History of the Day for:
January 6
- 1412: According to tradition, Joan of Arc was born in Domremy.
- 1540: King Henry VIII of England married his fourth wife, Anne of Cleves.
- 1681: The first recorded boxing match took place in England, between the Duke of Albemarle's butler and his butcher.
- 1759: George Washington and Martha Dandridge Custis married.
- 1838: Samuel Morse publicly demonstrated his telegraph for the first time in Morristown, N.J.
- 1912: New Mexico was admitted to the United States as the 47th state.
- 1919: Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th president of the United States, died in Oyster Bay, N.Y., at age 60.
- 1936: Barbara Hanley of Webbwood, Ont., became Canada's first female mayor.
- 1941: President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered his "Four Freedoms" speech outlining four goals: freedom of speech and expression; the freedom of every person to worship God in his own way; freedom from want; and freedom from fear.
- 1942: The Pan American Airways "Pacific Clipper" arrived in New York after making the first round-the-world trip by a commercial airplane.
- 1950: Britain recognized the Communist government of China.
- 1957: Elvis Presley made his seventh and final appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show on CBS.
- 1958: Gibson patented the Flying V guitar.
- 1964: The Rolling Stones hit the road for the first time as the headline band of their tour.
- 1967: "The Milton Berle Show" last aired on ABC.
- 1968: Dr N.E. Shumway performed the first U.S. adult cardiac transplant operation in California.
- 1971: Berkeley chemists announce the first synthetic production of growth hormones.
- 1973: The five-minute animated lesson series "Schoolhouse Rock" premiered on ABC with the Multiplication Rock series.
- 1975: "A.M. America," a forerunner of Good Morning America, premiered on ABC; "Wheel Of Fortune" debuted on NBC.
- 1976: Ted Turner purchased the Atlanta Braves for a reported $12 million.
- 1987: Astronomers at the University of California saw the first sight of the birth of a galaxy containing a billion stars.
- 1994: In Detroit, figure skater Nancy Kerrigan was attacked and wounded in the knee by competitor Tonya Harding's bodyguard.
- 1995: Lenny Wilkins became the winningest coach in NBA history with his 939th win: Atlanta Hawks 112, Washington Bullets 90.
- 1995: A chemical fire in an apartment complex in Manila, Philippines, leads to the discovery of plans for Project Bojinka, a mass-terrorist attack.
- 2004: Costas Simitis announces his resignation as president of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement in Greece.
- 2005: American Civil Rights Movement: Edgar Ray Killen is arrested as a suspect in the 1964 murders of three civil rights workers.