January 1950 in History

Events in History

Jan 1 Ho Chi Minh begins offensive against French troops in Indo China

Jan 1 The state of Ajaigarh is ceded to the Government of India.
Jan 5 Carson McCuller's "Member of the Wedding" premieres in NYC
Jan 6 Britain recognizes Communist government of China
Jan 7 Hank Snow's 1st appearance on "Grand Ole Opry"
Jan 7 Mental health wing of Mercy Hospital burns, kills 41 in Davenport, Iowa
Jan 12 Swedish tanker rams British submarine Truculent in Thames, 64 die
Jan 12 USSR re-introduces death penalty for treason, espionage & sabotage
Jan 14 US recalls all consular officials from China
Jan 15 4,000 attend National Emergency Civil Rights Conference in Washington, D.C.
Jan 16 Belgium, Luxembourg & Netherlands recognize Israel
Jan 17 The Great Brinks Robbery - 11 men rob $1.2M cash & $1.5M securities from armored car company Brink's offices in Boston, Massachusetts
Jan 18 Christopher Fry's "Venus Observed" premieres in London
Jan 19 Maiden flight by Canada's Avro Canada CF-100 military plane
Jan 20 Suriname becomes independent part in Realm of Netherlands
Jan 21 New York jury finds former State Department official Alger Hiss guilty of perjury

Jan 21 T. S. Eliot's play "The Cocktail Party" premieres in NYC

Jan 23 3rd edition of Joseph Kane's Famous 1st Facts published
Jan 23 Israeli Knesset resolves Jerusalem is capital of Israel
Jan 23 Rebel army of Dutch military officer Raymond Westerling occupies Bandung, Java
Jan 25 73°F (23°C) highest temperature ever recorded in Cleveland in January

Jan 26 Constitution of independent India comes into effect; Rajendra Prasad elected India's first president

Jan 31 US President Harry Truman publicly announces support for the development of a hydrogen bomb

Jan 1 Svetlana Georgievna Beregovkina, Russian cosmonaut
Jan 1 Yevgeni Vladimirovich Saley, cosmonaut
Jan 5 Charlie Richmond, Canadian entrepreneur, born in Pomona, California
Jan 5 Ioan Petru Culianu, Romanian historian, born in Iași, Romania (d. 1991)
Jan 5 John Manley, Canadian politician, born in Ottawa, Canada
Jan 6 Louis Freeh, American attorney & FBI director, born in Jersey City, New Jersey
Jan 9 Alec Jeffreys, British geneticist (developed techniques for DNA fingerprinting), born in Oxford, England
Jan 10 Roy Blunt, American politician (Senator-R-Missouri 2011, Rep-R-MO 1997-2011), born in Niangua, Missouri
Jan 12 Bob McEwen, American politician (Rep-R-OH, 1981-93), born in Hillsboro, Ohio
Jan 12 Dorrit Moussaieff, Israeli jewellery designer & businesswoman, born in Jerusalem, Israel
Jan 12 Göran Lindblad, Swedish politician, born in Gothenburg, Sweden
Jan 12 Marilyn Smith, American microbiologist, born in Americus, Georgia
Jan 12 Ricky Ray Rector, American murderer (d. 1992)
Jan 12 Sheila Jackson Lee, American politician, born in NYC, New York
Jan 16 Brian Castro, Australian author, born in Hong Kong
Jan 17 Luis López Nieves, Latin American writer, born in San Juan, Puerto Rico

Jan 19 Grant Nordman, Canadian politician, born in Santa Monica, California
Jan 20 Edward Hirsch, American poet, born in Chicago, Illinois
Jan 20 Mahamane Ousmane, President of Niger, born in Zinder, Niger
Jan 21 Joseph R. Tanner, American astronaut (STS 66, 82, sk: 97), born in Danville, Illinois
Jan 24 Benjamin Urrutia, Ecuadorian-born American writer, born in Guayaquil, Ecuador
Jan 24 Laura Kelly, American politician, Governor of Kansas (2019-), born in New York City
Jan 25 Gloria Naylor, American author (Women of Brewster Place), born in NYC, New York (d. 2016)
Jan 25 Michael Cotten, American rock synthesizer (Tubes) and art designer, born in Kansas City, Missouri
Jan 26 Jorg Haider, Austrian political leader (Austrian Freedom Party), born in Bad Goisern, Austria (d. 2008)
Jan 27 Amos Grunebaum, Israeli-born physician
Jan 28 David Carl Hilmers, American NASA astronaut (STS 51-J, 26, 36, 42), born in Clinton, Iowa
Jan 28 Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, King of Bahrain (1999 - present), born in Riffa, Bahrain

Jan 2 James Dooley, Irish-Australian Premier of New South Wales, dies at 72
Jan 6 Isaiah Bowman, American geographer (co-founder of the Geographical Review), dies at 71
Jan 8 Joseph A Schumpeter, Aus/US economist/Minister of Finance, dies at 66
Jan 8 Joseph Issac Shneerson, Jewish Lubavitch Chabal leader, dies
Jan 11 Karin Michaelis, Danish writer (The Dangerous Age), dies at 77
Jan 15 Henry "Hap" Arnold, American commanding general, US Army Air Force (WWII), dies at 63