This month in history

by Adam Richards

Have you ever heard the saying “history tends to repeat itself?” We found some obscure events in history that are most likely never to repeat themselves. (And maybe some should stay that way!)

 Let's see what there's to celebrate this month!

1  {1852} The first public bath house in the United States opened in New York City.

2  {1890} Alice Sanger became the first female White House staffer.

3  {1876} The first free kindergarten in the U.S. opened in Florence, Mass.
    {1888} Marvin C. Stone patented the drinking straw.

4  {1863} James Plimpton of New York patented four-wheeled roller skates.

5  { 1959 } “Bozo the Clown,” a live television show for children, premiered.

6    {1929} Mother Teresa arrived in Calcutta to begin a legacy of work among India’s poorest people.

7  {1927} Harlem Globetrotters played their first game in Hinckley, Ill.

8  {1806} Lewis and Clark found the 105-foot skeleton of a blue whale in Oregon.
    {1954} Elvis Presley paid $4 to a Memphis studio and recorded his first two songs, “Casual Love”    and “I’ll Never Stand in Your Way.”

9   {1968} The first—and last—time to date snow fell in Mexico City.

10   {1992} American company First Days Inc. lost 29,000 bath toys when they were washed overboard in the Pacific Ocean.
{2001} Wikipedia started as part of Nupedia. It became a separate site five days later.

11  {1569} The first recorded lottery in England was drawn at St. Paul’s Cathedral.

12  {1966} Adam West and Burt Ward starred in the television show “Batman,” which made its action-packed debut on ABC.
{2004} The world’s largest ocean liner RMS Queen Mary 2 made its maiden voyage.

13  {1906} The first radio set was advertised (a Telimco for $7.50) and claimed to receive signals up to 1 mile.
{1985} Otto Bucher, then 99 years old, scored a hole-in-one at a Spanish golf course.

14  {1973} Tap dancer Ray Castle tapped 1,440 taps in a minute on BBC TV.

15  {1797} John Etherington of London wore the first top hat.
{1831} The newly married Piersons began the first honeymoon trip by railroad in the U.S. in Charleston, S.C.

16  {1868} William Davis, a fish dealer in Detroit, patented the refrigerator car.
{1939} The comic strip “Superman” debuted.

17 {1806} The first baby was born in the White House. He was the grandson of President Thomas Jefferson.

18  {1733} The first polar bear exhibited in America was shown in Boston.
{1896} The first demonstration of an X-ray machine in the U.S. happened in New York City.
{1997} Norwegian Borge Ousland completed a 1,675-mile trek across Antarctica, the first time anyone crossed the continent alone.

19  {1903} A new bicycle race called the “Tour de France” was announced.

20  {1986} The U.S. observed the first federal holiday honoring Martin Luther King Jr.

21  {1927} First live radio commentary of a soccer match. The match between Arsenal and Sunderland at Highbury ended in a 1-1 draw.

22  {1506} The first contingent of 150 Swiss guards arrived at the Vatican.

23  {393} Roman Emperor Theodosius I proclaimed his 9-year-old son Honorius co-emperor.

24  {1922} Christian K. Nelson, an American from Iowa who originally emigrated from Denmark, patented the Eskimo Pie® ice cream bar.
{1984} The first Apple® Macintosh went on sale.

25  {1858} “The Wedding March” by Felix Mendelssohn became a popular wedding recessional after it was played on this day at the marriage of Queen Victoria’s daughter Victoria to Friedrich of Prussia.
{1870} The soda fountain was patented by Gustavus Dows.

26  {2004} A whale exploded in the town of Tainan, Taiwan. A build-up of gas in the decomposing whale was suspected of causing the explosion.

27  {1894} In the first college basketball game, the University of Chicago beat Chicago YMCA 19-11.

28  {1807} London’s Pall Mall became the first street lit by gaslight.

29  {1959} Walt Disney’s Sleeping Beauty released.

30  {1958} The first two-way moving sidewalk in service was opened in Dallas, Texas.

31  {1961} Ham the Chimp became the first hominid in space and traveled 158 miles aboard Mercury/Redstone 2.