<< February 1900 >>
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
01 02 03
04 05 06 07 08 09 10
11 12 13 14 15 16 17
18 19 20 21 22 23 24
25 26 27 28

The following events occurred in February 1900:

February 28, 1900: British forces defending Ladysmith rescued after a four-month siege (painting by John Henry Frederick Bacon)
February 1, 1900: Kodak popularizes snapshots by introducing the one-dollar Brownie camera

February 1, 1900 (Thursday)

edit
  • The Eastman Kodak Company introduced the Brownie camera, shipping it to dealers on this date. The inexpensive ($1.00, equivalent to $33.47 in 2022[1]) box camera made photography affordable to the average person, and over the next twenty months, around 245,000 of the cameras would be sold. In October 1901, Eastman would introduce the next version, the No. 1 Brownie.[2]

February 2, 1900 (Friday)

edit

February 3, 1900 (Saturday)

edit

February 4, 1900 (Sunday)

edit

February 5, 1900 (Monday)

edit
Rival Kentucky Governors Beckham and Taylor

February 6, 1900 (Tuesday)

edit

February 7, 1900 (Wednesday)

edit

February 8, 1900 (Thursday)

edit
  • In the Midwestern United States, warm weather gave way to a blizzard in the space of less than a day. "From a weather standpoint Feb. 8 was one of the most remarkable in the history of the local meteorology office", wrote one observer.[28] In Chicago, the temperature was 62 °F (17 °C) at 7:00 am, and fell to 10 °F (−12 °C) by 11:00 pm. The drop of 52 °F (29 °C) during the day is a record that still stands.[29]
  • By a vote of 26 to 15, the States of Jersey first permitted the use of the English language in its parliamentary debates. Though the Jersey island, located off of the coast of Normandy, had been a British crown dependency since the 13th century, its local government continued to use the French language in all proceedings.[30][31]

February 9, 1900 (Friday)

edit

February 10, 1900 (Saturday)

edit
  • In competition at the Eisstation in Davos, Switzerland, Peder Østlund of Norway set two new world records in speed skating, in the 1000 and 500 meter races. The next day, Østlund set two additional records in the 1,500 meter and 10,000 meter races. Ostlund's records would stand for years. The 500 m time was not broken until 1906, by Rudolf Gundersen. Oscar Mathisen set new records in the other events; the 10 kilometer record stood until 1912.[36]
  • Aristocrat Roland B. Molineux was convicted of the December 1899 murder, by mercury cyanide poison, of Mrs. Katherine J. Adams, and sentenced to death. A jury concluded that Molineux had anonymously mailed a poisoned bottle of Bromo Seltzer to an athletic club rival, Henry Cornish, on December 21, 1899. Cornish's aunt, Mrs. Katherine B. Adams, was poisoned instead and died on December 27. The sentence would later be reversed, and Molineux would be acquitted in his 1902 trial. He died in 1917.[37][38]
  • The New York Times reported that over 80,000 people were preparing to move from Utah to the Bighorn Basin in northern Wyoming, where 200,000 acres (810 km2) had been set aside by the state under the Carey Act.[39]

February 11, 1900 (Sunday)

edit
  • After four years, Vladimir Lenin was released from his exile to the Siberian village of Shushenskoye. He and his wife travelled by horseback for 320 kilometres (200 mi) to Ufa and arrived there on February 18.[40]
  • In Port Arthur, Texas, James Sweeney, a white man, was lynched by a mob at 1am, only hours after being acquitted of the bayonet murder of Charles Crumbach. Tried in Beaumont, Sweeney returned by train to Port Arthur. "Word had been telegraphed ahead that he was coming, and a mob met him at the station, marched him up town, and strung him up to a telegraph pole without ceremony. In the first attempt the rope broke. The second attempt was made successful by tying Sweeney's legs so that his feet could not touch the ground, and drawing the rope taut."[41]
  • The Spanish steamship Alicante arrived in Barcelona, repatriating 1,100 soldiers who had been imprisoned by rebels during the Philippine–American War.[42]
  • Born: Hans-Georg Gadamer, German philosopher, author of Truth and Method; in Marburg (d. 2002)

February 12, 1900 (Monday)

edit
  • New York Governor Theodore Roosevelt released a statement to the public. "In view of the continued statements in the press that I may be urged as a candidate for vice president and in view of the many letters that reach me advising me for and against such a course, it is proper for me to state definitely that under no circumstances could I or would I accept the nomination for the vice presidency." He added, "And I am happy to state that Senator Platt cordially acquiesces in my views in the matter." Roosevelt later accepted the nomination to be U.S. President William McKinley's running mate in the upcoming presidential election, and became the 26th President of the United States upon McKinley's death the following year.[43]
  • Born: Roger J. Traynor, American judge, Chief Justice of Supreme Court of California, from 1964 to 1970; in Park City, Utah (d. 1983)

February 13, 1900 (Tuesday)

edit
  • In New York City, U.S. Representative Charles A. Chickering was killed after falling from his bedroom window on the fourth floor of the Grand Union Hotel at 41st Street and Park Avenue. "While it may have been an accident or the result of walking in his sleep, the facts gathered indicated that the Congressman plunged head first from a window on the fourth floor of the Grand Union Hotel and was instantly killed," noted The New York Times, adding that "The body was attired in a night robe, indicating that the congressman had retired."[44]
  • The Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire (IODE) was founded in Fredericton, New Brunswick, by Canadian philanthropist Mrs. John Black. By the time of its centennial, the IODE had 9,000 members in Canada.[45]

February 14, 1900 (Wednesday)

edit

February 15, 1900 (Thursday)

edit
  • The Siege of Kimberley was lifted, four months after the British inhabitants defended an attack by the Boers during the Second Boer War. The attack had begun on October 12, 1899. General John French led troops to liberate the city.[49]
  • In Paris, Albert Decrais, the Minister of the Colonies received a telegram from the Governor of the French Congo, reporting that Rabih az-Zubayr, the principal chieftain and warlord of central Sudan, had been defeated in battle. "He was formerly a slave of Zobohr Pasha ... but revolted and formed a kingdom of his own in Central Africa", noted The New York Times, adding "His career of victory gained for him the name of the 'African Napoleon'. The French have been fighting his power for years, and to-day's dispatch announces his overthrow." Rabih's fortress at Kouno was defended by 12,000 men with 2,500 rifles and 3 cannon. Forty-three Senegalese sharpshooters were killed and four Europeans, including Captain Robilor.[50]

February 16, 1900 (Friday)

edit

February 17, 1900 (Saturday)

edit

February 18, 1900 (Sunday)

edit
  • In a day remembered afterward as "Bloody Sunday", British imperial forces suffered their worst single day losses in the Second Boer War. Lord Kitchener ordered a charge downhill toward the Boer trenches at Paardeberg, and there were 1,100 casualties, including 280 deaths.[59]
  • At The Crystal Palace at Sydenham near London, two men were killed when a pair of elephants ran amok during an afternoon circus. One elephant was captured on the property after causing great damage, while the other one ran through the suburb of Beckenham and was not recaptured until late evening.[60]

February 19, 1900 (Monday)

edit

February 20, 1900 (Tuesday)

edit

February 21, 1900 (Wednesday)

edit
  • The contract for the New York City Subway was signed between the City of New York and John B. MacDonald of the Interborough Rapid Transit Company. McDonald's company would build the subway at a cost of $35,000,000 and would have the right to operate the system for 50 years, with an option to renew for another 25 years.[69][70]
  • Future film director Cecil B. DeMille made his Broadway debut at the Garden Theater, Manhattan, New York City, in a production of Hearts Art Trumps.[71]

February 22, 1900 (Thursday)

edit

February 23, 1900 (Friday)

edit

February 24, 1900 (Saturday)

edit

February 25, 1900 (Sunday)

edit
  • More than 150 bystanders were injured in the Paris suburb of Saint-Ouen, France, while watching a fire at a warehouse block. Six warehouses, including several that had vats of alcohol, burned down in a fire that started at 8 am. By 4 pm, the flames reached the alcohol and the first of several explosions rained debris upon the crowd.[80]

February 26, 1900 (Monday)

edit

February 27, 1900 (Tuesday)

edit

February 28, 1900 (Wednesday)

edit
  • After a siege of four months during the Second Boer War, the British fortress of Ladysmith in South Africa was liberated. General Redvers Buller's dispatch the next morning was "General Dundonald, with the Natal carbineers and a composite regiment, entered Ladysmith last night. The country between me and Ladysmith is reported clear of the enemy. I am moving on Nelthorpe." On receipt of the cable, there was celebration across the British Empire. An account of the time noted that "London went literally mad with joy, and throughout England the scenes witnessed have no parallel in the memories of this generation."[88] Lieutenant-General George White, the Natal colony commander who had led the defence of the frontier town, addressed the residents that evening, saying "Thank God we kept the flag flying." His voice breaking, he added, "It cut me to the heart ... to reduce your rations as I did." After an uncomfortable pause, he added, "I promise you, though, that I'll never do it again."[89]
  • For the first time in 100 years (and the last time for two centuries), a year divisible by four would not include February 29. The New York Times noted a problem with technology of the day: "It is said on trustworthy authority that to-day calendar clocks, for the first time since their invention, will all go wrong unless their owners give them a little assistance ... this is not a leap year, for astronomers have decreed that, in order to keep the calendar in the present relation to the season, it is necessary to change the natural leap year to a common year when it falls on a century."[90] The calendar clock, invented by William H. Akins and Joseph C. Burritt, was patented in 1854.[91] The problem with 1900 technology would be recalled, near the end of the 20th century, when the Year 2000 problem or Y2K presented difficulties in all computer programming based on a six digit description of dates. In the same manner that calendar clocks would be inaccurate by one day when March 1 would be displayed as February 29 (and March 2 and March 1), the day after 12/31/99 would be followed by 01/01/00 and interpreted by six digit computer systems as January 1, 1900, rather than January 1, 2000.[92] The year 2100 will be the next year divisible by four not to include February 29.
  • Born: Wolf Hirth, German aircraft pilot, pioneer for gliding and designer of the sailplane, co-founder of Schempp-Hirth; in Stuttgart (d. 1959)

References

edit
  1. ^ "Value of $1 from 1900 to 2022". www/in2013dollars.com
  2. ^ Hannavy, John (2008). Encyclopedia of Nineteenth-century Photography. CRC Press. p. 225.
  3. ^ "Manila Bulletin Online". Manila Bulletin. Archived from the original on 23 November 2008. Retrieved 22 December 2008.
  4. ^ "No Federal Help For Gov. Taylor". The New York Times. February 3, 1900. p. 2.
  5. ^ Tete, Peter (1984). A Missionary Social Worker in India. Editrice Pontificia Università Gregoriana. p. 52.
  6. ^ The Manx Sun History of Dumbell's Bank. 1900.
  7. ^ "Death Comes to William Goebel". The New York Times. February 4, 1900. p. 1.
  8. ^ "Beckham Takes Control". The New York Times. February 4, 1900. p. 2.
  9. ^ "Taylor Defies Kentucky Court". The New York Times. February 4, 1900. p. 2.
  10. ^ The New York Times, February 4, 1900, p. 1
  11. ^ "Heat Kills in Buenos Ayres". The New York Times. February 6, 1900. p. 1.
  12. ^ "Will Seek a New Planet". The New York Times. February 5, 1900. p. 1.
  13. ^ "Fierce Fire in St. Louis". The New York Times. February 5, 1900. p. 2.
  14. ^ Tolbert, Eleanor (29 June 2021). "Battling flames, hauling hose: Remembering St. Louis firefighters killed in line of duty". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved 14 December 2021.
  15. ^ "Nicaragua Canal Treaty Abrogated". The New York Times. February 6, 1900. p. 7.
  16. ^ The World Almanac and Book of Facts 1901. p. 96.
  17. ^ Latane, John E. (April 1905). "The Hague Court". The South Atlantic Quarterly. p. 130.
  18. ^ "For McKinley and Bliss". The New York Times. February 6, 1900. p. 1.
  19. ^ "Kentucky Factions Patch Up Peace". The New York Times. February 6, 1900. p. 1.
  20. ^ "Trouble in Martinique". The New York Times. February 10, 1900. p. 6.
  21. ^ Jackson, Alvin (2003). Home Rule: An Irish History 1800–2000. Oxford University Press. p. 89.
  22. ^ Annual Register 1900, p. 4
  23. ^ "Civil Government for the Filipinos". The New York Times. February 7, 1900. p. 1.
  24. ^ "Retrograde Edict in China". The New York Times. February 9, 1900. p. 6.
  25. ^ Haynes, George Henry (1906). The Election of Senators. H. Holt and Company. pp. 60–62.
  26. ^ Dolan, Brian (2006). "Plague in San Francisco (1900)". Public Health Reports. p. 16.
  27. ^ Echenberg, Myron (2007). Plague Ports: The Global Urban Impact of Bubonic Plague: 1894–1901. New York University Press. p. 214.
  28. ^ "Swept By Blizzard; Thursday, Feb. 8, a Record Breaker in the Matter of Weather". Daily Journal. Racine, Wisconsin. February 9, 1900. p. 3.
  29. ^ "Chicago's Temperature Records". National Weather Service. 2008-11-21. Archived from the original on 2011-05-24. Retrieved 2022-08-01.
  30. ^ The British Empire Series, Vol. 5, p. 45 (K. Paul, Trench, Trübner, 1902)
  31. ^ Annual Bulletin By Société jersiaise (1991) p. 511
  32. ^ Paret, Jahial Parmly; Maddren, William Harvey (1904). Lawn Tennis: Its Past, Present and Future. Macmillan. pp. 67–68.
  33. ^ estadium.ya.com
  34. ^ Gillmeister, Heiner. Tennis: A Cultural History. p. 214.
  35. ^ "Valentine's Day : A Sweet Holiday - Today in History".
  36. ^ "Skater Results". Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 21 December 2008.
  37. ^ "Molineux Guilty in First Degree". The New York Times. February 11, 1900.
  38. ^ Scott, Gini Graham (2005). Homicide by the Rich and Famous: A Century of Prominent Killers. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 1–6.
  39. ^ "Great Mormon Emigration". The New York Times. February 10, 1900.
  40. ^ Read, Christopher (2005). Lenin: A Post-Soviet Re-evaluation. Rutledge. pp. 42–43.
  41. ^ "Texans Lynch a White Man". The New York Times. February 12, 1900. p. 3.
  42. ^ "Spanish Prisoners at Home". The New York Times. February 15, 1900. p. 7.
  43. ^ "Roosevelt Will Remain At Albany". The Atlanta Constitution. February 13, 1900. p. 1.
  44. ^ "Chickering's Fatal Fall". The New York Times. February 14, 1900. p. 14.
  45. ^ "IODE preparing to celebrate 100th anniversary". Winnipeg Free Press. January 26, 2000. p. 71.
  46. ^ "Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) mistakes". moviemistakes.com. Jon Sandys. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
  47. ^ "British Enter Boer Territory". Daily Iowa Capital. Des Moines, Iowa. February 15, 1900. p. 1.
  48. ^ United States Congressional Serial Set. 1903. p. 441.
  49. ^ "British Arrive at Kimberley". The New York Times. February 17, 1900. p. 1.
  50. ^ "French Victory in Africa". The New York Times. February 16, 1900. p. 1.
  51. ^ Preston, Diana (1999). A First Rate Tragedy. Constable & Co. pp. 13–15.
  52. ^ Annual Register of World Events 1900. p. 6.
  53. ^ "Samoa Treaty in Full Effect". The New York Times. February 17, 1900. p. 4.
  54. ^ Kane, Joseph Nathan (1974). Famous First Facts (4th ed.). Ace Books. p. 412.
  55. ^ Danky, James P.; Wiegand, Wayne A., eds. (1998). Print Culture in a Diverse America. University of Illinois Press. p. 85.
  56. ^ Africa: the Journal of the International African Institute. Oxford University Press. 1928. p. 152.
  57. ^ Perrot, Claude Hélène; Fauvelle-Aymar, François-Xavier (1999). Le retour des rois: les autorités traditionnelles et l'état en Afrique contemporaine [The return of the kings: the traditional authorities and the state in contemporary Africa] (in French). Karthala Editions. p. 165.
  58. ^ "Clark Defends Himself". The New York Times. February 18, 1900. p. 1.
  59. ^ Miller, Carman (1998). Painting the Map Red: Canada and the South African War, 1899–1902. McGill-Queen's Press. p. 152.
  60. ^ "Wild Elephants Cause Panic". The Atlanta Constitution. February 19, 1900. p. 1.
  61. ^ Noble, A. M. (1921). Codification of the Regulations and Orders for the Government of American Samoa. Phillips & Van Orden Co. p. 84.
  62. ^ "X-Ray Cure For Cancer". The New York Times. February 19, 1900. p. 1.
  63. ^ "Chief of Shoshones Gone". Salt Lake Tribune. February 22, 1900. p. 1.
  64. ^ Chief Washakie foundation, www.windriverhistory.org/exhibits/washakie_2/index.htm
  65. ^ Webster, Raymond B. (1999). African American Firsts in Science and Technology. Gale Group. p. 348.
  66. ^ "War in Central America". The New York Times. February 22, 1900. p. 4.
  67. ^ "Central American War". The New York Times. February 24, 1900. p. 1.
  68. ^ "The Costa Rican War". The New York Times. March 1, 1900. p. 1.
  69. ^ Waldman, Louis (1919). The Great Collapse: Higher Fares Or Public Ownership. Public Service Publishing Co. p. 106.
  70. ^ "Tunnel Company Election". The New York Times. February 21, 1900. p. 1.
  71. ^ Musser, Charles (1990). The Emergence of Cinema: The American Screen to 1907. Scribner. p. 275.
  72. ^ "Democrats Will Convene in Kansas City on July 4th". The Atlanta Constitution. February 23, 1900. p. 1.
  73. ^ Knight, Thomas C. (2004). Knights of Columbus. Kessinger Publishing. p. 24.
  74. ^ ""February 22, 1900" hawaii". Retrieved December 1, 2021 – via Google Search.
  75. ^ "Annexation of Hawaii". University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Library. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  76. ^ "ORGANIC ACT. An Act to Provide a Government for the Territory of Hawaii". hawaii-nation.org. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  77. ^ Holbock, Ferdinand (2003). New Saints and Blesseds of the Catholic Church. Ignatius Press. pp. 34–35.
  78. ^ Haralson, Eric L.; Hollander, John (1998). Encyclopedia of American Poetry: The Nineteenth Century. Taylor and Francis. p. 217.
  79. ^ Long, Augustus White (1905). American Poems, 1776–1900: With Notes and Biographies. American Book Company. p. 311.
  80. ^ "Explosions Injure 150". The New York Times. February 26, 1900. p. 1.
  81. ^ Gottschall, Terrell D. (2003). By Order of the Kaiser. Naval Institute Press. p. 235.
  82. ^ Kennedy, Paul (1979). The War Plans of the Great Powers 1880–1914. Routledge. p. 49.
  83. ^ Wood, Leonard (1901). Report of the Military Governor of Cuba on Civil Affairs. GPO. pp. 62–63.
  84. ^ "The first intercollegiate hockey game (Feb 03)". Yale Alumni Magazine. Archived from the original on 14 November 2012. Retrieved 2014-01-07.
  85. ^ "Cronje Yields to British Force". The New York Times. February 28, 1900. p. 1.
  86. ^ "Fierce Man-Eating Race". The New York Times. February 27, 1900. p. 1.
  87. ^ "No sign of senility: Bayern Munich turns 100 feeling young and hungry". CNN Sports Illustrated. 2000-02-25. Archived from the original on June 22, 2011. Retrieved 2012-02-22.
  88. ^ "All England is Rejoicing; Ladysmith is Now Relieved; Butler Reaches Beleaguered Town at Last". The Atlanta Constitution. March 2, 1900. p. 1.
  89. ^ Pakenham, Thomas (1979). The Boer War. Random House. p. 385.
  90. ^ "Topics of the Times". The New York Times. March 1, 1900. p. 1.
  91. ^ Annual Report of the Commissioner of Patents. Government Printing Office. 1871. p. 854.
  92. ^ Messerschmitt, David G. (1999). Networked Applications: A Guide to the New Computing Infrastructure. Morgan Kaufmann. p. 66.