On this day in history
January 18
American
1911Eugene Ely makes the first landing of an airplane on a ship, touching down on the USS Pennsylvania anchored in…
Eugene Ely makes the first landing of an airplane on a ship, touching down on the USS Pennsylvania anchored in San Francisco Bay.
Source: Military Machine
1983The IOC restores Jim Thorpe's Olympic medals, 70 years after stripping them over a $25 semipro baseball paymen…
The IOC restores Jim Thorpe's Olympic medals, 70 years after stripping them over a $25 semipro baseball payment.
Source: On This Day
1778Captain James Cook reaches the Hawaiian Islands, the first recorded European contact with Hawaii, which he nam…
Captain James Cook reaches the Hawaiian Islands, the first recorded European contact with Hawaii, which he names the Sandwich Islands.
Source: Wikipedia
1977Scientists identify the bacterium that caused the 1976 Legionnaires' disease outbreak, later named Legionella …
Scientists identify the bacterium that caused the 1976 Legionnaires' disease outbreak, later named Legionella pneumophila.
Source: Aramco Life
1993Martin Luther King Jr. Day is observed in all 50 states for the first time.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is observed in all 50 states for the first time.
Source: Aramco Life
World
1591King Naresuan of Siam kills the Burmese crown prince in single combat from elephant back, an event Thailand co…
King Naresuan of Siam kills the Burmese crown prince in single combat from elephant back, an event Thailand commemorates as Armed Forces Day; historians debate the exact date.
Source: On This Day
1788The First Fleet of British ships arrives at Botany Bay, Australia, beginning European settlement of the contin…
The First Fleet of British ships arrives at Botany Bay, Australia, beginning European settlement of the continent.
Source: Aramco Life
1871The German Empire is proclaimed at Versailles, with Wilhelm I of Prussia named emperor, unifying Germany under…
The German Empire is proclaimed at Versailles, with Wilhelm I of Prussia named emperor, unifying Germany under Prussian leadership.
Source: Wikipedia
1943Operation Iskra breaks the siege of Leningrad, as Soviet forces open a narrow corridor to the besieged city af…
Operation Iskra breaks the siege of Leningrad, as Soviet forces open a narrow corridor to the besieged city after nearly 17 months.
Source: Military Machine
1535Francisco Pizarro founds the city of Lima, Peru, as the capital of the Spanish colony, on the feast day of the…
Francisco Pizarro founds the city of Lima, Peru, as the capital of the Spanish colony, on the feast day of the Epiphany.
Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica
1919The Paris Peace Conference opens at Versailles to negotiate the settlement ending World War I.
The Paris Peace Conference opens at Versailles to negotiate the settlement ending World War I.