It is time for This Month In History April edition.
This month’s history includes facts about presidents, states, war, inventions, famous birthdays, and more.
April In History
April 1
- 1700 The annual tradition of playing practical jokes began with English pranksters.
- 1929 The yo-yo was introduced by inventor Louis Marx.
April 2
- 1513 Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon claims the territory for Spain when he lands on the Florida coast near current day St. Augustine.
- 1805 Writer Hans Christian Anderson was born.
- 1917 American President Woodrow Wilson goes before Congress to ask for a declaration of war against Germany.
- 1982 Argentine troops invade the Falkland Islands, a British territory off Argentina.
April 3
- 1721 Robert Walpole because the first British Prime Minister.
- 1829 The coffee mill is patented by James Carrington.
- 1882 American outlaw Jesse James was shot to death by a member of his own gang.
April 4
- 1928 American Poet Maya Angelou was born.
- 1968 Martin Luther King Jr. was shot to death at a Memphis hotel.
April 5
- 1923 Firestone introduced the tires with inflatable inner tubes.
- 1937 Colin Powell. U.S. General and secretary of state under George W. Bush.
- 1943 Dietrich Bonhoeffer, German Protestant theologian and an opponent of Nazi Germany and Hitler, is arrested and jailed in Berlin.
April 6
- 1830 Joseph Smith establishes the Mormon Church during a meeting in New York.
- 1866 Butch Cassidy, an American outlaw was born.
- 1917 The U.S. officially enters WWI when the House of Representatives passes a declaration of war on Germany. The vote was 373 – 50.
April 7
- 1915 The first coast-to-coast commercial telephone service happened when a call was established between New York and California.
- 1917 Panama and Cuba enter WWI when they declared war on Germany.
April 8
- 1879 A New York dairy introduces glass bottles for packaging milk.
April 9
- 1872 Powdered milk is patented by Samuel R. Percy
April 10
- 1633 Bananas go on sale for the first time in England at a London shop.
- 1829 William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army is born.
- 1933 U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt creates the Civilian Conservation Corps to put thousands of young men to work on government projects like building roads, dams, etc.
April 11
- 1970 Apollo 13, the third lunar landing mission, leaves Cape Canaveral, Florida. Two days later an oxygen tank exploded and antronaunt Lovell spoke the now famous words, “Houston, we’ve had a problem here. ” The movie Apollo 13 is based on this mission.
April 12
- 1892 The portable typewriter was patented by George Blickensderfer.
- 1957 Country singer Vince Gill was born.
April 13
- 1743 Thomas Jefferson, the third U.S. President was born.
- 1943 The Jefferson Memorial, in Washington D.C. is dedicated.
- 1964 Sydney Poitier wins an Academy Award for best actor, becoming the first African American to win.
April 14
- 1818 Noah Webster published one of the first dictionaries to include mainly American words.
- 1865 John Wilkes Booth shoots President Abraham Lincoln.
April 15
- 1865 Abraham Lincoln dies from his bullet wound after being shot by John Wilkes Booth.
- 1912 The Titanic Sinks in the North Atlantic Ocean.
April 16
- 1867 Wilbur Wright, American aviator was born.
April 17
- 1941 Yugoslavia surrendered to Nazi Germany.
- 1970 Apollo 13 returns to Earth after being damaged four days earlier when an explosion occurred.
April 18
- 1775 Paul Revere rode from Boston to Lexington to warn that the British were marching towards Concord.
April 19
- 1993 The FBI raided the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas after a 51 day stand off. If you want to read more about this event the book Waco is an excellent read.
- 1994 One hundred and sixty-eight people were killed when an explosion hit the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Within days Timothy McVeigh was arrested. He was tried and found convicted in 1997.
April 20
- 1862 Louis Pasteur and Claude Barnard complete their first pasteurizing test.
- 1889 Nazi Germany Dictator, Adolf Hitler, was born.
April 21
- 1920 Author Mark Twain died.
- 1956 Elvis Presley’s song Heartbreak Hotel, made the No. 1 spot on the Billboard chart. It was his first song to hit number one.
April 22
- 1889 Thousands of settlers enter Oklahoma to claim land in Oklahoma Territory. It is known as the Oklahoma Land Run or Oklahoma Land Rush.
April 23
- 1564 William Shakespeare was born.
- 1975 President Gerald R. Ford declared the American involvement in Vietnam War was over.
April 24
- 1800 The Library of Congress was established.
- 1953 Winston Churchill was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II
April 25
- 1719 Robison Crusoe by Daniel Defoe was published.
- 1846 The Mexican American War began.
April 26
- 1986 Thiry-one people were killed and thousands were injured when the world’s worst nuclear disaster happened at Chernobyl in Ukraine. Midnight at Chernobyl is an excellent book on this event.
April 27
- 1820 Beethoven composed Fur Elise.
- 1965 Pampers diapers were patented.
- 1981 Xerox introduces the first computer with a mouse.
April 28
- 1788 Maryland became the seventh U.S. state.
April 29
- 1945 The first Nazi concentration camp, Dachau was liberated.
- 1945 Adlof Hitler married his longtime mistress Eva Braun.
April 30
- 1789 George Washington was sworn in as the first president of the U.S.
- 1798 The U.S. Navy was established.
- 1812 Louisiana became the 18th U.S. state.