On This Day In History, January 3, 2025 Edition
Today’s Feature - Aretha Franklin first female artist inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
1987 - Aretha Franklin became the first-ever female artist to enter the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
But, like Rodney Dangerfield, she still gets no R-E-S-P-E-C-T!1
The 2025 This Day in Science 365 Day Calendar
Working together, teams of scientists from Immerge Bio Therapeutics Inc. and the University of Missouri-Columbia announced that they had successfully cloned the world's first miniature pig, whose DNA had been specifically modified to remove, or "knock out," a single gene. The gene in question, known as GGTA1, was largely responsible for the high rejection rates associated with cross-species transplants. Researchers hope further studies in the science of genetic manipulation may provide experts with the ability to breed pigs specifically intended to produce transplant-ready organs, greatly reducing the need for ever-precious human donors.
Here’s a follow-up paper from 11 years later.
The 2025 History Channel Military History 365 Day Calendar
1861 - Delaware rejects secession from the Union
On January 3, 1861, just two weeks after South Carolina became the first state to secede from the Union, Delaware rejected a similar proposal to secede.
There had been little doubt that Delaware would remain with the North.
Delaware technically allowed for the enslavement of people, but the institution was not widespread; in 1861, there were some twenty thousand people of African descent living in the state, about eighteen hundred of whom were enslaved.
Most of the enslaved people were concentrated in Sussex, the southernmost of the state's three counties.
While there were some Southern sympathizers, Delaware had a Unionist governor, and the Union held a majority in the legislature.
As a result, on January 3, the legislature voted to remain with the United States. For the Union, Delaware's decision was a temporary respite from the parade of seceding states.
Over the next several weeks, six states joined South Carolina in seceding, and four more left after the South captured South Carolina's Fort Sumter in April 1861.
(emphasis mine)
From what I recall, there were stars added to the Confederate Flags for both Maryland and Kentucky. They were both border States that never joined the Confederacy, but the Confederacy added stars to the Confederate flag for them in the hopes they would join the Confederacy.
As the Confederacy grew, so did the numbers of stars: two were added for Virginia and Arkansas in May 1861, followed by two more representing Tennessee and North Carolina in July, and finally two more for Missouri and Kentucky.
It’s possible that my auditory memory is failing me here and I just remember a “muh” sound to go along with Kentucky.
Maryland was the home state of Mary Surratt, the widow who had provided lodging to John Wilkes Booth. It was, allegedly, at her boarding house that Booth planned the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln.
Kate Clifford Larson tells the story in her book The Assassin's Accomplice: Mary Surratt and the Plot to Kill Abraham Lincoln and Robert Redford directed the film entitled The Conspirator.
The 2025 History Channel 365 Day Calendar
1868 - Meiji Restoration occurs in Japan
On January 3, 1868, in an event that heralded the birth of modern Japan, patriotic samurai from Japan's outlying domains joined with anti-shogunate nobles in restoring the emperor to power after seven hundred years. The impetus for the coup was a fear by many Japanese people that the nation's feudal leaders were ill equipped to resist the threat of foreign domination.
Soon after seizing power, the young emperor Meiji and his ministers moved the royal court from Kyoto to Tokyo, dismantled feudalism, and enacted widespread reforms along Western models. The newly unified Japanese government also set off on a path of rapid industrialization and militarization, building Japan into a major world power by the early twentieth century. The restoration also allowed Japan to protect itself against colonizers from the West, ensuring its sovereignty.
Encyclopedia Britannica
On The Homepage
Encyclopedia Britannica’s homepage features Regeneration which links to their entry on life span.
Featured Event
Encyclopedia Britannica’s featured event is Pope Leo X excommunicating Matin Luther. This was done in a Papal bull (is there any other kind of bull?) entitled Decet Romanum Pontificem.
Other Events
1777 - The Battle of Princeton (New Jersey) was fought during the American Revolution; the clash, along with the Battle of Trenton, marked the first victory for the Revolutionary War general George Washington in the open field.
1938 - U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the National Foundation of Infantile Paralysis (later called the March of Dimes) to find a cure for polio, a disease he had been stricken with in 1921.
According to Wikipedia:
The name "March of Dimes" — a play on the contemporary radio and newsreel series, The March of Time — was coined by stage, screen and radio star Eddie Cantor.
This is why Roosevelt appears on the US Dime.
Soon after the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in April 1945, legislation was introduced by Virginia Congressman Ralph H. Daughton that called for the replacement of the Mercury dime with one bearing Roosevelt's image.[source] The dime was chosen to honor Roosevelt partly due to his efforts in the founding of the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis (later renamed the March of Dimes), which originally raised money for polio research and to aid victims of the disease and their families.[source]
1959 - Alaska became the 49th U.S. state.
Hawaii would follow Alaska into statehood later that same year on August 21.
1962 - Pope John XXIII excommunicated Fidel Castro, who had transformed Cuba into a communist state; at the time, the Roman Catholic Church opposed communism.
1977 - Apple was incorporated by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, and it later became one of the most valuable companies in the world, known for innovative computer and electronic products.
1990 - After undergoing 10 days of psychological warfare—which included U.S. forces blasting rock music at the Vatican embassy, where he had sought refuge—Panamanian military leader Manuel Noriega surrendered to the United States.
And thirty-five years later, Panama is back in the news.
2001 - Hillary Clinton was sworn in as a U.S. senator from New York, having become the first first lady in U.S. history to win elective office.
And we see how well that turned out. Imagine if Kamala Harris were to become governor of California.
2004 = NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit landed on Mars to study the chemical and physical composition of the planet's surface.
Born On This Day
1883 - Clement Attlee
1892 - J.R.R. Tolkien
1897 - Marion Davies
1901 - Ngo Dinh Diem
1910 - John Sturges
1929 - Sergio Leone
1929 - Gordon Moore
1957 - Mel Gibson
1969 - Michael Schumacher
Died On This Day
1322 - Philip V (King of France)
1946 = William Joyce aka Lord Haw-Haw
1967 - Jacob Rubenstein aka Jack Ruby
1979 - Conrad Hilton
Wikipedia
1749 - The first issue of Berlingske, Denmark's oldest continually operating newspaper, is published.
1870 - Construction work begins on the Brooklyn Bridge in New York, United States.
1913 - An Atlantic coast storm sets the lowest confirmed barometric pressure reading (955.0 mb (28.20 inHg)) for a non-tropical system in the continental United States.
1947 - Proceedings of the U.S. Congress are televised for the first time.
1956 - A fire damages the top part of the Eiffel Tower.
2009 - The first block of the blockchain of the decentralized payment system Bitcoin, called the Genesis block, is established by the creator of the system, Satoshi Nakamoto.
The Book of This Day in History
1952 - The iconic crime drama Dragnet premieres on NBC.
The show, written by and starring Jack Webb as the matter-of-fact Sergeant Friday, was based on a radio program of the same name and aired for eight seasons.
1993 - The Buffalo Bills pull off the greatest comeback in NFL history.
The Bills recovered from a 32-point deficit to beat the Houston Oilers 41-38 in overtime and advance in the playoffs.
The Bills won the next two playoff games, but were defeated by the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl XXVIII.
2000 - The final Peanuts comic strip is published in newspapers worldwide.
Following a fifty-year syndicated run, the last strip featured its iconic character Snoopy sitting at a typewriter atop his doghouse and a thank-you note to editors and fans penned by its creator, Charles M. Schultz.
But according to the image below (and this link) the final episode was February 13, 2000, not January 3.
According to the AP, the strip ran on both dates: the February 13 was a reprint upon Schultz’s death.
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Did you really expect any other joke?