Historical Figures Who Died in 1956

H. L. Mencken

Jan 29 H[enry] L[ouis] Mencken, US essayist/critic (Smart Set), dies at 75

Jan 30 Gerrit Mannoury, Dutch mathematician and philosopher, dies at 88

A. A. Milne

Jan 31 A. A. Milne, English author of the Winnie-the-Pooh books, dies at 74

Feb 2 Pyotr Konchalovsky, Russian painter (b. 1876)
Feb 3 Émile Borel, French mathematician (b. 1871)
Feb 4 Leendert Antonie Donker, Dutch Minister of Justice (PvdA), dies at 56
Feb 13 Jan Łukasiewicz, Polish logician, philosopher, professor, and author, dies at 77
Feb 26 Herman Courtens, Belgian baron and painter, dies at 72
Feb 28 Emile Buisson, French murderer executed (b. 1902)

Elpidio Quirino

Feb 29 Elpidio Quirino, 6th President of Philippines (1949-53), dies at 65

Mar 3 Willem Hendrik Keesom, Dutch physicist (Helium I/II), dies at 79

Irene Joliot-Curie

Mar 17 Irene Joliot-Curie, French physicist (Nobel laureate 1935) and daughter of Marie Curie, dies at 58

Mar 18 Friedrich Panzer, German germanist (Hilde-Gudrun), dies at 85
Mar 18 Louis Bromfield, writer, dies at 59
Mar 20 Wilhelm Miklas, Austrian politician and 3rd President of Austria (1928-38), dies at 83
Mar 22 George Al Sarton, Belgian-American chemist and historian, dies at 71
Mar 24 Edmund Taylor Whittaker, British mathematician (applied mathematics and the theory of special functions), dies at 82
Mar 27 Frans Beelaerts van Blokland, minister of Foreign affairs, dies at 84
Mar 29 Infante Alfonso of Spain, younger brother of King Juan Carlos, dies from an accidental gunshot at 14
Apr 2 Albert Marie Leon Adolphe de Bassompierre, Belgium ambassador to Tokyo (1921-39), dies at 82
Apr 2 Philippo de Pisis, Italian painter, dies at 59
Apr 10 Clarence Beaumont, 1st batter in 1st World Series, dies at 75
Apr 15 Emile Nolde [Hansen], German painter (Grablegung Christi), dies at 88
Apr 19 Ernst Robert Curtius, German literature historian, dies at 70
Apr 19 Leon N H Jungschlaeger, head milt intelligence Neth-Indies, dies at 52
Apr 24 Albrecht G Alt, German theologist (Small Schriften), dies at 72
Apr 30 Alben W Barkley, (VP-D-1949-53), dies at 78
May 5 Karel Rudolph Gallas, Dutch lexicographer (French Dictionary), dies at 88
May 7 Josef Hoffmann, Austrian architect (Vienna Secession Movement), dies at 85
May 11 Walter S Adams, American astronomer & director of Mount Wilson, dies at 79
May 12 Hendrik P. Marchant, Dutch minister of Education, dies at 87
May 13 Aleksandr A. Fadejev, Russian author (Young Guard), commits suicide at 54
May 14 Robert Willem Pieter Peereboom, Dutch editor in chief (Haarlem Newspaper), dies at 64
May 15 Austin Osman Spare, English magician (b. 1886)
May 16 H. B. Reese, American inventor of Reese's, dies at 76
May 20 Max Beerbohm, English caricaturist, writer and parodist (Saturday Review), dies at 83
May 29 Albert H. Edelkoort, Dutch theologist (Christusverwachting), dies at 65

Hiram Bingham

Jun 6 Hiram Bingham, American Archaeologist (Incan site of Machu Picchu), dies at 80

Jun 7 Julien Benda, Fren philosopher/writer (La trahison des clercs), dies
Jun 8 Marie Laurencin, French painter, dies at 72
Jun 11 Corrado Alvaro, Italian writer (Poesie grigio-verdi), dies at 61
Jun 17 Paul Rostock, German doctor (b. 1892)
Jun 19 (Luise) "Lulu" von Strauss und Torney, German poet (Erde der Väter - Our Forefathers' Soil), and novelist (Der jüngste Tag - Judgment Day), dies at 82

Thomas J. Watson

Jun 19 Thomas J. Watson, Sr., American businessman (Chairman and CEO of IBM, 1914-1956), dies at 87

Jun 22 Walter de la Mare, British poet and author (The Listeners, Memoirs of a Midget), dies at 83
Jun 23 Michael Arlen [Dikran Kouyoumdjian], British author and scriptwriter (An American Verdict), dies at 60
Jun 24 Earl Morris, American archaeologist (Aztec Ruins National Monument), dies at 66
Jun 25 Ernest J. King, US fleet admiral, Chief of Naval Operations, dies at 77
Jul 7 Gottfried Benn, German poet and essayist, dies at 70
Jul 8 Gerrit Jan van Heuven Goedhart, dutch min of Justice (Nobel 54), dies
Jul 8 Giovanni Papini, Italian author/poet (Un Uomo Finito), dies at 75
Jul 12 Maurice Lippens, Belgian governor of Congo (1921-23), dies at 80
Jul 18 Willem Kernkamp, Dutch minister of Colonies (Islam & Woman), dies at 57
Jul 20 James Alexander Calder, Canadian politician, dies at 87
Jul 29 Ludwig Klages, German philosopher (study of graves), dies at 83
Jul 30 Maude Royden, English suffragist and preacher, dies at 79
Aug 2 Albert Woolson, last veteran US Union army, dies at 109

Jackson Pollock

Aug 11 Jackson Pollock, abstract artist, dies in auto accident (East Hampton)

Aug 14 Freiherr Constantine von Neurath, German foreign min (1932-38), dies
Aug 14 Bertolt Brecht, German poet and playwright (Mother Courage), dies of a heart attack at 58
Aug 15 Constantine Freiherr von Neurath, German foreign minister, dies at 83
Aug 25 Alfred Kinsey, American entomologist and sexologist (Kinsey Report), dies from a heart ailment and pneumonia at 62
Aug 26 Alfred Wagenknecht, German-born American activist, dies at 75
Sep 6 Michael Ventris, English architect who deciphered Linear B, dies in a car accident at 34
Sep 8 Gerrit Bolkestein, Dutch minister of Education (1939-45), dies at 84
Sep 8 Vital Celen, Flemish writer ('t Pastoorke van Vossendonck), dies at 69

Billy Bishop

Sep 11 Billy Bishop, Canadian First World War flying ace, dies at 62

Sep 12 Hans Carossa, German writer, dies at 77
Sep 12 Sándor Graf Festetics, Hungarian nobleman and politician, dies at 74
Sep 18 Adélard Godbout, Canadian politician (15th Premier of Quebec), dies at 63
Sep 21 Anastasio Somoza García [Tacho], General, dictator and President of Nicaragua (1937-56), assassinated by Roliberto Lopez at 60

Frederick Soddy

Sep 22 Frederick Soddy, English chemist, Nobel Prize laureate, dies at 79

Sep 26 Lucien Febvre, French historian (Un Destin, Martin Luther), dies at 78
Sep 27 Milburn G. Apt, American test pilot, 1st person to exceed Mach 3, killed in a X-2 rocket plane reaching 3370 kph, dies in the crash at 32

William Boeing

Sep 28 William Boeing, American aviation pioneer who founded The Boeing Company, dies at 74

Oct 2 Paul de Backer, Belgian radiologist, dies at 73
Oct 6 Charles E. Merrill, American investment banker (Merrill Lynch), dies at 70

Clarence Birdseye

Oct 7 Clarence Birdseye, American inventor and founder of the modern frozen food industry (Birdseye), dies of a heart attack at 69

Oct 8 Dirk Koster, literary (New Noises), dies at 69
Oct 16 Jules Rimet, French football administrator (3rd President of FIFA 1921-54), dies at 83

Charles Strite

Oct 18 Charles Strite, American inventor who invented the automatic pop-up toaster, dies at 78

Oct 24 Henry Nicholas Ridley, British botanist (Malay Peninsula rubber industry), dies at 100
Oct 25 Risto Ryti, Finnish minister/premier/president, dies at 67

Pío Baroja

Oct 30 Pío Baroja y Nessi, Spanish Basque writer, author of over 100 novels (The Struggle for Life, Zalacain the Adventurer), dies at 83

Nov 1 Pietro Badoglio, 41st Prime Minister of Italy (1943-44) and Italian General (1922-43), dies at 85
Nov 2 Leo Baeck, President of World Union for Progressive Judaism, dies at 83
Nov 9 Aino Kallas, Finnish writer (White Ship, Estonian Tales), dies at 78

Harry Ford Sinclair

Nov 10 Harry Ford Sinclair, founder of Sinclair Oil, dies at 80

Nov 22 Vincent de Moro-Giafferi, French criminal attorney, dies at 77
Nov 23 Jeanne Cappe, Belgian author (Tres Grand Cardinal), dies at about 61
Dec 4 Alexander Rodchenko, Russian painter and photographer, dies at 64

Dec 6 B.R. Ambedkar [Baba Saheb], Indian politician, jurist (architect of the Constitution of India) and social reformer who inspired the Dalit Buddhist Movement, dies after suffering from diabetes at 65

Dec 14 Juho Kusti Paasikivi, Finnish politician (7th President of Finland 1946-56), dies at 86
Dec 16 Nina Hamnett, Welsh artist and writer, dies at 66
Dec 20 Ramon Carrillo, Argentine neuroscientist and Public Health minister (b. 1906)
Dec 21 Lewis M Terman, psychologist (Genetic studies of genius), dies at 79
Dec 25 Robert Walser, Swiss writer, dies at 78
Dec 27 Lambert McKenna, Irish editor and lexicographer, dies at 86
Dec 28 Roelof Kranenburg, Dutch social democratic chairman (1st Chamber), dies at 76
Dec 29 Martin Albertz, German theologist (Jesus Christ's Church) and resistance fighter against the Nazi regime, dies at 73

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