1909, February 12 - The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is founded. More
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What Happened in February?
Emperor ascensions, legendary battles, and assassinations. Discover what happened this month in history. Explore pivotal events from February that helped shape the world. Dates for earlier events may be approximate.
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China becomes a republic after the abdication of the last Emperor, Puyi on February 12, 1912, ending more than 2,000 years of imperial government.
Pu Yi, the last Qing dynasty Emperor of China, is forced to abdicate, ending 267 years of Manchu rule in China and 2,000 years of imperial rule. The former emperor, only six years old at the time, was allowed to keep up his residence in Beijing’s Forbidden City, and he took the name of Henry Pu Yi. More
The Arizona territory becomes the 48th state in the union on February 14, 1912. The first Governor of the new state was George W.P. Hunt. Arizonans wanted statehood long before 1912, but rejected a proposal from the U.S. Senate that Arizona and New Mexico territories combine and be admitted as one state.
The Grand Central Terminal officially opened to great fanfare at 12:01am on Sunday, February 2, 1913. Although construction was not yet entirely complete, more than 150,000 visited on opening day. New York City would never be the same. More
The 16th Amendment to the United States Constitution, passed by Congress in 1909, is ratified on February 3, 1913, establishing the federal income tax., allowing Congress to levy an income tax without apportioning it among the states on the basis of population. More
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The HMHS Britannic was launched on February 26, 1914, at a shipyard in Belfast, about two years after her sister ship, the Titanic, sank on April 15, 1912.
The Britannic incorporated a number of improved safety features including a double hull and superior watertight bulkheads. The Britannic sank on November 21, 1916 after striking a German mine in the Aegean Sea. Most of the 1,136 people on board were saved with thirty facilities.
The United States, still uninvolved in WWI, breaks off diplomatic relations with Germany on February 3,1917 after Germany's announcement of their intention to practice unrestricted submarine warfare.
The Anchor Line passenger Scottish ship, SS California, homeward-bound and approaching Ireland at full steam, is attacked on February 7, 1917 by the German U-boat SM U-85 and sank in nine minutes, 38 miles off the coast of Ireland. 43 people perished. More
President Woodrow Wilson learns on February 26, 1917 of a Telegram message from the German Foreign Secretary Arthur Zimmermann to the German ambassador to Mexico proposing a Mexican-German alliance in the event of a war between the U.S. and Germany.
The telegram, which came to be known as "The "Zimmermann Telegram", had been intercepted and deciphered by British intelligence on January 17, 1917 and provided to the US Ambassador to Britain on February 24, 1917. The communication stated that the Germans would provide Mexico with aid and support for Mexico to reconquer Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. He further suggested that the Mexican President invite Japan, nominally an Allied nation but of great strategic concern to the United States, to join the German-Mexican pact. President Wilson authorized the State Department to publish the telegram which appeared on the front pages of American newspapers on March 1. Altering the American view of Germany rapidly and profoundly. The telegram, combined with t,he renewed German submarine warfare, shifted American public opinion. Within five weeks on April 2, 1917, the U.S. declared war on Germany.
The Twin Peaks Tunnel in San Francisco begins service as the world's longest streetcar tunnel.
Congress establishes the Grand Canyon National Park on February 26, 1919 and President Wilson signs the Bill. The park spans over 1 million acres and protects the 277 mile gorge in northwestern Arizona It had previously been designated as a national monument by Theodore Roosevelt in 1908.
The National Assembly elected by Czech and Slovak leaders adopts a new democratic constitution on February 29,1920, taking another step toward the consolidation of the two states into Czechoslovakia.
In 1989, the peaceful "Velvet Revolution" ended the country's communist regime and re-established a multiparty democracy. However, instead of unifying the nation, the disagreements between the Czech and Slovak leaders intensified. Following the 1992 elections, the leaders of the Czech and Slovak parliaments negotiated an end to the federation. The Federal Assembly officially voted to dissolve the country in November 1992 and a peaceful split became effective on January 1, 1993, with Czechoslovakia being replaced by two independent sovereign states: the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
The Washington Naval Treaty (or Five-Power Treaty) is signed, on February 6, 1922, limiting the naval armaments of major world powers. (United States, United Kingdom, Japan, France, and Italy).TIt was a major a major diplomatic success for the time but it was proved ineffective as global tensions increased in the 1930's.
On February 28, 1922, Britain unilaterally declares Egyptian independence, ending the 1914 protectorate. However Britain reserved control over four key areas: The Suez Canal, defense against foreign aggression, protection of foreign interests/minorities, and Sudan. Sultan Fuad I became King of Egypt. A constitution was later approved in 1923.
Britain continued to exert significant influence over Egyptian politics until the 1936 treaty, which further defined, but did not eliminate, British military presence allowing them to remain in the Suez Canal zone. On July 23, 1952 the Egyptian Revolution (Free Officers Movement) overthrew the monarchy, leading to full independence negotiations. In June 1956, British troops completely withdrew from Egypt ending the British occupation. Egypt's main national day, known as Revolution Day, is celebrated annually on July 23rd.
After months of clearing the outer chambers, on February 16. 1923, British archaeologist Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon opened the sealed door to the burial chamber, the final and most important chamber of the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun (King Tut).
The initial discovery of the tomb in Egypt's Valley of the Kings occurred on November 4, 1922. Most pharaohs graves were plundered by graverobbers in ancient times, however Tutankhamun's tomb was hidden by debris for most of its existence and became the first known largely intact royal burial site found from ancient Egypt.
The St. Valentine's Day Massacre occurs on February 14, 1929, where seven members of George "Bugs" Moran's North Side Gang were executed in a garage in Chicago by perpetrators disguised as police officers.
The killing took place during a Prohibition-era turf war, between Moran and rival Chicago Outfit, a criminal organization headed by Al Capone. One survivor refused to identify the culprits.
The Grand Teton National Park was officially established on February 26, 1929, by President Calvin Coolidge, protecting the Teton Range and several major lakes. The park was expanded in 1950 to include the valley of Jackson Hole, incorporating lands donated by John D. Rockefeller, Jr.
The dwarf planet Pluto is discovered by Clyde Tombaugh, on February 18, 1930 at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. Tombaugh, was 24-year-s old at the time and had no formal training in astronomy.
The United States War Department authorizes the new Purple Heart Medal, on February 22, 1932, to honor soldiers wounded or killed in action. The Medal is officially considered the "successor decoration" to the Badge of Military Merit, designed in the form of a purple heart and announced by General George Washington to the Continental Army in 1782, to honor bravery in battle.
It is estimated that over 1.9 million Purple Heart medals have been awarded to U.S. service members since the award was established in 1932. Unfortunately, there is no reported official, complete, or centralized list documenting every recipient. More