January 18 in History

• 1911

  January 18, 1911:

  American pilot Eugene Ely becomes the first person to land an aircraft on the flight deck of a ship (the battleship called Pennsylvania).

• 1912

  January 18, 1912:

  Robert Scott, a British explorer and his expedition arrive at the South Pole and find out that Roald Amundsen reached there a month before them.

• 1919

  January 18, 1919:

  Ignacy Jan Paderewski, the pianist and composer becomes the Prime Minister of Poland.

• 1943

  January 18, 1943:

  Selling pre-sliced bread is banned by the United States to save labor and equipment costs during World War II.

• 1958

  January 18, 1958:

  Willie O’Ree becomes the first black person to play in the National Hockey League when he debuts for the Boston Bruins in a game against the Montreal Canadiens.

• 1975

  January 18, 1975:

  Singer-songwriter Barry Manilow earns his first number 1 song when his single, “Mandy” tops the Billboard 100 chart.

• 1983

  January 18, 1983:

  70 years after athlete Jim Thorpe’s two gold medals from the 1912 Olympics were taken from him over allegations of not being an amateur athlete, the International Olympics Committee reinstates them.

• 1985

  January 18, 1985:

  Filmmakers, the Coen brothers release their first film, “Blood Simple”.

• 1986

  January 18, 1986:

  US President Ronald Reagan makes a proclamation designating Martin Luther King, Jr. Day as a national holiday.

• 2002

  January 18, 2002:

  The Sierra Leonean civil war officially comes to an end.