William Carter(printer, hanged for printing lewd pamphlets)β
Tom Longboat(runner)β
Born
Catharine Parr Traill(writer)β
John Knowles Paine(composer)β
Gracie Fields(comedienne)β
Simone de Beauvoir(novelist)β
Richard Nixon(37th U.S. president)β
Fernando Lamas(actor)β
Judith Krantz(author)β
Bart Starr(football player)β
Joan Baez(singer)β
Jimmy Page(guitarist)β
Sir Alec Jeffreys(geneticist)β
Crystal Gayle(singer)β
J. K. Simmons(actor)β
Joely Richardson(actress)β
Dave Matthews(musician)β
Catherine Middleton(Duchess of Cambridge)β
Events
Ivan the Terrible of Russia, suspecting a revolt in the city of Novgorod, captured the city and executed many of its inhabitantsβ
Connecticut became the fifth state to join the U.S.β
First successful U.S. balloon flight was completed in Philadelphia, PA, by Jean Pierre Blanchardβ
Mississippi seceded from the Union (U.S. Civil War)β
U.S. Forces invaded Luzon, Philippines (WW II)β
U.N. headquarters opened in New York Cityβ
U.S. and Japan concluded a formal agreement for the final settlement of U.S. postwar economic assitance to Japanβ
U.S. spacecraft Surveyor VII made a successful landing on the moonβ
The Queen Elizabeth, luxury ocean liner, was gutted by fire in Hong Kong harborβ
5.9 earthquake shook eastern Canada and New Englandβ
5.7 earthquake struck Miramichi, New Brunswickβ
NBAβs Toronto Raptors became the first team to miss all free throw attempts in a gameβ
Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs introduced the first iPhoneβ
A 6.5-magnitude earthquake struck off the shore of Eureka in Northern Californiaβ
A venomous yellow-bellied sea snake was found on shore in Newport Beach, California. This was the fifth recorded sighting of the snake species in California history, and the first outside of an El NiΓ±o year. Scientists believe that rising ocean temperatures may have been a factor. The snake typically lives in tropical water, spending its whole life at sea; it does not go on shore unless it is ill.β
Weather
28.5β snow, Olympia, Washingtonβ
Columbia River froze at Portland, Oregon, until January 26thβ