This Week in History: Dec. 31-Jan. 6, 2019

This Week in History
by Dianne Hermann

“No problem of human making is too great to be overcome by
human ingenuity, human energy, and the untiring hope of the human spirit.”
President George H. W. Bush

Week of Dec. 31-Jan. 6, 2019

December 31

1879 – The cornerstone is laid for Iolani Palace in Hawaii, the only royal palace in the U.S. It was used as the royal Hawaiian residence until the monarchy was overthrown in 1893. Hawaii became a state in 1959. The palace was used as the state capital building until 1969 and opened as a museum in 1978.

1890 – Ellis Island in New York opens as a U.S. immigration depot.

1904 – The first New Year’s Eve celebration is held in Times Square, known as Longacre Square, in New York City.

1907 – For the first time the ball drops at Times Square to signal the start of a new year. The first New Year’s Eve ball, made of iron and wood, was adorned with one hundred 25-watt light bulbs, is 5 feet in diameter, and weighs 700 pounds. It has been lowered every year since, except for 1942 and 1943.

1935 – Charles Darrow patents the board game Monopoly. Parker Brothers negotiated the rights to mass-produce the game, making Darrow the first game designer to be a millionaire. Darrow is better known as the defense lawyer for the teacher in the Scopes Monkey Trial and in the Leopold and Loeb murder trial. Darrow died in 1967 at age 78.

1940 – The first monthly U.S. social security payment is made to Ida May Fuller of Vermont for $22.54. She collected social security payments until her death in 1975 at age 100.

1955 – The General Motors Corporation becomes the first U.S. corporation to make over $1 billion in a year.

1961 – The Marshall Plan (the European Recovery Program) expires after distributing more than $12 billion to European countries recovering from WWII.

1967 – In the “Ice Bowl”, the Packers beat the Cowboys 21-17 in the NFL championship game. The temperature of -13°F made it the coldest game on record.

1974 – The ban on “hoarding” gold in the U.S. ends. In 1933, President FDR signed Executive Order 6102 making it illegal to own gold, except in small amounts or in the form of gold coins or certificates. Gold was turned over to the Federal Reserve in exchange for $20.67 per troy ounce.

1997 – Microsoft buys Hotmail E-mail service in a stock-swap transaction worth an estimated $400 million.

1999 – The U.S. turns over control of Panama Canal to Panama. The U.S. built the Canal from 1903 to 1914.

2007 – The Central Artery/ Tunnel Project, known as the “Big Dig,” is completed in Boston, Massachusetts. It was the most expensive highway project in U.S. history, costing more than $14 billion. The project was scheduled for completed in 1998 at a cost of less than $3 billion. Watch a CBS This Morning report on the dig:

January 1 – Happy New Year!

1788 – Quakers in Pennsylvania emancipate their slaves.

1808 – Congress prohibits the importation of slaves.

1861 – President Lincoln declares slavery in the Confederate states unlawful via the Emancipation Proclamation.

1886 – The first Tournament of Roses Parade is held in Pasadena, California. The parade was the promotional brainchild of Pasadena’s distinguished Valley Hunt Club.

1902 – The first Rose Bowl football game in played in Pasadena, California. The University of Michigan defeated Stanford University 49-0.

1942 – The Rose Bowl football game is played in North Carolina instead of California after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor three weeks earlier. Oregon beats Duke 20-16. It was the only time the Rose Bowl was not played in Pasadena.

1958 – Johnny Cash plays his first of many free concerts behind bars at San Quentin Prison. Twenty-year-old inmate Merle Haggard was in the audience. Watch Johnny Cash sing at one of his San Quintin concerts:

1966 – All U.S. cigarette packs have to carry the warning “Caution Cigarette smoking may be hazardous to your health.”

1971 – Cigarette advertisements are banned on TV.

1976 – The Liberty Bell moves to its new home behind Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for the U.S. bicentennial.

1985 – The Internet’s Domain Name System is created.

2002 – The Open Skies Treaty, a mutual surveillance treaty, officially goes into effect. It was initially signed in 1992 by 34 countries, including the U.S., to promote openness and transparency of military forces and activities.

January 2

1811 – U.S. Senator Timothy Pickering is the first senator to be censured. He revealed confidential documents communicated from President Taft to the Senate.

1903 – President Theodore Roosevelt shuts down a post office in Indianola, Mississippi, for refusing to accept its appointed postmistress because she is black.

1932 – The Young Brothers (Paul, Harry, and Jennings) kill six police officers in a shootout near Springfield, Missouri. It was the worst single killing of U.S. law enforcement officers in the 20th Century. Harry and Jennings were tracked down in Texas after a national manhunt and died in what is believed to be a murder-suicide. Watch a modern news report about the massacre:

1942 – The U.S. Navy opens a blimp base at Lakehurst, New Jersey. Although the crash of the Hindenburg over Lakehurst in 1937 ended commercial blimp travel the military continued to successfully use blimps.

1974 – President Richard Nixon imposes a National Maximum Speed Law of 55 MPH as part of the Emergency Highway Conservation Act. This was in response to the 1973 oil crisis. Congress repealed the national speed limit in 1995 and returns control to individual states.

1988 – Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and President Ronald Reagan sign a Canada-U.S. free trade agreement.

2017 – An attempt by Republicans to move the Office of Congressional Ethics under direct control of the House Ethics Committee was reversed less than 24 hours after the initial vote. The OCE was created in 2008 to review misconduct allegations against House members. The lengthy list of investigations can be found on the OCE’s website at https://oce.house.gov/reports/investigations.

January 3

1823 – Stephen F. Austin receives a grant of land from the government of Mexico and settles with his family in what is now Texas. He is considered the “Father of Texas.”

1920 – The New York Yankees purchase baseball player Herman “Babe” Ruth from the Boston Red Sox for $125,000. It was the largest sum paid for a single player to date. He led the Yankees to seven pennants and four World Series wins. Ruth retired from baseball with the Boston Braves in 1935. Ruth died in 1948 at age 53.

1929 – Twenty-seven-year-old William S. Paley becomes the founder and president of CBS-TV. In 1946, he named Frank Stanton to head CBS. Paley died in 1990 at age 89.

1938 – March of Dimes is established to fight polio.

1944 – World War II top flying ace Major Greg “Pappy” Boyington is shot down over the Pacific and captured by the Japanese. The Black Sheep Squadron leader was released after 20 months in captivity. Boyington was awarded the Medal of Honor by President F. D. Roosevelt while still a prisoner of war. He was presented with the Medal by President Truman the following October. Pappy died in 1988 at age 75.

1952 – Dragnet with Jack Webb premieres on NBC-TV. It started as a radio series in 1949, spawned three generations of TV series, and was made into movies in 1954, 1966 and 1987. Webb died in 1982 at age 62. Watch one of Webb’s classics speeches:

1961 – The U.S. breaks diplomatic relations with Cuba and closes its embassy in Havana.

1977 – Apple Computer is incorporated.

1994 – The controversial 35-foot-tall statue of Chief Wahoo, the Cleveland Indians trademark which sat on top of their stadium since 1962, is taken down to be moved to the new stadium at Jacob’s Field. The Indians redesigned their uniforms and will stop using the logo in the 2019 season.

2005 – After hosting the show for over 30 years, Casey Kasem gives up hosting “American Top 40” to Ryan Seacrest. Kasem died in 2014 at age 82.

January 4

1847 – Samuel Colt sells his first revolver pistol, the Walker, to the U.S. government.

1893 – President Harrison grants amnesty to Mormon polygamists and Utah is admitted to the Union exactly three years later.

1936 – Billboard magazine publishes its first music Hit Parade. The first # 1 song in Billboard history was Joe Venuti, father of the jazz violin, performing “Stop, Look and Listen.” Listen to the recording:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_kyDdK57B4

1954 – Elvis Presley records a 10-minute demo tape in Nashville, Tennessee.

1970 – Walter Cronkite stops hosting his weekly documentary but continues reporting for the CBS Evening News. He retired from CBS in March 1981 because of their policy of mandatory retirement by age 65. Cronkite died in 2009 at age 92.

1995 – Newt Gingrich (R) becomes Speaker of the House. He resigned as Speaker in January 1999 after House Republicans had the worst performance in 64 years following the November 1998 mid-term elections.

2004 – NASA’s Mars Rover Spirit lands successfully on Mars. It was launched in June 2003. Communication with Spirit was lost in March 2010.

2007 – The 110th United States Congress convenes, electing Nancy Pelosi as the first female Speaker of the House in U.S. history.

January 5

1781 – A British naval expedition led by former American General and traitor Benedict Arnold burns Richmond, Virginia.

1836 – Davy Crockett arrives in Texas. Crocket served in the U.S. House of Representatives 1927-1935. After being defeated for reelection in 1934, he said, “I told the people of my district that I would serve them as faithfully as I had done; but if not, they might go to hell, and I would go to Texas.” He was killed at age 49 defending the Alamo on March 6th.

1914 – James Cox of Ford Motor Company announces wages will jump from $2.40/9-hour day to $5.00/8-hour day.

1959 – The “Bozo the Clown” live children’s show premieres on TV. The show survived in several forms, including “Bozo’s Big Top,” until 2001. One of the actors who portrayed Bozo was Willard Scott, who went on to be the first Ronald McDonald. Watch one of the early live TV shows:

1971 – The Harlem Globetrotters lose 99-100 to the New Jersey Reds, ending their 2,495-game winning streak. The Globetrotters have lost a total of six games against their opponents, usually The Generals.

1976 – The “MacNeil-Lehrer Report” premieres on PBS. Robert MacNeil and Jim Lehrer originally teamed up to cover the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaigns, formed to investigate Watergate. MacNeil is now 87 and Lehrer is 84 years of age.

1987 – The surrogate Baby M case begins in Hackensack, New Jersey. William and Elizabeth Stern entered into a surrogacy agreement with Mary Beth Whitehead. Whitehead changed her mind and took Baby M away from the Sterns. A New Jersey court awarded custody to the Sterns and Whitehead was given visitation rights. Baby M (Melissa Elizabeth Stern) is now 32 years old.

2002 – Fifteen-year-old student pilot Charles Bishop crashes a small plane into a building in Tampa, Florida. Bishop was about to begin a flying lesson when he took off without permission and without a flight instructor. He left a suicide note praising Osama bin Laden for the 9-11 attacks. Bishop died on impact.

January 6

1759 – George Washington marries Martha Dandridge Custis. Martha was a widow who has 2 children. George died in 1799 at age 67 and Martha died in 1802 at age 70.

1893 – The Washington National Cathedral is chartered by Congress and signed by President Benjamin Harrison. Construction took 83 years, from 1907 to 1990, at a cost of $65 million in private donations.

1941 – FDR makes his “4 Freedoms” speech (speech, worship, from want, and from fear). Listen to his speech with a slide show:

1942 – Pan American Airlines becomes the first commercial airline to schedule a flight around the world.

1973 – “Schoolhouse Rock” premieres on ABC-TV with Multiplication Rock. It aired until 2009. Watch one of the multiplications shows:

1975 – The original daytime version of “Wheel of Fortune” debuts on NBC-TV. It lasted until 1989, when it moved to CBS for two years before moving back to NBC. The original host was Chuck Woolery. Pat Sajak (age 72) has been the host since 1981. Vanna White (age 61) has been the hostess since 1982. It is the second longest running TV game show after “The Price Is Right.”

1994 – Tonya Harding’s ex-husband and her bodyguard hire Shane Stant to break the leg of ice skater Nancy Kerrigan the day before the U.S. Figure Skating Championships. Kerrigan withdrew from the competition with a bruised leg. Both skaters were named to the Olympic team, where Kerrigan won the Silver Medal and Harding finished eighth. Harding plead guilty to hindering the prosecution and received three years’ probation, 500 hours of community service, a $160,000 fine, and a lifetime ban from figure skating.

2016 – “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” sets a new opening weekend box office record with $248 million. The movie grossed more than $2 billion worldwide.

Image from libertycruise.nyc

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