February 4: What Happened on This Day in History (High_school Level)?

(Page last edited 10/12/2017)

1. 1789 - George Washington is unanimously elected as the first President of the United States by the U.S. Electoral College.
2. 1794 - The French legislature abolishes slavery throughout all territories of the French Republic. It will be reestablished in the French West Indies in 1802.
3. 1825 - The Ohio Legislature authorizes the construction of the Ohio and Erie Canal and the Miami and Erie Canal.
4. 1859 - The Codex Sinaiticus is discovered in Egypt.
5. 1861 - American Civil War: In Montgomery, Alabama, delegates from six break-away U.S. states meet and form the Confederate States of America.
6. 1899 - The Philippine-American War begins with the Battle of Manila.
7. 1936 - Radium becomes the first radioactive element to be made synthetically
8. 1948 - Ceylon (later renamed Sri Lanka) becomes independent within the British Commonwealth.
9. 1967 - Lunar Orbiter program: Lunar Orbiter 3 lifts off from Cape Canaveral's Launch Complex 13 on its mission to identify possible landing sites for the Surveyor and Apollo spacecraft.
10. 1992 - A coup d'état is led by Hugo Chávez against Venezuelan President Carlos Andrés Pérez.
11. Famous Birthdays: Fernand Léger (French painter), Friedrich Hund (German physicist), Charles Lindbergh (American pilot and activist), Clyde Tombaugh (American astronomer, discovered Pluto), Rosa Parks (American activist)

For famous birthdays and other daily events in history, visit our Daily Dose Activities.

Click Here for Yesterday in History: February 3

Click Here for Tomorrow in History: February 5

For more history resources on Internet 4 Classrooms, visit our Social Studies and History index. For Pre K-8th Grade Level History and Social Studies Resources, visit our Grade Level Index.