1600 Italian philosopher, theologian, and astronomer Giordano Bruno was burned at the stake for heresy on February 17, 1600 in Rome's Campo de' Fiori square. His crime was suggesting that the stars were distant suns possibly surrounded by their own planets — which is, in fact, the case.
1673 French actor and playwright Molière suffered from pulmonary tuberculosis. While performing his play Le Malade imaginaire on February 17, 1673, he collapsed in a fit of coughing and hemorrhaging. Molière insisted on completing his performance, but afterwards he collapsed again with another, larger hemorrhage before being taken home, where he died a few hours later.
1801 Thomas Jefferson was elected the third president of the United States on February 17, 1801 after 35 indecisive ballot votes. For his presidential inauguration, Jefferson walked from his boarding house to the Capitol to demonstrate "Republican simplicity." Jefferson hated public speaking so much that he only gave two speeches in his presidency, one per term.
1859 Vietnam's kingdom independence was eroded by France which was aided by the Spanish and large Catholic militias in a series of military conquests from 1858. On February 17, 1859 the French Navy captured the Citadel of Saigon, a fortress that was manned by 1,000 Nguyễn dynasty soldiers, en route to conquering Saigon and other regions of southern Vietnam. By 1884, the entire country had come under French rule.
1864 On February 17, 1864, during the American Civil War, the HL Hunley (see below) became the first submarine to sink an enemy warship (USS Housatonic). The submarine sank that same night, possibly because it was too close to its own exploding torpedo. All eight of her crew perished. The Hunley was lost after she sank and was located only in 1995 and recovered in 2000. She is now on display in Charleston, South Carolina.
1904 Giacomo Puccini's Madama Butterfly premiered at La Scala in Milan on February 17, 1904. It generated negative reviews that forced the Italian composer to to revise it extensively. It has since become one of Puccini's most popular and beloved works. In 1907 Puccini visited New York City to attend the first Metropolitan Opera production of Madama Butterfly. There he conceived the idea of writing an opera with an American setting. The result was The Girl of the Golden West (1910).
1909 In 1909 Native American tribal leader Geronimo was thrown from his horse while riding home, and had to lie in the cold all night before a friend found him extremely ill. He died of pneumonia on February 17, 1909, as a prisoner of the United States at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Geronimo was buried at Fort Sill in the Apache Indian Prisoner of War Cemetery.
1913 Massachusetts was the first state of the United States to set a minimum wage in May 1912. The Massachusetts law was quite weak, as it only covered women and children and called for light penalties for violators. Oregon passed the first compulsory minimum wage law in U.S. on February 17, 1913. The law established a minimum wage of $0.15 per hour for women and children under the age of 18, and it applied to workers in factories, laundries, and other industries.
1673 French actor and playwright Molière suffered from pulmonary tuberculosis. While performing his play Le Malade imaginaire on February 17, 1673, he collapsed in a fit of coughing and hemorrhaging. Molière insisted on completing his performance, but afterwards he collapsed again with another, larger hemorrhage before being taken home, where he died a few hours later.
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| Portrait of Molière painted at Avignon c. 1658, |
1801 Thomas Jefferson was elected the third president of the United States on February 17, 1801 after 35 indecisive ballot votes. For his presidential inauguration, Jefferson walked from his boarding house to the Capitol to demonstrate "Republican simplicity." Jefferson hated public speaking so much that he only gave two speeches in his presidency, one per term.
1859 Vietnam's kingdom independence was eroded by France which was aided by the Spanish and large Catholic militias in a series of military conquests from 1858. On February 17, 1859 the French Navy captured the Citadel of Saigon, a fortress that was manned by 1,000 Nguyễn dynasty soldiers, en route to conquering Saigon and other regions of southern Vietnam. By 1884, the entire country had come under French rule.
1864 On February 17, 1864, during the American Civil War, the HL Hunley (see below) became the first submarine to sink an enemy warship (USS Housatonic). The submarine sank that same night, possibly because it was too close to its own exploding torpedo. All eight of her crew perished. The Hunley was lost after she sank and was located only in 1995 and recovered in 2000. She is now on display in Charleston, South Carolina.
1904 Giacomo Puccini's Madama Butterfly premiered at La Scala in Milan on February 17, 1904. It generated negative reviews that forced the Italian composer to to revise it extensively. It has since become one of Puccini's most popular and beloved works. In 1907 Puccini visited New York City to attend the first Metropolitan Opera production of Madama Butterfly. There he conceived the idea of writing an opera with an American setting. The result was The Girl of the Golden West (1910).
1909 In 1909 Native American tribal leader Geronimo was thrown from his horse while riding home, and had to lie in the cold all night before a friend found him extremely ill. He died of pneumonia on February 17, 1909, as a prisoner of the United States at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Geronimo was buried at Fort Sill in the Apache Indian Prisoner of War Cemetery.
1913 Massachusetts was the first state of the United States to set a minimum wage in May 1912. The Massachusetts law was quite weak, as it only covered women and children and called for light penalties for violators. Oregon passed the first compulsory minimum wage law in U.S. on February 17, 1913. The law established a minimum wage of $0.15 per hour for women and children under the age of 18, and it applied to workers in factories, laundries, and other industries.
1913 The Armory Show, the first large modern art exhibition in the United States ran from February 17 until March 15, 1913. The show was organized by a group of American artists and art collectors who were interested in bringing the latest developments in European modern art to an American audience.
The exhibition took place at the 69th Regiment Armory on Lexington Avenue in New York City, and it featured over 1,200 works of art, including paintings, sculptures, and decorative arts
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| Armory Show, Chicago, 1913. The Cubist room |
1924 President Harry S Truman's only child, Margaret, was born on February 17, 1924. Margaret embarked on a career as a coloratura soprano and appeared in concerts with orchestras throughout the United States in the decade following World War II. She later pursued a career as a journalist and radio personality as the co-host with Mike Wallace of the radio program Weekday. Margaret was also the successful author of 32 books, including biographies of both her parents and 23 mystery novels.
1933 The first issue of Newsweek magazine was published on February 17, 1933. Newsweek magazine debuted 10 years after Time, of which Newsweek founder Thomas J.C. Martyn had been an editor. It evolved into a full spectrum of news material, from breaking news and analysis to reviews and commentary. Today, Newsweek is the second largest news weekly in the US.
1943 New York Yankees star Joe DiMaggio enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces on February 17, 1943, rising to the rank of sergeant. He was stationed at Santa Ana, California, Hawaii, and Atlantic City, as a physical education instructor.
1963 Michael Jordan was born on February 17, 1963, in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Deloris (née Peoples), who worked in banking, and James R. Jordan, Sr., an equipment supervisor. In 1981, Jordan went to the University of North Carolina to play basketball. North Carolina won the national championship in 1982, his freshman year. Jordan made the winning shot with 18 seconds left in the championship game.
1972 Mass production of the Volkswagen Beetle began in Germany in 1945. By February 17, 1972, more than 15 million Volkswagen Beetle cars had been sold exceeding those of the Ford Model-T making it the world's most popular model.
1975 David Goggins was born February 17, 1975. He is the only member in the U.S. Armed Forces to complete SEAL training, Ranger School and Air Force Tactical Air Controller training. Goggins retired from active duty as a Chief Petty Officer in 2016. He's also an ultra-athlete and held the world record for most pull-ups in 24hrs.
1976 One Man and His Dog is a BBC television series in the United Kingdom featuring sheepdog trials, which first aired on February 17, 1976. In 2013, One Man and His Dog ceased to be a program in its own right, but the competition continues to be part of the rural affairs show Countryfile on BBC One.
1991 Pop star Ed Sheeran was born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England on February 17, 1991. His father John is an art curator and lecturer, his mother Imogen designs jewellery and his brother Matthew is a classical music composer, who helped him on the orchestrated remix of "Perfect." Ed's first guitar was given to him as a gift by his uncle. Ed initially taught himself, before going on to have proper music lessons.
2017 In 2009, Everybody Loves Raymond series creator/producer Philip Rosenthal traveled to Russia to adapt the show for local audiences. After 400 episodes, the Russian version of Everybody Loves Raymond became on February 17, 2017 the longest-running sitcom adaptation.
2019 Ted Hastings set the Guinness world record for "Most T-Shirts Worn at Once" in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, on February 17, 2019. He wore 260 shirts ranging from medium up to 20X to raise money for a school playground.
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