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Historical events on January 4

JANUARY 4, 2007
Nancy Pelosi became Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, becoming the highest-ranking woman in the history of the U.S. government.
Nancy Patricia Pelosi is an American politician who was the 52nd speaker of the United States House of Representatives, serving from 2007 Read More
JANUARY 4, 1972
Rose Heilbron (pictured) became the first female judge to sit at the Central Criminal Court of England and Wales.
Dame Rose Heilbron, DBE was a British barrister who served later as a High Court judge. Her career included many "firsts" for Read More
JANUARY 4, 2018
A passenger train collided with a truck and derailed in the Free State, South Africa, killing 21 people and injuring 254 others.
On 4 January 2018, a passenger train operated by Shosholoza Meyl collided with a truck at a level crossing at Geneva Station Read More
JANUARY 4, 1698
Most of London's Palace of Whitehall, the main residence of English monarchs since 1530, was destroyed by fire.
The Palace of Whitehall – also spelled White Hall – at Westminster was the main residence of the English monarchs from 1530 Read More
JANUARY 4, 1970
A magnitude-7.1 earthquake occurred in Tonghai County, China, killing at least 15,000 people.
An earthquake occurred in Tonghai, Yunnan province, China at 01:00:41 local time on 5 January 1970 with a moment magnitude of 7.1 Read More
JANUARY 4, 2004
Spirit (artist's impression depicted), the first of two rovers of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover mission, successfully landed on Mars.
Spirit, also known as MER-A or MER-2, is a Mars robotic rover, active from 2004 to 2010. Spirit was operational on Mars Read More
JANUARY 4, 1989
Two American F-14 Tomcats shot down two Libyan MiG-23 Floggers that appeared to be attempting to engage them over the Gulf of Sidra.
The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is an American carrier-capable supersonic, twin-engine, tandem two-seat, twin-tail, all-weather-capable variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft. The Tomcat was developed Read More
JANUARY 4, 2020
Sembawang Hot Spring Park in Singapore reopened after being redeveloped by the National Parks Board.
Sembawang Hot Spring Park is a natural hot spring and a public park in Singapore. It is located beside a military camp Read More
JANUARY 4, 1853
Solomon Northup (pictured) regained his freedom after having been sold into slavery in the American South; his memoir Twelve Years a Slave later became a bestseller.
Solomon Northup was an American abolitionist and the primary author of the memoir Twelve Years a Slave. A free-born American of mixed Read More
JANUARY 4, 1977
The English punk-rock band Sex Pistols' lewd and disruptive behaviour at Heathrow Airport prompted the record label EMI to end their contract.
Punk rock is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, Read More
JANUARY 4, 1909
British explorer Aeneas Mackintosh (pictured), a member of the Nimrod Expedition, escaped death by fleeing across ice floes.
Aeneas Lionel Acton Mackintosh was a British Merchant Navy officer and Antarctic explorer who commanded the Ross Sea party as part of Read More
JANUARY 4, 1951
Korean War: Chinese and North Korean troops captured Seoul from United Nations forces.
The Korean War was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea and South Korea and their allies. North Read More
JANUARY 4, 2010
The Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest structure, officially opened in Dubai.
The Burj Khalifa is a skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. With a total height of 829.8 m and a roof height Read More

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