Posted by R. Ann Siracusa
HAPPY JANUARY 10: ONE OF THE MOST UNINTERESTING DAYS IN HISTORY
Usually, there’s
something stimulating to write about relating to the season, holidays, or other
pertinent events in any given month. But alas, the time is past for Christmas
cheer and resolution making.
Since January 10 is too
late for a blog about Epiphany (which has some unusual celebration rituals and
legends), I decided to see what happened on this day in history.
Nada! Zilch!
Zip!
Well, not absolutely nothing happened, but between
49 BC and 2014, Wikipedia only list a few events worth mentioning, most of
which are totally underwhelming when it comes to interest. Most of them evoke a "Oh, really?" or "Who cares?" reaction.
A short list that might dredge
up a memory or two from prior history lessons include:
o 49 BC
– Julius Caesar crosses the Rubicon,
signaling the start of civil war.
o 9 – The Han Dynasty ends,
the Xin Dynasty begins.
o 1645 –
Archbishop William Laud is beheaded at the Tower of
London. (Anyone know who William Laud was?)
o 1776 – Thomas Paine publishes
his pamphlet Common Sense. (You can still buy this on Amazon.)
o 1806 – Dutch in Capetown surrender
to the British.
o 1845 - Poets Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browning begin
corresponding.
o 1861 – Florida secedes from the United States – American Civil
War
o 1863 – London’s first subway opens.
o 1870 - John D. Rockefeller incorporates Standard Oil.
o 1870 - John D. Rockefeller incorporates Standard Oil.
o 1901 –
The first great Texas oil gusher
is discovered in Beaumont,
Texas.
o 1920 – League of Nations held its
first meeting in Geneva and ratified the
Treaty of Versailles, officially ending World War I with Germany. (That’s a
biggie!)
o 1928 - Soviet Union exiles Leon Trotsky
o 1946 –
The first General Assembly of
the United Nations opens in London with 51
nations.
o 1949 - RCA introduces 45 RPM record
o 1949 - RCA introduces 45 RPM record
o 1954 – BOAC Flight
781 explodes and falls into the Tyrrhenian
Sea killing 35 people.
o 1984 – The United States and Holy See (Vatican City) re-establish full diplomatic relations after almost 117 years, overturning the United States Congress's 1867 ban on public funding for such a diplomatic envoy.
o 1990 – Time Warner is
formed by the merger of Time Inc. and Warner Communications.
o 2003 – North Korea announced
withdrawal from the nuclear arms control treats and it that the country had no
plans to develop nuclear weapons.(That’s a good one!)
o 2010 - China surpasses Germany as
the world’s largest exporter.
o 2012 –
A bombing in Khyber Agency, Pakistan,
kills at least 30 people and 78 others injured.
o 2013 –
More than 100 people are killed and 270 injured in several bomb blasts in Pakistan.
o§ 2014 – Indonesia’s Mount Sinabung
erupts.
Historical and political events and massive disasters predominate the list. Is there nothing important in the world that’s happy and positive?
Historical and political events and massive disasters predominate the list. Is there nothing important in the world that’s happy and positive?
BIRTHS ON JANUARY 10
In the absence of some
earth shaking historical event, I looked at births and deaths. While I’m sure many
thousands were born on January 10, the list of noteworthy folks is short.
o 1945 – Rod Stewart (singer)
o 1953
– Pat Benater)
DEATHS ON JANUARY 10
Unless you’re dying to
know about Estonian footballers, Swiss pianists, or Australian police officers
who must have done something of note (although what isn’t noted) there aren’t many notable deaths either.
o 1862 - Samuel Colt, inventor of the 6-shot revolver
o 1951 – Sinclair Lewis, American author and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate.
o 1951 – Sinclair Lewis, American author and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate.
o 1971 – Coco Chanel,
French fashion designer, founded Chanel.
o 1982 – Paul Lynde,
American comedian and actor.
o 1987 – Marion Hutton,
American singer and actress.
DO
YOU HAVE A JANUARY 10 STORY TO TELL?
Do any of you reading this have
an interesting event to tell about this day in your history? Did anything
noteworthy happen to you, your family, or friends?
I’m getting my hair cut and
colored today. That is appropriately ordinary for a January 10 activity. We need these non-celebration days once in a while.
Interesting post, Ann. Looks like a lot happened January 10. Thanks for the history lesson.
ReplyDeleteI sometimes wish someone would compile a list of what ordinary people were doing on a certain date. History seems to be full of facts regarding 'people or events that changed the world' but how did it affect the people living at the time? Maybe that's what drives us to write the stories we imagine them living.
ReplyDeleteI love mini history lessons. Thanks, Ann!
ReplyDeleteI like the lesson! It doesn't sound like a very important day but when you look at all the pieces, there was a lot of history happening on Jan. 10!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your hair coloring. I need to do that too!
Paris, Unfortunately, I don't think anyone bothers to records what ordinary people do. I suppose a list could be complied from reading diaries and journals, but who is going to do that? Even newspapers and now TV news only report on extraordinary things and people.
ReplyDeleteWhat a cool post. Who would've known January 10 had so much going on. :)
ReplyDeleteLOL R. Ann, what a fun post. I enjoyed it and am sorry I'm late. It makes me wonder what events happened on my birthday.
ReplyDelete