January 1909
Encyclopedia
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The following events occurred in January 1909.
, Douglas Mawson
and Alistair Mackay
became the first persons to reach the South Magnetic Pole
-- or rather, it reached them. The three geologists had arrived at a spot at 72°42' S the day before, and had determined with a magnetic dip
compass that the dip was only 15 feet (4.6 m) from vertical. As described by Stonehouse, "There, they calculated that within 24 hours the shifting pole would come to them." The Union Jack was planted at the spot and the explorers made their way back to the ship Nimrod.
February 1909
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in February 1909.-February 1, 1909 :...
- March
March 1909
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in March, 1909.-March 1, 1909 :...
- April
April 1909
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in April 1909.-April 1, 1909 :...
- May
May 1909
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in May, 1909.-May 1, 1909 :...
- June
June 1909
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in June 1909.-June 1, 1909 :...
- July
July 1909
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in July 1909.-July 1, 1909 :...
- August
August 1909
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in August 1909.-August 1, 1909 :...
- September
September 1909
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in September 1909.-September 1, 1909 :...
- October
October 1909
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in October 1909:-October 1, 1909 :...
- November
November 1909
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in November 1909:-November 1, 1909 :...
- December
December 1909
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in December 1909:-December 1, 1909 :...
The following events occurred in January 1909.
January 1, 1909 (Friday)
- The Old Age Pensions Act of 1908 went into effect in Great Britain, and the first payments were made to qualified persons at least 70 years old and whose income was less than 12 shillings per week. Roughly 490,000 persons received the pension during the first year.
- The Disenfranchisement Act of 1908 took effect in GeorgiaGeorgia (U.S. state)Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, the last legislation designed to block African Americans from voting. The new law required a "literacy test", whereby a person had to explain the meaning of a section of the state constitution, if he owned less than 40 acres (161,874.4 m²) of property. Descendants of U.S. or Confederate military veterans were exempt from the test. - The City of Honolulu and the County of OahuOahuOahu or Oahu , known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast...
were formally incorporated. - Born: Barry GoldwaterBarry GoldwaterBarry Morris Goldwater was a five-term United States Senator from Arizona and the Republican Party's nominee for President in the 1964 election. An articulate and charismatic figure during the first half of the 1960s, he was known as "Mr...
, U.S. Senator and presidential candidate, in Phoenix, ArizonaPhoenix, ArizonaPhoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
(d. 1998)
January 2, 1909 (Saturday)
- Yuan ShikaiYuan ShikaiYuan Shikai was an important Chinese general and politician famous for his influence during the late Qing Dynasty, his role in the events leading up to the abdication of the last Qing Emperor of China, his autocratic rule as the second President of the Republic of China , and his short-lived...
was dismissed from his job as Viceroy of ZhiliViceroy of ZhiliThe Viceroy of Zhili , fully referred to as the Governor General of Zhili and surrounding areas; Overseeing Military Affairs, Food Production; Manager of Waterways; Director of Civil Affairs , was one of eight regional viceroys in China proper during the Qing Dynasty of China...
by Zaifeng, 2nd Prince ChunZaifeng, 2nd Prince ChunThe 2nd Prince Chun was born Zaifeng , of the Manchu Aisin-Gioro clan . He was the leader of China between 1908 and 1911, serving as regent for his son Puyi, the Xuantong Emperor.His courtesy name was Yiyun...
, the regent for the young Emperor of ChinaEmperor of ChinaThe Emperor of China refers to any sovereign of Imperial China reigning between the founding of Qin Dynasty of China, united by the King of Qin in 221 BCE, and the fall of Yuan Shikai's Empire of China in 1916. When referred to as the Son of Heaven , a title that predates the Qin unification, the...
. Facing execution, Yuan fled from BeijingBeijingBeijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
. Two years later, he became China's first President. - Aimee Kennedy SempleAimee Semple McPhersonAimee Semple McPherson , also known as Sister Aimee, was a Canadian-American Los Angeles, California evangelist and media celebrity in the 1920s and 1930s. She founded the Foursquare Church...
was ordained as a Pentecostal missionary in Chicago, the start of a career of evangelism. She would later become famous as Aimee Semple McPherson.
January 3, 1909 (Sunday)
- The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Soziologie (DGS, German Society for SociologyGerman Society for SociologyThe German Sociological Association organizes social scientists in Germany. It was founded January 3, 1909, at Berlin by its initiators Rudolf Goldscheid , Ferdinand Tönnies, Max Weber, Georg Simmel, et al...
) was founded in Berlin by Max WeberMax WeberKarl Emil Maximilian "Max" Weber was a German sociologist and political economist who profoundly influenced social theory, social research, and the discipline of sociology itself...
, Rudolf Goldscheid, Ferdinand TönniesFerdinand TönniesFerdinand Tönnies was a German sociologist. He was a major contributor to sociological theory and field studies, best known for his distinction between two types of social groups, Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft...
, Georg SimmelGeorg SimmelGeorg Simmel was a major German sociologist, philosopher, and critic.Simmel was one of the first generation of German sociologists: his neo-Kantian approach laid the foundations for sociological antipositivism, asking 'What is society?' in a direct allusion to Kant's question 'What is nature?',...
, and others. - In Italy, the volcano on Stromboli Island erupted. The volcano gave its name to the strombolian eruptionStrombolian eruptionStrombolian eruptions are relatively low-level volcanic eruptions, named after the Italian volcano Stromboli, where such eruptions consist of ejection of incandescent cinder, lapilli and lava bombs to altitudes of tens to hundreds of meters...
, in which small amounts of lava are fired high into the air. - Born: Victor BorgeVictor BorgeVictor Borge ,born Børge Rosenbaum, was a Danish comedian, conductor and pianist, affectionately known as The Clown Prince of Denmark,The Unmelancholy Dane,and The Great Dane.-Early life and career:...
, Danish entertainer, as Børge Rosenbaum in CopenhagenCopenhagenCopenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
(d. 2000)
January 4, 1909 (Monday)
- The Odes of SolomonOdes of SolomonThe Odes of Solomon is a collection of 42 odes attributed to Solomon. Various scholars have dated the composition of these religious poems to anywhere in the range of the first three centuries AD...
, a collection of forty-two hymns that had been considered lost, was rediscovered by Professor J. Rendel Harris, who found them in a 15th-century Syriac manuscript that had been in his possession. The odes have been described as "Jewish Christian hymns celebrating the union of Christ and the believer", and are believed to have been composed in the third century AD. - The Real Federación Española de Fútbol, governing body for Spanish soccer football, was founded in MadridMadridMadrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
. - Born: J. R. SimplotJ. R. SimplotJohn Richard Simplot was the founder of the J. R. Simplot Company, an agricultural supplier specializing in potato products, based in Boise, Idaho. In 2007 he was estimated to be the 89th-richest person in America, at $3.6 billion...
, American billionaire who made his fortune from potatoes; in Dubuque, IowaDubuque, IowaDubuque is a city in and the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. In 2010 its population was 57,637, making it the ninth-largest city in the state and the county's population was 93,653....
(d. 2008)
January 5, 1909 (Tuesday)
- Mulai Abd-el-HafidAbdelhafid of MoroccoAbdelhafid of Morocco was the Sultan of Morocco from 1908 to 1912 and a member of the Alaouite Dynasty. His younger brother, Abdelaziz of Morocco, preceded him...
was acknowledged to be the rightful Sultan of Morocco by France and other European powers. He would reign until 1912, when Morocco was made a French protectorate by the Treaty of FezTreaty of FezBy the Treaty of Fez , signed March 30, 1912, Sultan Abdelhafid gave up the sovereignty of Morocco to the French, making the country a protectorate, resolving the Agadir Crisis of July 1, 1911....
. - Orville Wright told reporters, "I do not believe the aeroplane will ever take the place of trains or steamships for the carrying of passengers... I believe ultimately the aeroplane may be put to special uses in the carrying of passengers, but never in excess of 10 or 20 persons."
- Crawford County, PennsylvaniaCrawford County, PennsylvaniaCrawford County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2010, the population was 88,765.Crawford County was created on March 12, 1800, from part of Allegheny County and named for Colonel William Crawford...
, ordered a 100-day quarantine of the towns of SpringboroSpringboro, PennsylvaniaSpringboro is a borough in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 491 at the 2000 census.-History:Incorporated as a borough in the Spring of 1866, the crossroads officially became Springboro in 1875....
, Conneautville, Meadville, Brookville and Linesville because of an outbreak of rabies in western Pennsylvania. - Methodist minister John H. Carmichael, of Adair, Michigan, disappeared shortly after departing for Columbus. The next day, body parts were found burning inside two stoves inside his church. Though at first it was believed to be the dismembered body of Reverend Carmichael, subsequent investigation determined that the body was of Gideon Browning, and Carmichael was suspected of being a fugitive from murder. The case, which had made front pages across America, ended when Carmichael committed suicide in Carthage, IllinoisCarthage, IllinoisCarthage is a city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States. The population was 2,725 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Hancock County. Carthage is most famous for being the site of the murder of Joseph Smith in 1844.- History :...
on January 11. - Born: Stephen Cole KleeneStephen Cole KleeneStephen Cole Kleene was an American mathematician who helped lay the foundations for theoretical computer science...
, American mathematician, in Hartford (d. 1994)
January 6, 1909 (Wednesday)
- The Great White FleetGreat White FleetThe Great White Fleet was the popular nickname for the United States Navy battle fleet that completed a circumnavigation of the globe from 16 December 1907 to 22 February 1909 by order of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt. It consisted of 16 battleships divided into two squadrons, along with...
, consisting of 16 U.S. Navy battleships sailing the globe in a display of American naval power, successfully completed its passage through the Suez CanalSuez CanalThe Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
, passing from the Indian Ocean into the Mediterranean Sea. It was the largest group of ships to pass through up to that time, and the Canal had been closed to all other traffic. The ships would return to the United States on February 22. - Germany assumed control of diamond mining in German Southwest Africa (modern day NamibiaNamibiaNamibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
. Diamonds had been discovered there on June 23, 1908. - "Albertus", a magician who billed himself as superior to Houdini and Brindamoor, nearly drowned after attempting to escape a tightly laced straitjacket after plunging into the waters off of Atlantic City, New Jersey. A crew from the government life-saving station came to his rescue.
January 7, 1909 (Thursday)
- The first pilot's licenses were issued in France, by the Aero-Club de France. The first eight "pilote-aviateur" licenses were presented in Paris to aviation pioneers Orville Wright, Wilbur Wright, Albert Santos-Dumont, Louis BleriotLouis BlériotLouis Charles Joseph Blériot was a French aviator, inventor and engineer. In 1909 he completed the first flight across a large body of water in a heavier-than-air craft, when he crossed the English Channel. For this achievement, he received a prize of £1,000...
, Robert Esnault-PelterieRobert Esnault-PelterieRobert Albert Charles Esnault-Pelterie was a pioneering French aircraft designer and spaceflight theorist. He was born in Paris, the son of a textile industrialist...
, Léon DelagrangeLéon DelagrangeLéon Delagrange Léon Delagrange Léon Delagrange (Ferdinand Léon Delagrange; March 13, 1873 was a pioneer French aviator and also a sculptor .He was born at Orléans and studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris...
, Henri Farman and Captain Ferdinand Ferber. - Working at the Kodaikanal Solar ObservatoryKodaikanal Solar ObservatoryThe Kodaikanal Solar Observatory is an solar observatory owned and operated by Indian Institute of Astrophysics. It is located on the southern tip of the Palni Hills 4 km from Kodaikanal town, Dindigul district, Tamilnadu state, South India....
, British astronomer John EvershedJohn EvershedJohn Evershed was an English astronomer. He was the first to observe radial motions in sunspots, a phenomenon known as the Evershed effect....
made the important discovery that gas radiates over the surface of sunspots, from the inner border to the outer edge, and described it in a paper later that year. The phenomenon is now referred to as the Evershed effectEvershed effectThe Evershed effect, named after the British astronomer John Evershed, is the radial flow of gas across the photospheric surface of the penumbra of sunspots from the inner border with the umbra towards the outer edge....
.
January 8, 1909 (Friday)
- The U.S. House of Representatives accepted, 212-35, a committee report condemning outgoing President Theodore RooseveltTheodore RooseveltTheodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
, in effect voting to censure him. The same day, the U.S. Senate voted to direct its Judiciary Committee to investigate wrongdoing by the President during the Panic of 1907Panic of 1907The Panic of 1907, also known as the 1907 Bankers' Panic, was a financial crisis that occurred in the United States when the New York Stock Exchange fell almost 50% from its peak the previous year. Panic occurred, as this was during a time of economic recession, and there were numerous runs on...
. Roosevelt had, on December 8, 1908, included in his annual message to Congress the statement that Congress opposed the expansion of the Secret Service because there were "criminals in the legislative branch". - Born: Willy MillowitschWilly MillowitschWilly Millowitsch was a German stage and TV actor and the director of the Volkstheater Millowitsch in Cologne.-Early life:...
, German actor and director, in CologneCologneCologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
(d. 1999)
January 9, 1909 (Saturday)
- The Nimrod ExpeditionNimrod ExpeditionThe British Antarctic Expedition 1907–09, otherwise known as the Nimrod Expedition, was the first of three expeditions to the Antarctic led by Ernest Shackleton. Its main target, among a range of geographical and scientific objectives, was to be first to the South Pole...
to the South PoleSouth PoleThe South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where the Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on the surface of the Earth and lies on the opposite side of the Earth from the North Pole...
, led by Ernest ShackletonErnest ShackletonSir Ernest Henry Shackleton, CVO, OBE was a notable explorer from County Kildare, Ireland, who was one of the principal figures of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration...
, arrived further south than any prior expedition, at 88°23' S, within 97 nmi (179.6 km; 111.6 mi) of the Pole. On the 6th, Shackleton had realized that he did not have enough rations left to reach the pole, but planted the British flag within less than 100 nautical miles (185.2 km). The crew then made its way back to the . - ColombiaColombiaColombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
formally recognized the independence of PanamaPanamaPanama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
, which had seceded in 1903 with the help of the United States. Under the terms of a trilateral treaty, Panama would pay "rental" to Colombia at the rate of $250,000 per annum for ten years, and the United States would give Colombia special privileges in the use of the canal. - The MauritaniaMauritaniaMauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
n emirate of AdrarAdrarAdrar, a Berber word meaning "mountain", is the name of several areas in Northwest Africa:* Adrar, Mauritania* Adrar Region, Mauritania* Adrar Plateau, Mauritania* Adrar, Algeria* Adrar Province, Algeria...
became a French protectorate. Emir Shaykh al-Hasana was deposed and replaced by Sidi Ahmad wuld Ahmd 'Ayda. - Born: Anthony MamoAnthony MamoSir Anthony Joseph Mamo, OBE, QC was the first President of Malta and previously served as the last Governor-General, representing Elizabeth II as Queen of Malta, when the country was a Commonwealth realm...
, 1st President of MaltaPresident of MaltaThe President of Malta is the constitutional head of state of Malta.The President is appointed by a resolution of the House of Representatives of Malta for a five year term, taking an oath to "preserve, protect and defend" the Constitution....
(1974–76); in BirkirkaraBirkirkaraBirkirkara or B'Kara is a city of 25,858 inhabitants in central Malta. It is the most populated town on the island and consists of four autonomous parishes: St Helen, St Joseph, Our Lady of Mount Carmel and St Mary. It also houses one of the most famous colleges in Malta, St Aloysius' College...
(d. 2008)
January 10, 1909 (Sunday)
- In Sion, SwitzerlandSion, SwitzerlandSion is the capital of the Swiss canton of Valais. it had a population of .Landmarks include the Basilique de Valère and Château de Tourbillon. Sion has an airfield for civilian and military use, which, because of its location in a valley, causes a reasonable amount of noise pollution. FC Sion...
, 40 worshippers were killed and 60 others injured when their church collapsed during services. The pillars of an ancient crypt beneath the church had given way. - The explosion at the Leiter Colliery in Zeigler, IllinoisZeigler, IllinoisZeigler is a city in Franklin County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1801 at the 2010 census. The current mayor is Dennis Mitchell.-Geography:Zeigler is located at ....
killed 26 coal miners. Only two men survived the blast.
January 11, 1909 (Monday)
- The Boundary Waters Treaty was signed by U.S. Secretary of State Elihu RootElihu RootElihu Root was an American lawyer and statesman and the 1912 recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. He was the prototype of the 20th century "wise man", who shuttled between high-level government positions in Washington, D.C...
and British Ambassador to the United States James BryceJames BryceJames Bryce may refer to:*James Bryce, 1st Viscount Bryce , British jurist, historian and politician*James W. Bryce , American inventor and pioneer in magnetic data recording...
, at Root's home. Ratified by both nations in 1910, the treaty regulated the usage of all waters shared by the United States and Canada, including the Great LakesGreat LakesThe Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
and Niagara FallsNiagara FallsThe Niagara Falls, located on the Niagara River draining Lake Erie into Lake Ontario, is the collective name for the Horseshoe Falls and the adjacent American Falls along with the comparatively small Bridal Veil Falls, which combined form the highest flow rate of any waterfalls in the world and has...
. - The death penalty was carried out in France for the first time since the turn of the century, as the four murderers in the PolletPolletPollet is a surname. People named Pollet include:* Eugène Pollet , French gymnast* Howie Pollet , American baseball player* Jacques Pollet , French automobile racer...
gang died on the guillotineGuillotineThe guillotine is a device used for carrying out :executions by decapitation. It consists of a tall upright frame from which an angled blade is suspended. This blade is raised with a rope and then allowed to drop, severing the head from the body...
as a crowd in BéthuneBéthuneBéthune is a city in northern France, sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department.-Geography:Béthune is located in the former province of Artois. It is situated South-East of Calais, West of Lille, and North of Paris.-Landmarks:...
cheered. - William Howard TaftWilliam Howard TaftWilliam Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the tenth Chief Justice of the United States...
was elected President of the United StatesPresident of the United StatesThe President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
, receiving 321 of the electoral votes won in the electionUnited States presidential election, 1908The United States presidential election of 1908 was held on November 3, 1908. Popular incumbent President Theodore Roosevelt, honoring a promise not to seek a third term, persuaded the Republican Party to nominate William Howard Taft, his close friend and Secretary of War, to become his successor...
held on November 3. Challenger William Jennings BryanWilliam Jennings BryanWilliam Jennings Bryan was an American politician in the late-19th and early-20th centuries. He was a dominant force in the liberal wing of the Democratic Party, standing three times as its candidate for President of the United States...
got the other 162 votes.
January 12, 1909 (Tuesday)
- Professor Hermann MinkowskiHermann MinkowskiHermann Minkowski was a German mathematician of Ashkenazi Jewish descent, who created and developed the geometry of numbers and who used geometrical methods to solve difficult problems in number theory, mathematical physics, and the theory of relativity.- Life and work :Hermann Minkowski was born...
, a mathematical genius and colleague of Albert EinsteinAlbert EinsteinAlbert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist who developed the theory of general relativity, effecting a revolution in physics. For this achievement, Einstein is often regarded as the father of modern physics and one of the most prolific intellects in human history...
and David HilbertDavid HilbertDavid Hilbert was a German mathematician. He is recognized as one of the most influential and universal mathematicians of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Hilbert discovered and developed a broad range of fundamental ideas in many areas, including invariant theory and the axiomatization of...
, died at the age of 44 of an infection from appendicitis. Less than four months earlier, Minkowski had presented the mathematical framework by which Einstein's theory could be explained, in what is now known as "Minkowski spacetime". Before he could extend his work, however, he became ill late in 1908 and developed peritonitis. Legend has it that on his deathbed at the hospital in GöttingenGöttingenGöttingen is a university town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Göttingen. The Leine river runs through the town. In 2006 the population was 129,686.-General information:...
, he lamented, "What a pity that I have to die in the age of relativity's development." - A mine explosion at Switchback, West VirginiaSwitchback, West VirginiaSwitchback is an unincorporated community in McDowell County, West Virginia, USA. Switchback had its own high school in operation from 1923 to 1953....
killed at least 105 men and trapped another 100. The blast, which occurred at 8:30 in the morning, happened fifteen days after 51 men had been killed at the same mine (December 28, 1908).
January 13, 1909 (Wednesday)
- Determined to make one more demonstration of his toughness in his last months in office, U.S. President Theodore RooseveltTheodore RooseveltTheodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
set off to ride 100 miles (160.9 km) on horseback in one day. Accompanied by his military aide, Captain Archibald ButtArchibald ButtMajor Archibald Willingham Butt was an influential military aide to U.S. presidents Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft. Before becoming an aide to Roosevelt, Butt had pursued a career in journalism and served in the Spanish-American War...
, Navy Surgeon General Presley M. Rixey, and Surgeon C.D. Grayson, President Roosevelt set out at 3:40 a.m., riding to Warrenton, VirginiaWarrenton, VirginiaWarrenton is a town in Fauquier County, Virginia, United States. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census, and 14,634 at the 2010 estimate. It is the county seat of Fauquier County. Public schools in the town include Fauquier High School, Warrenton Middle School, Taylor Middle School and two...
, and returned to the White House, the last 30 miles (48.3 km) in a blizzard, at 8:40 that evening. The press, however, gave him credit for only 98 miles (157.7 km). When reporters asked him for a quote, the President replied, "It was bully." - Carrie NationCarrie NationCarrie Amelia Moore Nation was a member of the temperance movement, which opposed alcohol in pre-Prohibition America. She is particularly noteworthy for promoting her viewpoint through vandalism. On many occasions Nation would enter an alcohol-serving establishment and attack the bar with a hatchet...
, infamous for her destruction of American saloons, was arrested at Newcastle-on-Tyne for vandalizing a British pub. Nation, on a visit to the United Kingdom, was later released on bail. - Born: Danny BarkerDanny BarkerDanny Barker , born Daniel Moses Barker, was a jazz banjoist, singer, guitarist, songwriter, ukelele player and author from New Orleans, founder of the locally famous Fairview Baptist Church Marching Band...
, American jazz banjoist, in New Orleans (d. 1994); and Marinus van der LubbeMarinus van der LubbeMarinus van der Lubbe was a Dutch council communist convicted of, and controversially executed for, setting fire to the German Reichstag building on February 27, 1933, an event known as the Reichstag fire. ....
, Dutch native who was charged with the burning of the German Reichstag in 1933; in Leiden (executed 1934)
January 14, 1909 (Thursday)
- A methane explosion and fire at a coal mine in AjkaAjkaAjka is a city in Hungary with about 35,000 inhabitants. It is situated in the hills of Bakony.-History:Around 1000 BCE the area was inhabited by Celts. By the 2nd century CE the territory was conquered by the Romans...
, Hungary killed 55 miners. A museum was erected at the site of the Armin Akna coal mine in 1965, along with a memorial plaque.
January 15, 1909 (Friday)
- At SeoulSeoulSeoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
, religious leader Na Cheol proclaimed the revival of the religion of TaejonggyoTaejonggyoDaejonggyo meaning "Religion of Dangun") is a religion of Korea founded in Seoul in 1909 by Na Cheol . The god of the religion is the legendary king Tan-gun or Dangun, who ruled over a Korean empire around 5000 years ago; it is the best known of around 17 new religious movements that worship Tan-gun...
, announcing edicts for the worship of DangunDangunDangun Wanggeom was the legendary founder of Gojoseon, the first Korean kingdom, around present-day Liaoning, Manchuria, and the Korean Peninsula. He is said to be the "grandson of heaven", and to have founded the kingdom in 2333 BC...
as the father and future savior of the Korean nation. According to tradition, Dangun Wanggeom (also called Tan'gun) had been the incarnation of the god Hanul and founded the Kingdom of Korea in 2333 BC. Japanese troops occupying KoreaKoreaKorea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
worked to suppress the nationalist religion. - Born: Jean BugattiJean BugattiJean Bugatti was an French/Italian automotive designer and test engineer.Born Gianoberto Maria Carlo Bugatti in Cologne, Germany, he was the eldest son of Ettore Bugatti. Soon after his birth the family moved to the village of Dorlisheim near Molsheim in Alsace where his father built the new...
, German-born automobile designer, in CologneCologneCologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
(killed in accident, 1939); and Gene KrupaGene KrupaGene Krupa was an American jazz and big band drummer and composer, known for his highly energetic and flamboyant style.-Biography:...
, American jazz drummer, in ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
(d. 1973)
January 16, 1909 (Saturday)
Edgeworth DavidEdgeworth David
Sir Tannatt William Edgeworth David KBE, DSO, FRS, was a Welsh Australian geologist and Antarctic explorer. A household name in his lifetime, David's most significant achievements were discovering the major Hunter Valley coalfield in New South Wales and leading the first expedition to reach the...
, Douglas Mawson
Douglas Mawson
Sir Douglas Mawson, OBE, FRS, FAA was an Australian geologist, Antarctic explorer and Academic. Along with Roald Amundsen, Robert Falcon Scott, and Ernest Shackleton, Mawson was a key expedition leader during the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.-Early work:He was appointed geologist to an...
and Alistair Mackay
Alistair Mackay
Alistair Mackay was a Scottish doctor and polar explorer. He was one the trio of explorers, along with Douglas Mawson and Professor Edgeworth David, who became the first humans to reach the Magnetic South Pole.-Antarctica with Shackleton:...
became the first persons to reach the South Magnetic Pole
South Magnetic Pole
The Earth's South Magnetic Pole is the wandering point on the Earth's surface where the geomagnetic field lines are directed vertically upwards...
-- or rather, it reached them. The three geologists had arrived at a spot at 72°42' S the day before, and had determined with a magnetic dip
Magnetic dip
Magnetic dip or magnetic inclination is the angle made by a compass needle with the horizontal at any point on the Earth's surface. Positive values of inclination indicate that the field is pointing downward, into the Earth, at the point of measurement...
compass that the dip was only 15 feet (4.6 m) from vertical. As described by Stonehouse, "There, they calculated that within 24 hours the shifting pole would come to them." The Union Jack was planted at the spot and the explorers made their way back to the ship Nimrod.
- Born: Ethel MermanEthel MermanEthel Merman was an American actress and singer. Known primarily for her powerful voice and roles in musical theatre, she has been called "the undisputed First Lady of the musical comedy stage." Among the many standards introduced by Merman in Broadway musicals are "I Got Rhythm", "Everything's...
, American singer and actress, as Ethel Zimmerman in Queens, New York (d. 1984)
January 17, 1909 (Sunday)
- In Russia, a police decree issued banning music in all cinemas. The ban, which was soon rescinded, is believed by film historian Yuri Tsivian to have been an attempt to "extort bribes from exhibitors, since by that time music was already felt to be an essential accompaniment to films." However, censors continued to ban the playing of music during the showing of any newsreels of the Tsar or his family.
January 18, 1909 (Monday)
- Robert Franklin Stroud of Juneau, AlaskaJuneau, AlaskaThe City and Borough of Juneau is a unified municipality located on the Gastineau Channel in the panhandle of the U.S. state of Alaska. It has been the capital of Alaska since 1906, when the government of the then-District of Alaska was moved from Sitka as dictated by the U.S. Congress in 1900...
, shot and killed Charlie Von Dahmer. Convicted of manslaughter at 18, Stroud spent the rest of his life in federal prisons. While in Leavenworth, where he murdered a guard, he raised canaries and authored two books, Diseases of Canaries and Stroud's Digest on the Diseases of Birds. He would be immortalized as The Birdman of Alcatraz in a book and a film of the same name. However, by the time that he was transferred to Alcatraz in 1942, his work with canaries had stopped. Stroud died on November 21, 1963. - Congressman William Willett, Jr.William Willett, Jr.William Forte Willett, Jr. was a U.S. Representative from New York.-Biography:William Willett was born in Brooklyn, New York on November 27, 1869...
(D-N.Y.) denounced outgoing PresidentPresidentA president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
Theodore RooseveltTheodore RooseveltTheodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
, in terms so outrageous that the House voted 126-78 to terminate his speech. The Washington Post described the speech as "so bitter and sensational that it seemed as though its author had raked the dictionary for adjectives to vilify the chief executive". By the time that he said "the Gargoyle is about to grin its last grin", he was being ruled out of order, and he skipped to the end to say "the Nero who fiddled while Rome was burning will be out of power on March 4th." By voice vote on January 27, the House expunged the speech from the Congressional Record for "language improper".
January 19, 1909 (Tuesday)
- The Jersey DevilJersey DevilThe Jersey Devil is a legendary creature or cryptid said to inhabit the Pine Barrens of Southern New Jersey, United States. The creature is often described as a flying biped with hooves, but there are many variations...
returned to the Pinelands of Southern New JerseyNew JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
at 2:00 a.m., after an absence of more than 35 years. Mr. and Mrs. Nelson Evans of Gloucester CityGloucester City, New JerseyGloucester City is a city in Camden County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the city population was 11,456.-Geography:Gloucester City is located at ....
told a reporter for the Philadelphia Bulletin that the winged lizard had spent ten minutes on the roof of their woodshed. The Bulletin story, and an accompanying sketch, were soon picked up by papers across the nation. The Washington Post described the creature as having "a head like a collie dog, and a face like a horse... a long neck, wings about 8 feet long, and it whines at intervals. Its tail is described by one Jerseyman as 'glowing like a coal of fire'. The Post commented that "Chills are running up and down the South Jersey spine like a monkey on a stick". The mysterious creature became a fixture of the state's folklore, and is now the mascot for Newark's National Hockey League teamNew Jersey DevilsThe New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey, United States. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
. - After a personal appeal from President Roosevelt, California Governor James GillettJames GillettJames Norris Gillett was an American lawyer and politician. A Republican involved in federal and state politics, Gillett was elected both a member of the U.S...
met with state legislative leaders to stop further progress on anti-Japanese legislation. "There can be no doubt that the Japanese Government is acting absolutely in good faith in its endeavor to prevent its people from emigrating to our country", said the Governor, "and in my judgment it would be a serious mistake while they are so doing to enact any laws directed against the Japanese people." A bill proposed to limit Japanese-American residents of San Francisco to residing in its Chinatown district, to bar their children from attending public schools, and to bar them from serving as directors of a corporation. - Born: Hans HotterHans HotterHans Hotter was a German operatic bass-baritone, admired internationally after World War II for the power, beauty, and intelligence of his singing, especially in Wagner operas. He was extremely tall and his appearance was striking because of his high, narrow face, wide mouth, and big, aquiline nose...
, German opera singer, in Offenbach am Main (d. 2003)
January 20, 1909 (Wednesday)
- A fire at the 68th Street water cribWater cribThe Water cribs in Chicago supply the City of Chicago with drinking water from Lake Michigan. The first water crib, the Two-Mile Crib was constructed as part of a scheme by Ellis S. Chesbrough in 1865. Water was collected and transported through a tunnel 60 feet below the lake surface to the...
, which supplied drinking water to ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
from Lake MichiganLake MichiganLake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...
, killed 70 construction workers. Most were burned to death, but some died after jumping into the icy lake waters. - General MotorsGeneral MotorsGeneral Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
purchased a one-half interest in the Oakland Motor Company of Pontiac, MichiganPontiac, MichiganPontiac is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan named after the Ottawa Chief Pontiac, located within the Detroit metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 59,515. It is the county seat of Oakland County...
, acquiring full control after the death a few months later of its founder, Edward Murphy. The acquisition was renamed the PontiacPontiacPontiac was an automobile brand that was established in 1926 as a companion make for General Motors' Oakland. Quickly overtaking its parent in popularity, it supplanted the Oakland brand entirely by 1933 and, for most of its life, became a companion make for Chevrolet. Pontiac was sold in the...
division in 1932. - Born: William "Spike" EckertWilliam EckertWilliam Dole "Spike" Eckert was a lieutenant general in the United States Air Force, and later the fourth Commissioner of Major League Baseball from 1965 to 1968.-Before baseball:...
, MLB Commissioner 1965-68; in Madison, IndianaMadison, IndianaAs of the census of 2000, there were 12,004 people, 5,092 households, and 3,085 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,402.9 people per square mile . There were 5,597 housing units at an average density of 654.1 per square mile...
(d. 1971); and Gogen YamaguchiGogen YamaguchiJitsumi Gōgen Yamaguchi Jitsumi Gōgen Yamaguchi Jitsumi Gōgen Yamaguchi (山口剛玄, Yamaguchi Gōgen; b.20 January 1909 d.20 May 1989. was a world renown Grandmaster of Japanese Karate-dō and founder of the International Karate-dō Gōjū-kai Association; he was one of the most well known of all...
, Japanese karate teacher, in Miyakonojō; (d. 1989)
January 21, 1909 (Thursday)
- Japan and Russia rejected U.S. Secretary of State Knox's proposal for railways in Manchuria to be neutral.
- Heavy rains fell in France, Germany and Italy, and the Seine River flooded Paris.
- Born: Todor SkalovskiTodor SkalovskiTodor Skalovski was a famous Macedonian composer, chorus and orchestra conductor....
, Macedonian composer, in TetovoTetovoTetovo is a city in the northwestern part of Macedonia, built on the foothills of Šar Mountain and divided by the Pena River.The city covers an area of at above sea level, with a population of 86,580 citizens in the municipality. Tetovo is home to the State University of Tetovo and South East...
(d. 2004)
January 22, 1909 (Friday)
- The National Conservation CommissionNational Conservation CommissionThe National Conservation Commission was appointed in June 1908 by President of the United States Theodore Roosevelt and composed of representatives of the United States Congress and relevant executive agencies with Gifford Pinchot as chairman. It compiled an inventory of U.S...
released its final report. President RooseveltTheodore RooseveltTheodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
endorsed it as "one of the most fundamentally important documents ever laid before the American people". Later, Roosevelt would comment that the report "was not only the first inventory of our resources, but was unique in the history of Government in the amount and variety of information brought together. It was completed in six months. It laid squarely before the American people the essential facts regarding our natural resources..." - Born: U ThantU ThantU Thant was a Burmese diplomat and the third Secretary-General of the United Nations, from 1961 to 1971. He was chosen for the post when his predecessor, Dag Hammarskjöld, died in September 1961....
, United Nations Secretary General, 1961-1971; in PantanawPantanawPantanaw is a town in the Ayeyarwady Region of south-west Myanmar. It is the seat of the Pantanaw Township in the Maubin District. It is the hometown of former United Nations Secretary-General U Thant and of the renowned artist U Ba Nyan....
, Burma (d. 1974); and Ann SothernAnn SothernAnn Sothern was an American film and television actress whose career spanned six decades.-Early life and career:...
, American film actress; as Harriette Arlene Lake, in Valley City, North DakotaValley City, North DakotaAs of the census of 2000, there were 6,826 people, 2,996 households, and 1,668 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,062.5 per square mile . There were 3,250 housing units at an average density of 982.0 per square mile...
(d. 2001)
January 23, 1909 (Saturday)
- The steamer RepublicRMS Republic (1903)RMS Republic was a steam-powered ocean liner built in 1903 by Harland and Wolff in Belfast, and lost at sea in a collision six years later while sailing for the White Star Line. A CQD distress call was issued on the new Marconi radio device, the first recorded, resulting in the saving of around...
, with 461 people on board, began sinking 26 miles (41.8 km) out to sea, shortly after being struck by the SS Florida. Except for 6 people killed in the collision, everyone was saved because the Republic had the latest technology, a wireless telegraph. Jack Binns sent the CQDCQDCQD, transmitted in Morse code as — · — · — — · — — · · is one of the first distress signals adopted for radio use...
distress signal that was picked up at a rescue station at Siasconset, MassachusettsSiasconset, MassachusettsSiasconset is a village at the eastern end of Nantucket island, Massachusetts, United States with an elevation of 52 feet . Although unincorporated, the village has a post office, with the ZIP code 02564....
, then relayed to other ships. At 15,378 tons, the Republic was, at the time, the largest ship to have been lost. The wreckage would be located in 1981. Binns briefly became a worldwide celebrity. - Centered at Darb-e Astaneh in the Lorestān ProvinceLorestan ProvinceLorestan Province is a historic territory and province of western Iran, amidst the Zagros Mountains. The population of Lorestan was estimated at 1,716,527 people in 2006.Lorestan covers an area of 28,392 km²...
of IranIranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, an earthquake destroyed 64 villages and killed more than 6,000 people. More recently, the 2006 Borujerd earthquake struck the same region on March 31, 2006.
January 24, 1909 (Sunday)
- Robert H. GoddardRobert H. GoddardRobert Hutchings Goddard was an American professor, physicist and inventor who is credited with creating and building the world's first liquid-fueled rocket, which he successfully launched on March 16, 1926...
first realized the potential for explosives to raise a rocket, as he described it, "without employing the air". His insight, recorded in a daily journal, was that "if an explosive... is burned in tubes in such a way that all its energy is converted into kinetic energy of the particles expelled and the body propelled, it is, theoretically, possible to obtain propulsion". Goddard's discovery paved the way for space exploration. - Born: Martin LingsMartin LingsMartin Lings was an English Muslim writer and scholar, a student and follower of Frithjof Schuon, and Shakespearean scholar...
, British Islamic scholar, in ManchesterManchesterManchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
; (d. 2005)
January 25, 1909 (Monday)
- The White House Conference on the Care of Children was convened in Washington by President RooseveltTheodore RooseveltTheodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
. Attended by 200 prominent personages, including Jacob RiisJacob RiisJacob August Riis was a Danish American social reformer, "muckraking" journalist and social documentary photographer. He is known for using his photographic and journalistic talents to help the impoverished in New York City; those impoverished New Yorkers were the subject of most of his prolific...
, Jane AddamsJane AddamsJane Addams was a pioneer settlement worker, founder of Hull House in Chicago, public philosopher, sociologist, author, and leader in woman suffrage and world peace...
, Booker T. WashingtonBooker T. WashingtonBooker Taliaferro Washington was an American educator, author, orator, and political leader. He was the dominant figure in the African-American community in the United States from 1890 to 1915...
, and Theodore DreiserTheodore DreiserTheodore Herman Albert Dreiser was an American novelist and journalist of the naturalist school. His novels often featured main characters who succeeded at their objectives despite a lack of a firm moral code, and literary situations that more closely resemble studies of nature than tales of...
, the conference led to a significant social reform in America. As one commentator would later note, "Reform meant an end to orphanages, the beginning of direct aaid to 'parents of worthy character,' allowing children to remai in their homes, or, in time, foster homes." - At DresdenDresdenDresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
, Richard StraussRichard StraussRichard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...
's opera ElektraElektra (opera)Elektra is a one-act opera by Richard Strauss, to a German-language libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, which he adapted from his 1903 drama Elektra. The opera was the first of many collaborations between Strauss and Hofmannsthal...
was performed for the first time. The production, based on the Greek myth as adapted by Hugo von HofmannsthalHugo von HofmannsthalHugo Laurenz August Hofmann von Hofmannsthal ; , was an Austrian novelist, librettist, poet, dramatist, narrator, and essayist.-Early life:...
, was not well-reviewed at the time, but is now considered one of Strauss's greatest works.
January 26, 1909 (Tuesday)
- In HeidelbergHeidelberg-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
, German astronomer Max WolfMax WolfMaximilian Franz Joseph Cornelius Wolf was a German astronomer and a pioneer in the field of astrophotography...
discovered SN 1909a, the first supernovaSupernovaA supernova is a stellar explosion that is more energetic than a nova. It is pronounced with the plural supernovae or supernovas. Supernovae are extremely luminous and cause a burst of radiation that often briefly outshines an entire galaxy, before fading from view over several weeks or months...
observed from Earth in the Pinwheel GalaxyPinwheel GalaxyThe Pinwheel Galaxy is a face-on spiral galaxy distanced 21 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major, first discovered by Pierre Méchain on March 27, 1781, and communicated to Charles Messier who verified its position for inclusion in the Messier Catalogue as one of its final...
, and only the 11th observed overall. The nova itself happened more than 27 million years earlier in the galaxy, located that many light years distant, in the direction of Ursa Major. - A trial in British India brought out a conspiracy to set up an independent kingdom there.
January 27, 1909 (Wednesday)
- Samuel G. CosgroveSamuel G. CosgroveSamuel Goodlove Cosgrove was the sixth Governor of the state of Washington, and was from Pomeroy, Washington. He was a U.S. Civil War veteran and educator. He served for one day before leaving for California for health reasons. He died in California shortly thereafter...
was sworn in as the sixth Governor of Washington, and requested an immediate leave of absence for health reasons. Lieutenant GovernorLieutenant Governor of WashingtonThe Lieutenant Governor of Washington is an elected office in the U.S. state of Washington. The current incumbent is Brad Owen, a Democrat who has served since 1997...
Marion E. HayMarion E. HayMarion E. Hay was the seventh Governor of the U.S. state of Washington. Born in Adams County, Wisconsin, he moved to Washington Territory, where he open a store. Hay also served as mayor of Wilbur, Washington. In his capacity as Lieutenant Governor of Washington he became Governor upon the death...
acted in his place. Cosgrove did not recover from Bright's diseaseBright's diseaseBright's disease is a historical classification of kidney diseases that would be described in modern medicine as acute or chronic nephritis. The term is no longer used, as diseases are now classified according to their more fully understood causes....
and died two months later. - The political party Young LeftYoung Left (Norway)Young Liberals of Norway is the youth league of the Norwegian political party Venstre. Young Liberals was founded on 27 January 1909, with Anders Kirkhusmo as the first president. The current president is Sveinung Rotevatn, since 2010. Vice-Presidents are Hanne Kvilhaugsvik and Andreas Skjæret,...
(Unge Venstre) was founded in Norway.
January 28, 1909 (Thursday)
- Jose Miguel GomezJosé Miguel GómezJosé Miguel Gómez y Gómez was a Cuban General in the Cuban War of Independence who went on to become President of Cuba.-Early career:...
was inaugurated as the President of CubaPresident of Cuba--209.174.31.28 18:43, 22 November 2011 The President of Cuba is the Head of state of Cuba. According to the Cuban Constitution of 1976, the President is the chief executive of the Council of State of Cuba...
, the first since Tomas Estrada Palma in 1906. Gomez succeeded American Governor Charles Magoon. - Born: Lionel CrabbLionel CrabbLionel "Buster" Crabb OBE, GM was a British Royal Navy frogman and MI6 diver who vanished during a reconnaissance mission around a Soviet cruiser in 1956.-Early life:...
, British spy and diver, in London (disappeared 1956)
January 29, 1909 (Friday)
- Henderson Cremeans, of Point Pleasant, West VirginiaPoint Pleasant, West VirginiaPoint Pleasant is a city in Mason County, West Virginia, United States, at the confluence of the Ohio and Kanawha rivers. The population was 4,637 at the 2000 census...
, died while walking home from a grocery store. His death made headlines across the nation, because he was reportedly 115 years old. Cremeans, said to have been born in 1794, was never verified as a supercentenarianSupercentenarianA supercentenarian is someone who has reached the age of 110 years. This age is achieved by about one in a thousand centenarians....
, nor was his mother, who was said to "have died at he age of 120". He reportedly was survived by 70 grandchildren, 131 great-grandchildren,, and 19 great-great-grandchildren, and "he never tasted liquor or tobacco in his life". - A minor tremor shook the Spanish city of MálagaMálagaMálaga is a city and a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia, Spain. With a population of 568,507 in 2010, it is the second most populous city of Andalusia and the sixth largest in Spain. This is the southernmost large city in Europe...
. The Associated Press soon reported that a tidal wave had destroyed BarcelonaBarcelonaBarcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
. By Sunday, it was confirmed that "the reports emanating from England relative to a disastrous earthquake and a tidal wave are untrue".
January 30, 1909 (Saturday)
- At the EisstadionEisstadion DavosVaillant Arena is an arena in Davos, Switzerland. It is primarily used for ice hockey and is the home arena of HC Davos. It holds 7,080 people, of which 3,280 are seated...
in Davos, Switzerland, Oscar MathisenOscar MathisenOscar Wilhelm Mathisen was a Norwegian speed skater and celebrity, almost rivalling Roald Amundsen and Fridtjof Nansen as symbols for a young nation...
broke the record for the 1,000 meter speed skating event, set almost nine years earlier by Peder ØstlundPeder ØstlundPeder Østlund was a Norwegian speed skater.Peder Østlund held the first position on the Adelskalender ranking during two periods, for a total of almost 10 years . He became World Allround Champion in 1898 and 1899, and became European Allround Champion in 1899 and 1900...
. - President RooseveltTheodore RooseveltTheodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
conferred with U.S. Mint Director Leach and gave his approval for the placement of the image of President LincolnAbraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
on an American coin. Sculptor Victor D. Brenner had submitted several designs, and it was believed that the half dollarHalf dollarHalf dollar may refer to a half-unit of several currencies that are named "dollar". Normally, $1 is divided into 100 cents, so a half dollar is equal to 50 cents...
would bear the design.
January 31, 1909 (Sunday)
- The New York World announced a $10,000 prize, largest to that time, for the first person who could, before October 10, 1910, fly the 135 miles (217.3 km) from New York to Albany, whether in an airship or an airplane, as part of the Hudson-Fulton CelebrationHudson-Fulton CelebrationThe Hudson-Fulton Celebration from September 25 to October 9, 1909 in New York and New Jerseywas an elaborate commemoration of the 300th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s discovery of the Hudson River and the 100th anniversary of Robert Fulton’s first successful commercial application of the paddle...
. Glenn CurtissGlenn CurtissGlenn Hammond Curtiss was an American aviation pioneer and a founder of the U.S. aircraft industry. He began his career as a bicycle then motorcycle builder and racer, later also manufacturing engines for airships as early as 1906...
won the contest, on May 29, 1910 in a biplane.