1853 – Envelope-folding machine patented by Russell Hawes in Worchester, Massachusetts.
1899 – Opel manufactures its first automobile.
1908 – “Sullivan Ordinance” is passed in NYC, making it illegal for woman to smoke in public places. It was vetoed 2 weeks later by mayor George B. McClellan, Jr.
1915 – Kiwanis International founded in Detroit.
1927 – 1st national opera broadcast from a US opera house (Faust, Chicago)
1941 – 1st commercial extraction of magnesium from seawater, Freeport, Texas.
1942 – Count Basie records “One O’clock Jump”
1950 – New York jury finds former State Department official Alger Hiss guilty of perjury.
1953 – John Foster Dulles appointed as US Secretary of State.
1954 – 4th NBA All-Star Game, Madison Square Garden, NYC: East beats West, 98-93 (OT); MVP: Bob Cousy, Boston Celtic, PG.
1962 – Snow falls in San Francisco.
1967 – US female Figure Skating championship won by Peggy Fleming.
1971 – “Alias Smith & Jones” premieres on ABC TV.
1977 – US President Jimmy Carter pardons almost all Vietnam War draft evaders.
1983 – President Reagan certifies El Salvador human-rights abuses have decreased making country eligible for US military aid.
1985 – -34 degrees F, Mt. Mitchell, North Carolina (state record)
1988 – US accepts immigration of 30,000 US-Vietnamese children.
1992 – Bill Cowher becomes the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, becoming only the second head coach of the team since 1970 (Chuck Noll)
2010 – LA Lakers forward Kobe Bryant becomes the youngest NBA player to reach 25,000 career points at 31 years, 151 days; beats Wilt Chamberlain by 35 days.
2017 – More than 2 million people protest worldwide in the “Women’s March” against Donald Trump, with 500,000 marching in Washington, D.C.