February

February 1 1960 – The First Sit-In Occurs at a Woolworth’s Counter in Greensboro, North Carolina2 (40%) 2 votes Four freshmen from the Agricultural and Technical College of North Carolina (NC A&T) walked into the Woolworth’s store on South Elm Street in Greensboro, sat down at the lunch counter and ordered a cup of coffee on February 1, 1960. The African-American men, fully aware they would not be served in the “whites only” restaurant, remained in their seats until closing time without receiving anything. Though not the first such protest, the sit-in launched the Civil Rights Movement onto the national stage like never before. Joseph McNeil, Franklin McCain, David Richmond […]

February 1 1884 – The first fascicle of the Oxford English Dictionary is published4 (80%) 1 vote On February 1, 1884, the first fascicle of Oxford English Dictionary was published. The dictionary has been the most popular and one of the most detailed English language dictionaries till date. The earliest organized English dictionary available to users was Samuel Johnson’s. This dictionary was published in 1755 and was followed by a number of English language users for over a century and half. The publication of the Oxford English Dictionary or the OED was initially planned by the Philological Society of London. In 1857, members of the Philological Society rued the lack […]

February 2 1653 – New Amsterdam is incorporated by Dutch settlers4 (80%) 2 votes On February 2, 1653, New Amsterdam, the capital of New Netherland, the Dutch colonial settlement in North America was incorporated as a city. The city later evolved to become the modern-day New York City (NYC). The official seal of New York City bears the 1625 date in honor of the founding of New Amsterdam. Though the French and Spanish had discovered the region that now forms NYC, earliest exploration of the area was led by Henry Hudson, an Englishman who was serving with the Dutch East India Company, in 1609. He led his 10-day long exploration […]

February 3 1451 – Mehmed II Becomes Sultan of the Ottoman EmpireRate this post Eight years after first becoming leader of the Ottomans at the tender age of twelve, Mehmed II became Sultan for good on February 3, 1451 after the death of his father, Murat II. For the next three decades, he would dedicate his life and his armies to the construction of an empire to rival the height of Rome. By his death in 1481, Mehmed’s conquests laid the foundation for a military force capable of threatening the heart of Europe for centuries. Raised according to Islamic tradition, Mehmed received his first true experience in leadership as the […]

February 4 1789 – George Washington is unanimously elected the first President of the USRate this post On February 4, 1789, George Washington was elected to be the first President of the United States of America – the only president to have won unanimously at the presidential elections. During the course of his military career, Washington had earned a formidable reputation. He had served during the Seven Years’ War and was referred to as the “Colonel of the Virginia Regiment and Commander in Chief of all forces now raised in the defense of His Majesty’s Colony”. His powerful leadership became evident as the original colonies started to resist the British. […]

February 5 1852 – The Hermitage Museum Opens to the Public in St. Petersburg, Russia5 (100%) 1 vote In 1764, on the banks of the Neva River, Catherine the Great tucked her new art collection into the Winter Palace after purchasing the first handful of paintings. Some 88 years later, the gathered masterpieces of Russian royalty were displayed to the public for the first time on February 5, 1852. The State Hermitage, known commonly throughout the world as the Hermitage Museum, has since become one of the oldest and largest galleries of its kind on the planet. Known for her desire to move the Russian people into the modern age […]