1245 – Bishop Thomas, the 1st known Bishop of Finland, was granted resignation on the 21st February 1224, after confessing to torture and forgery.

1804 – The 1st self-propelling steam locomotive made its outing on the 21st February 1804, at the Pen-y-Darren Ironworks in Wales.

1842 – John Greenough was granted the 1st U.S. patent for the sewing machine on the 21st February 1842.

1848 – Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels published The Communist Manifesto on the 21st February 1848.

1874 – The Oakland Daily Tribune published its 1st edition on the 21st February 1874.

1878 – The 1st telephone book was issued on the 21st February 1878, in New Haven, Connecticut.

1885 – The newly completed Washington Monument was dedicated on the 21st February 1885.

1925 – The New Yorker published its 1st issue on the 21st February 1925.

1947 ~ Edwin Land demonstrated the 1st instant camera on the 21st February 1947. The Polaroid Land Camera was demonstrated to a meeting of the Optical Society of America in New York City.

1948 – NASCAR was incorporated on the 21st February 1948.

1952 – The British government, under Winston Churchill, abolished identity cards in the UK on the 21st February 1952, to set the people free.

1958 – The peace symbol, commissioned by Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament in protest against the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, was designed and completed by Gerald Holtom on the 21st February 1958.

1965 – Malcolm X was assassinated at the Audubon Ballroom on the 21st February 1965, in New York City by members of the Nation of Islam.

1970 – Swissair Flight 330: A mid-air bomb explosion and subsequent crash killed 38 passengers and 9 crew members near Zürich, Switzerland on the 21st February 1970.

1971 – The Convention on Psychotropic Substances was signed at Vienna on the 21st February 1971.

1972 – The Soviet unmanned spaceship Luna 20 landed on the Moon on the 21st February 1972.

1973 – Over the Sinai Desert, Israeli fighter aircraft shot down Libyan Arab Airlines Flight 114 jet on the 21st February 1973, killing 108 people.

1995 – Steve Fossett landed in Leader, Saskatchewan, Canada becoming the 1st person to make a solo flight across the Pacific Ocean in a balloon on the 21st February 1995.

1472 – Orkney and Shetland were pawned by Norway to Scotland on the 20th February 1472, in lieu of a dowry for Margaret of Denmark.

1547 – Edward VI of England was crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey on the 20th February 1547.

1792 – The Postal Service Act, establishing the United States Post Office Department, was signed by President George Washington on the 20th February 1792.

1810 – Andreas Hofer, the Tirolean patriot and leader of rebellion against Napoleon‘s forces, was executed on the 20th February 1810.

1816 – Rossini’s opera The Barber of Seville premiered at the Teatro Argentina in Rome on the 20th February 1816.

1835 – Concepción, Chile was destroyed by an earthquake on the 20th February 1835.

1872 – In New York City the Metropolitan Museum of Art opened on the 20th February 1872.

1877 – Tchaikovsky‘s ballet Swan Lake received its première performance at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow on the 20th February 1877.

1902 – Ansel Adams the American photographer was born on the 20th February 1902 (died 1984).

1913 – King O’Malley drove in the first survey peg to mark commencement of work on the construction of Canberra on the 20th February 1913.

1927 – Sidney Poitier the American actor and director was born on the 20th February 1927.

1933 – Adolf Hitler secretly met with German industrialists on the 20th February 1933, to arrange for financing of the Nazi Party‘s upcoming election campaign.

1935 – Caroline Mikkelsen became the first woman to set foot in Antarctica on the 20th February 1935.

1939 ~ Abraham Quintanilla, Jr. the American singer-songwriter, record producer, and father of singer Selena, was born on the 20th February 1939. Official website: www.Q-Productions.com

1943 – American movie studio executives agreed to allow the Office of War Information to censor movies on the 20th February 1943.

1943 – The Parícutin volcano began to form in Parícutin, Mexico on the 20th February 1943.

1946 – J. Geils the American singer-songwriter and guitarist  from The J. Geils Band was born on the 20th February 1946.

1947 – Peter Strauss the American actor and producer was born on the 20th February 1947.

1949 – Ivana Trump the Czech-American skier and model was born on the 20th February 1949.

1950 – Walter Becker the American singer-songwriter an guitarist from Steely Dan was born on the 20th February 1950.

1953 ~ Justine Saunders the Australian actress was born on the 20th February 1953 (died 2007).

1962 – Mercury program: While aboard Friendship 7, John Glenn became the first American to orbit the earth on the 20th February 1962, making 3 orbits in 4 hours, 55 minutes.

1965 – Ranger 8 crashed into the moon on the 20th February 1965, after a successful mission of photographing possible landing sites for the Apollo program astronauts.

1966 – Cindy Crawford the American model and actress was born on the 20th February 1966.

1967 – Kurt Cobain the American singer-songwriter and guitarist  from Nirvana was born on the 20th February 1967 (died 1994).

1971 – The United States Emergency Broadcast System was accidentally activated in an erroneous national alert on the 20th February 1971.

1973 – Kimberley Davies the Australian actress was born on the 20th February 1973.

1988 – Rihanna the Barbadian-American singer-songwriter and actress was born on the 20th February 1988.

1998 – American figure skater Tara Lipinski became the youngest gold-medalist on the 20th February 1998, at the Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.

 2013 – The smallest Extrasolar planet, Kepler-37b was discovered on the 20th February 2013.

1885 – The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain was published in the United States on the 18th February 1885.

1898 – Enzo Ferrari the Italian race car driver and founder of Ferrari was born on the 18th February 1898 (d. 1988).

1906 ~ Hans Asperger the Austrian pediatrician, medical theorist and medical professor was born on the 18th February 1906 (died 1980). Hans Asperger was best known for his early studies on mental disorders, especially in children. There was a resurgence of interest in Hans Asperger’s work in the 1980s, regarding autism spectrum disorders and Asperger syndrome (AS), which was named after him.

1911 – The 1st official flight with air mail took place on the 18th February 1911, from Allahabad, United Provinces, British India (now India), when Henri Pequet, a 23-year-old pilot, delivered 6,500 letters to Naini, 10 kilometres (6.2 miles) away.

1913 – Pedro Lascuráin became President of Mexico for 45 minutes on the 18th February 1913, becoming the shortest term to date of any person as president of any country.

1933 – Yoko Ono the Japanese-American singer-songwriter was born on the 18th February 1933.

1947 ~ Dennis DeYoung the American singer, songwriter, musician and founding member of STYX was born on the 18th February 1947. Dennis DeYoung was the lead vocalist and keyboardist in Styx from 1961 to 1999, and wrote many Styx songs such as the 1980 hit song Babe . YouTube video: Styx ~ Babe (1979) ~ Number 1 in the US and Canada, number 3 in Australia and New Zealand, and number 6 in the UK (written by Dennis DeYoung)…

1950 – Cybill Shepherd the American actress and singer was born on the 18th February 1950.

1952 – Juice Newton the American singer-songwriter and guitarist was born on the 18th February 1952.

1954 – John Travolta the American actor, singer, and producer was born on the 18th February 1954.

1957 ~ John Pankow the American actor best known as Ira Buchman in Mad About You was born in St. Louis, Missouri on the 18th February 1957.

1965 – Dr. Dre the American rapper and producer was born on the 18th February 1965.

1968 – Molly Ringwald the American actress was born on the 18th February 1968.

1864 – Banjo Paterson the Australian poet was born on the 17th February 1864 (died 1941).

1904 – Madama Butterfly received its première at La Scala in Milan on the 17th February 1904.

1933 – The Blaine Act ended Prohibition in the United States on the 17th February 1933.

1934 – Barry Humphries the Australian comedian, actor, and author was born on the 17th February 1934.

1940 – Gene Pitney the American singer-songwriter was born on the 17th February 1940 (died 2006).

1959 – Vanguard 2 the first weather satellite was launched to measure cloud-cover distribution on the 17th February 1959.

1962 – David McComb the Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist from The Triffids and The Blackeyed Susans was born on the 17th February 1962 (died 1999).

1962 – Lou Diamond Phillips the American actor and director was born on the 17th February 1962.

1963 – Michael Jordan the American basketball player and actor was born on the 17th February 1963.

1965 – The Ranger 8 probe was launched on its mission to photograph the Mare Tranquillitatis region of the Moon on the 17th February 1965, in preparation for the manned Apollo missions. Mare Tranquillitatis aka Sea of Tranquility became the site chosen for the Apollo 11 lunar landing.

1971 – Denise Richards the American model and actress was born on the 17th February 1971.

1972 – Billie Joe Armstrong the American singer-songwriter and guitarist from Green Day was born on the 17th February 1972.

1972 – Taylor Hawkins the American singer-songwriter and drummer  from the Foo Fighters was born on the 17th February 1972.

1972 – Sales of the Volkswagen Beetle exceeded those of the Ford Model-T on the 17th February 1972.

1981 – Paris Hilton the American model, actress and singer was born on the 17th February 1981.

1991 – Ed Sheeran the English singer-songwriter and guitarist was born on the 17th February 1991.

2008 – Kosovo declared independence on the 17th February 2008.

2010 ~ Ruby Hunter the Australian singer and songwriter died on the 17th February 2010, aged 54 (born 31st October 1955). Ruby Hunter was a member of the Ngarrindjeri nation of Aboriginal tribes, and often performed with her partner Archie Roach, whom both met as homeless teenagers. Ruby was forcibly taken from her family at the age of 8 as part of the Stolen Generation. Ruby Hunter received two ARIA Award nominations, for Best Indigenous Release for Thoughts Within (1995), and Best Blues & Roots Album for Feeling Good (2000).

1852 – Studebaker Brothers wagon company, the precursor of the automobile manufacturer, was established on the 15th February 1852.

1852 ~ Charles Taze Russell the founder of what is now known as the Bible Student movement, from which Jehovah’s Witnesses emerged, was born in Allegheny on the 16th February 1852 (died 31st October 1916 aged 64). Jehovah’s Witnesses official website: www.jw.org 

1874 – Silver Dollar became legal US tender on the 15th February 1874.

1921 ~ Vera-Ellen the American actress and dancer on the 15th February 1921 (died 30th August 1981).

1923 – Howard Carter unsealed the burial chamber of Pharaoh Tutankhamun on the 15th February 1923.

1934 – The Austrian Civil War ended on the 15th February 1934, with the defeat of the Social Democrats and the Republican Schutzbund.

1978 – The first computer bulletin board system was created on the 15th February 1978, (CBBS in Chicago, Illinois).

1983 – The Ash Wednesday bushfires in Victoria and South Australia killed 75 people on the 15th February 1983.

2006 – The last Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH) was decommissioned by the United States Army on the 15th February 2006.

1493 – While on board the Niña, Christopher Columbus wrote an open letter on the 15th February 1493, which was widely distributed upon his return to Portugal, describing his discoveries and the unexpected items he came across in the New World.

1764 – The city of St. Louis, Missouri was established on the 15th February 1764.

1946 – ENIAC, the first electronic general-purpose computer, was formally dedicated at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia on the 15th February 1946.

1948 – Art Spiegelman the American cartoonist was born on the 15th February 1948.

1951 – Jane Seymour the English actress was born on the 15th February 1951.

1954 – Matt Groening the American cartoonist, screenwriter, producer and author was born on the 15th February 1954. Matt Groening created the comic strip Life in Hell (1977–2012) as well as 2 successful television series The Simpsons and Futurama.

1952 – King George VI was buried in St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle on the 15th February 1952.

1959 – Ali Campbell the English singer-songwriter and guitarist from UB40 was born on the 15th February 1959.

1965 – A new red-and-white maple leaf design was adopted as the flag of Canada on the 15th February 1965, replacing the old Canadian Red Ensign banner.

1971 – The decimalisation of British coinage was completed on Decimal Day on the 15th February 1971.

1972 – Sound recordings were granted U.S. federal copyright protection for the first time on the 15th February 1972.

2001 – First draft of the complete human genome was published in Nature on the 15th February 2001.

2003 – Protests against the Iraq war took place in over 600 cities worldwide on the 15th February 2003. It was estimated that between 8 million to 30 million people participated, making this the largest peace demonstration in history.

1400 – Richard II dies, most likely from starvation, in Pontefract Castle, on the orders of Henry Bolingbroke.

1779 – James Cook was killed by Native Hawaiians on the 14th February 1779, near Kealakekua on the Island of Hawaii.

1799 – Walenty Wańkowicz the Polish painter was born on the 14th February 1799 (died 1842).

1812 – Alfred Thomas Agate the American painter was born on the 14th February 1812 (died 1846).

1819 – Christopher Latham Sholes the American inventor that invented the typewriter was born on the 14th February 1819 (died 1890).

1838 – Margaret E. Knight the American inventor was born on the 14th February 1838 (died 1914).

1846 – Julian Scott the American soldier, painter and Medal of Honor recipient was born on the 14th February 1848 (died 1901).

1849 – In New York City, James Knox Polk became the 1st serving President of the United States to have his photograph taken on the 14th February 1849.

1859 – Oregon was admitted as the 33rd U.S. state on the 14th February 1859.

1859 – George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr. the American engineer and designer of the Ferris Wheel was born on the 14th February 1859 (died 1896).

1869 – Charles Thomson Rees Wilson the Scottish physicist, meteorologist and Nobel Prize laureate was born on the 14th February 1869 (died 1959).

1876 – Alexander Graham Bell applied for a patent for the telephone on the 14th February 1876, as does Elisha Gray.

1890 – Nina Hamnett the Welsh painter was born on the 14th February 1890 (died 1956).

1894 – Jack Benny the American actor and comedian was born on the 14th February 1894 (died 1974).

1898 – Fritz Zwicky the Swiss-American physicist and astronomer was born on the 14th February 1898 (died 1974).

1898 – Bill Tilman the English mountaineer and explorer was born on the 14th February 1898 (died 1977).

1912 – Arizona was admitted as the 48th U.S. state on the 14th February 1912.

1922 – Murray the K the American radio host was born on the 14th February 1922 (died 1982).

1934 ~ Florence Henderson the American actress best known for her role of Carol Brady on The Brady Bunch was born on the 14th February 1934.

1937 – Magic Sam the American singer and guitarist was born on the 14th February 1937 (died 1969).

1941 – Big Jim Sullivan the English guitarist was born on the 14th February 1941 (died 2012).

1943 – Maceo Parker the American saxophonist from Parliament-Funkadelic was born on the 14th February 1943.

1945 – Hans-Adam II, Prince of Liechtenstein was born on the 14th February 1945.

1947 – Tim Buckley the American singer-songwriter and guitarist was born on the 14th February 1947 (died 1975).

1946 – The Bank of England was nationalized on the 14th February 1946.

1949 – The Asbestos Strike began in Canada on the 14th February 1949. The strike marked the beginning of the Quiet Revolution in Quebec.

1950 – Roger Fisher the American guitarist from Heart was born on the 14th February 1950.

1952 ~ Simon Woodroffe (OBE) the English motivational speaker and entrepreneur was born on the 14th February 1952. He started the sushi chain YO! Sushi in 1997, and has appeared on the Dragons’ Den.

1958 – Grant Thomas the Australian footballer was born on the 14th February 1958.

1962 – First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy took television viewers on a tour of the White House on the 14th February 1962.

1962 – Kevyn Aucoin the American make up artist and photographer was born on the 14th February 1962 (died 2002).

1966 – Australian currency was decimalised on the 14th February 1966.

1967 – Mark Rutte the Dutch politician and Prime Minister of the Netherlands was born on the 14th February 1967.

1968 – Latifa the Tunisian singer and actress was born on the 14th February 1968.

1972 – Rob Thomas the American singer-songwriter from Matchbox Twenty was born on the 14th February 1972.

1975 – Scott Owen the Australian bassist from The Living End was born on the 14th February 1975.

1977 – Cadel Evans the Australian cyclist was born on the 14th February 1977.

1977 – Jim Jefferies the Australian comedian and actor was born on the 14th February 1977.

1981 ~ Luke Jacobz the Australian actor and television presenter was born Luke Jacob Ashwood on the 14th February 1981. Twitter: www.Twitter.com/LukeJacobz

1988 – Asia Nitollano the American singer from The Pussycat Dolls was born on the 14th February 1988.

2000 – The spacecraft NEAR Shoemaker entered orbit around asteroid 433 Eros on the 14th February 2000, becoming the first spacecraft to orbit an asteroid.

1322 – The central tower of Ely Cathedral fell on the night of 12th-13th February 1322.

1462 – Treaty of Westminster was finalised between Edward IV of England and the Scottish Lord of the Isles on the 13th February 1462.

1542 – Catherine Howard, the 5th wife of Henry VIII of England, was executed on the 13th February 1542, for adultery.

1668 – Spain recognized Portugal as an independent nation on the 13th February 1668.

1689 – William and Mary are proclaimed co-rulers of England on the 13th February 1689.

1692 – Massacre of Glencoe: 78 Macdonalds at Glen Coe, Scotland were killed early in the morning on the 13th February 1692, for not promptly pledging allegiance to the new king, William of Orange.

1880 – Thomas Edison observed the Edison effect on the 13th February 1880.

1914 – Copyright: In New York City the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers was established on the 13th February 1914, to protect the copyrighted musical compositions of its members.

1931 – New Delhi became the capital of India on the 13th February 1931.

1947 – Kevin Bloody Wilson the Australian comedian was born on the 13th February 1947.

1949 ~ Tim Storrier (AM) the Australian artist was born on the 13th February 1949. Tim Storrier won the 2012 Archibald Prize with a self portrait entitled The Histrionic Wayfarer (after Bosch).

1955 – Israel obtained 4 of the 7 Dead Sea scrolls on the 13th February 1955.

1961 – A 500,000-year-old rock was discovered near Olancha, California, US, on the 13th February 1961, that appeared to anachronistically encase a spark plug.

1967 – American researchers discovered the Madrid Codices by Leonardo da Vinci in the National Library of Spain on the 13th February 1967.

1978 – Hilton bombing: a bomb exploded in a refuse truck outside the Hilton Hotel in Sydney, Australia on the 13th February 1978, killing 2 rubbish collectors and a policeman.

2000 – The last original “Peanuts” comic strip appeard in newspapers on the 13th February 2000, one day after Charles M. Schulz died.

2001 – An earthquake measuring 6.6 on the Richter Scale hit El Salvador on the 13th February 2001, killing at least 400.

2004 – The Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics announced the discovery of the universe’s largest known diamond, white dwarf star BPM 37093 on the 13th February 2004. Astronomers named this star “Lucy” after The Beatles‘ song “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds“.

2008 – Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd mades a historic apology to the Indigenous Australians and the Stolen Generations on the 13th February 2008.

2009 – At 23:31:30 on the 13th February 2009 UTC the Unix system time (time t) number reached 1234567890 seconds.

2012 – The European Space Agency (ESA) conducted the 1st launch of the European Vega rocket  on the 13th February 2012, from Europe’s spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.