A chronological timetable of historical events that occurred on this day in history. Historical facts of the day in the areas of military, politics, science, music, sports, arts, entertainment and more. Discover what happened today in history.
Today in History
January 15
| 1624 | Riots flare in Mexico when it is announced that all churches are to be closed. | |
| 1811 | In a secret session, Congress plans to annex Spanish East Florida. | |
| 1865 | Union troops capture Fort Fisher, North Carolina. | |
| 1913 | The first telephone line between Berlin and New York is inaugurated. | |
| 1919 | Peasants in Central Russia rise against the Bolsheviks. | |
| 1920 | The Dry Law goes into effect in the United States. Selling liquor and beer becomes illegal. | |
| 1920 | The United States approves a $150 million loan to Poland, Austria and Armenia to aid in their war with the Russian communists. | |
| 1927 | The Dumbarton Bridge opens in San Francisco carrying the first auto traffic across the bay. | |
| 1929 | The U.S. Senate ratifies the Kellogg-Briand anti-war pact. | |
| 1930 | Amelia Earhart sets an aviation record for women at 171 mph in a Lockheed Vega. | |
| 1936 | In London, Japan quits all naval disarmament talks after being denied equality. | |
| 1944 | The U.S. Fifth Army successfully breaks the German Winter Line in Italy with the capture of Mount Trocchio. | |
| 1949 | Chinese Communists occupy Tientsin after a 27-hour battle with Nationalist forces. | |
| 1965 | Sir Winston Churchill suffers a severe stroke. | |
| 1967 | Some 462 Yale faculty members call for an end to the bombing in North Vietnam. | |
| 1973 | US President Richard Nixon announces the suspension of offensive action by US troops in Vietnam. | |
| 1973 | Four of six remaining Watergate defendants plead guilty. | |
| 1975 | The Alvor Agreement is signed, ending the Angolan War of independence and granting that country independence from Portugal. | |
| 1976 | Sara Jane Moore sentenced to life in prison for her failed attempt to assassinate US President Gerald Ford. | |
| 1991 | UN deadline for Iraq to withdraw its forces from occupied Kuwait passes, setting the stage for Operation Desert Storm. | |
| 1991 | Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II approves Australia instituting its own Victoria Cross honors system, the first county in the British Commonwealth permitted to do so. | |
| 1992 | Slovenia and Croatia’s independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia is recognized by the international community. | |
| 2001 | Wikipedia goes online. | |
| Born on January 15 | ||
| 1622 | Moliere [Jean Baptiste Poquelin], French comic dramatist best remembered for his play La Tartuffe. | |
| 1716 | Philip Livingston, signatory to the Declaration of Independence. | |
| 1823 | Mathew Brady, Civil War photographer. | |
| 1906 | Aristotle Onassis, Greek tycoon. | |
| 1908 | Edward Teller, Hungarian-born U.S. physicist known as the “Father of the H-bomb.” | |
| 1929 | Martin Luther King, Jr., civil rights leader and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. | |
| 1945 | Princess Michael of Kent (Baroness Marie Christine Anna Agnes Hedwig Ida von Reibnitz), married to Prince Michael of Kent, grandson of Britain’s King George V. | |
| 1948 | Ronnie Van Zant, singer, songwriter; founding member of Lynyrd Skynyrd band. | |
| 1982 | Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia. | |
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