to face charges of heresy for advocating Copernican theory, which holds that the Earth revolves around the Sun. Galileo officially faced the Roman Inquisition in April of that same year and agreed to plead guilty in exchange for a lighter sentence. … Continue reading February 13 1633 Galileo In Rome For Inquisition

On February 12th 1912, Hsian-T'ung, the last emperor of China, was forced to abdicate following Sun Yat-sen's republican revolution. A provisional government was established in his place, ending 267 years of Manchu rule in China and 2,000 years of imperial rule. The former emperor, only six years old, was allowed to keep up his residence … Continue reading February 12 1912 Last Emperor Of China Abdicates

On February 11th 1990, Nelson Mandela, leader of the movement to end South African apartheid, was released from prison after 27 years. In 1944, Mandela, a lawyer, joined the African National Congress (ANC), the oldest black political organization in South Africa, where he became a leader of Johannesburg's youth wing of the ANC. In 1952, … Continue reading February 11 1990 Nelson Mandela Released From Prison

On February 10th 1962, American spy pilot Francis Gary Powers was released by the Soviets in exchange for Soviet Colonel Rudolf Abel, a senior KGB spy who was caught in the United States five years earlier. The two men were brought to separate sides of the Glienicker Bridge, which connects East and West Berlin across … Continue reading February 10 1962 Francis Gary Powers Spy Swap

On February 9th 1900, the solid silver trophy known today as the Davis Cup was first put up for competition when American collegian Dwight Filley Davis challenged British tennis players to come across the Atlantic and compete against his Harvard team. Davis, born in St Louis, Missouri, won the intercollegiate tennis singles championship in 1899. … Continue reading February 9 1900 Davis Cup Competition Established

On February 8th 1587, after 19 years of imprisonment, Mary Queen of Scots was beheaded at Fotheringhay Castle in England for her complicity in a plot to murder Queen Elizabeth I. In 1542, while just six days old, Mary ascended to the Scottish throne upon the death of her father, King James V. Her mother … Continue reading February 8 1587 Mary Queen Of Scots Beheaded

On February 7th 1992, after suffering through centuries of bloody conflict, the nations of Western Europe finally united in the spirit of economic cooperation with the signing of the Maastricht Treaty of European Union. The treaty, signed by ministers of the European Community, called for greater economic integration, common foreign and security policies, and cooperation … Continue reading February 7 1992 European Union Established

On February 6th 1952, after a long illness, King George VI of Great Britain and Northern Ireland died in his sleep at the royal estate at Sandringham. Princess Elizabeth, the oldest of the king's two daughters and next in line to succeed him, was in Kenya at the time of her father's death; she was … Continue reading February 6 1952 Elizabeth Becomes Queen

On February 5th 1783, a massive earthquake in southern Italy destroyed villages and triggered a tsunami and landslides. In all, about 34,000 people lost their lives and 180 communities were destroyed. The estimated 7.5 to 8.0-magnitude quake struck at about 1 pm in the Calabria province. Within a minute, over 100 villages were leveled throughout … Continue reading February 5 1783 Earthquake Devastates Southern Italy

On February 4th 1976, in the very early morning hours, a massive earthquake leveled much of Guatemala City, killing 23,000 people and leaving 1 million others homeless. It was 3:04 a.m. when the first large tremor, centered six miles under the Earth’s surface 120 miles northwest of Guatemala City, struck. The 7.5 magnitude quake was … Continue reading February 4 1976 Earthquake Rocks Guatemala City

On February 3, 2005, Alberto Gonzales won Senate confirmation as the nation's first Hispanic Attorney General despite protests over his record on torture. The Senate approved his nomination on a largely party-line vote of 60-36, reflecting a split between Republicans and Democrats over whether the administration's counterterrorism policies had led to the abuse of prisoners … Continue reading February 3 2005 Gonzales First Hispanic US Attorney General

On February 2nd 1887, Groundhog Day, featuring a rodent meteorologist, was celebrated for the first time at Gobbler's Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. According to tradition, if a groundhog comes out of its hole on this day and sees its shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter weather; no shadow means an early spring. … Continue reading February 2 1887 First Groundhog Day

On February 1st 1884, the first portion, or fascicle, of the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), considered the most comprehensive and accurate dictionary of the English language, was published. Today, the OED is the definitive authority on the meaning, pronunciation and history of over half a million words, past and present Plans for the dictionary began … Continue reading February 1 1884 Oxford Dictionary Debuts

On January 31st 1968, as part of the Tet Offensive, a squad of Viet Cong guerillas attacked the US Embassy in Saigon. The soldiers seized the embassy and held it for six hours until an assault force of US paratroopers landed by helicopter on the building's roof and routed the Viet Cong. The Tet Offensive … Continue reading January 31 1968 Viet Cong Attack US Embassy

On January 30th 1948, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, the political and spiritual leader of the Indian independence movement, was assassinated in New Delhi by a Hindu fanatic. Born the son of an Indian official in 1869, Gandhi's Vaishnava mother was deeply religious and early on exposed her son to Jainism, a morally rigorous Indian religion that … Continue reading January 30 1948 Mahatma Gandhi Assassinated

On January 29th 1979, Brenda Spencer killed two men and wounded nine children as they entered the Grover Cleveland Elementary School in San Diego. Spencer blazed away with rifle shots from her home directly across the street from the school. After 20 minutes of shooting, police surrounded Spencer's home for six hours before she surrendered. … Continue reading January 29 1979 School Shooting In San Diego (I Don’t Like Mondays)

On January 28th, 1986, the space shuttle Challenger lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, and Christa McAuliffe is on her way to becoming the first ordinary US civilian to travel into space. McAuliffe, a 37-year-old high school social studies teacher from New Hampshire, won a competition that earned her a place among the seven-member crew … Continue reading January 28 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger Explodes

On January 27th 1888, the National Geographic Society was founded in Washington, DC, for "the increase and diffusion of geographical knowledge." The 33 men who originally met and formed the National Geographic Society were a diverse group of geographers, explorers, teachers, lawyers, cartographers, military officers and financiers. All shared an interest in scientific and geographical … Continue reading January 27 1888 National Geographic Society Founded