Historical Events
Jack Hobbs Debut
Jan 1 Jack Hobbs makes his international debut in England's 2nd Test win over Australia at the MCG, scoring 83 and 28 in his two innings. Goes onto become the leading run scorer and century maker in 1st-class cricket history.
- Jan 2 Canadian branch of the Royal Mint opens in Ottawa
- Jan 7 England beat Australia by one wicket at the MCG
- Jan 8 First subway tunnel connecting Manhattan with Brooklyn under the East River opens in New York City [1]
- Jan 9 Frans Schollaert succeeds Jules De Trooz as premier of Belgium
- Jan 9 Muir Woods National Monument, California, established
- Jan 12 A long-distance radio message is sent from the Eiffel Tower for the first time.
Farman Wins Grand Prix d'Aviation
Jan 13 Henri Farman becomes the first person to fly an observed circuit of more than 1km, winning the Grand Prix d'Aviation
- Jan 13 Rhoads Opera House fire in Boyertown, Pennsylvania, kills 171 people
- Jan 13 Stanley Cup, Montreal Arena, Westmount, Quebec: Montreal Wanderers rout Ottawa Victorias, 13-1 for 2-0 sweep of challenge series
- Jan 14 Roger Hartigan scores century on Test debut v England in Adelaide (116)
- Jan 15 Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, the first for African-American women, established by Ethel Hedgeman and 15 other students at Howard University in Washington, D.C.
- Jan 15 C Hill & R J Hartigan make 8th wkt partnership 243 for Australia
- Jan 16 Pinnacles National Monument, California established
- Jan 18 Frederick Delius' "Brigg Fair" premieres in London
- Jan 21 "Sullivan Ordinance" is passed in NYC, making it illegal for a woman to smoke in public places. It was vetoed 2 weeks later by mayor George B. McClellan Jr.
- Jan 21 August Strindberg's "Spoksonaten" premieres in Stockholm
- Jan 22 Katie Mulcahey is arrested for lighting a cigarette, violating the 1-day old "Sullivan Ordinance" banning women from smoking in public, and is fined $5. Appearing before the judge she stated “I’ve got as much right to smoke as you have. I never heard of this new law, and I don’t want to hear about it. No man shall dictate to me.”
- Jan 23 US & Great Britain demand end of abuses in Congo
Scouting for Boys
Jan 24 Lieutenant General Robert Baden-Powell publishes "Scouting for Boys" as a manual for self-instruction in outdoor skills and self-improvement. The book becomes the inspiration for the Scout Movement.
Famous Birthdays
- Jan 1 Kinue Hitomi, Japanese athlete (World record women's 100m, 200m, long jump, triple jump; Olympic silver 800m 1928), born in Okayama, Japan (d. 1931)
- Jan 2 Ben Grauer, American newscaster (Big Story), born in New York City (d. 1977)
- Jan 2 Jānis Ķepītis, Latvian pianist, conductor, and composer, born in Beverīna, Latvia (d. 1989)
- Jan 5 George Dolenz [Jure Dolenc], Italian actor (Scared Stiff, Count of Monte Cristo), born in Trieste, Austria-Hungary (d. 1963)
- Jan 6 Menachem Avidom, Israeli composer, born in Stanislaviv, Austria-Hungary (d. 1995)
- Jan 7 (Henry) "Red" Allen, American jazz trumpeter, born in Algiers, Louisiana (d. 1967)
- Jan 8 "Fearless" Nadia [Mary Ann Evans], Australian stuntwoman and actress (Hunterwali), born in Perth, Western Australia (d. 1996)
- Jan 8 William Hartnell, English actor (first Doctor in Doctor Who, Jackpot), born in London (d. 1975)
Simone de Beauvoir (1908-1986)
Jan 9 French author and feminist (The Mandarins, The Second Sex), born in Paris, France
- Jan 10 Bernard Lee, British actor (M in James Bond movies, Fallen Idol, Dr No), born in London, England (d. 1981)
Paul Henreid (1908-1992)
Jan 10 Austrian-American actor (Casablanca, Now, Voyager), born in Trieste, Austria-Hungary
- Jan 11 Lionel Stander, American blacklisted actor (Hart to Hart, Unfaithfully Yours), born in New York City (d. 1994)
- Jan 12 Clement Hurd, American illustrator, born in New York City (d. 1988)
- Jan 12 José Limón, Mexican-American dancer and choreographer (The Moor's Pavane; I, Odysseus), born in Culiacán, Mexico (d. 1972)
- Jan 14 (Ruggiero) "Russ" Columbo, American pop baritone singer ("You Call It Madness, But I Call It Love"), songwriter ("Prisoner of Love"), actor (Wake Up And Dream), and violinist, born in Camden, New Jersey (d. 1934)
Edward Teller (1908-2003)
Jan 15 Hungarian-American physicist, father of the Hydrogen bomb (Manhattan Project), born in Budapest, Hungary
- Jan 15 Roberta Bitgood, American organist and composer, born in New London, Connecticut (d. 2007)
Ethel Merman (1908-1984)
Jan 16 American Tony and Grammy Award-winning stage and screen singer ("There's No Business Like Show Business"), and actress (It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World), born in Astoria, New York City
- Jan 16 Günther Prien, German World War II submarine captain (U-47 - responsible for sinking at least 30 Allied vessels), born in Osterfeld, Germany (d. 1941)
- Jan 16 Ralph Cooper, American master-of-ceremonies (creator of Amateur Night at the Apollo), actor, dancer, and choreographer, born in Harlem, New York City (d. 1992)
- Jan 17 Bryan Valentine, British cricket batsman (7 Tests, 2 x 100; Kent CCC, Cambridge University CC), born in Blackheath, England (d. 1983)
- Jan 17 Cus D'Amato, American boxing manager (d. 1985)
- Jan 17 L. V. Prasad, Indian pioneering filmmaker, born in Somavarappadu, Madras Presidency, British India (d. 1994)
- Jan 18 Albert P. Morano, American politician (Rep-R-Conn, 1951-59), born in Paterson, New Jersey (d. 1987)
- Jan 18 Jacob Bronowski, Polish-born British mathematician and science writer best known as the presenter of the BBC television series, The Ascent of Man, born in Łódź, Poland (d. 1974)
- Jan 18 Lillian Bond, English-American actress (Air Mail, Pick-up, Blond Cheat), born in London (d. 1991)
- Jan 18 Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, German born Swedish Princess, mother of the King of Sweden, Carl XVI Gustaf, born in Schloss Friedenstein Gotha, Gotha, Germany (d. 1972)
- Jan 19 Aleksandr Gennadievich Kurosh, Russian mathematician (d. 1971)
- Jan 20 Ian Peebles, English cricketer (Scottish leg-spinner, England 1927-31), born in Aberdeen, United Kingdom (d. 1980)
- Jan 20 Wilfred Conwell Bain, American music educator (Insian University, 1947-73), born in Shawville, Quebec (d. 1997)
- Jan 22 Hammie Nixon [Nickerson], American blues harmonica player (Sleepy John Estes), born in Brownsville, Tennessee (d. 1984)
- Jan 22 Lev Landau, Russian physicist (1962 Nobel Prize for Physics for superfluidity theory), born in Baku, Russian Empire (d. 1968)
- Jan 22 Melle Weersma, Dutch jazz arranger and composer ("Penny Serenade"), born in Harlingen, Netherlands (d. 1988)
- Jan 25 Hopper Levett, English cricket wicket-keeper (1 Test, 3 dismissals; Kent CCC), born in Goudhurst, England (d. 1995)
- Jan 25 Howard Wendell, American actor (Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, How to Murder Your Wife), born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania (d. 1975)
- Jan 25 Lord Iliffe, English publisher (Coventry Evening Telegraph/Autocar), born in Coventry, United Kingdom (d. 1960)
- Jan 26 Jill Esmond, English actress, born in London, England (d. 1990)
- Jan 26 Stéphane Grappelli, French jazz violinist (Quintette du Hot Club de France), born in Paris, France (d. 1997)
- Jan 27 Oran "Hot Lips" Page, American jazz trumpeter, singer, and bandleader, born in Dallas, Texas (d. 1954)
- Jan 27 William Randolph Hearst, Jr., American newspaper magnate (Hearst Newspapers) and 1955 Pulitzer Prize winner, (d. 1993)
- Jan 28 Paul Misraki [Misrachi], French jazz pianist, songwriter, and film score composer (Jean Renoir), born in Constantinople, Ottoman Empire (d. 1998)
- Jan 30 Richard Hearne, British actor (Tons of Trouble, The Time of His Life), born in Norwich, England (d. 1979)
- Jan 31 Atahualpa Yupanqui, Argentine folk musician, born in Pergamino, Argentina (d. 1992)
- Jan 31 Simonne Mathieu, French tennis player (French C'ships 1938-39; 11 Grand Slam doubles titles), born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine, France (d. 1980)
Famous Deaths
- Jan 4 Anthony Winkler Prins, Dutch writer, encyclopedist (Winker Prins Encyclopedia), and Mennote preacher, dies at 70
- Jan 6 George Dixon, Canadian boxer (World Bantamweight title, 1892; World Featherweight champion, 1891-97 & 1898-1901; 1st Black athlete to win a World C'ship in any sport), dies of liver failure at 37
- Jan 9 Abraham Goldfaden, Russian-born Jewish poet and playwright (Shulamis), dies at 67
- Jan 9 Wilhelm Busch, German poet, dies at 75
- Jan 10 Anna S Barbiers, Dutch actress (Klaasje Zevenster), dies at 65
- Jan 14 Holger Drachmann, Danish writer (Modern Breakthrough Movement), dies at 61
- Jan 16 Lydia Moss Bradley, American bank president, philanthropist, and college founder (Bradley Polytechnic Institute), dies at 91
- Jan 17 Ferdinand IV, Grand Duke of Tuscany, dies at 72
- Jan 23 Edward Alexander MacDowell, American composer (Indian Suite), dies at 47
- Jan 25 Ouida [Maria Louise Ramé], English writer (under Two Flags), dies of pneumonia at 69
- Jan 28 Sidney Paget, British illustrator (Sherlock Holmes), dies at 47
