1928 in the United States
Encyclopedia
January
- January 12 – U.S. murderer Ruth SnyderRuth SnyderRuth Brown Snyder was an American murderess. Her execution, in the electric chair at Sing Sing Prison, for the murder of her husband, Albert, was captured in a well-known photograph.-The crime:...
is executed at OssiningOssining (town), New YorkOssining is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 37,674 at the 2010 census. It contains two villages, the Village of Ossining and part of Briarcliff Manor, the rest of which is located in the Town of Mount Pleasant....
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February
- February 25 – Charles Jenkins LaboratoriesCharles Jenkins LaboratoriesCharles Jenkins Laboratories was the enterprise headed by Charles Francis Jenkins that was granted the first commercial television license in the United States, station W3XK. The Laboratories also operated experimental station W2XCR....
of Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
becomes the first holder of a televisionTelevisionTelevision is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
license from the Federal Radio CommissionFederal Radio CommissionThe Federal Radio Commission was a government body that regulated radio use in the United States from its creation in 1926 until its replacement by the Federal Communications Commission in 1934...
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March
- March 12 – In CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, the St. Francis DamSt. Francis DamThe St. Francis Dam was a concrete gravity-arch dam, designed to create a reservoir as a storage point of the Los Angeles Aqueduct. It was located 40 miles northwest of Los Angeles, California, near the present city of Santa Clarita....
north of Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
fails, killing 400. - March 21 – Charles LindberghCharles LindberghCharles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
is presented the Medal of HonorMedal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
for his first trans-AtlanticAtlantic OceanThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
flight.
April
- April 10 – "Pineapple PrimaryPineapple PrimaryThe Pineapple Primary was the name given to a Republican primary election held in Chicago on April 10, 1928; more than 60 bombs were thrown during the campaign and at least two politicians were killed...
": The U.S. Republican PartyRepublican Party (United States)The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
primary elections in ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
are preceded by assassinations and bombings.
May
- May 10 – The first regular schedule of television programming begins in SchenectadySchenectady, New YorkSchenectady is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 66,135...
, New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
by the General ElectricGeneral ElectricGeneral Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
's television station W2XBWRGBWRGB, channel 6, is a television station located in Schenectady, New York, USA. WRGB is owned by Freedom Communications, and is the CBS affiliate for the Albany-Schenectady-Troy television market...
(the station is popularly known as WGY Television, after its sister radio station WGY). - May 15 – The animated shortAnimationAnimation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
Plane CrazyPlane CrazyPlane Crazy is an American animated short film directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The cartoon, produced in 1928 by The Walt Disney Studio, was the first to feature the character Mickey Mouse. It was made as a silent film and given a test screening to a theater audience on May 15, 1928, but...
is released by Disney StudiosWalt Disney PicturesWalt Disney Pictures is an American film studio owned by The Walt Disney Company. Walt Disney Pictures and Television, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Studios and the main production company for live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, based at the Walt Disney...
in Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, featuring the first appearances of MickeyMickey MouseMickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
and Minnie MouseMinnie MouseMinerva "Minnie" Mouse is an animated character created by Ub Iwerks and Walt Disney. The comic strip story "The Gleam" by Merrill De Maris and Floyd Gottfredson first gave her full name as Minerva Mouse. Minnie has since been a recurring alias for her. Minnie is currently voiced by actress Russi...
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June
- June 17 – Aviator Amelia EarhartAmelia EarhartAmelia Mary Earhart was a noted American aviation pioneer and author. Earhart was the first woman to receive the U.S. Distinguished Flying Cross, awarded for becoming the first aviatrix to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean...
starts her attempt to become the first woman to successfully cross the Atlantic OceanAtlantic OceanThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
(she succeeds the next day). Wilmer StultzWilmer StultzWilmer Stultz was born in Williamsburg, Pennsylvania. He was a pioneering pilot. On March 5, 1928, Stultz, Oliver Colin LeBoutillier and Mabel Boll on a improvised seat, made the first non-stop flight in the Columbia between New York City and Havana, Cuba. Stultz was the pilot on June 18, 1928...
was the pilot. - June 29 – New York Governor Alfred E. SmithAl SmithAlfred Emanuel Smith. , known in private and public life as Al Smith, was an American statesman who was elected the 42nd Governor of New York three times, and was the Democratic U.S. presidential candidate in 1928...
becomes the first CatholicCatholicThe word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
nominated by a major political party for U.S. PresidentPresident of the United StatesThe President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
, at the Democratic National Convention1928 Democratic National ConventionThe 1928 Democratic National Convention was held at Sam Houston Hall in Houston, Texas from June 26 – June 28, 1928. The convention resulted in the nomination of Governor Alfred E. Smith of New York for President and Senator Joseph T. Robinson of Arkansas for Vice-President.The convention was...
in Houston, TexasHouston, TexasHouston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
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July
- July 6 – The world's largest hailHailHail is a form of solid precipitation. It consists of balls or irregular lumps of ice, each of which is referred to as a hail stone. Hail stones on Earth consist mostly of water ice and measure between and in diameter, with the larger stones coming from severe thunderstorms...
stone falls in Potter, NebraskaPotter, NebraskaPotter is a village in Cheyenne County, Nebraska, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 390.-Geography:Potter is located at ....
. - July 12 – MexicanMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
aviatorAviatorAn aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
Emilio CarranzaEmilio CarranzaCaptain Emilio Carranza Rodríguez was a noted Mexican aviator and national hero, nicknamed the "Lindbergh of Mexico". He was killed while returning from a historic goodwill flight from Mexico City to the United States....
dies in a solo plane crash in the New Jersey Pine Barrens, while returning from a goodwill flight to New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. - July 25 – The United States recalls its troops from ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
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August
- August 16 – Murderer Carl PanzramCarl PanzramCarl Panzram was an American serial killer, arsonist and burglar. He is known for his confession to prison guard and only friend, Henry Lesser. In graphic detail, Panzram confessed to 22 murders, and to having sodomized over 1,000 males...
is arrested in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
after killing about 20 people. - August 22 – Alfred E. SmithAl SmithAlfred Emanuel Smith. , known in private and public life as Al Smith, was an American statesman who was elected the 42nd Governor of New York three times, and was the Democratic U.S. presidential candidate in 1928...
accepts the DemocraticDemocratic Party (United States)The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
presidential nomination, with WGY/W2XB simulcasting the event on radio and television.
September
- September 1 – Richard Byrd leaves New York for the Arctic.
- September 11 – KenmoreKenmore, New YorkVillage of Kenmore is a village in Erie County, New York, in the United States. The population was 16,426 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area....
's WMAKWMAKWMAK, channel 7, is a digital television station serving the Knoxville, Tennessee area. WMAK signed on July 31, 2004, making it one of the few stations in the US to sign on exclusively as a digital station, with no full-powered analog counterpart...
station starts broadcasting in Buffalo, New YorkBuffalo, New YorkBuffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
. - September 16 – The 1928 Okeechobee Hurricane1928 Okeechobee HurricaneThe Okeechobee hurricane, or San Felipe Segundo hurricane, was a deadly hurricane that struck the Leeward Islands, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, and Florida in September of the 1928 Atlantic hurricane season...
kills at least 2,500 people in FloridaFloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
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October
- October 12 – An iron lungIron lungA negative pressure ventilator is a form of medical ventilator that enables a person to breathe when normal muscle control has been lost or the work of breathing exceeds the person's ability....
respirator is used for the first time at Children's Hospital, Boston. - October 22 – The Phi Sigma AlphaPhi Sigma AlphaPhi Sigma Alpha Fraternity commonly known as La Sigma, is a Puerto Rican fraternity established originally as the Sigma Delta Alpha Fraternity on October 22, 1928 at the University of Puerto Rico by 12 students and a professor...
Fraternity is founded at the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras CampusUniversity of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras CampusThe University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras , also referred to as UPR-RP, is a public research university located on a campus in Río Piedras, San Juan, Puerto Rico...
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November
- November 4 – At Park Central Hotel in ManhattanManhattanManhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, Arnold RothsteinArnold RothsteinArnold Rothstein , nicknamed "The Brain", was a New York businessman and gambler who became a famous kingpin of the Jewish mafia. Rothstein was also widely reputed to have been behind baseball's Black Sox Scandal, in which the 1919 World Series was fixed...
, New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
's most notorious gambler, is shot to death over a pokerPokerPoker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
game. - November 6 – U.S. presidential election, 1928: Republican Herbert HooverHerbert HooverHerbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
wins by a wide margin over Democrat Alfred E. Smith. - November 17 – The Boston GardenBoston GardenThe Boston Garden was an arena in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Designed by boxing promoter Tex Rickard, who also built the third iteration of New York's Madison Square Garden, it opened on November 17, 1928 as "Boston Madison Square Garden" and outlived its original namesake by some 30 years...
opens in BostonBostonBoston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. - November 18 – Mickey MouseMickey MouseMickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
appears in Steamboat WillieSteamboat WillieSteamboat Willie is a 1928 American animated short film directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. It was produced in black-and-white by The Walt Disney Studio and released by Celebrity Productions. The cartoon is considered the debut of Mickey Mouse, and as his girlfriend Minnie, but the characters...
, the third Mickey Mouse cartoon released, but the first sound filmSound filmA sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades would pass before sound motion pictures were made commercially...
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December
- December 5 – Police disperse a Sicilian gangs' meeting in Cleveland.
- December 21 – The U.S. Congress approves the construction of Boulder Dam, later renamed Hoover DamHoover DamHoover Dam, once known as Boulder Dam, is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River, on the border between the US states of Arizona and Nevada. It was constructed between 1931 and 1936 during the Great Depression and was dedicated on September 30, 1935, by President...
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Undated
- Eliot NessEliot NessEliot Ness was an American Prohibition agent, famous for his efforts to enforce Prohibition in Chicago, Illinois, and the leader of a legendary team of law enforcement agents nicknamed The Untouchables.- Early life :...
begins to lead the prohibitionProhibitionProhibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
unit in ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. - The first (and last) Best Title Writing Academy AwardAcademy AwardsAn Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
is given. - The Episcopal Church in the United States of America ratifies a new revision of the Book of Common PrayerBook of Common PrayerThe Book of Common Prayer is the short title of a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion, as well as by the Continuing Anglican, "Anglican realignment" and other Anglican churches. The original book, published in 1549 , in the reign of Edward VI, was a product of the English...
. - W2XBS, RCARCARCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...
's first television station, is established in New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
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Births
- October 7 – Herb RichHerb RichRichard Herbert Rich was an American football safety in the National Football League for the Baltimore Colts, Los Angeles Rams and New York Giants....
, football player (d. 20082008 in the United States-Incumbents:* President: George W. Bush * Vice President: Dick Cheney * Chief Justice: John Roberts* Speaker of the House of Representatives: Nancy Pelosi * Senate Majority Leader: Harry Reid * Congress: 110th...
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