August 1927
Encyclopedia
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The following events occurred in August 1927:
n emergency meeting of the Chinese Communist Party, convened in Hankou
by the Vissarion Lominadze
Soviet representative of Comintern
, Secretary General Chen Duxiu
(Ch'en Tu-hsiu) was deposed as the CCP's leader, and replaced by Qu Qiubai
(Ch'u Ch'iu-pai). At the meeting, future Party Chairman Mao Zedong
made the oft-quoted statement that "political power is obtained out of the barrel of a gun".
January 1927
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in January 1927.-January 1, 1927 :...
- February
February 1927
The following events occurred in February, 1927.January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December-February 1, 1927 :*In its third year of conferring B.A...
- March
March 1927
January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - DecemberThe following events occurred in March 1927-March 1, 1927 :...
- April
April 1927
January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - DecemberThe following events occurred in April 1927:-April 1, 1927 :...
- May
May 1927
January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - DecemberThe following events occurred in May 1927.-May 1, 1927 :...
- June
June 1927
January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - DecemberThe following events occurred in June 1927.-June 1, 1927 :...
- July
July 1927
January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - DecemberThe following events occurred in July 1927:-July 1, 1927 :...
- August - September
September 1927
January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - DecemberThe following events occurred in September 1927:-September 1, 1927 :...
- October
October 1927
January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - DecemberThe following events occurred in October 1927:-October 1, 1927 :...
- November
November 1927
January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - DecemberThe following events occurred in November 1927:-November 1, 1927 :...
- December
December 1927
January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October 1927 - November - DecemberThe following events occurred in December 1927:-December 1, 1927:...
August 1, 1927 (Monday)
- Nanchang UprisingNanchang UprisingThe Nanchang Uprising was the first major Kuomintang-Communist engagement of the Chinese Civil War, in order to counter the anti-communist purges by the Nationalist Party of China....
: The birth of what is now the Communist Chinese People's Liberation ArmyPeople's Liberation ArmyThe People's Liberation Army is the unified military organization of all land, sea, strategic missile and air forces of the People's Republic of China. The PLA was established on August 1, 1927 — celebrated annually as "PLA Day" — as the military arm of the Communist Party of China...
began when 20,000 of the Communist members of the Twentieth Army of the KuomintangKuomintangThe Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
revolted and took control of the city of NanchangNanchangNanchang is the capital of Jiangxi Province in southeastern China. It is located in the north-central portion of the province. As it is bounded on the west by the Jiuling Mountains, and on the east by Poyang Lake, it is famous for its scenery, rich history and cultural sites...
, capital of the JiangxiJiangxi' is a southern province in the People's Republic of China. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze River in the north into hillier areas in the south, it shares a border with Anhui to the north, Zhejiang to the northeast, Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, Hunan to the west, and Hubei to...
Province. The rebels dispersed four days later when the Nationalists counter-attacked, but the new Chinese Red Army planned other attacks. Among the participants were future Prime Minister Zhou EnlaiZhou EnlaiZhou Enlai was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from October 1949 until his death in January 1976...
, the later to be disgraced Lin BiaoLin BiaoLin Biao was a major Chinese Communist military leader who was pivotal in the communist victory in the Chinese Civil War, especially in Northeastern China...
, and future Marshals Zhu DeZhu DeZhu De was a Chinese militarist, politician, revolutionary, and one of the pioneers of the Chinese Communist Party. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, in 1955 Zhu became one of the Ten Marshals of the People's Liberation Army, of which he is regarded as the founder.-Early...
, General He LongHe LongHe Long was a Chinese military leader. He rose to the rank of Marshal and Vice Premier after the founding of the People's Republic of China.-Early life:He Long was a member of the Tujia ethnic group...
, Ye TingYe TingYe Ting , born in Huiyang, Guangdong, was a Chinese military leader. He started out nationalist and went to the communists....
, Liu BochengLiu BochengLiu Bocheng was a Chinese Communist military commander and Marshal of the People's Liberation Army.Liu is known as one of the "Three and A Half" Strategists of China in modern history...
, Nie RongzhenNie RongzhenNie Rongzhen was a prominent Chinese Communist military leader, and one of ten Marshals in the People's Liberation Army of China. He was the last surviving PLA officer with the rank of Marshal.-Biography:...
and Luo RuiqingLuo Ruiqing-Biography:Luo Ruiqing was born in Nanchong, Sichuan in 1906. He joined the Communist Party of China in 1928. He was the eldest son of a wealthy landlord named Luo Chunting , who had a total of six kids...
and Lin Biao. August 1 is still celebrated annually as "Army Day"Public holidays in the People's Republic of ChinaThere are currently seven official public holidays in the mainland territory of the People's Republic of China. There was a major reform in 2008, abolishing the Labour Day Golden Week and adding three traditional Chinese holidays...
. - The Carter FamilyCarter FamilyThe Carter Family was a traditional American folk music group that recorded between 1927 and 1956. Their music had a profound impact on bluegrass, country, Southern Gospel, pop and rock musicians as well as on the U.S. folk revival of the 1960s. They were the first vocal group to become country...
, led by A.P. Carter and described as "the first band sensation in country music history", recorded the first of many bestselling records. Their debut single, made at a studio in Bristol, TennesseeBristol, TennesseeBristol is a city in Sullivan County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 26,702 at the 2010 census. It is the twin city of Bristol, Virginia, which lies directly across the state line between Tennessee and Virginia. The boundaries of both cities run parallel to each other along State...
, was "Bury Me Beneath the Willow". - The Japanese minelaying ship TokiwaJapanese cruiser Tokiwawas an armored cruiser of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Tokiwa was named after a lake in Yamaguchi prefecture, near Ube city. Her sister ship was the cruiser...
was heavily damaged while trying to deactivate armed minesNaval mineA naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...
in the Saiki BaySaiki, Oitais a city located in Ōita Prefecture, Japan.As of 2003, the former city had an estimated population of 49,183 and the density of 249.19 persons per km²...
. One of the floating mines exploded, setting off a chain reaction in 17 other mines. Thirty-five of the crew were killed and another 68 seriously injuring 68. - The Leningrad OblastLeningrad OblastLeningrad Oblast is a federal subject of Russia . It was established on August 1, 1927, although it was not until 1946 that the oblast's borders had been mostly settled in their present position...
, one of the largest in Soviet Union, was formed by the consolidation of the lands around LeningradLeningradLeningrad is the former name of Saint Petersburg, Russia.Leningrad may also refer to:- Places :* Leningrad Oblast, a federal subject of Russia, around Saint Petersburg* Leningrad, Tajikistan, capital of Muminobod district in Khatlon Province...
(now Saint PetersburgSaint PetersburgSaint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
), MurmanskMurmanskMurmansk is a city and the administrative center of Murmansk Oblast, Russia. It serves as a seaport and is located in the extreme northwest part of Russia, on the Kola Bay, from the Barents Sea on the northern shore of the Kola Peninsula, not far from Russia's borders with Norway and Finland...
, Novgorod, CherepovetsCherepovetsCherepovets is the largest city in Vologda Oblast, Russia, located on the bank of the Rybinsk Reservoir of the Sheksna River, a tributary of the Volga River. Population: 311,869 ; It is served by Cherepovets Airport.-Location:...
, and PskovPskovPskov is an ancient city and the administrative center of Pskov Oblast, Russia, located in the northwest of Russia about east from the Estonian border, on the Velikaya River. Population: -Early history:...
. Over the next 15 years, the Oblast would be broken up again.
August 2, 1927 (Tuesday)
- While on an extended vacation in Rapid City, South DakotaRapid City, South DakotaRapid City is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of South Dakota, and the county seat of Pennington County. Named after Rapid Creek on which the city is established, it is set against the eastern slope of the Black Hills mountain range. The population was 67,956 as of the 2010 Census. Rapid...
, U.S. President Calvin CoolidgeCalvin CoolidgeJohn Calvin Coolidge, Jr. was the 30th President of the United States . A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state...
closed his weekly 9:30 am press conference with a directive to return at noon for a special announcement. When the newspapermen returned to Coolidge's office, located at Central High School, the President told them, "Will you please file past me? I have a little statement for you." Each reporter was handed a folded slip of paper with one typewritten statement: "I do not choose to run for President in nineteen twenty-eight." A reporter asked, "Does the president care to comment further?" The laconic Coolidge replied, "No", and left the room. The surprise had been timed so that it could not make the news until after the close of trade on the stock markets. Speculation about the Republican candidate for President in 1928 included Secretary of Commerce 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...
, and former Illinois Governor Frank O. Lowden.
August 3, 1927 (Wednesday)
- Sixteen miners were killed in an explosion at the West Kentucky Coal Company Mine Number 7 at Clay, KentuckyClay, KentuckyClay is a city in Webster County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 1,179 at the 2000 census. Settled in 1837, the city is named for statesman Henry Clay.-Geography:Clay is located at ....
. The disaster occurred one day before the tenth anniversary of an explosion, on August 4, 1917, at the very same mine, which had killed 67 coal miners. - Sacco-Vanzetti case: Massachusetts Governor Alvan T. FullerAlvan T. FullerAlvan Tufts Fuller was a United States Representative from Massachusetts. He became one of the wealthiest men in America, with an automobile dealership which in 1920 was recognized as "the world's most successful auto dealership." He was elected a member of the Massachusetts House of...
denied a request for clemency for Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti after reviewing arguments concerning the fairness of their murder trial. Fuller wrote, "As a result of my investigation I find no sufficient justification for executive intervention. I believe with the jury, that those men, Sacco and Vanzetti, were guilty and they had a fair trial." The two men had been given a temporary reprieve on their execution, due to expire on August 10. Whether Fuller actually investigated the case is doubted by some historians. - The ill-fated ship SS Carl D. BradleySS Carl D. BradleyThe was a self-unloading Great Lakes freighter that sank in a storm on November 18, 1958. Of the 35 crew members, 33 died in the sinking and 23 were from the port town of Rogers City, Michigan. Her sinking was likely caused by structural failure from the brittle steel used in her...
sailed for the first time. The freighter would sink in Lake MichiganLake MichiganLake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...
in 1958.
August 4, 1927 (Thursday)
- Radio station WFAA in Dallas did the first "rebroadcast" of a news report, repeating NBC Radio's June 11June 1927January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - DecemberThe following events occurred in June 1927.-June 1, 1927 :...
report of Charles Lindbergh's parade in Washington. Four phonograph records had been made from the broadcast by the RCA Victor company. - Three days after the Carter Family had cut their debut single in the same studio, Jimmie RodgersJimmie Rodgers (country singer)James Charles Rodgers , known as Jimmie Rodgers, was an American country singer in the early 20th century known most widely for his rhythmic yodeling...
recorded his first country song. At Bristol, Tennessee, he sang the "yodeling lullaby", "Sleep, Baby, Sleep" and "The Soldier's Sweetheart" - Born: Jess ThomasJess ThomasJess Thomas was an American operatic tenor, best known for his Wagner singing.-Biography:Jess Floyd Thomas was born in Hot Springs, South Dakota. As a child he took part in various musical activities and later studied psychology at the University of Nebraska and Stanford University. He was...
, American tenor, in Hot Springs, South DakotaHot Springs, South DakotaHot Springs is a city in Fall River County, South Dakota, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 3,711. It is the county seat of Fall River County...
(d. 1993); and Eddie KamaeEddie KamaeEddie Kamae is one of the founding members of Sons of Hawaii. He is a 'ukulele virtuoso, singer, composer, film producer and primary proponent of theHawaiian Cultural Renaissance.-Biography:...
, American singer who led music's Hawaiian RenaissanceHawaiian RenaissanceThe First and Second Hawaiian Renaissance was the Hawaiian resurgence of a distinct cultural identity that draws upon traditional kānaka maoli culture, with a significant divergence from the tourism-based "culture" which Hawaii was previously known for worldwide .-First Hawaiian...
; in Honolulu (still alive in 2011) - Died: Eugène AtgetEugène AtgetEugène Atget was a French photographer noted for his photographs documenting the architecture and street scenes of Paris....
, 70, French surrealist photographer
August 5, 1927 (Friday)
- The U.S. Federal Reserve Board cut the prime lending rate at the same time that British Chancellor of the ExchequerChancellor of the ExchequerThe Chancellor of the Exchequer is the title held by the British Cabinet minister who is responsible for all economic and financial matters. Often simply called the Chancellor, the office-holder controls HM Treasury and plays a role akin to the posts of Minister of Finance or Secretary of the...
Winston ChurchillWinston ChurchillSir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
placed Britain back on to the gold standard. The action, taken in order to protect the British government from the possibility of the British pound being devalued against the U.S. dollar. This has been described as the first time in history "that one of the world's great economic powers altered its macroeconomic policy with the aim of supporting a minor currency". - A previously unknown species of beetle, the Gehringia olympicaLara (genus)Lara is a genus of beetles in the family Elmidae. There are two species, the North American wood-eating beetle Lara avara and Lara gehringii....
, was discovered by Philip Darlington, who collected eight specimens at the Sol Duc RiverSol Duc RiverThe Sol Duc River is a river in the U.S. state of Washington. About long, it flows west through the northwest part of the Olympic Peninsula, from the Olympic Mountains of Olympic National Park and Olympic National Forest, then through the broad Sol Duc Valley...
in the state of Washington. Darlington named the beetle in honor of J.G. Gehring, who had sponsored the expedition. - Sacco-Vanzetti case: Following the denial of clemency to the condemned men, bombs exploded at two subway stations on New York City's 28th Street, seriously injuring two people and hurting many others. The threat of violent protests put police on alert worldwide, including 14,000 in New York.
August 6, 1927 (Saturday)
- Harold Stephen BlackHarold Stephen BlackHarold Stephen Black was an American electrical engineer, who revolutionized the field of applied electronics by inventing the negative feedback amplifier in 1927. To some, his invention is considered the most important breakthrough of the twentieth century in the field of electronics, since it...
invented the negative feedback amplifier. Four days earlier, he had come up with the idea while riding the Lackawanna Ferry across the Hudson River to his New York job. - The forerunner of the breathalyzerBreathalyzerA breathalyzer or breathalyser is a device for estimating blood alcohol content from a breath sample...
was first demonstrated by Professor Rolla H. Harger of Indiana University, who showed how breath contained in a balloon could be dispersed into sulfuric acid and then accurately measured to calculate blood alcohol content. Harger would patent the "Drunkometer in 1938 for use by police. - Born: Richard MurphyRichard Murphy (poet)Richard Murphy is an Irish poet. He is a member of Aosdána and currently lives in Sri Lanka.-Early years:Murphy was born to an Anglo-Irish family at Milford House, near the Mayo-Galway border, in 1927...
, Irish poet, in County MayoCounty MayoCounty Mayo is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the village of Mayo, which is now generally known as Mayo Abbey. Mayo County Council is the local authority for the county. The population of the county is 130,552...
August 7, 1927 (Sunday)
- Nanchang UprisingNanchang UprisingThe Nanchang Uprising was the first major Kuomintang-Communist engagement of the Chinese Civil War, in order to counter the anti-communist purges by the Nationalist Party of China....
: At a
n emergency meeting of the Chinese Communist Party, convened in Hankou
Hankou
Hankou was one of the three cities whose merging formed modern-day Wuhan, the capital of the Hubei province, China. It stands north of the Han and Yangtze Rivers where the Han falls into the Yangtze...
by the Vissarion Lominadze
Vissarion Lominadze
Vissarion Vissarionovich Lominadze , known as Beso , was a Georgian Bolshevik and Soviet politician.Lominadze was born in Kutaisi, Georgia into the family of a teacher. Beginning in 1913 he participated in student Social Democratic organizations in Kutaisi and St...
Soviet representative of Comintern
Comintern
The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern, also known as the Third International, was an international communist organization initiated in Moscow during March 1919...
, Secretary General Chen Duxiu
Chen Duxiu
Chen Duxiu played many different roles in Chinese history. He was a leading figure in the anti-imperial Xinhai Revolution and the May Fourth Movement for Science and Democracy. Along with Li Dazhao, Chen was a co-founder of the Chinese Communist Party in 1921. He was its first General Secretary....
(Ch'en Tu-hsiu) was deposed as the CCP's leader, and replaced by Qu Qiubai
Qu Qiubai
Qu Qiubai was born in Changzhou, Jiangsu, China. He was a leader of the Communist Party of China in the late 1920s.-Early life:...
(Ch'u Ch'iu-pai). At the meeting, future Party Chairman Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
made the oft-quoted statement that "political power is obtained out of the barrel of a gun".
- The Peace BridgePeace BridgeThe Peace Bridge is an international bridge between Canada and the United States at the east end of Lake Erie at the source of the Niagara River, about upriver of Niagara Falls. It connects the City of Buffalo, New York, in the United States to the Town of Fort Erie, Ontario, in Canada...
opened between Fort Erie, OntarioFort Erie, OntarioFort Erie is a town on the Niagara River in the Niagara Region, Ontario, Canada. It is located directly across the river from Buffalo, New York....
and 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...
, as British Prime Minister Stanley BaldwinStanley BaldwinStanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley, KG, PC was a British Conservative politician, who dominated the government in his country between the two world wars...
, Edward, Prince of WalesEdward VIII of the United KingdomEdward VIII was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, and Emperor of India, from 20 January to 11 December 1936.Before his accession to the throne, Edward was Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay...
, U.S. Vice President Charles G. DawesCharles G. DawesCharles Gates Dawes was an American banker and politician who was the 30th Vice President of the United States . For his work on the Dawes Plan for World War I reparations he was a co-recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. He served in the First World War, was U.S...
, U.S. Secretary of State Frank B. KelloggFrank B. KelloggFrank Billings Kellogg was an American lawyer, politician and statesman who served in the U.S. Senate and as U.S. Secretary of State. He co-authored the Kellogg-Briand Pact, for which he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 1929..- Biography :Kellogg was born in Potsdam, New York, and his family...
, and New York Governor Al 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...
, met at the center of the span. Mrs. Dawes, and Mrs. W.D. Ross, wife of the Deputy Premier of Ontario, cut the ribbon with golden shears. - Trofim LysenkoTrofim LysenkoTrofim Denisovich Lysenko was a Soviet agronomist of Ukrainian origin, who was director of Soviet biology under Joseph Stalin. Lysenko rejected Mendelian genetics in favor of the hybridization theories of Russian horticulturist Ivan Vladimirovich Michurin, and adopted them into a powerful...
, whose discredited ideas about geneticsLysenkoismLysenkoism, or Lysenko-Michurinism, also denotes the biological inheritance principle which Trofim Lysenko subscribed to and which derive from theories of the heritability of acquired characteristics, a body of biological inheritance theory which departs from Mendelism and that Lysenko named...
would dominate Soviet thought during the era of Joseph Stalin, first came to national attention in the Soviet Union as the subject of a feature story in Pravda. - Born: Carl SwitzerCarl SwitzerCarl Dean "Alfalfa" Switzer was an American child actor, professional dog breeder and hunting guide, most notable for appearing in the Our Gang short subjects series as Alfalfa, one of the series' most popular and best-remembered characters.-Early life and family:Switzer was born in Paris,...
, American actor famous for portraying "Alfalfa" in the Little Rascals comedies (killed 1959); Edwin EdwardsEdwin EdwardsEdwin Washington Edwards served as the Governor of Louisiana for four terms , twice as many terms as any other Louisiana chief executive has served. Edwards was also Louisiana's first Roman Catholic governor in the 20th century...
, Governor of Louisiana later convicted of racketeering; in Marksville, LouisianaMarksville, LouisianaMarksville is a city in and the parish seat of Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,537 at the 2000 census. Louisiana's first land-based casino, Paragon Casino Resort, opened in Marksville in June 1994...
; and George BusbeeGeorge BusbeeGeorge Dekle Busbee was an American politician who served as the 77th Governor of the U.S. state of Georgia from 1975 to 1983....
, Governor of Georgia 1975-83, in Vienna, GeorgiaVienna, GeorgiaVienna is a city in Dooly County, Georgia, United States. The population was 2,973 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Dooly County....
(d. 2004) - Died: U.S. Army Major General Leonard WoodLeonard WoodLeonard Wood was a physician who served as the Chief of Staff of the United States Army, Military Governor of Cuba and Governor General of the Philippines. Early in his military career, he received the Medal of Honor. Wood also holds officer service #2 in the Regular Army...
, Governor-General of the PhilippinesGovernor-General of the PhilippinesThe Governor-General of the Philippines was the title of the government executive during the colonial period of the Philippines, governed mainly by Spain and the United States, and briefly by Great Britain, from 1565 to 1935....
, 66; Pope Cyril V of AlexandriaPope Cyril V of AlexandriaPope Cyril of Alexandria V) was the 112th Coptic Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St...
, 96, Patriarch of the Coptic Christian Church since 1874; and Arthur T. Walker, 49, multimillionaire who had inherited most of the estate of Edward F. Searles.
August 8, 1927 (Monday)
- The Manila Stock Exchange, first stock market in the Philippines, was established by five American businessmen. On March 4, 1994, the MSE and the rival Makati Stock Exchange would merge to create the Philippine Stock ExchangePhilippine Stock ExchangeThe Philippine Stock Exchange is the national stock exchange of the Philippines. It is one of the oldest stock exchanges in Southeast Asia, having been in continuous operation since its inception in 1927...
. - Pilot Clarence Chamberlin demonstrated a method for speeding up the delivery of overseas mail, by flying his airplane from the deck of the cruise ship LeviathanSS LeviathanSS Leviathan, originally built as SS Vaterland, was an ocean liner which regularly sailed the North Atlantic briefly in 1914 and from 1917 to 1934...
, to New York for the first ship to shore delivery. - Standard Oil of New Jersey President Walter C. TeagleWalter C. TeagleWalter Clark Teagle , was responsible for leading Standard Oil to the forefront of the oil industry and significantly expanding the company's presence in the petrochemical field.-Biography:...
announced a deal with German chemical cartel IG FarbenIG FarbenI.G. Farbenindustrie AG was a German chemical industry conglomerate. Its name is taken from Interessen-Gemeinschaft Farbenindustrie AG . The company was formed in 1925 from a number of major companies that had been working together closely since World War I...
to produce synthetic motor fuel at a lower price than that refined strictly from oil. Manufacturing using the Bergius processBergius processThe Bergius Process is a method of production of liquid hydrocarbons for use as synthetic fuel by hydrogenation of high-volatile bituminous coal at high temperature and pressure...
proved to be more expensive than expected. By 1931, synthetic oil cost six times as much as natural petroleum, after both companies had lost millions on the investment. - Born: Johnny TempleJohnny TempleJohn Ellis Temple was a Major League Baseball second baseman who played for the Redlegs/Reds ; Cleveland Indians , Baltimore Orioles and Houston Colt .45s . Temple was born in Lexington, North Carolina. He batted and threw right-handed.Temple was a career .284 hitter with 22 home runs and 395 RBI...
, American baseball player (d. 1994
August 9, 1927 (Tuesday)
- Sacco-Vanzetti case: A crowd of 100,000 protesters rallied at Union Square in New York on the eve of the scheduled execution of Sacco and Vanzetti. After the meeting, 2,000 of the protesters marched down Fifth Avenue, where police dispersed them. On the same day, at least 70,000 workers nationwide walked off their jobs.
- Born: Marvin MinskyMarvin MinskyMarvin Lee Minsky is an American cognitive scientist in the field of artificial intelligence , co-founder of Massachusetts Institute of Technology's AI laboratory, and author of several texts on AI and philosophy.-Biography:...
, American computer scientist, philosopher and 1970 Turing AwardTuring AwardThe Turing Award, in full The ACM A.M. Turing Award, is an annual award given by the Association for Computing Machinery to "an individual selected for contributions of a technical nature made to the computing community. The contributions should be of lasting and major technical importance to the...
winner; 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...
.
August 10, 1927 (Wednesday)
- Mount RushmoreMount RushmoreMount Rushmore National Memorial is a sculpture carved into the granite face of Mount Rushmore near Keystone, South Dakota, in the United States...
was dedicated by President Calvin CoolidgeCalvin CoolidgeJohn Calvin Coolidge, Jr. was the 30th President of the United States . A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state...
, who promised national funding for the carving and praised, as described later, George Washington for founding America, Jefferson for expanding it, Lincoln for preserving it and Roosevelt for reaching out to the world. Coolidge then handed sculptor Gutzon BorglumGutzon BorglumGutzon de la Mothe Borglum was an American artist and sculptor famous for creating the monumental presidents' heads at Mount Rushmore, South Dakota, the famous carving on Stone Mountain near Atlanta, as well as other public works of art.- Background :The son of Mormon Danish immigrants, Gutzon...
a set of drills, and Borglum climbed to the top of the mountain and began drilling where Washington's head would one day be. - The French Chamber of Deputies repealed a law that had previously taken away French citizenship from women who married foreigners. There had been no analogous law taking away citizenship of French men with foreign wives.
- Sacco-Vanzetti case: Forty minutes before they were scheduled to go to the electric chair, Sacco and Vanzetti, along with Celestino Madeiros, were given a twelve-day reprieve by Governor Fuller. The Governor had been notified by the Massachusetts Supreme Court that it would announce at noon Thursday whether it would reconsider the case. The condemned men were informed at 11:27 pm.
- Dole Air RaceDole Air RaceThe Dole Air Race, also known as the Dole Derby, was a tragic air race to cross the Pacific Ocean from northern California to the Territory of Hawaii in August 1927. Of the 15-18 entrant airplanes, 11 were certified to compete but three crashed before the race, resulting in three deaths...
: Navy Lieutenants George Covell and R.W. Waggener crashed shortly after takeoff from San Diego, where they had planned to be part of the field for the . They were only the first of many casualties associated with the ill-fated competittion. - Born: Vainu BappuVainu BappuManali Kallat Vainu Bappu was an Indian astronomer and president of the International Astronomical Union. Bappu helped establish several astronomical institutions in India——including the Vainu Bappu Observatory named after him—and also contributed to the establishment of the modern Indian...
, Indian astronomer, and co-discoverer of the Wilson–Bappu effect, which permits the judgment of the absolute magnitude of certain types of stars; in Madras (d. 1982); and Jimmy MartinJimmy MartinJimmy Martin was an American bluegrass musician, known as the "King of Bluegrass".-Early years:Born James H. Martin in Sneedville, Tennessee. Jimmy Martin was born into the hard farming life of rural East Tennessee. He grew up near Sneedville, singing in church and with friends from surrounding...
, American musician known as "The King of Bluegrass"; in Sneedville, TennesseeSneedville, TennesseeSneedville is a town in Hancock County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 1,387 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Hancock County.- History :...
(d.2005)
- Died: King Sisowath of CambodiaSisowath of CambodiaSisowath I was king of Cambodia from 1904 to his death in 1927.Sisowath was born in Battambang in Cambodia. He was the son of King Ang Duong and half brother of Prince Si Votha and King Norodom....
, 86, monarch of the French protectorate since 1904. He was succeeded by his son, King Sisowath MonivongSisowath MonivongSisowath Monivong was the king of Cambodia from 1927 until his death in 1941.Sisowath Monivong was the second son of King Sisowath. He was born in Phnom Penh in 1875. During this time, his uncle, King Norodom was ruling from Odong, the capital at that time, as a puppet king for the French...
August 11, 1927 (Thursday)
- Members of the Irish independence party, Fianna FáilFianna FáilFianna Fáil – The Republican Party , more commonly known as Fianna Fáil is a centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland, founded on 23 March 1926. Fianna Fáil's name is traditionally translated into English as Soldiers of Destiny, although a more accurate rendition would be Warriors of Fál...
, led by Éamon de ValeraÉamon de ValeraÉamon de Valera was one of the dominant political figures in twentieth century Ireland, serving as head of government of the Irish Free State and head of government and head of state of Ireland...
, decided to take their seats in the Parliament of the Irish Free StateIrish Free StateThe Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...
, the Dáil ÉireannDáil ÉireannDáil Éireann is the lower house, but principal chamber, of the Oireachtas , which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann . It is directly elected at least once in every five years under the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote...
, even though it would require them to sign an oath of allegiance to the King. Witnesses would later report that de Valera solved the ethical dilemma by covering the written oath with his hand while applying his signature.
August 12, 1927 (Friday)
- The Bardo ThodolBardo ThodolThe Liberation Through Hearing During The Intermediate State , sometimes translated as Liberation Through Hearing or Bardo Thodol is a funerary text...
was first published in the United States as The Tibetan Book of the Dead. - Dole Air RaceDole Air RaceThe Dole Air Race, also known as the Dole Derby, was a tragic air race to cross the Pacific Ocean from northern California to the Territory of Hawaii in August 1927. Of the 15-18 entrant airplanes, 11 were certified to compete but three crashed before the race, resulting in three deaths...
: British pilot Arthur V. Rogers was killed while practicing at Los Angeles for the race to Honolulu, in the third plane crash in as many days for participants. After the deaths of Covell and Waggener on Wednesday, the triplane "Pride of Los Angeles" crashed in San Francisco Bay on Thursday and its crew of three narrowly escaped drowning. The crews of the nine remaining planes postponed the start of the race from Saturday to Tuesday. - The film WingsWings (film)Wings is a silent film about World War I fighter pilots, produced by Lucien Hubbard, directed by William A. Wellman and released by Paramount Pictures. Wings was the first film, and the only silent film, to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. Wings stars Clara Bow, Charles "Buddy" Rogers, and...
was first presented. Starring Clara BowClara BowClara Gordon Bow was an American actress who rose to stardom in the silent film era of the 1920s. It was her appearance as a spunky shopgirl in the film It that brought her global fame and the nickname "The It Girl." Bow came to personify the roaring twenties and is described as its leading sex...
and introducing Gary CooperGary CooperFrank James Cooper, known professionally as Gary Cooper, was an American film actor. He was renowned for his quiet, understated acting style and his stoic, but at times intense screen persona, which was particularly well suited to the many Westerns he made...
, the movie was accompanied by recorded sound effects of the various airplanes seen, but not spoken dialogue. It was the first, and only silent film to win the Academy Award for Best PictureAcademy Award for Best PictureThe Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
. - Born: Porter WagonerPorter WagonerPorter Wayne Wagoner was a popular American country music singer known for his flashy Nudie and Manuel suits and blond pompadour. He introduced the young Dolly Parton near the beginning of her career on his long-running television show, and they were a well-known duet throughout the late 1960s and...
, American country music singer, in West Plains, MissouriWest Plains, MissouriWest Plains is a city in Howell County, Missouri, United States. The population was 10,866 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Howell County. The West Plains Micropolitan Statistical Area consists of Howell County.-Geography:...
(d. 2007); and Howard SolomonHoward SolomonHoward Solomon is head of Forest Laboratories and father of novelist and writer Andrew Solomon....
, CEO of Forest LaboratoriesForest LaboratoriesForest Laboratories is a pharmaceutical company headquartered in New York City, USA. Its revenues for the year ended 31 March 2007 were US$3.4 billion. The company's research and development spending has grown rapidly in recent years, and as of 2007, approached almost a billion US dollars a year,...
, 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...
August 13, 1927 (Saturday)
- After the disaster at Nanchang, General Chiang Kai-shekChiang Kai-shekChiang Kai-shek was a political and military leader of 20th century China. He is known as Jiǎng Jièshí or Jiǎng Zhōngzhèng in Mandarin....
resigned rather than be fired as Commander of the Kuomintang Army, and temporarily retired to his native village of Xikou. - The first live sports broadcast on Japanese radio took place with the play-by-play on the national middle-school baseball tournament in Tokyo. Because of radio censorship rules requiring advance approval by the Ministry of Communication of scripts, permission was granted only on condition that a Ministry official sit next to the announcer to prevent any inappropriate statements. Radio broadcasting had begun on March 22, 1925.
- Born: (according to some sources) Fidel CastroFidel CastroFidel Alejandro Castro Ruz is a Cuban revolutionary and politician, having held the position of Prime Minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976, and then President from 1976 to 2008. He also served as the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from the party's foundation in 1961 until 2011...
, Cuban dictator from 1959 onward, in BiránBiránBirán is a small town in Holguín Province of Cuba, best known as the birthplace of Fidel Castro in 1926 and Raúl Castro in 1931. Their father owned a 23,000 acre plantation there. It is located south-west of Mayarí and south of Cueto, in the foothills of the Nipe Mountains ....
. Although the official birthdate for Castro is August 13, 1926, several of his siblings in exile stated that their father lied about the year in order for him to enroll earlier in school. - Died: James Oliver CurwoodJames Oliver CurwoodJames Oliver Curwood was an American novelist and conservationist. His writing studio, Curwood Castle, is now a museum in Owosso, Michigan.-Biography and career:Curwood was born in Owosso, the youngest of four children...
, 49, America novelist and conservationist. Curwood had been bitten by an insect while on a fishing trip in Florida, and died of blood poisoning on his return to his home in Owosso, MichiganOwosso, MichiganOwosso is a city in Shiawassee County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 15,713 at the 2000 census. The city is located on the eastern side of Owosso Township, but is politically independent...
August 14, 1927 (Sunday)
- The first tournament for the Mitropacup opened with eight teams drawn from the top finishers and the cup winners of the national soccer football leagues of Austria, Hungary, Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia. Sparta Praha would defeat Rapid Wien in the two game final to win the first cup.
- Herbert Lord, the Director of the U.S. Bureau of the Budget (now the OMB), announced that there was a surplus of more than two billion dollars in the federal budget. He gave the precise figure of $2,392,909,074.38 for the amount saved.
- Astronomer C.T. ElveyElvey (crater)Elvey is a lunar crater that is located on the far side of the Moon. It is located near the northern edge of the blanket of ejecta that surrounds the Mare Orientale impact basin. To the north of Elvey is the smaller crater Nobel....
announced from the Yerkes ObservatoryYerkes ObservatoryYerkes Observatory is an astronomical observatory operated by the University of Chicago in Williams Bay, Wisconsin. The observatory, which calls itself "the birthplace of modern astrophysics," was founded in 1897 by George Ellery Hale and financed by Charles T. Yerkes...
in Chicago that the SunSunThe Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
could explode any minute, and added, "If the sun should explode, we would know of it in eight minutes and we would have 138 hours more to live. At that time the burning gases would reach the earth and we would be annihilated."
August 15, 1927 (Monday)
- Sacco-Vanzetti case: In East Milton, Massachusetts, the home of Lewis McHardy, who had been one of the jurors who had convicted the two men of murder, was destroyed by a bomb that went off at 3:30 in the morning. McHardy, his wife and three children survived with only cuts and bruises. After the two men were put to death, the home of their executioner and of trial judge Webster Thayer were bombed on May 17, 1928, and September 27, 1932, respectively.
- Born: Patrick GalvinPatrick GalvinPatrick Galvin was an Irish poet, singer, playwright, and prose and screen writer born in Cork's inner city.-Biography:Galvin was born in Cork in 1927 at a time of great political transition in Ireland...
, Irish poet, in Cork City (d. 2011) - Died: Elbert H. Gary, 81, President of United States Steel Company. His death happened at 2:40 am, but was not announced until after the close of trading on Wall Street.
August 16, 1927 (Tuesday)
- Dole Air RaceDole Air RaceThe Dole Air Race, also known as the Dole Derby, was a tragic air race to cross the Pacific Ocean from northern California to the Territory of Hawaii in August 1927. Of the 15-18 entrant airplanes, 11 were certified to compete but three crashed before the race, resulting in three deaths...
: With three competitors already out because of crashes, the ill-fated race began with eight airplanes taking off from Oakland, 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...
at noon to fly 2,400 miles to Honolulu, HawaiiHawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. The stakes were a $25,000 first prize and a $10,000 second prize. Two of the planes— El Encanto and the Pabeo Flyer— crashed on takeoff, weighed down by the gasoline. The Dallas Spirit and the Oklahoma both took to the air, but were forced to return with engine problems. Only four planes— Golden Eagle, Miss Doran, Aloha and Woolarac - Born: William Henry ThompsonWilliam Thompson (Medal of Honor, 1950)William Henry Thompson was a United States Army soldier and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions in the Korean War....
, first African-American recipient of Medal of Honor in the 20th Century; in New York City (killed in action 1950) - Died: J. Ogden ArmourJ. Ogden ArmourJonathan Ogden Armour was an American meatpacking magnate in Chicago, and owner and president of Armour and Company. During his tenure as president, Armour & Co...
, 63, heir to the Armour Meat Packing fortune and former President of the company; he lost $130,000,000 in 1921 at his height, he was the world's second richest man, and still had a fortune of $20,000,000 at the time of his death.
August 17, 1927 (Wednesday)
- Dole Air RaceDole Air RaceThe Dole Air Race, also known as the Dole Derby, was a tragic air race to cross the Pacific Ocean from northern California to the Territory of Hawaii in August 1927. Of the 15-18 entrant airplanes, 11 were certified to compete but three crashed before the race, resulting in three deaths...
: At 12:33 p.m., local time, Arthur Goebel and Lt. W.V. Davis won the $25,000 prize after being the first to arrive in Honolulu, 26 hours and 16 minutes after they had taken off in the Woolaroc. Coming in second was the Aloha, at 2:22 pm, with Martin Jensen and Paul Schluter capturing the $10,000 second place. Officials waited for the two remaining entrants, the Miss Doran, with Auggy Pedlar, V. R. Knope and Mildred Doran aboard, and the Golden Eagle (with Jack Frost and Gordon Scott), and none of them arrived. The five missing fliers, none of whom were seen again, would bring the number of deaths associated with the race to eight. No trace was found, despite a search of the Pacific route by rescue airplanes.. Out of his $10,000 winnings, pilot Jensen gave his navigator, Schulter, only $25. - Born: Bernard CornfeldBernard CornfeldBernard "Bernie" Cornfeld was a prominent businessman and international financier who sold investments in US mutual funds, and was tried and acquitted for orchestrating one of the most lucrative confidence games of his era.-Early life:Bernard Cornfeld was born in Turkey...
, controversial American investor and financier who operated Investors Overseas ServiceInvestors Overseas ServiceInvestors Overseas Services, Ltd. was founded in 1955 by financier Bernard Cornfeld. The company was incorporated outside the United States with funds in Canada and headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. In the 1960s, the company employed 25,000 people who sold 18 different mutual funds...
in the 1970s; in IstanbulIstanbulIstanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, TurkeyTurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
(d. 1995) - Died: Ivar Fredholm, 61, Swedish mathematician who posed the problem and solution of the Fredholm integral equationFredholm integral equationIn mathematics, the Fredholm integral equation is an integral equation whose solution gives rise to Fredholm theory, the study of Fredholm kernels and Fredholm operators. The integral equation was studied by Ivar Fredholm.-Equation of the first kind :...
August 18, 1927 (Thursday)
- The lowest barometric pressure ever measured at sea level was taken by the crew of the Dutch ship S.S. Sapoerea during a tropical cyclone in the Philippine SeaPhilippine SeaThe Philippine Sea is a marginal sea east and north of the Philippines occupying an estimated surface area of 2 million mi² on the western part of the North Pacific Ocean...
, at 26.185 inches or 88.673 kilopascals. On October 12, 1979, an estimate of 25.69 in (87.00 kPa) was made by dropsondeDropsondeA dropsonde is a weather reconnaissance device created by the National Center for Atmospheric Research , designed to be dropped from an aircraft at altitude to more accurately measure tropical storm conditions as the device falls to the surface...
observation from an aircraft during Typhoon TipTyphoon TipTyphoon Tip was the largest and most intense tropical cyclone on record. The nineteenth tropical storm and twelfth typhoon of the 1979 Pacific typhoon season, Tip developed out of a disturbance in the monsoon trough on October 4 near Pohnpei...
. - Born: Rosalynn CarterRosalynn CarterEleanor Rosalynn Carter is the wife of the former President of the United States Jimmy Carter and in that capacity served as the First Lady of the United States from 1977 to 1981. As First Lady and after, she has been a leading advocate for numerous causes, perhaps most prominently for mental...
, American First Lady, 1977-81, as wife of U.S. President Jimmy CarterJimmy CarterJames Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
; in Plains, GeorgiaPlains, GeorgiaPlains is a city in Sumter County, Georgia, United States. The population was 776 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Americus Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Notable people:...
August 19, 1927 (Friday)
- Dole Air RaceDole Air RaceThe Dole Air Race, also known as the Dole Derby, was a tragic air race to cross the Pacific Ocean from northern California to the Territory of Hawaii in August 1927. Of the 15-18 entrant airplanes, 11 were certified to compete but three crashed before the race, resulting in three deaths...
: On their way to Hawaii to search for five missing fliers Bill Erwin and Al Eichwaldt disappeared after sending a radio distress call. Their plane, the Dallas Spirit, had been forced out of the race three days earlier. When the search for the three airplanes was called off, the final death toll of the race was ten. - On his 20th birthday, Bir Bikram Kishore DebbarmanBir Bikram Kishore DebbarmanBir Bikram Kishore Debbarman Manikya Bahadur was a king of Tripura.He was the king before the merger of Tripura with India. He succeeded his father, Birendra Kishore Debbarman, after the elder man's death on 13 August 1923...
was given full powers as the Maharaja of TripuraTripuraTripura is a state in North-East India, with an area of . It is the third smallest state of India, according to area. Tripura is surrounded by Bangladesh on the north, south, and west. The Indian states of Assam and Mizoram lie to the east. The capital is Agartala and the main languages spoken are...
, one of the princely states of British India. - In Cleveland, the Terminal TowerTerminal TowerThe Terminal Tower is a landmark skyscraper located on Public Square in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. It was built during the skyscraper boom of the 1920s and 1930s, and was the second-tallest building in the world when it was completed. The Terminal Tower stood as the tallest building in North America...
was topped off at 708 feet and 52 stories. At the time, it was the second tallest building in the world, dwarfed only by the 57 story, 792 foot Woolworth BuildingWoolworth BuildingThe Woolworth Building is one of the oldest skyscrapers in New York City. More than a century after the start of its construction, it remains, at 57 stories, one of the fifty tallest buildings in the United States as well as one of the twenty tallest buildings in New York City...
in New York. - Born: L.Q. Jones, American character actor, producer and director; as Justice McQueen, Jr., in Beaumont, TexasBeaumont, TexasBeaumont is a city in and county seat of Jefferson County, Texas, United States, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city's population was 118,296 at the 2010 census. With Port Arthur and Orange, it forms the Golden Triangle, a major industrial area on the...
August 20, 1927 (Saturday)
- Mao ZedongMao ZedongMao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
, a lower level member of the Chinese Communist Party, was approached in HunanHunan' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...
by an agent of the Soviet Union's CominternCominternThe Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern, also known as the Third International, was an international communist organization initiated in Moscow during March 1919...
, and advised that Moscow wanted the CCP to organize workers, peasants, and soldiers into Communist groups. "Mao's instinct for power," wrote on observer later, "led him to grasp immediately the potential of the message." Mao would later write that when he was offered the opportunity, he "jumped 300 chiChi (unit)The chi is a traditional Chinese unit of length, approximately equal to one foot. Its length is derived from the length of human forearm and has first appeared during the Shang Dynasty approximately 3000 years ago. Since then it has spread to and adopted by other East Asian cultures, such as...
" (roughly 328 feet) in spirit. - ArgentinaArgentinaArgentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
returned to the gold standardGold standardThe gold standard is a monetary system in which the standard economic unit of account is a fixed mass of gold. There are distinct kinds of gold standard...
, 13 years after suspending the export of gold during World War One. From then on, it was "a 'fair weather' adherent". - Born: Peter Oakley, also known as "geriatric1927", former mechanic who gained fame at age 79 as a YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
celebrity; in LeicesterLeicesterLeicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
; and Jimmy RaneyJimmy RaneyJimmy Raney was an American jazz guitarist born in Louisville, Kentucky most notable for his work from 1951–1952 and 1962–1963 with Stan Getz and for his work from 1953–1954 with the Red Norvo trio, replacing Tal Farlow. In 1954 and 1955 he won the Down Beat critics poll for guitar...
, American guitarist, in LouisvilleLouisville, KentuckyLouisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
. - Died: Fannie Bloomfield-Zeisler, 64, Austrian-American pianist
August 21, 1927 (Sunday)
- On the final day of the first large scale Nazi Party national congress at NurembergNuremberg RallyThe Nuremberg Rally was the annual rally of the NSDAP in Germany, held from 1923 to 1938. Especially after Hitler's rise to power in 1933, they were large Nazi propaganda events...
, a crowd of 80,000 followers turned out for the main event at 9:00 pm, to hear party leader Adolf HitlerAdolf HitlerAdolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
address his loyal followers. The Nuremberg Rallies would become an annual event with each party congress of the NSDAP. - Born: Thomas S. MonsonThomas S. MonsonThomas Spencer Monson is an American religious leader and author, and the 16th and current President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . As president, Monson is considered by adherents of the religion to be a "prophet, seer, and revelator" of God's will on earth...
, President of the Mormon Church since 2008; in Salt Lake City - Died: William BurnsideWilliam BurnsideWilliam Burnside was an English mathematician. He is known mostly as an early contributor to the theory of finite groups....
, 75, British mathematician who pioneered group theory
August 22, 1927 (Monday)
- The divorce trial of Charlie ChaplinCharlie ChaplinSir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...
and Lita Grey ChaplinLita GreyLita Grey was an American actress and the second wife of Charlie Chaplin. She was born in Hollywood, California, in 1908, to a Mexican-born mother and a father of Irish heritage and christened Lillita Louise MacMurray.-Personal life:Grey married four times...
ended with a settlement with a record verdict, $625,000 to her and a $200,000 trust fund for their sons. - Died: Louis Agassiz FuertesLouis Agassiz FuertesLouis Agassiz Fuertes was an American ornithologist, illustrator and artist.-Biography:Fuertes was the son of Estevan and Mary Stone Perry Fuertes....
, 53, American ornithologist, after his car was struck by a train at a railroad crossing at Unadilla, New YorkUnadilla (town), New YorkUnadilla is a town located in Otsego County, New York, USA. As of the 2000 census, the town had a population of 4,548. The name is derived from an Iroquois word for "meeting place."...
August 23, 1927 (Tuesday)
- Sacco-Vanzetti case: At Charlestown State PrisonCharlestown State PrisonCharlestown State Prison was a correctional facility in Charlestown, Boston, Massachusetts operated by the Massachusetts Department of Correction. The facility was located between Austin and Washington Streets and in proximity to the Boston and Maine Railroad tracks that intersected with the...
near Boston, Nicola Sacco, 36 and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, 39Sacco and VanzettiFerdinando Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were anarchists who were convicted of murdering two men during a 1920 armed robbery in South Braintree, Massachusetts, United States...
were put to death in the electric chair despite worldwide public outcry. Preceding them in death was Celestino Madeiros, who was executed for an unrelated murder at 12:09 am, but who had sworn that he had committed the 1920 murder of Frederick A. Parmenter and Alexander Berardelli, for which Sacco and Vanzetti had been convicted. Sacco entered the death chamber at 12:11. After reportedly shouting, in Italian, "Long live anarchy!", he then said, in English, "Farewell, mother," and was pronounced dead at 12:19. Vanzetti went to the chair at 12:20 and reportedly said, "I wish to forgive some people for what they are now doing to me." He was pronounced dead at 12:26. All three men were put to death by state executioner Robert G. ElliottRobert G. ElliottRobert Greene Elliott was the "state electrician" for the State of New York – and for those neighboring states which used the electric chair, including New Jersey, Vermont, and Massachusetts – during the period 1926-1939.He was born in Hamlin, New York, to an Irish immigrant...
. - Born: Dick BrunaDick BrunaDick Bruna is a Dutch author, artist, illustrator and graphic designer.Bruna is best known for his children's books which he authored and illustrated, now numbering over 200. His best known creation is Miffy , a small rabbit drawn with heavy graphic lines, simple shapes and primary colors...
, Dutch illustrator - Died: Saad ZaghlulSaad ZaghlulSaad Zaghloul was an Egyptian revolutionary, and statesman. He served as Prime Minister of Egypt from January 26, 1924 to November 24, 1924.-Education, activism and exile:...
, 68, Egyptian nationalist and one time Prime Minister of Egypt (in 1924)
August 24, 1927 (Wednesday)
- During night maneuvers of Japan's Combined FleetCombined FleetThe was the main ocean-going component of the Imperial Japanese Navy. The Combined Fleet was not a standing force, but a temporary force formed for the duration of a conflict or major naval maneuvers from various units normally under separate commands in peacetime....
, the battle cruiser JintsuJapanese cruiser Jintsuwas a Sendai-class light cruiser in the Imperial Japanese Navy, named after the Jinzū River in the Gifu and Toyama prefectures of central Japan.-Background:...
struck the starboard side of the Warabi and cut it into two, sinking it immediately with 92 of her crew on board. To avoid the collision, the NakaJapanese cruiser Nakawas a Sendai-class light cruiser in the Imperial Japanese Navy, named after the Naka River in the Tochigi and Ibaraki prefectures of eastern Japan.-Background:...
turned sharply and struck the Ashi, killing 27 of its crew. - The Geneva Naval ConferenceGeneva Naval ConferenceThe Geneva Naval Conference was a conference held to discuss naval arms limitation, held in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1927. This is a separate conference from the later general disarmament conference, the Geneva Conference ....
came to an end after nine weeks, with no agreement on reduction of warship construction, and an increase in tension between the United States and the United Kingdom. - Ludwig Mies van der RoheLudwig Mies van der RoheLudwig Mies van der Rohe was a German architect. He is commonly referred to and addressed as Mies, his surname....
received a patent for a process that allowed the mass production of steel chairs that were both lightweight and strong. - Born: Harry MarkowitzHarry MarkowitzHarry Max Markowitz is an American economist and a recipient of the John von Neumann Theory Prize and the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences....
, American economist, Nobel Prize laureate - Died Manuel Díaz RodríguezManuel Díaz RodríguezManuel Díaz Rodríguez , was a Venezuelan writer, journalist, physician, diplomat and politician, considered as one of the greatest representatives of the Hispanic modernismo movement....
, 56, Venezuelan author and politician
August 25, 1927 (Thursday)
- Paul R. Redfern left Brunswick, GeorgiaBrunswick, GeorgiaBrunswick is the major urban and economic center in southeastern Georgia in the United States. The municipality is located on a harbor near the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 30 miles north of Florida and 70 miles south of South Carolina. Brunswick is bordered on the east by the Atlantic...
, at noon, flying his Stinson Detroiter Port of Brunswick to attempt a solo non-stop flight to Rio de Janeiro, BrazilBrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. He disappeared the next day and was never seen again; his plane is believed to have crashed in a jungle in VenezuelaVenezuelaVenezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
. - Born: Althea GibsonAlthea GibsonAlthea Gibson was a World No. 1 American sportswoman who became the first African-American woman to be a competitor on the world tennis tour and the first to win a Grand Slam title in 1956. She is sometimes referred to as "the Jackie Robinson of tennis" for breaking the color barrier...
, African-American tennis player,in Silver, South Carolina (d. 2003) - Born: Albert UderzoAlbert UderzoAlbert Uderzo is a French comic book artist, and scriptwriter. He is best known for his work on the Astérix series, but also drew other comics such as Oumpah-pah, also in collaboration with René Goscinny.-Early life:...
, French cartoonist
August 26, 1927 (Friday)
- British scientist Frederick GriffithFrederick GriffithFrederick Griffith was a British bacteriologist whose focus was the epidemiology and pathology of bacterial pneumonia. In January 1928 he reported what is now known as Griffith's Experiment, the first widely accepted demonstrations of bacterial transformation, whereby a bacterium distinctly...
submitted the first paper ever describing the transforming principle in genetics. "The Significance of Pneumococcal Types" was published in the January issue of the Journal of Hygiene. The search for the cause of the transformation of pneumococcal bacteria would yield the identification of DNADNADeoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
. - The first radio station in Calcutta (KolkataKolkataKolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
), and only the second, after Bombay (MumbaiMumbaiMumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
), in India, began broadcasting. There was not a third station until eight years later. - 1927 Nova Scotia hurricane1927 Nova Scotia HurricaneThe 1927 Nova Scotia Hurricane was a powerful Category 3 hurricane that struck the Canadian province of Nova Scotia in mid-August 1927...
: The American racing schooner Columbia sank off of the coast of Sable IslandSable IslandSable Island is a small Canadian island situated 300 km southeast of mainland Nova Scotia in the Atlantic Ocean. The island is a year-round home to approximately five people...
, along with its entire crew of 22 people, along with four other fishing vessels caught up in a sudden storm. In all, 184 people, mostly fishermen, died in the storm. - Chinese warlord Sun ChuanfangSun ChuanfangSun Chuanfang aka the "Nanking Warlord" or leader of the "League of Five Provinces" was a Zhili clique warlord and protege of the "Jade Marshal" Wu Peifu .- Biography :Sun Chuanfang was born in Lichen, Shandong...
led an attack on the city of NanjingNanjing' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...
, cutting the electric wires and railroad traffic between that city and ShanghaiShanghaiShanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
. Sun was later defeated at the Battle of Lung-tan, after radio broadcasting was used to reopen communications.
August 27, 1927 (Saturday)
- A group of Canadian women who would become known as the "Famous Five"The Famous Five (Canada)The Famous Five or The Valiant Five were five Canadian women who asked the Supreme Court of Canada to answer the question, "Does the word 'Persons' in Section 24 of the British North America Act, 1867, include female persons?" in the case Edwards v...
(Emily MurphyEmily MurphyEmily Murphy was a Canadian women's rights activist, jurist, and author. In 1916, she became the first woman magistrate in Canada, and in the British Empire...
, Irene ParlbyIrene ParlbyIrene Parlby was a Canadian women's farm leader, activist and politician.Born in London, England, Parlby came to Canada in 1896. In 1913, Parlby helped to found the first women's local of the United Farmers of Alberta. In 1921, she was elected to the Alberta Legislature for the riding of Lacombe,...
, Nellie McClungNellie McClungNellie McClung, born Nellie Letitia Mooney , was a Canadian feminist, politician, and social activist. She was a part of the social and moral reform movements prevalent in Western Canada in the early 1900s...
, Louise Crummy McKinneyLouise McKinneyLouise McKinney née Crummy was a provincial politician and women's rights activist from Alberta, Canada. She was the first woman sworn in to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta and the first woman elected to a legislature in Canada and in the British Empire...
and Henrietta Muir Edwards) petitioned the Supreme Court of CanadaSupreme Court of CanadaThe Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court of Canada and is the final court of appeals in the Canadian justice system. The court grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants each year to appeal decisions rendered by provincial, territorial and federal appellate courts, and its decisions...
for the right of women to serve in the Senate of Canada. Although they were denied by the nation's high court, they won a victory in the British Privy CouncilEdwards v. Canada (Attorney General)Edwards v. Canada [1930] A.C. 124 – also known as the Persons Case – is a famous Canadian and British constitutional case where it was first decided that women were eligible to sit in the Canadian Senate...
in 1929, opening the door for Canadian women not only to serve in the Senate, but to have the same rights in politics as men. - Born: Fouad al-TikerlyFouad al-TikerlyFouad al-Tikerly was a prominent Iraqi novelist and writer, who was, perhaps, best known for his groundbreaking novel, al-Rajea al-Baeed, which is translated to The Long Way Back. Al-Tikerly was one of the last surviving members of a group of well known Iraqi novelists from the 1970s...
, prominent Iraqi novelist and writer (d. 2008) and Mario JascalevichMario JascalevichThe "Dr. X" killings were a series of suspicious deaths, by curare poisoning, in 1966 at a Bergen County, New Jersey hospital. A newspaper investigation during the mid-1960s led to the indictment of an Argentina-born physician, Mario Enrique Jascalevich , in 1976...
, controversial American physician, in Buenos AiresBuenos AiresBuenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
(d. 1984)
August 28, 1927 (Sunday)
- Sacco-Vanzetti case: The remains of Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were cremated in order to prevent their graves from becoming a shrine. Boston authorities permitted mourners to march in a memorial service.
- Died: Jimmy ClementsJimmy ClementsJimmy Clements was an Aboriginal elder from the Wiradjuri tribe in Australia, and was present at the Opening of the Provisional Parliament House in Canberra on 9 May 1927....
, 80, Australian Aboriginal elder presented to royalty on the opening of the first Federal Parliament
August 29, 1927 (Monday)
- Near Folsom, New MexicoFolsom, New MexicoFolsom is a village in Union County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 75 at the 2000 census. The town was named after Frances Folsom, the fiancee of President Grover Cleveland.-Geography:Folsom is located at ....
, Carl Schwachheim found a man-made spearheadSpearA spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head.The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with bamboo spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fastened to the shaft, such as flint, obsidian, iron, steel or...
imbedded in the skeleton of an ancient bison, proving that human beings had arrived in North America at the end of the last Ice AgeIce ageAn ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
, earlier than believed. Carbon dating later determined that the bison had been killed more than 10,000 years earlier. - The first World Population Conference opened in Geneva, after having been arranged by Albert ThomasAlbert Thomas (minister)Albert Thomas was a prominent French Socialist and the first Minister of Armament for the French Third Republic during World War I. Following the Treaty of Versailles, he was nominated as the first Director General of the International Labour Office, a position he held until his death in 1932.-...
, director of the International Labour Office, and Raymond PearlRaymond PearlRaymond Pearl was an American biologist, regarded as one of the founders of biogerontology. He spent most of his career at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore....
, the five day meeting on population growth did not reach a consensus. - Born: Marion WilliamsMarion WilliamsMarion Williams was an American gospel singer.-Early years:Marion Williams was born in Miami, Florida, to a religiously devout mother and musically inclined father. She left school when she was nine years old to help support the family, and worked as a maid, a nurse, and in factories and...
, African-American gospel singer, in Miami (d. 1994)
August 30, 1927 (Tuesday)
- The Princes' Gates, with a stone archway, pillars and a statue of The Winged Victory, were dedicated in Toronto to mark the 60th anniversary of the 1867 independence of Canada. The gateway to Exhibition PlaceExhibition PlaceExhibition Place is a mixed-use district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, by the shoreline of Lake Ontario, just west of downtown. The 197–acre area includes expo, trade, and banquet centres, theatre and music buildings, monuments, parkland, sports facilities, and a number of civic, provincial,...
was named for the two visiting British princes, the future kings Edward VIII and George VI. - Born: Bill DailyBill DailyBill Daily is an American comedian and dramatic actor, and a veteran of many television sitcoms. He is best known for playing astronaut Roger Healey on I Dream of Jeannie and commercial airline navigator Howard Borden in The Bob Newhart Show.-Biography:Daily's father died when Bill was very...
, American comedian and TV actor, in Des Moines
August 31, 1927 (Wednesday)
- Princess Anne of Löwenstein-Wertheim-FreudenbergPrincess Anne of Löwenstein-Wertheim-FreudenbergPrincess Anne of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Freudenberg was an English socialite and aviation patron and enthusiast. Anne was both the first woman to attempt and perish in a transatlantic airplane flight...
, flying along with pilot Leslie HamiltonLeslie HamiltonLieutenant Leslie Hamilton was a World War I flying ace credited with six aerial victories. After a postwar spell of stunt flying as "The Flying Gypsy", he attempted the first nonstop east-west flight across the Atlantic Ocean...
and navigator Frederick F. MinchinFrederick F. MinchinFrederick Frank Reilly Minchin CBE DSO MC was born in Madras on 16 June 1890 and was educated at Eastbourne College. He passed out of Sandhurst in 1909 and after 2 years resigned his commission to train as a civilian pilot at the recently formed Eastbourne Aviation Company. In 1913 he obtained his...
departed from England to attempt a westward Trans-Atlantic crossing and disappeared over the ocean. - Died: William F. Carver, 76, American entertainer who specialized in sharpshooting, and created the diving horseDiving horseA diving horse is an attraction that was popular in the mid 1880s, in which a horse would dive into a pool of water, sometimes from as high as 60 feet up.-History:...
act for his traveling Wild West show.