January 1939 in History

Events in History

Event of Interest

Jan 1 Hewlett-Packard is founded by Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard in a garage in Palo Alto, California "the birthplace of Silicon Valley"

Jan 1 Sydney, Australia, swelters in 45 ˚C (113 ˚F) heat, a record for the city.
Jan 3 Gene Cox becomes 1st girl page in US House of Representatives
Jan 4 Frieda Wunderlich elected 1st woman dean of a US graduate school

Event of Interest

Jan 4 Hermann Goering appoints Reinhard Heydrich head of Jewish Emigration

Jan 7 US worker's union leader Tom Mooney freed (jailed since 1916)

Timely Comics Founded

Jan 12 Timely Comics (later Marvel) founded by American publisher Martin Goodman in New York

Comic-Book Artist and Marvel Creative Leader Stan Lee

Treaty of Interest

Jan 13 Belgian premier signs Burgos Treaty for trade relations with Franco's Spain

Spanish Dictator and General Francisco Franco

Jan 13 The Black Friday bush fires burn 20,000 square kilometres of land in Australia, claiming the lives of 71 people.
Jan 14 All commercial ferry services between San Francisco and East Bay end
Jan 14 Norway claims Queen Maud Land in Antarctica
Jan 15 Municipal Railway & Market St RR begin service to Transbay Terminal
Jan 16 Daily newspaper comic strip "Superman" debuts
Jan 16 The Irish Republican Army (IRA) begins a 14 month long bombing campaign in England
Jan 19 Ernest Hausen of Wisconsin sets chicken-plucking record of 4.4 sec

Event of Interest

Jan 21 George Kaufman and Moss Hart's "American Way" premieres in NYC

Jan 21 US male Figure Skating championship won by Robin Lee
Jan 22 Aquatic Park, near Fisherman's Wharf, San Francisco dedicated
Jan 24 30,000 killed by earthquake in Concepcion Chile
Jan 24 Spanish government moves to Figueras

Event of Interest

Jan 25 1st nuclear fission experiment (splitting of a uranium atom) in the US, in basement of Pupin Hall, Columbia University by a team including Enrico Fermi

Jan 25 Earthquake hits Chillan Chile, 10,000 killed
Jan 26 Federal Hall National Monument established
Jan 26 Filming begins on film adaptation of "Gone With The Wind"
Jan 26 Francisco Franco's troops conquer Barcelona
Jan 27 First flight of the Lockheed P-38 Lightning

Event of Interest

Jan 30 Adolf Hitler threatens Jews during his speech to the German Reichstag (Parliament)

Jan 30 Heavy aftershocks destroy some of Chile

Birthdays in History

Jim Bakker (84 years old)

Jan 2 American televangelist (Assemblies of God, The PTL Club) and convicted fraud, born in Muskegon, Michigan

Jan 3 Janice Crosio, Australian politician
Jan 5 Peter Struycken, Dutch artist, born in The Hague, Netherlands
Jan 7 Prince Michael of Greece and Denmark, born in Rome, Kingdom of Italy
Jan 7 Romualdo Arppi Filho, Brazilian football referee (FIFA-listed 1963–89; FIFA World Cup Final 1986), born in Santos, São Paulo, Brazil (d. 2023)
Jan 10 David Horowitz, American author & political commentator, born in NYC, New York
Jan 10 Jared Carter, American poet, born in Elwood, Indiana
Jan 10 William Levy, American writer, born in St. Louis, Missouri (d. 2019)
Jan 12 Helmut Eisendle, Austrian writer, born in Graz, Austria (d. 2003)
Jan 12 Jacques Hamelink, Dutch writer & poet (Cold Unrest), born in Terneuzen, Netherlands
Jan 18 Bernard Glassman, American Zen Buddhist roshi (Zen Center of NY), born in Brighton Beach, New York
Jan 20 Nalin Chandra Wickramasinghe, Sri Lankan-born British mathematician & astronomer, born in Colombo, Sri Lanka
Jan 20 Paul Coverdell, American politician, born in Des Moines, Iowa (d. 2000)
Jan 21 Mary Ellen McAnally, American poet (Dance of the Zygotes), born in Vandalia, Illinois
Jan 22 Jeff Smith, American chef (d. 2004)
Jan 25 Gabriel Romanus, Swedish politician, born in Helsingborg, Sweden
Jan 27 N R Bomford, head master (Harrow School)
Jan 28 John M Fabian, Goosecreek Tx, Col USAF/astronaut (STS 7, STS 51G)
Jan 29 Germaine Greer, Australian feminist and author (Female Eunuch), born in Melbourne, Victoria
Jan 30 Frank Wolf, American politician (Rep-R-VA, 1981-2015), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania