2 January

366      The Alemanni cross the frozen Rhine River in large numbers, invading the Roman Empire.

533      Mercurius becomes Pope John II, the first pope to adopt a new name upon elevation to thepapacy.

1492     Reconquista: the Emirate of Granada, the last Moorish stronghold in Spain, surrenders.

1777     American Revolutionary War: American forces under the command of George Washington repulsed a British attack at the Battle of the Assunpink Creek near Trenton, New Jersey.

1788     Georgia becomes the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution.

1791     Big Bottom massacre in the Ohio Country, marking the beginning of the Northwest Indian War.

1860     The discovery of the planet Vulcan is announced at a meeting of the French Academy of Sciences in Paris, France.

1871     Amadeus I becomes King of Spain.

1900     American Statesman and diplomat John Hay announces the Open Door Policy to promote trade with China.

1904     James Longstreet (died), American general (born 1821)

1909     Barry Goldwater (born), American army officer and politician (died 1998)

1911     A gun battle in the East End of London left two dead and sparked a political row over the involvement of then-Home Secretary Winston Churchill.

1918     Willi Graf (born), German activist (died 1943)

1920     Isaac Asimov (born), American chemist and author (died 1992)

1920     The second Palmer Raid takes place with another 6,000 suspected communists and anarchists arrested and held without trial. These raids take place in several U.S. cities.

1923     Rachel Waterhouse (born), English local historian and writer

1935     Bruno Hauptmann goes on trial for the murder of Charles Lindbergh, Jr., infant son of aviator Charles Lindbergh.

1936     Roger Miller (born), American singer-songwriter and actor (died 1992)

1940     Jim Bakker (born), American minister, evangelist, and television host

1941     World War II: German bombing severely damages the Llandaff Cathedral in Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom.

1942     Dennis Hastert (born), American politician, 59th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives

1942     The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) convicts 33 members of a German spy ring headed by Fritz Joubert Duquesnein the largest espionage case in United States history—the Duquesne Spy Ring.

1942     World War II: Manila, Philippines is captured by Japanese forces.

1947     Jack Hanna (born), American zoologist

1959     Luna 1, the first spacecraft to reach the vicinity of the Moon and to orbit the Sun, is launched by the Soviet Union.

1963     Vietnam War: The Viet Cong wins its first major victory in the Battle of Ap Bac.

1967     Ronald Reagan sworn in as Governor of California

1968     Cuba Gooding, Jr. (born), American actor

1969     Robby Gordon (born), American race car driver

1969     William Fox-Pitt (born), English equestrian

1974    Tex Ritter (died), American singer and actor (born 1905)

1974     United States President Richard Nixon signs a bill lowering the maximum U.S. speed limit to 55 MPH in order to conservegasoline during an OPEC embargo.

1976     The Gale of January 1976 begins, which results in coastal flooding around the southern North Sea coasts, resulting in at least 82 deaths and US$1.3 billion in damage.

1977    Erroll Garner (died), American pianist and composer (born 1921)

1981     One of the largest investigations by a British police force ends when serial killer Peter Sutcliffe, the “Yorkshire Ripper”, is arrested in Sheffield, South Yorkshire.

1999     A brutal snowstorm smashes into the Midwestern United States, causing 14 inches (359 mm) of snow in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and 19 inches (487 mm) in Chicago, Illinois, where temperatures plunge to -13 °F (-25 °C); 68 deaths are reported.

2006     An explosion in a coal mine in Sago, West Virginia traps and kills 12 miners, while leaving one miner in critical condition.

2007     Elizabeth Fox-Genovese (died), American historian (born 1941)

Follow me

EO Smith

Interests include biological anthropology, evolution, social behavior, and human behavior. Conducted field research in the Tana River National Primate Reserve, Kenya and on Angaur, Palau, Micronesia, as well as research with captive nonhuman primates at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center and the Institute for Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya.
EO Smith
Follow me

Latest posts by EO Smith (see all)