Historical Events
- Jan 3 1st wax drinking straw patented, by Marvin C Stone in Washington, D.C.
- Jan 5 Dutch Heidemaatschappij (land reclamation) established
- Jan 13 The National Geographic Society is founded in Washington, D.C. for "the increase and diffusion of geographic knowledge" [1]
- Jan 30 Harry Moses 297 not out for NSW against Victoria
Famous Birthdays
- Jan 1 John Garand, American inventor (d. 1974)
- Jan 4 Arthur Berry, English football player (Olympic gold 1908, 12), born in Liverpool, England (d. 1953)
- Jan 5 George "Rube" Foster, American baseball pitcher (World Series 1915, 16; no-hitter 1916; Boston Red Sox), born in Lehigh, Oklahoma (d. 1976)
- Jan 8 Matt Moore, Irish-American actor and director (Coquette, Deluge), born in Kells, County Meath Ireland (d. 1960)
- Jan 8 Richard Courant, German-American mathematician (d. 1972)
- Jan 10 Emile van Bosch, Belgian-Dutch opera singer (Fair Folks), born in Amsterdam, Netherlands (d. 1940)
- Jan 12 Claude Delvincourt, French composer and pianist, born in Paris, France (d. 1954)
- Jan 15 Joseph Henabery, American director (Cobra), born in Omaha, Nebraska (d. 1976)
- Jan 16 Osip Brik, Russian avant garde writer (Left Front of the Arts) and literary critic of the Russian formalist school, born in Moscow, Russian Empire (d. 1945)
Lead Belly (1888-1949)
Jan 20 American blues 12 string guitarist (Rock Island Line), born in Mooringsport, Louisiana
- Jan 21 Herbie Collins, Australian cricket all-rounder and captain (19 Tests, 1,352 runs @ 45.06, 4 x 100s), born in Sydney, Australia (d. 1959)
- Jan 23 Gilbert Ledward, English sculptor, born in Chelsea, London (d. 1960)
- Jan 23 Paul Peter Ewald, German Crystallographer and physicist who devised the theory of X-ray interference by crystals and pioneered X-ray diffraction methods, born in Berlin, Germany (d. 1985)
- Jan 24 Ernst Heinrich Heinkel, German aeronautical engineer (1st rocket-powered aircraft), born in Grunbach, Germany (d. 1958)
- Jan 24 Hedwig "Vicki" Baum, Austrian American author (Men Never Know, Grand Hotel), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1960)
Famous Weddings
David Lloyd George
Jan 1 55th UK Prime Minister David Lloyd George (25) weds first wife Margaret Owen
Famous Deaths
- Jan 5 Henri Herz, Austrian composer, dies at a day before his 85th birthday
- Jan 14 Stephen Heller, Hungarian composer and pianist, dies at 74
- Jan 17 Mistahimaskwa [Big Bear], Plains Cree chief (refused to sign 1876 Treaty 6), dies [1]
- Jan 21 Stephan Hale Alonzo Marsh, British born composer who worked in Australia (Australia's 1st opera), dies at 83
- Jan 23 Eugène Marin Labiche, French playwright (The Italian Straw Hat), dies at 72
- Jan 29 Edward Lear, English poet and author (famous for his nonsense poems - The Owl and the Pussycat), dies at 75
- Jan 30 Asa Gray, American botanist (Flora of North America), dies at 77
- Jan 31 John Bosco, Italian priest, youth worker, educator, founder of the Salesian Society, dies at 72
