Osun Defender History Corner: January 19 In Focus

Today, on the history corner, we take a trip in the realm of flashback and recall some events that marked this day.

January 19, 1419

Hundred Years’ War – Rouen surrenders to Henry V of England.

January 19, 1736

James Watt, Scottish inventor of the steam engine, is born.

January 19, 1809

Edgar Allan Poe, American poet and author, is born.

January 19, 1829

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German writer, dies.

January 19, 1883

The first electric lighting system employing overhead wires begins service in Roselle, New Jersey.

January 19, 1915

Georges Claude patents the neon discharge tube for use in advertising signs.

January 19, 1937

Howard Hughes sets a new air record by flying from Los Angeles to New York in 7 hours, 28 minutes, and 25 seconds.

January 19, 1942

World War II – Japanese forces invade Burma.

January 19, 1966

Indira Gandhi is elected as the first female Prime Minister of India.

January 19, 1977

President Gerald Ford pardons Iva Toguri D’Aquino, better known as Tokyo Rose.

January 19, 1983

Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie is arrested in Bolivia.

January 19, 1986

The first IBM PC computer virus is released into the wild.

January 19, 1993

Czech Republic and Slovakia formally separate into two independent nations.

January 19, 2006

NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft is launched to Pluto.

January 19, 2007

Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink is assassinated in Istanbul.

January 19, 2013

Algeria hostage crisis – Islamic militants attack a gas facility in Algeria, resulting in the deaths of 38 hostages.

January 19, 2015

Boko Haram militants attack the town of Baga in Nigeria, killing at least 150 people.

January 19, 2017

The United States inaugurates Donald Trump as its 45th president.

January 19, 2019

A fuel pipeline explosion in Mexico kills at least 66 people.

January 19, 2020

The World Health Organization confirms human-to-human transmission of the novel coronavirus, leading to the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Please note that these are just a few historical events that happened on January 19. History is full of numerous other significant events on this day, ranging from politics and warfare to cultural and scientific milestones.