1754 – Horace Walpole coined the word serendipity in a letter to Horace Mann on the 28th January 1754.
1813 – Pride and Prejudice was first published in the United Kingdom on the 28th January 1813.
1820 – A Russian expedition led by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen and Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev discovered the Antarctic continent on the 28th January 1820.
1821 – Alexander Island was first discovered by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen on the 28th January 1821.
1855 – A locomotive, on the Panama Railway, was run from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean for the first time on the 28th January 1855.
1878 – Yale Daily News became the first daily college newspaper in the United States on the 28th January 1878.
1887 – A snowstorm at Fort Keogh, Montana, recorded the world’s largest snowflakes on the 28th January 1887, at a size of 15 inches (38 cm) wide and 8 inches (20 cm) thick.
1896 – Walter Arnold of East Peckham, Kent became the first person to be convicted of speeding on the 28th January 1896. Walter was fined 1 shilling, plus costs, for speeding at 8 mph (13 km/h), breaking the speed limit of 2 mph (3.2 km/h).
1902 – The Carnegie Institution of Washington was founded in Washington, D.C. on the 28th January 1902, with a $10 million gift from Andrew Carnegie.
1915 – An act of the U.S. Congress created the United States Coast Guard on the 28th January 1915.
1917 – Municipally owned streetcars took to the streets of San Francisco, California on the 28th January 1917.
1934 – The first ski tow in the United States began operation in Vermont on the 28th January 1934.
1938 – The World Land Speed Record on a public road was broken by driver Rudolf Caracciola in the Mercedes-Benz W195 on the 28th January 1938, at a speed of 432.7 kilometres per hour (268.9 mph).
1956 – Elvis Presley made his first US TV appearance on the 28th January 1956.
1958 – The Lego company patented the design of its Lego bricks on the 28th January 1958, which are still compatible with the Lego bricks produced today.
1958 – The last episode of the British radio comedy programme Goon Show was broadcasted on the 28th January 1958.
1965 – The current design of the Flag of Canada was chosen on the 28th January 1965, by an act of Parliament.
1973 ~ Barnaby Jones the television detective series starring Buddy Ebsen and Lee Meriwether was first broadcast on the 28th January 1973, on CBS, until the 3rd April 1980. YouTube video: Barnaby Jones intro…
1977 – The first day of the Great Lakes Blizzard of 1977 was on the 28th January 1977. There was a dump of 10 feet (3.0 m) of snow in one-day in Upstate New York.
1980 ~ Nick Carter the American singer-songwriter, dancer, musician, entertainer, author and actor was born Nickolas Gene Carter in Jamestown, New York on the 28th January 1980. Nick Carter is best known as a member of the pop group Backstreet Boys ~ official website: www.BackstreetBoys.com | Nick Carter’s official website: www.NickCarter.net | Nick Carter’s Twiter verified: www.Twitter.com/NickCarter | Nick Carter’s official Facebook: www.facebook.com/NickCarter
1985 – Supergroup USA for Africa (United Support of Artists for Africa) recorded the hit single We Are the World on the 28th January 1985, to help raise funds for Ethiopian famine relief.
1986 – Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart after liftoff on the 28th January 1986, killing all seven astronauts on board.
Today in History for the 28th January video produced by Associated Press
Associated Press official website: www.AP.org