January 04
1885
Dr. William W. Grant of Davenport, Iowa, performed what is thought to be the first appendectomy.
1896
Utah was admitted as 45th state in the United States.
1904
In Gonzales v. Williams, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that citizens of Puerto Rico are not aliens and can enter the U.S. freely.
1948
Burma (Myanmar) gained independence from Great Britain.
1951
During the Korean War, North Korean and Communist Chinese forces captured the city of Seoul.
1965
President Johnson outlined his “Great Society” in his State of the Union address.
1999
Former wrestler Jesse Ventura was sworn in as Minnesota’s governor.
2007
California Democrat Nancy Pelosi becomes the first woman U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Birthdays
Jakob Grimm
1785–1863, German folkorist.
Sir Isaac Newton
mathematician, scientist (1643)
Benjamin Rush
physician, signer of the Declaration of Independence (1746)
Louis Braille
inventor of Braille system (1809)
Sir Isaac Pitman
inventor of phonographic shorthand (1813)
Tom Thumb
entertainer (1838)
Jane Wyman
actress, producer (1914)
Floyd Patterson
boxer (1935)