| On November 1, 1777, John Paul Jones commanded the Ranger, sailing for France. Sailing into Quiberon Bay, France, February 14, 1778, Jones and Admiral La Motte Piquet changed gun salutes - the first time that the Stars and Stripes, the flag of the new nation, was officially recognized by a foreign government. |
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| After the Revolution there was a continuing demand in the United States for canvas, or duck, for sails. James Davenport installed in 1794 at the old Globe Mills on the Germantown Road water-powered machinery of his own invention for "spinning and weaving flax, hemp and tow". His patent, procured in 1794 for "weaving and beating sail duck," was the first one issued in the United States. The work was done by a few boys, one of whom could in a 10- to 12-hour day weave 15--20 yards of sailcloth or spin 292,000 feet of flax or hempen thread. |
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| In 1803, the first American patent for an apple peeler was issued to Moses Coates of Chester Co., Pennsylvania. Coates' apple peeler was all iron with a wooden handle. It had a springloaded cutting device and turn handleall on a wooden base 15.75" long. |
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| Matthew Brady photographed, with one exception, every President of the United States from John Quincy Adams, the sixth President, down to and including William McKinley, the twenty-fifth President. Not all were photographed during their term of office; Adams, for example, was President from 1825 to 1829, before daguerreotype was introduced. The lone exception to Brady's remarkable record was William Henry Harrison, who died a month after his inauguration, and three years before Brady began his photographic career. |
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| Horace Smith learned the firearms trade while working at the National Armory in Springfield, Massachusetts. Daniel Wesson's experience came from apprenticing with his brother Edwin Wesson, the leading maker of target rifles and pistols in the 1840s. In 1852, the pair opened their first factory in Norwich, Connecticut, where they produced a repeater rifle that used the new cartridge. Called the "Volcanic" because of its tremendous firepower and rapid-fire capability, the rifle was intended as a rival to the popular new Colt revolver. It did not function or sell as well as Smith and Wesson had hoped, and they had difficulty raising enough capital to make the needed improvements. This first venture was not a financial success, and in 1854 sold their company to a shirt manufacturer by the name of Oliver Winchester. | |
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| Lake Merritt, in Oakland, California, was the first government owned wildlife refuge in the United States. Established by the state of California in 1870, this refuge still exists in the heart of downtown Oakland as a migratory waterfowl rest stop on the Pacific Flyway. |
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| On February 14, 1876, Bell's patent application was filed by his attorney. It came only hours before Elisha Gray filed his Notice of Invention for a telephone. Mystery still surrounds Bell's application and what happened that day. In particular, the key point to Bell's application, the principle of variable resistance, was scrawled in a margin, almost as an afterthought. Some think Bell was told of Gray's Notice then allowed to change his application. Finally, on March 10, 1876, one week after his patent was allowed, in Boston, Massachusetts, at his lab at 5 Exeter Place, Bell succeeded in transmitting speech. | |
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| The United States Department of Commerce and Labor was created by Congress in 1903, by the request of President Theodore Roosevelt. In 1913, Congress separated the agency into the Department of Commerce and the Department of Labor. The "objectives of the Department of commerce include the promotion of domestic and foreign commerce and the encouragement of the growth of American industries." |
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| The Masters of Foxhounds Association, established in 1907, is a non-profit corporation formed to; set and maintain high sporting standards among its membership, inspect each Hunt on a regular basis, encourage foxhunting, approve and register territories on off~cial maps of foxhunting countries, settle disputes in regard to the same, register eligible foxhounds in a Foxhound Stud Book and improve the breed of foxhounds. In Canada the government requires that any "pack of hounds" must be registered with the MFHA to be licensed to hunt. |
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| The new submarine was placed in commission in mid-February 1912, commanded by Chester W. Nimitz, who would lead the World War II Pacific Fleet some three decades later. During 1912-1917 E-1 was employed testing her diesel engines, a gyrocompass, and underwater radio communications, as well as on training duties. |
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| Arizona became its own territory in 1863. Prior to 1863 it was part of the New Mexico territory. The proposed constitution had to be submitted twice (over the issue of recalling judges). Originally Arizona was to become a state on February 12, but was change to February 14 due to the conflict with Lincoln's birthday. So Happy Birthday & Happy Valentine's Day, Arizona. |
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| The Julian calendar was switched over to the Gregorian starting in 1582, at which point the 10 day difference between the actual time of year and traditional time of year on which calendrical events occurred became intolerable. England (and the American colonies) finally followed suit in 1752, Sweden followed England's lead in 1753. Russia, however, did not follow suit until 1918, when January 31, 1918 was immediately followed by February 14th. |
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| In 1907 19-year-old Jim Casey founded the American Messenger Company in Seattle, Washington with $100 borrowed from a friend. In 1913, Jim Casey and Evert McCabe agreed to merge. Merchants Parcel Delivery was formed and focused on packages. In 1919, the company expanded beyond Seattle and changed their name to United Parcel Service. |
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| On February 14, 1920, six months before the 19th amendment to the Constitution was ratified, the League was formally organized in Chicago as the national League of Women Voters. Maud Wood Park became the first national president of the League. She had steered the women's suffrage amendment through Congress in the last two years before ratification and liked nothing better than legislative work. |
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| On Feb. 14, 1921, Walt found the necessary baby abandoned on his doorstep. That was the day Gasoline Alley entered history as the first comic strip in which the characters aged normally. The baby, named Skeezix (cowboy slang for a motherless calf), grew up, fought in World War II, and is now a retired grandfather. Walt married after all, and had more children, who had children of their own, etc. More characters entered the storyline on the periphery, and some grew to occupy center stage. |
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| The Computer Tabulating Recording Company thrived in the first quarter of the twentieth century. Business continued to expand and ultimately included a large overseas business. To reflect the international flavor of the company, the Computer Tabulating Recording Company changed its name in 1924 to International Business Machines Corporation, better known as IBM. |
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| On the morning of February 14, St. Valentine's Day, seven members of Moran's gang were lined up against a wall, then shot and killed by five members of Al Capone's gang (two of whom were dressed as police officers). |
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| Bismarck was Germany's first "real" post-World War I battleship. She featured a main battery of eight 38 centimeter (15-inch) guns in four twin turrets, two forward and two aft. Her secondary battery of twelve 15 cm (5.9-inch) guns, mounted six on each side in twin turrets, was optimized for use against enemy surface ships, especially destroyers. She was launched with considerable ceremony, including the attendance of Adolf Hitler, on February 14, 1939. |
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| The attractive and strong-voiced teenager topped the US chart in 1950 with her debut hit "Music! Music! Music!". She joined Coral Records in 1952 and continued hitting the US Top 10 with records such as "Ricochet", "Jilted" and the number 1 "Till I Waltz Again With You". In 1953 she made her film debut in "Those Redheads From Seattle" with Guy Mitchell. |
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| Despite a bombing of the home and church of Ralph David Abernathy during the Atlanta meeting, 60 persons from 10 states assembled and announced the founding of the Southern Leadership Conference on Transportation and Nonviolent Integration. They issued a document declaring that civil rights are essential to democracy, that segregation must end, and that all Black people should reject segregation absolutely and nonviolently. Further organizing was done at a meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana on February 14, 1957. The organization shortened its name to Southern Leadership Conference, established an Executive Board of Directors, and elected officers, including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as President. |
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| There were two versions of this. The first had Stagger Lee and Billy gambling (Stagger Lee shot Billy at the end), the second, rushed out by ABC-Paramount after hearing complaints from radio listeners, had Stagger Lee and Billy arguing over a girlfriend, who goes back to Stagger at the end. This was based on the traditional blues/folk song, "Ballad of Stack-o-Lee." |
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| On the night of February 14, 1962 three out of four television viewers tuned to CBS or NBC to watch a A Tour of the White House with Mrs. John F. Kennedy. Four nights later, ABC rebroadcast the program to a sizable national audience before it then moved on to syndication in more than fifty countries around the globe. In all, it was estimated that hundreds of millions of people saw the program, making it the most widely viewed documentary during the genre's so called golden age. |
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| Syncom 1 was designed to be the first test of a communication satellite in geosynchronous orbit. The objective of the mission was to put the satellite into a 24 hour orbit with an inclination of about 30 degrees over the Atlantic Ocean. About 5 hours after launch the apogee motor was commanded to fire to place the satellite into a near-synchronous orbit. At about the time the motor completed its 20 second burn all contact was lost. |
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| Aretha recorded this in New York City with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, a group of 4 studio musicians who also played sessions in Nashville and Muscle Shoals, Alabama before starting their own Muscle Shoals Sound Studios. This was one of their first, and most famous recordings. Otis Redding wrote this and originally recorded it in 1965. His version hit #35 in the US. |
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| Sly Stone wrote "Thank You" because he was upset that people were not listening to the messages in his songs even though the band was more popular then ever. They were an integrated band and tried to spread the message of racial harmony, but Stone thought that message was getting lost. The title is a funky way of spelling "Thank you for letting me be myself again." |
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| In February 1971, the United State Secret Service (USSS), at the request of the President, installed listening devices in the White House. They placed seven microphones in the Oval Office: five in the President's desk, and one on each side of the fireplace. They placed two microphones in the Cabinet Room under the table near the President's chair. The Secret Service technicians wired all devices to central mixers that were then connected to recorders in an old locker room in the White House basement. |
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| Luna 20 was placed in an intermediate earth parking orbit and, from this orbit, was sent towards the Moon. It entered lunar orbit on February 18, 1972. On February 21, 1972, Luna 20 soft landed on the Moon in a mountainous area near Mare Foecunditatis (Sea of Fertility), 120 kilometers (75 miles) from where Luna 16 had impacted. While on the lunar surface, the panoramic television system was operated. Lunar samples were obtained by means of an extendable drilling apparatus. Luna 20 was launched from the lunar surface on February 22, 1972, and landed in the Soviet Union on February 25, 1972. The lunar samples were recovered the following day. |
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| The musical, "Grease", opened at the Eden Theatre in New York City. The play later moved to the Broadhurst Theatre on Broadway where it became the longest-running musical ever with 3,388 performances. A hit movie based on the stage play starred John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John and produced the hit song, "Grease", by Frankie Valli, "You're the One That I Want" and "Summer Nights" by Travolta and Newton-John. |
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| After dissolving his partnership with Art Garfunkel, Paul Simon achieved success in the 1970s with songs like "Me & Julio Down By The Schoolyard," "Fifty Ways To Leave Your Lover," "Still Crazy After All These Years," and shorter-titled hits, such as "Kodachrome." |
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| In 1978, Texas Instruments introduced the first single chip speech synthesizer and incorporated it in a product called the "Speak & Spell," which was later immortalized in the movie "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial." |
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| The Solar Maximum Mission (SMM) was designed to provide coordinated observations of solar activity, in particular solar flares, during a period of maximum solar activity. The payload was made up of seven instruments, specifically selected to study the short-wavelength and coronal manifestations of flares. The spacecraft was launched on February 14, 1980. |
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| "Ladies Night" was followed by the even bigger "Celebration," the joyous title cut of which became the theme song of countless sports teams in the 80s and one of the most played songs of the past 25 years. The next five years brought hit after hit, including chart toppers "Misled," "Cherish," "Take My Heart," "Joanna," "Fresh" and "Let's Go Dancin'." |
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| "Livin' on a Prayer" tells the story of Tommy and Gina, 2 kids working to make it on their own despite constant hardships. It struck a chord with America's youth, especially the ones from New Jersey. The characters in the song relate to the working class fans Bon Jovi played to. This was the follow up to "You Give Love A Bad Name," which was also a US #1 hit. |
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| The world's first satellite telephone communications system for airline passengers, Skyphone, had its commercial debut on a British Airways 747. Skyphone was operated by a consortium consisting of British Telecom, Singapore Telecom, and Norweigan Telecom. Using digital satellite technology giving high quality links and security, Skyphone provided air-to-ground, ground-to-air, and even air-to-air telephone communications. |
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| Usher's single, "You Make Me Wanna," re-established Usher as one of RB's hottest artists, and also made him a crossover sensation; it topped the RB charts for 11 weeks, hit number two pop, and eventually went double platinum. Both of the follow-up singles, "Nice Slow" and "My Way," also went platinum; the former stayed at number one on the RB charts for eight weeks and became his first number one pop single. |
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Celebrated as Valentine's Day, one of the most widely observed
unofficial holidays in which romantic greeting cards and gifts are exchanged.
1778 "Stars & Stripes" arrives in
foreign port for first time (France)
More ...
1794 First US textile machinery patent granted,
to James Davenport
More ...
1803 Apple parer patented by Moses Coates, Downington
PA
More ...
1848 James K Polk became first President photographed
in office (Matthew Brady)
More ...
1854 Horace Smith and Daniel Wesson patented a
firearm.
More ...
1872 First state bird refuge authorized (Lake
Merritt CA)
More ...
1876 A G Bell & Elisha Gray apply
for telephone patents
More ...
1889 First trainload of fruit (oranges) leaves
Los Angeles for the east
1894 Venus is both a morning star & evening
star
1899 US Congress begins using voting machines
1903 US Dept of Commerce & Labor established
More ...
1907 First US foxhound association forms in New
York NY
More ...
1912 First US submarines with diesel engines commissioned,
Groton CT
More ...
1912 Arizona becomes 48th state
More ...
1918 USSR adopts New Style (Gregorian) calendar
More ...
1919 United Parcel Service forms
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1920 League of Women Voters forms in Chicago
More ...
1921 Skeezix of "Gasoline Alley" discovered
on Wallet's doorstep
More ...
1924 IBM Corporation founded by Thomas Watson
More ...
1929 St Valentine's Day Massacre in Chicago IL,
7 gangsters killed
More ...
1939 German battleship Bismarck was launched
More ...
1941 1,000,000th vehicle traverses the New York
Midtown Tunnel
1953 "Till I Waltz Again with You" by
Teresa Brewer topped the charts
More ...
1957 Southern Christian Leadership Conference
organizes in New Orleans
More ...
1959 "Stagger Lee" by Lloyd Price topped
the charts.
More ...
1961 Element 103, Lawrencium, first produced in
Berkeley CA
1962 First lady Jacqueline Kennedy conducts White
House tour on TV
More ...
1963 US launches communications satellite Syncom
1
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1966 Wilt Chamberlain breaks NBA career scoring
record at 20,884 points
1967 Aretha Franklin records "Respect"
More ...
1970 "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)"
by Sly & the Family Stone topped the charts
More ...
1971 Movie "Ben Hur" first shown on
television
1971 Richard Nixon installs secret taping system
in White House
More ...
1972 USSR launches Luna 20; unmanned probe soft-lands
on moon - returns
More ...
1972 The musical, "Grease", opened at
the Eden Theatre in New York City
More ...
1976 "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" by
Paul Simon topped the charts
More ...
1978 First "micro on a chip" patented
by Texas Instruments
More ...
1980 US launches Solar Maximum Mission Observatory
to study solar flares
More ...
1981 "Celebration" by Kool & the
Gang topped the charts
More ...
1987 "Livin' on a Prayer" by Bon Jovi
topped the charts
More ...
1989 World's first satellite Skyphone opens
More ...
1998 "Nice & Slow" by Usher topped
the charts
More ...