January 02

Friday 02, 2004:

Stardust successfully flies past Comet Wild 2, collecting samples that it will return to Earth two years later.

Wednesday 02, 2002:

Levy Mwanawasa takes office as the third President of Zambia.

Saturday 02, 1999:

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

Friday 02, 1998:

Russia begins to circulate new rubles to stem inflation and promote confidence.

Saturday 02, 1993:

Leaders of the three warring factions in Bosnia meet to discuss peace plans.

Thursday 02, 1992:

Paraguay becomes a member of the Berne Convention copyright treaty.

Wednesday 02, 1991:

Sharon Pratt Dixon is sworn in as mayor of Washington, DC becoming the first African American woman to lead a city of that size and importance.

Sunday 02, 1983:

The musical Annie is performed for the last time after 2,377 shows at the Uris Theatre on Broadway.

Friday 02, 1981:

Peter Sutcliffe, the Yorkshire Ripper, is arrested.

Tuesday 02, 1979:

Sid Vicious goes on trial for the murder of Nancy Spungen.

Wednesday 02, 1974:

Richard Nixon signs a bill lowering the maximum US speed limit to 55 MPH in order to conserve gasoline during an OPEC embargo.

Saturday 02, 1971:

The Ibrox disaster occured.

Monday 02, 1967:

Dr. Christiaan Barnard performs the second successful heart transplant.

Friday 02, 1959:

CBS Radio cuts four soap operas: Backstage Wife, Our Gal Sunday, Road of Life, and This is Nora Drake.

Wednesday 02, 1957:

San Francisco Stock and Bond Exchange and Los Angeles Oil Exchange merge.

Sunday 02, 1955:

Panamanian president Jose Antonio Remon is assassinated.

Sunday 02, 1949:

Luis Muñoz Marín became the first democratically elected Governor of Puerto Rico.

Wednesday 02, 1946:

Unable to resume his rule over Albania after World War II, King Zog abdicated but retained his claim to the throne.

Friday 02, 1942:

The United States Navy opens a blimp base at Lakehurst, New Jersey.

Thursday 02, 1941:

The U.S. government announces its Liberty ship program with a stated goal of building 200 freighters. Over 2,700 ships will eventually be constructed by the end of the war.

Wednesday 02, 1935:

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

Wednesday 02, 1929:

Canada and the United States agree on a plan to preserve Niagara Falls.

Tuesday 02, 1923:

U.S. Interior Secretary Albert Fall resigns due to the Teapot Dome scandal.

Sunday 02, 1921:

DeYoung Museum in Golden Gate Park San Francisco opens.

Tuesday 02, 1917:

The Royal Bank of Canada takes over Quebec Bank.

Monday 02, 1905:

Russo-Japanese War: The Russian fleet surrenders at Port Arthur, China.

Tuesday 02, 1900:

Chicago Canal opens.

Monday 02, 1893:

Introduction by Webb C. Ball of the General Railroad Timepiece Standards in North America: Railroad chronometers.

Thursday 02, 1890:

Alice Sanger becomes the first female staffer for the White House.

Monday 02, 1882:

John D. Rockefeller unites his oil holdings into the Standard Oil trust.

Thursday 02, 1879:

Fred Spofforth claims the first Hat-trick in test cricket on the Sydney Cricket Ground against England.

Tuesday 02, 1872:

Brigham Young is arrested for bigamy (25 wives).

Monday 02, 1871:

Amadeus I becomes King of Spain.

Sunday 02, 1870:

Construction of the Brooklyn Bridge begins.

Monday 02, 1860:

The discovery of the planet Vulcan was announced at a meeting of the Académie des Sciences in Paris.

Sunday 02, 1859:

Erastus Beadle publishes The Dime Book of Practical Etiquette.

Friday 02, 1818:

British Institution of Civil Engineers formed.

Monday 02, 1815:

Lord Byron marries Anna Isabella Milbanke, Seaham, County Durham.

Wednesday 02, 1793:

Russia and Prussia partition Poland.

Wednesday 02, 1788:

Georgia becomes the 4th state to ratify the United States Constitution.

Sunday 02, 1757:

The United Kingdom captures Calcutta, India.

Saturday 02, 1492:

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

Friday 02, 533:

Mercurius became Pope John II, the first pope to adopt a new name upon elevation to the papacy.

Sunday 02, 366:

Alamanni cross the frozen Rhine in large numbers, invading Roman Empire.

More on January, 02

• People Born on January, 02
• They left us on January, 02