The United States of America was founded in 1776 on July 4th, when the Continental Congress
adopted the Declaration of Independence. Since then, the nation has undergone many changes
and events.
Some Key Historical Events:
January 1st, 1863 – President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.
January 1st, 1892 – Ellis Island was opened.
January 1st, 1983 – The Official “birth” of the Internet.
January 3rd, 1788 – Georgia became the fourth state to ratify the U.S. Constitution.
January 3rd, 1959 – Alaska becomes the 49th U.S. State.
January 4th, 1777 – George Washington defeats British general Charles Cornwallis at the Battle
of Princeton.
January 4th, 1896 – Utah becomes the 45th U.S. State.
January 6th, 1912 – New Mexico becomes the 47th U.S. State.
January 7th, 1800 – Millard Fillmore was born. The 13th President of the United States and the
last member of the Whig party to hold the office.
January 9th, 1788 – Connecticut becomes the fifth state to be admitted into the United States.
January 9th, 1913 – Richard Nixon, the 37th President of the United States, was born.
January 9th, 2007 – The first iPhone was introduced by Steve Jobs.
January 11th, 1755 or 1757 – Alexander Hamilton, a founding father, was born.
January 11th, 1935 – Amelia Earhart made history as the first person to fly solo from Hawaii to
California.
January 14th, 1784 – The U.S. Congress ratified the Treaty of Paris.
January 15, 1929 – Martin Luther King Jr was born.
January 16th, 1919 – The 18th Amendment, prohibiting the manufacture, sale, and
transportation of alcohol, was ratified.
January 17th, 1706 – Benjamin Franklin, a founding father, was born.
January 17th, 1899 – The U.S. takes possession of Wake Island.
January 19th, 1977 – Miami, Florida, experienced its first snow in history.
January 20th, 2009 – Barack Obama is inaugurated as the 44th President of the United States,
making him the first African American to hold the office.
January 22nd, 1973 – President Johnson died.
January 23rd, 1737 – John Hancock, a founding father, was born.
January 23rd, 1964 – The 24th Amendment was ratified.
January 24th, 1848 – Gold was discovered in Sutter’s Mill in California, triggering the California
Gold Rush.
January 26th, 1837 – Michigan becomes the 26th state of the U.S.
January 29, 1843 – William McKinley, the 25th U.S. President, was born.
January 29th, 1861 – Kansas becomes the 34th state of the U.S.
January 30th, 1882 – Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd U.S. President, was born.
Holidays:
January 1st – New Year’s Day.
Third Monday of January – Martin Luther King Jr. Day.