February 1961
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The following events occurred in February
, 1961
January 1961
January – February – March. – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in January 1961.-January 1, 1961 :...
– February – March
March 1961
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November - DecemberThe following events occurred in March, 1961-March 1, 1961 :...
. – April
April 1961
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in April, 1961-April 1, 1961 :...
– May
May 1961
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in May 1961.-May 1, 1961 :...
– June
June 1961
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in June 1961.-June 1, 1961 :...
– July
July 1961
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in July 1961.-July 1, 1961 :...
– August
August 1961
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in August 1961.-August 1, 1961 :...
– September
September 1961
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in September 1961.-September 1, 1961 :...
– October
October 1961
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in October 1961:-October 1, 1961 :...
– November
November 1961
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November-DecemberThe following events occurred in November 1961.-November 1, 1961 :...
-December
December 1961
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in December 1961:-December 1, 1961 :...
The following events occurred in February
February
February is the second month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the shortest month and the only month with fewer than 30 days. The month has 28 days in common years and 29 days in leap years...
, 1961
February 1, 1961 (Wednesday)
- The United States launched its first test of the Minuteman I intercontinental ballistic missile. The rocket lifted off from Cape CanaveralCape CanaveralCape Canaveral, from the Spanish Cabo Cañaveral, is a headland in Brevard County, Florida, United States, near the center of the state's Atlantic coast. Known as Cape Kennedy from 1963 to 1973, it lies east of Merritt Island, separated from it by the Banana River.It is part of a region known as the...
at 11:00 am, and traveled 4,000 miles in less than 15 minutes to a target in the Atlantic Ocean. "US Minuteman Missile Lands on Ocean Target", Milwaukee Journal, February 1, 1961, p1 - Moore Air Base becomes inactive, along with the 78th Fighter Group78th Fighter GroupThe 78th Fighter Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 78th Fighter Wing, being assigned to Hamilton Air Force Base, California. It was inactivated on 1 February 1961....
of the US Air Force.
February 2, 1961 (Thursday)
- At Wailuku, HawaiiWailuku, HawaiiWailuku is a census-designated place in Maui County, Hawaii, United States. The population was 12,296 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Maui County.Wailuku is located just west of Kahului, at the mouth of the Īao Valley...
, Stanley Ann Dunham, an 18-year-old student at the University of HawaiiUniversity of HawaiiThe University of Hawaii System, formally the University of Hawaii and popularly known as UH, is a public, co-educational college and university system that confers associate, bachelor, master, and doctoral degrees through three university campuses, seven community college campuses, an employment...
, married Barack Hussein ObamaBarack Obama, Sr.Barack Hussein Obama, Sr. was a Kenyan senior governmental economist and the father of U.S. President Barack Obama. He is a central subject in his son's memoir, Dreams from My Father.-Early life:...
, a 25-year-old student from KenyaKenyaKenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
. Six months later, their son, Barack ObamaBarack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
, who would become the 44th President of the United StatesPresident 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....
, was born in Honolulu. - Santa Maria hijackingSanta Maria hijackingContrary to popular belief, the Santa Maria hijacking is not "piracy" because it does not fit the international definition of piracy involving an attack of one vessel on another for private ends...
: After ten days of being held captive on an ocean liner, nearly 600 passengers from the cruise ship Santa Maria were freed, and were taken ashore by various boats to the 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...
ian port of RecifeRecifeRecife is the fifth-largest metropolitan area in Brazil with 4,136,506 inhabitants, the largest metropolitan area of the North/Northeast Regions, the 5th-largest metropolitan influence area in Brazil, and the capital and largest city of the state of Pernambuco. The population of the city proper...
. - Betty CurtisBetty CurtisBetty Curtis was an Italian singer active from 1957 to 2004.The song "Al di là" performed by her with Luciano Tajoli won the Sanremo Music Festival in 1961...
wins the Sanremo Music FestivalFestival della canzone italianaThe Festival della canzone italiana di Sanremo is a popular Italian song contest, held annually in the city of Sanremo, in Italy, and consisting of a competition amongst previously unreleased songs...
with the song "Al di làAl Di Là"Al di là" is a popular Italian song. "Al di là" was one of Betty Curtis' biggest hits in Italy. The song was the Italian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1961, performed in Italian by Curtis at the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, France, on March 18, 1961, after Curtis had won the 1961...
" - Born: Erna SolbergErna SolbergErna Solberg is a Norwegian politician, and current leader of the Conservative Party of Norway. She was the Municipal and Regional Minister in Kjell Magne Bondevik's second government, 19 October 2001 until 17 October 2005. In 2005, she was appointed a Commander of the Order of St. Olav.-Early...
, Norwegian politician, in Bergen - Died: Victor DanielsenVictor DanielsenVictor Danielsen , was the first Faroese Bible translator and Plymouth Brethren missionary.Victor Danielsen played a pivotal role in the Plymouth Brethren's establishment in the Faroe Islands after it was introduced there by William Gibson Sloan in the late nineteenth century.- Biography :Victor...
, 66, Faroese translator and missionary
February 3, 1961 (Friday)
- Operation Looking Glass began, as the first of a series of Boeing EC-135Boeing EC-135The Boeing EC-135 was a command & control version of the C-135 Stratolifter. Modified for the "Looking Glass" program, during the Cold War EC-135 were airborne 24 hours a day to serve as flying command platforms for the military in the event of nuclear war...
jets went into the air on orders of the Strategic Air CommandStrategic Air CommandThe Strategic Air Command was both a Major Command of the United States Air Force and a "specified command" of the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America's land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic...
. For more than 30 years, an EC-135 was always in the air, with the capability of taking direct control of the United States' bombers and missiles in the event of the destruction of the SAC's command post near OmahaOmahaOmaha may refer to:*Omaha , a Native American tribe that currently resides in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Nebraska-Places:United States* Omaha, Nebraska* Omaha, Arkansas* Omaha, Georgia* Omaha, Illinois* Omaha, Texas...
. As one jet "Doomsday Plane" was preparing to land, another was already aloft. The program continued, with E4AE4AThe E4A was an anti-terrorist unit within 'E' Department of the Royal Ulster Constabulary, probably established in 1978 . It was primarily made up of police officers who conducted surveillance to be acted on by RUC Special Branch...
jets later replacing the EC-135s, until the fall of the Soviet Union. - French interior designer Stéphane BoudinStéphane BoudinStéphane Boudin was a French interior designer and a president of Maison Jansen, the influential Paris-based interior decorating firm.Boudin is best known for being asked by U.S...
made his first visit to the White HouseWhite HouseThe White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
, to plan the refurnishing of the U.S. President's residence at the request of the new First Lady, Jacqueline Kennedy. - China buys $60 million worth of grain from Canada.
- Died: Anna May WongAnna May WongAnna May Wong was an American actress, the first Chinese American movie star, and the first Asian American to become an international star...
, 65, Chinese-American movie star
February 4, 1961 (Saturday)
- The Portuguese Colonial WarPortuguese Colonial WarThe Portuguese Colonial War , also known in Portugal as the Overseas War or in the former colonies as the War of liberation , was fought between Portugal's military and the emerging nationalist movements in Portugal's African colonies between 1961 and 1974, when the Portuguese regime was...
began in AngolaAngolaAngola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
with a co-ordinated attack by 180 MPLA guerillas in LuandaLuandaLuanda, formerly named São Paulo da Assunção de Loanda, is the capital and largest city of Angola. Located on Angola's coast with the Atlantic Ocean, Luanda is both Angola's chief seaport and its administrative center. It has a population of at least 5 million...
. In a morning raid, armed groups attacked the prison, the police barracks, a police patrol and the radio station. The attacks failed, and armed white Angolan residents exacted revenge on Luanda's black neighborhoods, but the battle inspired a 14-year long campaign to liberate PortugalPortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
's colonies. - Died: Alphonse PicouAlphonse PicouAlphonse Floristan Picou was an important very early jazz clarinetist who also wrote and arranged music....
, 82, American jazz clarinettist
February 5, 1961 (Sunday)
- In CongoRepublic of the Congo (Léopoldville)The Republic of the Congo was an independent republic established following the independence granted to the former colony of the Belgian Congo in 1960...
, President Joseph Kasavubu names Joseph Ileo as the new Prime Minister.
February 6, 1961 (Monday)
- KOPB-TVKOPB-TVKOPB-TV is a public television station serving the Portland, Oregon television market. It is owned and operated by Oregon Public Broadcasting. It broadcasts its digital signal on VHF channel 10....
begins operating in the Portland, OregonPortland, OregonPortland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, area of the US, under the name KOAP.
February 7, 1961 (Tuesday)
- Born: Prince François, Count of Clermont, dauphin of the Orleanist claimant to the French throne
February 9, 1961 (Thursday)
- An IL-18Ilyushin Il-18The Ilyushin Il-18 is a large turboprop airliner that became one of the best known Soviet aircraft of its era as well as one of the most popular and durable, having first flown in 1957 and still in use over 50 years later. The Il-18 was one of the world's principal airliners for several decades...
plane carrying Leonid BrezhnevLeonid BrezhnevLeonid Ilyich Brezhnev – 10 November 1982) was the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union , presiding over the country from 1964 until his death in 1982. His eighteen-year term as General Secretary was second only to that of Joseph Stalin in...
(Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR) was attacked by French fighters en route to Guinea RepublicGuineaGuinea , officially the Republic of Guinea , is a country in West Africa. Formerly known as French Guinea , it is today sometimes called Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from its neighbour Guinea-Bissau. Guinea is divided into eight administrative regions and subdivided into thirty-three prefectures...
for a state visit. - The Beatles perform at the Cavern Club for the first time
- Died: Millard TydingsMillard TydingsMillard Evelyn Tydings was an attorney, author, soldier, state legislator, and served as a Democratic Representative and Senator in the United States Congress from Maryland.-Early life:...
, 70, American politician
February 10, 1961 (Friday)
- The Robert Moses Niagara Hydroelectric Power Station went online, completing a project to use Niagara FallsNiagara FallsThe Niagara Falls, located on the Niagara River draining Lake Erie into Lake Ontario, is the collective name for the Horseshoe Falls and the adjacent American Falls along with the comparatively small Bridal Veil Falls, which combined form the highest flow rate of any waterfalls in the world and has...
to generate electricity from what was, at the time, the largest hydroelectric power plant in the world, generating 2,400,000 million kilowatts (or 2.4 gigawatts) of electricity per hour. - Artist Oskar KokoschkaOskar KokoschkaOskar Kokoschka was an Austrian artist, poet and playwright best known for his intense expressionistic portraits and landscapes.-Biography:...
is made an honorary citizen of Vienna. - Born: George StephanopoulosGeorge StephanopoulosGeorge Robert Stephanopoulos is an American television journalist and a former political advisor.Stephanopoulos is most well known as the chief political correspondent for ABC News – the news division of the broadcast television network ABC – and a co-anchor of ABC News's morning news...
, American presidential adviser and television journalist, in Fall River, MassachusettsFall River, MassachusettsFall River is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, in the United States. It is located about south of Boston, southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, and west of New Bedford and south of Taunton. The city's population was 88,857 during the 2010 census, making it the tenth largest city in...
February 11, 1961 (Saturday)
- Melbourne Cricket GroundMelbourne Cricket GroundThe Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light...
has its largest ever crowd for a cricket match, 90,800 people, attending the test match between Australia and West Indies. - A plebiscite was conducted in the north and south parts of the British Cameroons over whether to join the Federation of Nigeria or the Republic of Cameroon that had recently become independent of France. Residents of the Southern Cameroons voted 233,571 to 97,741 in favor of union with Cameroon, while in the Northern Cameroons, the result was 146,296 to 97,659 in favor of integration with Nigeria.
- Robert C. WeaverRobert C. WeaverRobert Clifton Weaver served as the first United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 1966 to 1968. He was the first African American to hold a cabinet-level position in the United States.As a young man, Weaver had been one of 45 prominent African Americans appointed by...
became the first African-American to lead a major U.S. government agency, becoming Administrator of the Housing and Home Finance Agency on appointment by President Kennedy. When the HHFA was raised to cabinet level status on January 18, 1966, Weaver became the first African-American cabinet member, under President Lyndon Johnson, as the first U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. - Died: Kate CarewKate CarewMary Williams , who wrote pseudonymously as Kate Carew, was a caricaturist self-styled as "The Only Woman Caricaturist". She worked at the New York World from 1890 to 1901, providing illustrated celebrity interviews....
, 33, American caricaturist
February 12, 1961 (Sunday)
- Eight days after launching the seven ton Sputnik V, the U.S.S.R. used the orbiting satellite as a launch platform from which to fire a rocket carrying the interplanetary space probe, Venera 1Venera 1On February 12, 1961, 00:34:36 UTC, was the first planetary probe launched to Venus by the Soviet Union. The Venus-1 Automatic Interplanetary Station, or Venera 1, was a 643.5 kg probe consisting of a cylindrical body 1.05 metres in diameter topped by a dome, totalling 2.035 metres...
, towards the planet VenusVenusVenus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...
. The U.S. had launched Pioneer V toward Venus in MarchMarch 1960January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November - DecemberThe following events occurred in March 1960.-March 1, 1960 :...
to Contact with the satellite was lost after it traveled 4,650,000 miles, but the probe came within 62,000 miles of the second planet, and is believed to still be in orbit around the Sun.
February 13, 1961 (Monday)
- At Elisabethville, The CongoRepublic of the Congo (Léopoldville)The Republic of the Congo was an independent republic established following the independence granted to the former colony of the Belgian Congo in 1960...
, Katangan Interior Minister Godefroid Munongo informed reporters, "I have called you together to announce the death of Patrice LumumbaPatrice LumumbaPatrice Émery Lumumba was a Congolese independence leader and the first legally elected Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo after he helped win its independence from Belgium in June 1960. Only ten weeks later, Lumumba's government was deposed in a coup during the Congo Crisis...
and his accomplices," then went on to say that the group had been massacred the day before "by the inhabitants of a little village" days after escaping from prison. As it turned out, Lumumba had been executed by a Katangan firing squad a month earlier, on January 17January 1961January – February – March. – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in January 1961.-January 1, 1961 :...
. The confirmation of Lumumba's death stirred rioting in the Congo and around the world. - Hunting for geodes in the Coso Mountains near Olancha, CaliforniaOlancha, CaliforniaOlancha is a census-designated place in Inyo County of the U.S. state of California. Olancha is located on U.S. Route 395 in California, south-southeast of Independence, at an elevation of 3658 feet...
, rock collectors Wally Lane, Mike Mikesell and Virginia Maxey found a 500,000-year-old rock containing the "Coso artifactCoso artifactThe Coso Artifact is a spark plug found encased in a lump of hard clay or rock on February 13, 1961 by Wallace Lane, Virginia Maxey, and Mike Mikesell while they were prospecting for geodes near the town of Olancha, California, and long claimed as an example of an out-of-place artifact.If a spark...
", a metal object that resembled, anachronistically, a spark plugSpark plugA spark plug is an electrical device that fits into the cylinder head of some internal combustion engines and ignites compressed fuels such as aerosol, gasoline, ethanol, and liquefied petroleum gas by means of an electric spark.Spark plugs have an insulated central electrode which is connected by...
. The rock and the ancient spark plug have not been seen since 1969.
February 14, 1961 (Tuesday)
- Discovery of the chemical elements: Element 103, LawrenciumLawrenciumLawrencium is a radioactive synthetic chemical element with the symbol Lr and atomic number 103. In the periodic table of the elements, it is a period 7 d-block element and the last element of actinide series...
, was first synthesized by a team of scientists at the University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, BerkeleyThe University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
. Using the cyclotronCyclotronIn technology, a cyclotron is a type of particle accelerator. In physics, the cyclotron frequency or gyrofrequency is the frequency of a charged particle moving perpendicularly to the direction of a uniform magnetic field, i.e. a magnetic field of constant magnitude and direction...
at the Lawrence Radiation Laboratory, scientists Albert Ghiorso, Torbjorn Sikkeland, Almon E. Larsh and Robert M. Latimer bombarded CaliforniumCaliforniumCalifornium is a radioactive metallic chemical element with the symbol Cf and atomic number 98. The element was first made in the laboratory in 1950 by bombarding curium with alpha particles at the University of California, Berkeley. It is the ninth member of the actinide series and was the...
with Boron-10 and Boron-11 nuclei, combining the protons of the 98th and 5th elements to create a new element with 103 protons. After spending two months confirming their finding, the team made their announcement on April 13. - A day after the news of Patrice Lumumba's death, thousands of protesters attacked BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
's embassies worldwide. The embassy in MoscowMoscowMoscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
was attacked by a mob of thousands of Russian, Asian and African students, while the one in BelgradeBelgradeBelgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
was ransacked following a protest by 30,000 people. African students in New DelhiNew DelhiNew Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
wrecked furniture at the embassy there. The next day, a group of 24 protestors fought with guards at the United Nations Security CouncilUnited Nations Security CouncilThe United Nations Security Council is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers, outlined in the United Nations Charter, include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of...
One reporter felt that the Moscow riots, with marchers from that city's People's Friendship University, "showed signs of careful planning" and that it had been orchestrated by the Sovier government. - The Zuid-Afrikaanse RandSouth African randThe rand is the currency of South Africa. It takes its name from the Witwatersrand , the ridge upon which Johannesburg is built and where most of South Africa's gold deposits were found. The rand has the symbol "R" and is subdivided into 100 cents, symbol "c"...
(ZAR) became the official currency of South AfricaSouth AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, replacing the South African poundSouth African poundIn 1825, an imperial order-in-council made sterling coinage legal tender in all the British colonies. At that time, the only British colony in Southern Africa was the Cape of Good Hope Colony. As time went on, the British pound sterling and its associated subsidiary coinage became the currency of...
at a 2:1 ratio. - James E. WebbJames E. WebbJames Edwin Webb was an American government official who served as the second administrator of NASA from February 14, 1961 to October 7, 1968....
took office as administrator of NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
, serving until 1968.
February 15, 1961 (Wednesday)
- Sabena Flight 548Sabena Flight 548Sabena Flight 548, registration OO-SJB, was a Boeing 707 aircraft that crashed en route to Brussels, Belgium, from New York City on February 15, 1961, killing the entire United States Figure Skating team on its way to the 1961 World Championships in Prague, Czechoslovakia.The flight, which...
crashed as it was approaching BrusselsBrusselsBrussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
on a flight from 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...
, killing all 72 people on board, including all the United States figure skating team and its coaches. It was the first fatal crash of a Boeing 707Boeing 707The Boeing 707 is a four-engine narrow-body commercial passenger jet airliner developed by Boeing in the early 1950s. Its name is most commonly pronounced as "Seven Oh Seven". The first airline to operate the 707 was Pan American World Airways, inaugurating the type's first commercial flight on...
passenger jet. *A total solar eclipseSolar eclipse of February 15, 1961A total solar eclipse occurred on February 15, 1961. -References:*...
was visible in parts of the Northern Hemisphere. - President John F. KennedyJohn F. KennedyJohn Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
warned the Soviet UnionSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
to avoid interfering with the United NationsUnited NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
pacification of the CongoRepublic of the Congo (Léopoldville)The Republic of the Congo was an independent republic established following the independence granted to the former colony of the Belgian Congo in 1960...
.http://www.jfklibrary.org/Historical+Resources/Archives/Reference+Desk/Selected+Milestones+in+the+Presidency+of+John+F.+Kennedy.htm - Died in the crash of Sabena Flight 548: Maribel Vinson, 49, nine-time US national figure skating champion, and her two daughters: Laurence OwenLaurence OwenLaurence Rochon "Laurie" Owen was a Hall of Fame American figure skater. She was the 1961 U.S. National Champion and represented the United States at the 1960 Winter Olympics, where she placed 6th. She was the daughter of Maribel Vinson and Guy Owen and the sister of Maribel Owen...
, 16, US national ladies' singles champion, and Maribel OwenMaribel OwenMaribel Yerxa Owen was an American pair skater. With partner Dudley Richards, she was the 1961 U.S. national champion and represented the United States at the 1960 Winter Olympics, where they placed 10th. She was the daughter of Maribel Vinson and Guy Owen and the sister of Laurence Owen...
, 20, US national pairs champion; Dudley RichardsDudley RichardsDudley "Dud" Shaw Richards was an American figure skater who competed in men's singles and pairs. In singles, he won the bronze medal at the 1953 United States Figure Skating Championships and finished sixth at that year's World Figure Skating Championships...
, 29 Maribel Owen's pairs partner; Dona Lee CarrierDona Lee CarrierDona Lee Carrier was an American figure skater who competed in ice dancing with Roger Campbell. The pair won the silver medal at the 1961 United States Figure Skating Championships, earning them the right to compete a month later at the World Championships in Prague...
, 20, and her ice dance partner Roger CampbellRoger CampbellRoger Campbell was an American figure skater who competed in ice dancing. After partnering Diane Sherbloom in 1959, he won the bronze medal at the 1960 United States Figure Skating Championships with Yvonne Littlefield and went on to finish eight at that year's World Figure Skating Championships...
, 19; Patricia DineenPatricia DineenPatricia Major Dineen was an American ice dancer who competed with her husband Robert Dineen. The duo won the Silver dance title at the 1960 United States Figure Skating Championships and then the bronze at the senior level at the 1961 United States Figure Skating Championships, earning them the...
, 25, and her husband and ice dance partner Robert DineenRobert DineenRobert Dineen was an American ice dancer who competed with his wife Patricia Dineen. The duo won Silver dance title at the 1960 United States Figure Skating Championships and then the bronze in the senior division at the 1961 United States Figure Skating Championships, earning them the right to...
, 25; Ray Hadley, Jr.Ray Hadley, Jr.Ray Ellis Hadley, Jr. was an American figure skater who competed in pairs and ice dance with his sister Ila Ray Hadley.Hadley was born in Seattle, Washington...
, 17, and his sister Ila Ray HadleyIla Ray HadleyIla Ray Hadley , was an American figure skater who competed in pairs and ice dance with her brother Ray Hadley, Jr..Hadley was born in Renton, Washington...
, 18, ice dance competitors; Harold HartshorneHarold HartshorneHarold Hartshorne was an American ice dancer.With partner Nettie Prantell, he was the 1937-1938 U.S. Champion and 1943 bronze medalist medalist. With partner Sandy MacDonald, he was the 1939-1941 U.S. Champion and 1942 silver medalist. With partner Kathe Mehl, he is the 1944 U.S...
, 69, skating judge and former ice dancer; Laurie HickoxLaurie HickoxLaurie Jean Hickox December 6, 1945 – February 15, 1961) was an American pair skater who competed with her brother William Hickox. They won the bronze medal at the U.S. Championships, earning them the right to compete a month later at the World Championships in Prague. They also finished...
, 15, and her brother and pairs partner William HickoxWilliam HickoxWilliam Holmes Hickox was an American pair skater who competed with his sister Laurie Hickox. They won the bronze medal at the U.S. Championships, earning them the right to compete a month later at the World Championships in Prague. They also finished sixth at the North American Figure Skating...
, 19; Gregory KelleyGregory KelleyGregory Kelley was an American figure skater who competed in men's singles. He won the junior title at the United States Figure Skating Championships in 1959 and finished ninth at the 1960 World Figure Skating Championships after the top three U.S. skaters skipped the event. In 1961 he won the...
, 16, US junior men's singles champion; Edward LeMaireEdward LeMaireEdward LeMaire was an American figure skater who competed in pairs and men's singles. In pairs, he won the junior title at the United States Figure Skating Championships in 1942 and won a bronze medal in senior pairs the following year with Dorothy Goos...
, skating judge, and his 14-year-old son; Bradley LordBradley LordBradley Lord was an American figure skater who competed in men's singles. He finished fourth at the 1960 United States Figure Skating Championships and then placed sixth at that year's World Figure Skating Championships after the top three U.S. skaters skipped the event...
, 21, US men's singles champion; Rhode Lee MichelsonRhode Lee MichelsonRhode Lee Michelson was an American figure skater. She placed third at the 1961 U.S. Championships, earning her the right to compete a month later at the World Championships. A hip injury forced Rhode to withdraw from the North American Championships in early February 1961...
, 17, ladies' singles competitor; Douglas RamsayDouglas RamsayDouglas Ramsay was an American figure skater who competed in men's singles.Known as "Dick Button Jr.", he early won the reputation of being a particularly charismatic free skater and an audience favorite....
, 16, men's singles competitor; Edi ScholdanEdi ScholdanEdi Scholdan was a figure skater and figure skating coach.Scholdan was born in Vienna and, as a competitor, represented Austria at the 1933 World Figure Skating Championships. However, he became better known as a coach; he worked at the Broadmoor Skating Club in Colorado Springs, Colorado...
, Austrian figure skater and coach, and his 13-year-old son; Diane SherbloomDiane SherbloomDiane Carol "Dee Dee" Sherbloom was an American figure skater who competed in ice dance. Previously paired with Roger Campbell, she had no intentions of competing at the 1961 United States Figure Skating Championships until a twist of fate brought partner Larry Pierce her way...
, 18, and her ice dance partner Larry Pierce, 24; Stephanie WesterfeldStephanie WesterfeldStephanie "Steffi" Westerfeld was an American figure skater.She earned a place on the United States' world team for the 1961 World Figure Skating Championships after she finished second at 1961 U.S National Championships....
, 17, ladies' singles competitor;
February 16, 1961 (Thursday)
- CyprusCyprusCyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
's first nationality law is enacted. - Closure of the Sunday Lake mine at Wakefield, MichiganWakefield, MichiganWakefield is a city in Gogebic County in the US state of Michigan. It is located in the western Upper Peninsula. The population was 1,851 at the 2010 census....
. - Congress of Confédération Africaine de FootballHistory of CAFFrom a humble beginning in 1957, the Confederation of African Football has grown into a respected organisation that today can hold its head high anywhere in the world.-A dream to come true:...
delegates takes place in Cairo.
February 17, 1961 (Friday)
- Born: Angela EagleAngela EagleAngela Eagle is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Wallasey since 1992. She served as the Minister of State for Pensions and Ageing Society from June 2009 until May 2010. Eagle was elected to the Shadow Cabinet in October 2010 and was appointed by Ed...
and Maria EagleMaria EagleMaria Eagle is a British solicitor and Labour Party politician. She is the Member of Parliament for Garston and Halewood, having been the MP for Liverpool Garston from 1997 to 2010....
, British politicians, in Bridlington - Died: Nita Naldi, 66, silent film star
February 18, 1961 (Saturday)
- The USS South Dakota (ACR-9)USS South Dakota (ACR-9)The second USS South Dakota , also referred to "Armored Cruiser No. 9", and later renamed Huron , was a United States Navy Pennsylvania-class armored cruiser....
sinks in Powell River, British ColumbiaPowell River, British ColumbiaPowell River is a city on the northern Sunshine Coast of southwestern British Columbia, Canada. Most of its population lives near the eastern shores of Malaspina Strait, that part of the larger Georgia Strait between Texada Island and the Mainland...
, Canada. http://freepages.military.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cacunithistories/USS_South_Dakota.html - Led by British author and activist Bertrand RussellBertrand RussellBertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, OM, FRS was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, historian, and social critic. At various points in his life he considered himself a liberal, a socialist, and a pacifist, but he also admitted that he had never been any of these things...
, the Committee of 100 and a crowd of 5,000 people staged a sit-down protest at the Ministry of Defence in Whitehall, London, demanding that the U.K. call of its agreement to bring nuclear missiles to the British Isles. As one author notes, "Somewhat to the distress of Russell... police took no action on this occasion." p188 - Kwame NkrumahKwame NkrumahKwame Nkrumah was the leader of Ghana and its predecessor state, the Gold Coast, from 1952 to 1966. Overseeing the nation's independence from British colonial rule in 1957, Nkrumah was the first President of Ghana and the first Prime Minister of Ghana...
lays the foundation stone of the Kwame Nkrumah Ideological InstituteKwame Nkrumah Ideological InstituteThe Kwame Nkrumah Ideological Institute was an educational body in Winneba founded to promote socialism in Ghana as well as the liberation of Africa from colonialism...
in Winneba, Ghana. - After 22 years of publication, British comic Radio FunRadio FunRadio Fun was a British comic paper that ran from 15 October 1938 to 18 February 1961, when it became the first out of twelve titles to merge with Buster. By this time it had been renamed to Radio Fun and Adventure...
is merged into Buster.
February 19, 1961 (Sunday)
- Born: Justin FashanuJustin FashanuJustinus Soni "Justin" Fashanu was an English footballer who played for a variety of clubs between 1978 and 1997. He was known by his early clubs to be homosexual, and came out to the press later in his career, to become the first professional footballer to be openly gay...
, English footballer, in Hackney, London (died 1998)
February 20, 1961 (Monday)
- Born: Imogen StubbsImogen StubbsImogen Stubbs, Lady Nunn is an English actress and playwright.-Early life:Imogen Stubbs was born in Northumberland, lived briefly in Portsmouth, where her father was a naval officer, and then moved with her parents to London, where they lived on an elderly river barge on the Thames...
, British actress, in Newcastle upon Tyne - Died: Percy GraingerPercy GraingerGeorge Percy Aldridge Grainger , known as Percy Grainger, was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist. In the course of a long and innovative career he played a prominent role in the revival of interest in British folk music in the early years of the 20th century. He also made many...
, 78, Australian composer; Romany MarieRomany MarieMarie Marchand , known as Romany Marie, was a Greenwich Village restaurateur who played a key role in bohemianism from the early 1900s through the late 1950s in New York City's Manhattan.- Romany Marie's cafés :...
, 75, American restaurateur and bohemian personality
February 21, 1961 (Tuesday)
- United Nations Security Council Resolution 161United Nations Security Council Resolution 161United Nations Security Council Resolution 161, adopted on February 21, 1961, after noting the killings of Patrice Lumumba, Maurice Mpolo and Joseph Okito and a report of the Secretary-General's Special Representative the Council urged the UN to immediately take measures to prevent the occurrence...
was adopted by a 9-0 vote, authorizing United Nation forces to take "all appropriate measures to prevent the occurrence of civil war in the Congo, including... the use of force, if necessary, as a last resort". - The African state of GabonGabonGabon , officially the Gabonese Republic is a state in west central Africa sharing borders with Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, and with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. The Gulf of Guinea, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean is to the west...
adopted a new constitution. Léon M'baLéon M'baGabriel Léon M'ba was the first Prime Minister and President of Gabon. A member of the Fang ethnic group, M'ba was born into a relatively privileged village family. After studying at a seminary, he held a number of small jobs before entering the colonial administration as a customs agent...
became President, with significant additional powers.
- Born: Ranking RogerRanking RogerRanking Roger is an English musician. He was a vocalist in the 1980s two-tone band, The Beat and General Public...
, English ska vocalist, in Birmingham; Rhonda Sing, Canadian wrestler, in Calgary (died 2001) - Died: Frederick M. JonesFrederick M. JonesFrederick McKinley Jones was an American inventor, entrepreneur, winner of the National Medal of Technology, and inductee of the National Inventors Hall of Fame. His innovations in refrigeration wrought great improvement in the long-haul transportation of perishable goods.-Background:Jones was...
, 68, African-American inventor specializing in refrigeration technology, co-founder of Thermo King CorporationThermo King CorporationThermo King Corporation, based in Bloomington, Minnesota and a unit of Ingersoll Rand Company Limited, is a manufacturer of transport temperature control systems for trucks, trailers, shipboard containers and railway cars as well as HVAC systems for bus, shuttle and passenger rail applications...
February 22, 1961 (Wednesday)
- Born: Clifford MethClifford MethClifford Lawrence Meth is an American writer and editor best known for his dark fiction. He has said that his work is often "self-consciously Jewish."-Early life:...
, American writer, in Queens, New York; Jean-Christophe NovelliJean-Christophe Novelli-Life:Born in Arras, Northern France, in 1961, in a family with Italian roots, Jean-Christophe Novelli left school at age 14 and worked in a bakery before, at the age of 20, becoming a personal chef to the Rothschild family....
, French celebrity chef, in Arras - Died: Nick LaRoccaNick LaRoccaDominic James "Nick" LaRocca , was an early jazz cornetist and trumpeter and the leader of the Original Dixieland Jass Band. He is the composer of one of the most recorded jazz classics of all-time, "Tiger Rag"...
, 71, jazz cornettist
February 23, 1961 (Thursday)
- Geoffrey Charles LawrenceGeoffrey Charles LawrenceGeoffrey Charles Lawrence was acting Chief Minister of Zanzibar from 23 February 1961 to 5 June 1961....
becomes acting Chief Minister of ZanzibarZanzibarZanzibar ,Persian: زنگبار, from suffix bār: "coast" and Zangi: "bruin" ; is a semi-autonomous part of Tanzania, in East Africa. It comprises the Zanzibar Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of the mainland, and consists of numerous small islands and two large ones: Unguja , and Pemba...
, then still under British control. - Duncan CarseDuncan CarseDuncan Carse was born in 1913 and attended Sherborne School. A British actor and explorer, he died on 2 May 2004, aged 90. He had lived in Fittleworth, West Sussex, for over 40 years. His father was the artist A...
is dropped off by HMS Owen, with 12 tonnes of supplies and a prefabricated hut, at Ducloz HeadDucloz HeadDucloz Head is a headland which forms the northwest side of the entrance to Undine South Harbour on the south coast of South Georgia. First charted in 1819 by a Russian expedition under Bellingshausen...
in South Georgia, at the start of a short-lived attempt to become a latter-day Robinson Crusoe.
February 25, 1961 (Saturday)
- The last public trams in SydneyTrams in SydneyThe Sydney tramway network once served Sydney, the capital city of New South Wales, Australia. In its heyday, it was the largest in Australia, the second largest in the Commonwealth , and one of the largest in the world. It was extremely intensively worked, with about 1,600 cars in service at any...
, Australia, cease operation, bringing to an end the Southern Hemisphere's largest tramway network. - Born: Davey AllisonDavey AllisonDavid Carl "Davey" Allison was a NASCAR driver. He was best known for driving the #28 Texaco-Havoline Ford for Robert Yates Racing in the Winston Cup Series. Born in Hollywood, Florida, he was the eldest of four children born to Bobby Allison and wife Judy...
, American NASCAR driver, in Hollywood, FloridaHollywood, Florida-Demographics:As of 2000, there were 59,673 households out of which 24.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.5% were married couples living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.2% were non-families. 34.4% of all households were made up of...
(killed in helicopter crash, 1993)
February 26, 1961 (Sunday)
- Tyazhely Sputnik, launched on 4 February 1961, reentered the atmosphere over SiberiaSiberiaSiberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
. The failure of the mission is disguised as a test by the Soviet Union authorities. - Died: King Mohammed V of Morocco, 51, suffered a fatal heart attack after undergoing a minor operation at the clinic in his palace at RabatRabatRabat , is the capital and third largest city of the Kingdom of Morocco with a population of approximately 650,000...
. His son, Hassan IIHassan II of MoroccoKing Hassan II l-ḥasan aṯ-ṯānī, dial. el-ḥasan ettâni); July 9, 1929 – July 23, 1999) was King of Morocco from 1961 until his death in 1999...
was proclaimed his successor.
February 27, 1961 (Monday)
- The Roman Catholic Diocese of TulaRoman Catholic Diocese of TulaThe Roman Catholic Diocese of Tula is a suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of Tulancingo. It was a suffragan of the Archdiocese of México until 25 November 2006.-Ordinaries:*José de Jesús Sahagún de la Parra...
is created. - Opening of the first congress of the Spanish Trade Union OrganisationSpanish Trade Union OrganisationThe Spanish Trade Union Organisation , commonly known as Vertical Syndicate , was the only legal trade union organisation in Francoist Spain , and a main component of the Movimiento Nacional Francoist apparatus...
(OSE).
February 28, 1961 (Tuesday)
- Under United States law, 38 U.S.C. §101 (29)(A), the Vietnam eraVietnam EraVietnam Era is a term used by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs to classify veterans of the Vietnam War. The Vietnam Era is a considered to have begun in 1964 and ended in 1975. The U.S. Congress, U.S...
refers to "The period beginning on February 28, 1961, and ending on May 7, 1975, in the case of a veteran who served in the Republic of Vietnam during that period." - East Germany abruptly ended its program of researching, designing and building aircraft, with the passage of a resolution by the Central Committee of the ruling SED Party. "Huge resources were wasted as a result of this about-face," noted one commentator.
- The SaarlouisSaarlouisSaarlouis is a city in the Saarland, Germany, capital of the district of Saarlouis. In 2006, the town had a population of 38,327. Saarlouis, as the name implies, is located at the river Saar....
electric tramway closes after nearly 48 years in operation. - Born: Mark FergusonMark FergusonMark Ferguson is a New Zealand-based Australian actor and television presenter.-Biography:Ferguson was born in Sydney, Australia, in family of Scottish ancestry . He attended the National Institute of Dramatic Art and graduated in 1981...
, New Zealand actor and TV presenter, in Sydney, Australia