January 15

Today in History
• 1535 - Henry VIII declares himself head of the Church in England
• 1559 - Elizabeth I crowned Queen of England in Westminster Abbey
• 1759 - British Museum opens in Montague House, London
• 1780 - American Continental Congress establishes court of appeals
• 1831 - 1st US-built locomotive to pull a passenger train makes 1st run
• 1861 - Steam elevator patented by Elisha Otis
• 1863 - 1st US newspaper printed on wood-pulp paper, Boston Morning Journal
• 1870 - Donkey first used as symbol of Democratic Party, in Harper's Weekly


Holidays - Traditional and Obscure
• Alpha Kappa Alpha Day
• Indian Army Day
• National Bagel Day
• National Booch Day
• National Hat Day
• National Pothole Day
• World Religion Day
• World Snow Day

Birthdays
• 1432 - Afonso V "the African", king of Portugal, 1438-1481
• 1716 - Philip Livingston, merchant, signed Declaration of Independence
• 1795 - Willem de Clerq, Dutch merchant/man of letters
• 1809 - Cornelia Connelly, founder, Society of the Holy Child Jesus
• 1814 - Ludwig Schlafli, Swiss vicar/mathematician
• 1845 - Ella Flagg Young, 1st woman President, National Educational Association
• 1908 - Edward Teller, born in Budapest, Hungary, fathered H-bomb, Manhattan Project
• 1929 - Martin Luther King Jr., leader of the Civil Rights Movement