Today in History for Feb. 1, 2016

 Julia Ward Howe

Feb. 1, 1659 – Dutch explorer Jacob Roggeveen was born in Middelburg, Netherlands.

Feb. 1, 1768 – Charles Tait was born in Hanover, Va. He served as a Circuit Court Judge in Georgia, as a U.S. Senator from Georgia and as a U.S. federal judge in Alabama. He taught French, worked as an attorney and later lived at Claiborne, where he died in 1835.

Feb. 1, 1779 - Delaware became the twelfth state to ratify the Articles of Confederation.

Feb. 1, 1781 – In the Battle of Cowan’s Ford, American Brigadier General William Lee Davidson died in combat while attempting to prevent General Charles Cornwallis’ army from crossing the Catawba River in Mecklenburg County, N.C. Davidson College was named in his honor.

Feb. 1, 1788 - Isaac Briggs and William Longstreet patented the steamboat.

Feb. 1, 1835 – Slavery was abolished in Mauritius.

Feb. 1, 1839 - The Alabama legislature abolished imprisonment for debt, except in cases of fraud. This action continued a modification of English common law that had begun with the Mississippi and Alabama territorial governments. The constitutions of 1868, 1875 and 1901 would prohibit imprisonment of debtors even in cases of fraud.

Feb. 1, 1856 - Auburn University was chartered as the East Alabama Male College.

Feb. 1, 1861 - Texas became the seventh state to secede from the Union when the state convention voted 166-8 in favor of the measure.

Feb. 1, 1862 - "The Battle Hymn of the Republic," by Julia Ward Howe was first published in the "Atlantic Monthly."

Feb. 1, 1862 - Union General James B. McPherson was transferred to General Ulysses S. Grant's command.

Feb. 1, 1862 – During the Civil War, a skirmish was fought at Bowling Green, Ky. and Confederate forces entered the New Mexico Territory.

Feb. 1, 1863 – J.C. Johnson, who was born on March 11, 1847, enlisted as a private in the Confederate army. He served with Co. B, 3rd Alabama Cavalry and was wounded at the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain. He died in Conecuh County on April 10, 1914.

Feb. 1, 1863 – During the Civil War, a Federal Naval attack began on Fort McAllister, south of Savannah, Ga., located on Genesis Point. A nine-day Federal Naval expedition began from New Berne to Plymouth, N.C. A two-day Federal reconnaissance began between Franklin and Brentwood, Tenn.

Feb. 1, 1864 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Waldron, Ark.; at Batchelder's Creek, N.C.; and at Bristoe Station, Va. A 23-day operation against Indians began in the Humboldt Military District, Calif., and a two-day Federal cavalry reconnaissance began from Madisonville to Franklinton, La. Also on that day, a month long operation began against Navajo Indians in the New Mexico and Arizona Territories.

Feb. 1, 1864 – During the Civil War, a Federal operation began between Knoxville and Flat Creek, Tenn.; a two-day Federal reconnaissance began from Maryville to Sevierville, Tenn.; and a seven-day Federal reconnaissance began in White and Putnam Counties, Tenn.

Feb. 1, 1864 – During the Civil War, using the Congressional Conscription Act, President Abraham Lincoln ordered that 500,000 men be drafted on March 10 to serve for three years or the duration of the war.

Feb. 1, 1865 - U.S. President Abraham Lincoln signed a Joint Resolution submitting the proposed 13th Amendment to the states.

Feb. 1, 1865 – During the Civil War, Federal Naval operations were directed against the salt works at St. Andrews Bay, Fla., and Federal operations began against Indians in the vicinity of Fort Boise, Idaho Territory. A five-day Federal operation that encompassed Warrensburg, Tabo Creek, Dover, Oaklin Church, and Davis Creek, Mo. began. A five-day Federal operation that encompassed Wagon Knob, Brig Grove, Greenton, and Texas Prairie, Mo. began.


Feb. 1, 1865 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Fort Zarah, Kansas; at Hickory Hill and Whippy Swamp, S.C.; and in McLemore's Cove, Tenn.

Feb. 1, 1884 - The first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary was published.

Feb. 1, 1893 - Thomas A. Edison completed work on the world's first motion picture studio, the Black Maria in West Orange, N.J.

Feb. 1, 1895 – On this Friday morning, I.D. Roberts shot Sam Thames in Roberts’ oat field at Perdue Hill, Ala. Roberts had discovered an unattended mule in his oat field and when Thames arrived and attempted to bridle the mule, Roberts fired and accidentally wounded Thames in the neck and shoulder. Thames was treated for his wounds and was expected to fully recover.

Feb. 1, 1900 - Eastman Kodak Co. introduced the $1 Brownie box camera.

Feb. 1, 1901 - Clark Gable was born in Cadiz, Ohio. He would go on to star in the role of Rhett Butler in the epic 1939 movie, “Gone with the Wind.”

Feb. 1, 1905 – The Evergreen Courant reported that George L. Madison of Oshkosh, Wisc., who came south every winter to hunt, was the guest of the family of J.E. Ellis.

Feb. 1, 1910 – The Marengo Democrat and The Linden Reporter, which were established in 1889, consolidated to form The Democrat-Reporter in Linden, Ala.

Feb. 1, 1911 – Caleb Johnston Snowden, 65, passed away at his home near Brooklyn, Ala. Born on Oct. 14, 1845, he enlisted in Co. H of the 15th Confederate Cavalry and served until the Confederacy surrender in 1865.

Feb. 1, 1913 - Jim Thorpe signed a contract to play baseball with the New York Giants.

Feb. 1, 1919 – During World War I, Army Pvt. Raymond L. Seale of Repton, Ala. “died from disease.”

Feb. 1, 1920 – A disastrous fire that started around 3 a.m. occurred at the large Vredenburgh Saw Mill Co. saw mill in Vredenburgh, Ala. At the time of the fire another mill in Vredenburgh was already under construction, so construction was rushed on this second mill to get it started. In 1922, both mills were operating on double shifts. The cause of the fire was unknown.

Feb. 1, 1924 - A movie version of Alabama author T. S. Stribling's book “Birthright” was released.

Feb. 1, 1928 – National Baseball Hall of Fame infielder and manager Hughie Jennings died at the age of 58 in Scranton, Pa. During his career, he played for the Louisville Colonels, the Baltimore Orioles, the Brooklyn Superbas, the Philadelphia Phillies and the Detroit Tigers and he went on to manage the Tigers and the New York Giants. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1945.

Feb. 1, 1931 – Longtime railroad employee William Dorsey Goodson of Evergreen, Ala. retired after 62 years of work on the railroads. Born on Oct. 4, 1852, Goodson began his railroad career on May 17, 1869 in Ft. Deposit as a laborer and apprentice foreman. In early 1879, he was promoted to section foreman on the Western of Alabama Railroad at Lowndesboro Station. A few months later, he moved to Eufaula, where he served as a section foreman with the Central of Georgia Railroad. In 1888, he was promoted to supervisor of his division with headquarters at Union Springs. He moved to Evergreen on March 15, 1890, where he worked for the next 41 years as section foreman. (Asa Heaton, formerly of Searcy, replaced Goodson as section foreman.) Goodson passed away on May 8, 1934 at the age of 81 and he’s buried in the Old Evergreen Cemetery.

Feb. 1, 1944 – Major League centerfielder Paul Blair was born in Cushing, Okla. He would go on to play for the Baltimore Orioles, the New York Yankees and the Cincinnati Reds.

Feb. 1, 1949 – NFL offensive lineman Dave Thompson was born in Langdale, Ala. He went on to play for Valley High School in Fairax, Ala.; Clemson University, the Detroit Lions, the New Orleans Saints and the Tampa Bay Bucs.

Feb. 1, 1952 – Conecuh County, Ala. voters had until this day to pay their poll tax if they wanted to vote in that year’s elections. H.C. Wiggins was Conecuh County Tax Collector at this time.

Feb. 1, 1956 - Autherine Lucy of Birmingham, Ala. became the first African American to enroll at the University of Alabama. Her stay at the school ended abruptly, however, as she was suspended and then expelled amid campus unrest. Permanent integration of the university would be delayed until 1963, when two black students enrolled the day of Gov. George Wallace's "stand in the schoolhouse door."

Feb. 1, 1959 – Members of the Dyatlov Expedition started to move through Dyatlov Pass. It seems they planned to get over the pass and make camp for the next night on the opposite side, but because of worsening weather conditions, snowstorms and decreasing visibility, they lost their direction and deviated west, up towards the top of Kholat Syakhyl. When they realized their mistake, the group decided to stop and set up camp there on the slope of the mountain.

Feb. 1, 1962 - The National League released its first 162-game schedule.

Feb. 1, 1963 - Evergreen High School’s varsity boys basketball team gained revenge for an earlier season defeat on this Friday night when they whipped the W.S. Neal Blue Eagles, 62-47, in Evergreen, Ala. Sid Lambert set the Aggies individual single game high point peak for the season as he ripped the cords for 31 markers, half the Aggie scoring total. Ronnie Jackson contributed 10 points to the winning cause. Ray Davis led Neal with 24 points.

Feb. 1, 1964 - Flxible Southern Company of Loudonville, Ohio began operations in Evergreen, Ala. after purchasing the assets of Southern Coach & Body Co.

Feb. 1, 1964 – The Beatles had their first number one hit in the United States with "I Want to Hold Your Hand."

Feb. 1, 1964 - U.S. and South Vietnamese naval forces initiated Operation Plan (Oplan) 34A, which called for raids by South Vietnamese commandos, operating under American orders, against North Vietnamese coastal and island installations. Although American forces were not directly involved in the actual raids, U.S. Navy ships were on station to conduct electronic surveillance and monitor North Vietnamese defense responses under another program called Operation De Soto. The Oplan 34A attacks played a major role in events that led to what became known as the Gulf of Tonkin Incident. 

Feb. 1, 1965 – B.E. Lee, who’d served seven years as principal at Monroe County High School, was named the first president of the Monroeville Junior College, which became Patrick Henry Junior College a short time later.

Feb. 1, 1968 - Vince Lombardi resigned as the coach of the Green Bay Packers.

Feb. 1, 1968 – During the Vietnam War, the execution of Viet Cong officer Nguyễn Văn Lém by South Vietnamese National Police Chief Nguyễn Ngọc Loan was videotaped and photographed by Eddie Adams. This image helped build opposition to the Vietnam War.

Feb. 1, 1968 – During the Vietnam War, Richard M. Nixon announced his candidacy for the presidency. Most observers had written off Nixon’s political career eight years earlier, when he had lost to John F. Kennedy in the 1960 election.

Feb. 1, 1970 – Marine Cpl. John Wesley Winter of Brewton, Ala. was killed in action in Vietnam.

Feb. 1, 1972 - Monroeville’s Charlie Company of the 156^th Military Police Battalion (Army) retired its colors due to a massive reorganization of the Alabama Army National Guard. Replacing C Co. at Fort Short Milsap was Det 2, 778^th Maintenance Co. (Rear-DS). The headquarters part of the company was to be located at Jackson, with the towns of Evergreen, Fairhope and Monroeville making up the remaining parts of the company. Sgt. George B. Singleton was to remain in charge of the Monroeville detachment.

Feb. 1, 1992 - Barry Bonds signed the highest single season contract, which amounted to $4.7 million.

Feb. 1, 2003 - The space shuttle Columbia broke up while reentering Earth's atmosphere. All seven crew members were killed.

Feb. 1, 2004 – Janet Jackson's breast was exposed during the half-time show of Super Bowl XXXVIII, resulting in U.S. broadcasters adopting a stronger adherence to Federal Communications Commission censorship guidelines.

Feb. 1, 2007 - Alabama author W. L. Heath died in Guntersville, Ala.

Feb. 1, 2008 - The Aruban prosecutor's office reopened the case into the disappearance of Natalee Holloway, 18, of Mountain Brook, Ala. after receiving video footage of Joran van der Sloot, under the influence of marijuana, saying that Holloway died on the morning of May 30, 2005, and that he disposed of her body.