This Day In History

On February 6, 1959, Texas Instruments engineer Jack Kilby filed the first patent for an integrated circuit, a modest document that described a bold new way to build electronics. That filing helped set in motion a shift from room-sized machines to pocket-sized devices that would unfold over the next several decades.

On February 5, 1953, Walt Disney released his 14th animated feature, Peter Pan. The film brought a beloved stage story to life in a way audiences had never seen before, using animation to turn fantasy into motion, color, and sound.

Rosa Louise McCauley Parks was born on February 4, 1913, in Tuskegee, Alabama. Her quiet resolve and careful preparation would later place her at the center of one of the most important civil rights protests in American history.

On February 3, 1990, the US Postal Service issued a small, colorful stamp that marked a quiet shift in how everyday American mail could look. That Beach Umbrella stamp became the first release in the short-lived but distinctive Mini-Scapes Series.

Jerome David Kern was born on January 27, 1885, in New York City, New York. A prolific composer, he wrote over 1,000 songs for more than 100 stage productions and films, most famously Show Boat.

On January 23, 1943, Duke Ellington made his first of many performances at Carnegie Hall. His premiere performance included the debut of his ambitious jazz symphony Black, Brown, and Beige. Ellington hoped to raise jazz to the level of classical music by bringing it to the halls of the esteemed institution.

On January 18, 1944, the grand halls of the Metropolitan Opera House echoed with something never heard there before—the electrifying sound of jazz. What began as a magazine poll became a historic night that blended music, patriotism, and cultural change during the height of World War II.

On January 13, 1864, Stephen Foster—the man often called the “father of American music”—died alone in a New York City boardinghouse. He was just 37 years old, yet the songs he left behind would echo for generations. Long after his death, Americans would still be singing his melodies at home, on stage, and at public events, often without realizing they were hearing the work of one of the nation’s earliest and most influential songwriters.

Harry Sinclair Lewis was born on February 7, 1885, in Sauk Centre, Minnesota. The first American to ever receive the Nobel Prize in Literature, he’s remembered as the conscience of his generation.

Acclaimed author Laura Ingalls Wilder was born on February 7, 1867, in Pepin County, Wisconsin. She retold stories from her childhood in the wildly popular Little House on the Prairie series, which went on to become a popular TV series as well.

On February 7, 1984, two NASA astronauts conducted the first untethered spacewalk – leaving the space shuttle Challenger without being connected by a cable.

On February 7, 1940, Pinocchio debuted at the Center Theatre in New York City.  It was Disney’s second full-length animated feature film and the first to win a competitive Academy Award.