Home › Almanac › On This Day
On This Day in History — January 7
‹ January 6The AlmanacJanuary 8 ›
Highlights of January 7
- 2020 — After 253 days without an operational government, a second round of investiture votes produced Spain's first coalition government since the Second Republic. Read more
- 2012 — A hot air balloon flight from Carterton, New Zealand, collided with a power line while landing, causing it to crash and killing all eleven people on board. Read more
- 2010 — In Nag Hammadi, Egypt, Muslim gunmen opened fire on a crowd of Coptic Christians leaving church after attending Christmas Liturgy, killing eight of them, as well as one Muslim bystander. Read more
- 1993 — The Fourth Republic of Ghana was inaugurated with Jerry Rawlings, the country's former military ruler, as president. Read more
- 1989 — Representatives of Iranian leader Ruhollah Khomeini delivered a letter to Mikhail Gorbachev, inviting him to consider Islam as an alternative to communism, and predicting the dissolution of the Soviet Bloc. Read more
- 1989 — In one of the most famous upsets in FA Cup history, Sutton United, a team in the fifth tier of English league football, defeated top-tier Coventry City. Read more
- 1979 — The People's Army of Vietnam captured Phnom Penh, marking the end of large-scale fighting in the Cambodian–Vietnamese War. Read more
- 1978 — An article entitled "Iran and Red and Black Colonization" was published in the newspaper Ettela'at attacking Ruhollah Khomeini, then in exile in Iraq. Read more
- 1955 — Marian Anderson became the first African-American to perform with the Metropolitan Opera in New York. Read more
- 1948 — Air National Guard pilot Thomas Mantell, flying in pursuit of an alleged UFO, was killed when his P-51 Mustang crashed near Fort Knox, Kentucky. Read more
- 1939 — French physicist Marguerite Perey identified francium, the last element to be discovered in nature rather than by synthesis. Read more
- 1931 — Australian aviator Guy Menzies (pictured) flew from Sydney to New Zealand's West Coast, making the first solo trans-Tasman flight. Read more
- 1904 — The Marconi International Marine Communication Company specified CQD (audio featured) as the distress signal to be used by its operators. Read more
- 1797 — The Italian tricolour was first adopted as an official flag by the government of the Cispadane Republic. Read more
- 1782 — The Bank of North America (pictured) opened in Philadelphia as the de facto first central bank of the United States. Read more
- 1610 — Through his telescope, Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei made the first observation of Jupiter's Galilean moons: Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto, although he was not able to distinguish the first two until the following night. Read more
- 1327 — The Parliament of 1327, which was instrumental in the transfer of the English Crown from King Edward II to his son, Edward III, began at the Palace of Westminster. Read more
Events
- 2025 — A series of wildfires ravage the Greater Los Angeles area, resulting in at least 16 deaths and 13,401 structures destroyed. Read more
- 2023 — The longest U.S. House of Representatives speaker election since the December 1859 – February 1860 U.S. speaker election concludes and Kevin McCarthy is elected 55th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. Read more
- 2020 — The 6.4Mw 2019–20 Puerto Rico earthquakes kill four and injure nine in southern Puerto Rico. Read more
- 2015 — Two gunmen commit mass murder at the offices of Charlie Hebdo in Paris, executing twelve people and wounding eleven others. Read more
- 2015 — A car bomb explodes outside a police college in the Yemeni capital Sanaa with at least 38 people reported dead and more than 63 injured. Read more
- 2012 — A hot air balloon crashes near Carterton, New Zealand, killing all 11 people on board. Read more
- 1999 — The Senate trial in the impeachment of U.S. President Bill Clinton begins. Read more
- 1994 — A British Aerospace Jetstream 41 operating as United Express Flight 6291 crashes in Gahanna, Ohio, killing five of the eight people on board. Read more
- 1993 — The Fourth Republic of Ghana is inaugurated with Jerry Rawlings as president. Read more
- 1993 — Bosnian War: The Bosnian Army executes a surprise attack at the village of Kravica in Srebrenica. Read more
- 1991 — Roger Lafontant, former leader of the Tonton Macoute in Haiti under François Duvalier, attempts a coup d'état, which ends in his arrest. Read more
- 1989 — Sutton United, a team in the fifth tier of English league football, defeated top-tier Coventry City in one of the biggest upsets in FA Cup history. Read more
- 1985 — Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency launches Sakigake, Japan's first interplanetary spacecraft and the first deep space probe to be launched by any country other than the United States or the Soviet Union. Read more
- 1984 — Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Read more
- 1980 — U.S. President Jimmy Carter authorizes legislation giving $1.5 billion in loans to bail out the Chrysler Corporation. Read more
- 1979 — Third Indochina War: Cambodian–Vietnamese War: Phnom Penh falls to the advancing Vietnamese troops, driving out Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge. Read more
- 1973 — In his second shooting spree of the week, Mark Essex fatally shoots seven people and wounds five others at Howard Johnson's Hotel in New Orleans, before being shot to death by police officers. Read more
- 1972 — Iberia Flight 602 crashes near Ibiza Airport, killing all 104 people on board. Read more
- 1968 — Surveyor program: Surveyor 7, the last spacecraft in the Surveyor series, lifts off from Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 36A. Read more
- 1959 — The United States recognizes the new Cuban government of Fidel Castro. Read more
- 1955 — Contralto Marian Anderson becomes the first person of color to perform at the Metropolitan Opera in Giuseppe Verdi's Un ballo in maschera. Read more
- 1954 — Georgetown–IBM experiment: The first public demonstration of a machine translation system is held in New York at the head office of IBM. Read more
- 1950 — In the Sverdlovsk air disaster, all 19 of those on board are killed, including almost the entire national ice hockey team (VVS Moscow) of the Soviet Air Force – 11 players, as well as a team doctor and a masseur. Read more
- 1948 — Kentucky Air National Guard pilot Thomas Mantell crashes while in pursuit of a supposed UFO. Read more
- 1940 — Winter War: Battle of Raate Road: The Finnish 9th Division finally defeat the numerically superior Soviet forces on the Raate-Suomussalmi road. Read more
- 1935 — Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval sign the Franco-Italian Agreement. Read more
- 1931 — Guy Menzies flies the first solo non-stop trans-Tasman flight (from Australia to New Zealand) in 11 hours and 45 minutes, crash-landing on New Zealand's west coast. Read more
- 1928 — A disastrous flood of the River Thames kills 14 people and causes extensive damage to much of riverside London. Read more
- 1927 — The first transatlantic commercial telephone service is established from New York City to London. Read more
- 1922 — Dáil Éireann ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by a 64–57 vote. Read more
- 1920 — The New York State Assembly refuses to seat five duly elected Socialist assemblymen. Read more
- 1919 — Montenegrin guerrilla fighters rebel against the planned annexation of Montenegro by Serbia, but fail. Read more
- 1904 — The distress signal "CQD" is established only to be replaced two years later by "SOS". Read more
- 1894 — Thomas Edison makes a kinetoscopic film of someone sneezing. On the same day, his employee, William Kennedy Dickson, receives a patent for motion picture film. Read more
- 1867 — The Kingstree jail fire kills 22 freedmen in Reconstruction-era South Carolina. Read more
- 1835 — HMS Beagle, with Charles Darwin on board, drops anchor off the Chonos Archipelago. Read more
- 1785 — Frenchman Jean-Pierre Blanchard and American John Jeffries travel from Dover, England, to Calais, France, in a gas balloon. Read more
- 1782 — The first American commercial bank, the Bank of North America, opens. Read more
- 1738 — A peace treaty is signed between Peshwa Bajirao and Jai Singh II following Maratha victory in the Battle of Bhopal. Read more
- 1708 — Battle of Zlatoust: Battle between Bashkir and Tatar rebels and the government troops of the Tsardom of Russia. It is one of the events of the Bashkir rebellion of 1704–1711. Read more
- 1708 — Bashkir rebels besiege Yelabuga. Read more
- 1610 — Galileo Galilei makes his first observation of the four Galilean moons: Ganymede, Callisto, Io and Europa, although he is not able to distinguish the last two until the following night. Read more
- 1608 — Fire destroys Jamestown, Virginia. Read more
- 1558 — French troops, led by Francis, Duke of Guise, take Calais, the last continental possession of England. Read more
- 1325 — Afonso IV becomes King of Portugal. Read more
- 1078 — The people of Constantinople revolt, lynch the unpopular official Nikephoritzes and proclaim Nikephoros Botaneiates as emperor. Read more
- 49 BC — The Senate of Rome says that Caesar will be declared a public enemy unless he disbands his army, prompting the tribunes who support him to flee to where Caesar is waiting in Ravenna. Read more
Born on January 7
- 2012 — Blue Ivy Carter, American singer and actress Read more
- 2007 — Chloe Chua, Singaporean violinist, 2018 joint 1st prize winner of the Yehudi Menuhin International Competition for Young Violinists Read more
- 2003 — Ryan Dunn, American basketball player Read more
- 2000 — Marcus Scribner, American actor Read more
- 1997 — Ozzie Albies, Curaçaoan baseball player Read more
- 1997 — Lamar Jackson, American football player Read more
- 1996 — Alex Nedeljkovic, American ice hockey player Read more
- 1995 — Jordan Bell, American basketball player Read more
- 1995 — Yulia Putintseva, Kazakhstani tennis player Read more
- 1994 — Jarnell Stokes, American basketball player Read more
- 1994 — Lee Sun-bin, South Korean actress and singer Read more
- 1994 — MacKenzie Weegar, Canadian ice hockey player Read more
- 1992 — Erik Gudbranson, Canadian ice hockey player Read more
- 1992 — Tohu Harris, New Zealand rugby league player Read more
- 1991 — Tucker Barnhart, American baseball player Read more
- 1991 — Eden Hazard, Belgian footballer Read more
- 1991 — Caster Semenya, South African sprinter Read more
- 1991 — Michael Walters, Australian footballer Read more
- 1990 — Liam Aiken, American actor Read more
- 1990 — Gentleman Jack Gallagher, English mixed martial artist and wrestler Read more
- 1990 — Gregor Schlierenzauer, Austrian ski jumper Read more
- 1988 — Haley Bennett, American actress and singer Read more
- 1988 — Scott Pendlebury, Australian footballer Read more
- 1987 — Davide Astori, Italian footballer (died 2018) Read more
- 1987 — Stefan Babović, Serbian footballer Read more
- 1987 — Lyndsy Fonseca, American actress Read more
- 1985 — Lewis Hamilton, English racing driver Read more
- 1985 — Wayne Routledge, English footballer Read more
- 1984 — Jon Lester, American baseball player Read more
- 1983 — Brett Dalton, American actor Read more
- 1983 — Edwin Encarnación, Dominican baseball player Read more
- 1983 — Cappie Pondexter, American basketball player Read more
- 1982 — Lauren Cohan, American-English actress Read more
- 1982 — Francisco Rodríguez, Venezuelan baseball player Read more
- 1982 — Hannah Stockbauer, German swimmer Read more
- 1981 — Alex Auld, Canadian ice hockey player Read more
- 1981 — Marquis Daniels, American basketball player Read more
- 1981 — Travis Friend, Zimbabwean cricketer Read more
- 1980 — Reece Simmonds, Australian rugby league player Read more
- 1979 — Reggie Austin, American actor Read more
Died on January 7
- 2026 — Glenn Hall, Canadian ice hockey goaltender (born 1931) Read more
- 2025 — Jean-Marie Le Pen, French intelligence officer and politician (born 1928) Read more
- 2025 — Peter Yarrow, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (born 1938) Read more
- 2024 — Franz Beckenbauer, German footballer and manager (born 1945) Read more
- 2021 — Michael Apted, English filmmaker (born 1941) Read more
- 2021 — Tommy Lasorda, American baseball player, coach, and manager (born 1927) Read more
- 2021 — Henri Schwery, Swiss cardinal (born 1932) Read more
- 2020 — Neil Peart, Canadian drummer, songwriter, and producer (born 1952) Read more
- 2020 — Silvio Horta, American screenwriter and television producer (born 1974) Read more
- 2020 — Elizabeth Wurtzel, author and feminist (born 1967) Read more
- 2018 — Jim Anderton, Former New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister (born 1938) Read more
- 2018 — France Gall, French singer (born 1947) Read more
- 2017 — Mário Soares, Portuguese politician; 16th President of Portugal (born 1924) Read more
- 2016 — Bill Foster, American basketball player and coach (born 1929) Read more
- 2016 — John Johnson, American basketball player (born 1947) Read more
- 2016 — Kitty Kallen, American singer (born 1921) Read more
- 2016 — Judith Kaye, American lawyer and jurist (born 1938) Read more
- 2016 — Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, Indian lawyer and politician, Indian Minister of Home Affairs (born 1936) Read more
- 2015 — Mompati Merafhe, Botswana general and politician, Vice-President of Botswana (born 1936) Read more
- 2015 — Rod Taylor, Australian-American actor and screenwriter (born 1930) Read more
- 2015 — Georges Wolinski, Tunisian-French cartoonist (born 1934) Read more
- 2014 — Run Run Shaw, Chinese-Hong Kong businessman and philanthropist, founded Shaw Brothers Studio and TVB (born 1907) Read more
- 2012 — Tony Blankley, British-born American child actor, journalist and pundit (born 1948) Read more
- 2008 — Alwyn Schlebusch, South African academic and politician, Vice State President of South Africa (born 1917) Read more
- 2007 — Bobby Hamilton, American race car driver and businessman (born 1957) Read more
- 2007 — Magnus Magnusson, Icelandic journalist, author, and academic (born 1929) Read more
- 2006 — Heinrich Harrer, Austrian mountaineer, geographer, and author (born 1912) Read more
- 2005 — Pierre Daninos, French author (born 1913) Read more
- 2004 — Ingrid Thulin, Swedish actress (born 1926) Read more
- 2002 — Avery Schreiber, American comedian and actor (born 1935) Read more
- 2001 — James Carr, American singer (born 1942) Read more
- 2000 — Gary Albright, American wrestler (born 1963) Read more
- 1998 — Owen Bradley, American record producer (born 1915) Read more
- 1998 — Vladimir Prelog, Croatian-Swiss chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1906) Read more
- 1996 — Károly Grósz, Hungarian politician, 51st Prime Minister of Hungary (born 1930) Read more
- 1995 — Murray Rothbard, American economist, historian, and theorist (born 1926) Read more
- 1992 — Richard Hunt, American puppeteer and voice actor (born 1951) Read more
- 1990 — Bronko Nagurski, Canadian-American football player and wrestler (born 1908) Read more
- 1989 — Hirohito, Japanese emperor (born 1901) Read more
- 1988 — Zara Cisco Brough, American Nipmuc Indian chief and fashion designer (born 1919) Read more
Holidays & observances
Christian Feast Day:
André Bessette (Canada); Christian Feast Day:
Blessed Marie Thérèse Haze; Christian Feast Day:
Canute Lavard; Christian Feast Day:
Felix and Januarius; Christian Feast Day:
Lucian of Antioch; Christian Feast Day:
Raymond of Penyafort; Christian Feast Day:
Synaxis of John the Forerunner & Baptist (Julian calendar); Christian Feast Day:
January 7 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics); Christmas (Eastern Orthodox Churches and Oriental Orthodox Churches using the Julian calendar, Rastafari)
Christmas in Russia; Christmas (Eastern Orthodox Churches and Oriental Orthodox Churches using the Julian calendar, Rastafari)
Christmas in Ukraine; Christmas (Eastern Orthodox Churches and Oriental Orthodox Churches using the Julian calendar, Rastafari)
Christmas in Serbia; Christmas (Eastern Orthodox Churches and Oriental Orthodox Churches using the Julian calendar, Rastafari)
Ethiopian Christmas; Christmas (Eastern Orthodox Churches and Oriental Orthodox Churches using the Julian calendar, Rastafari)
Remembrance Day of the Dead (Armenia); Distaff Day (medieval Europe); Pioneer's Day (Liberia); Tricolour Day or Festa del Tricolore (Italy); Victory from Genocide Day (Cambodia)
Events, births and deaths from Wikipedia contributors, “January 7”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Lists are selections; the full record lives at the source.