This Day In History, January 2nd.
Five Historical Events That Happened on January 2nd.
After a protracted siege, the Catholic monarchs Ferdinand II and Isabella I captured Granada in 1492, bringing an end to the Reconquista and more than seven centuries of Muslim rule in Spain. Granada was the final Islamic bastion in Spain.
A new flag with the British Union Jack in the upper left corner and a white star with five points on a blue background was adopted by the British colony of New South Wales in Australia in 1818.
Russian revolutionaries tried to storm the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg in 1905, but government forces stopped them. Bloody Sunday, which took place at the time, launched the Russian Revolution of 1905.
1960: Four black college students start a sit-in protest at a lunch counter for whites only in Greensboro, North Carolina. This starts a wave of similar protests all over the country.
2003: During re-entry, the Space Shuttle Columbia breaks up, killing all seven people on board.
This Day In History, January 2nd 1492, Granada, the last Islamic stronghold in Spain, fell to the Catholic monarchs Ferdinand II and Isabella I after a long siege.
The conquest of the Iberian Peninsula by Christian and Muslim troops, known as the Reconquista, ended with the fall of Granada in 1492, making it a pivotal moment in Spanish and European history. Christopher Columbus's voyage to the Americas was started later that same year as a result of the Catholic rulers Ferdinand and Isabella's conquest of Granada, which gave them the resources and support for the mission.
January 2nd, 1818, the British colony of New South Wales in Australia officially adopted a new design for its flag
The first official flag of a British colony in Australia was New South Wales, which approved its flag on January 2, 1818. The Union Jack, which stands in for British colonial power, is displayed in the top left corner of the flag, and the center of the design is a white star with five points on a blue backdrop. The "Star of Federation" is a star that stands in for all of Australia's states and territories. The design of the present Australian national flag, which was approved in 1954, was based on the flag of New South Wales.
In 1905, Russian revolutionaries attempted to storm the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, but were repelled by government troops.
In order to deliver a petition to the Tsar demanding for political reforms and better working conditions, a group of Russian revolutionaries led by Father Georgy Gapon planned a peaceful march to the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg on January 22, 1905. The government troops opened fire on the unarmed demonstrators during the march, killing dozens and injuring many more. Bloody Sunday, also known as the incident, triggered significant unrest and demonstrations throughout Russia and eventually sparked the 1905 Russian Revolution. Bloody Sunday's events brought to light Russia's severe social and economic disparities and sparked calls for political change and democratic representation.
In 1974, U.S. President Richard Nixon signed a bill that lowered the maximum speed limit on highways to 55 mph (88 km/h) in an effort to conserve gasoline during the energy crisis.
The Emergency Highway Energy Conservation Act, which was passed by the US Congress in response to the 1973 oil crisis, established a 55 mph (88 km/h) national maximum speed restriction on all US roadways. On January 2, 1974, President Richard Nixon signed the legislation into law. It was in force until 1995, when it was abolished. At a time when oil costs were high and the United States was heavily dependent on imported oil, the goal of the speed limit was to conserve fuel and lower oil usage. Because studies indicated that slower speeds lessened the severity of accidents, the 55 mph speed limit also had the unforeseen consequence of lowering traffic fatalities and increasing road safety.
In 2006, an explosion at the Sago Mine in West Virginia, U.S., trapped 13 miners underground. Only one miner survived and the tragedy brought attention to the dangers of coal mining and the need for better safety regulations.
13 miners were trapped underground after an explosion at the Sago Mine in West Virginia on January 2, 2006. The challenging terrain and hazardous conditions inside the mine complicated rescue attempts, and it took nearly two days before rescue crews were able to find the trapped men. Randal McCloy Jr. was the sole miner who, regrettably, was discovered alive. The explosion or its aftereffects claimed the lives of the other 12 miners.
The Sago Mine accident made coal mining's risks and the need for stricter safety measures front and center in the nation. It prompted demands for more stringent safety regulations and closer examination of the procedures used by the coal industry. The Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response (MINER) Act was passed by the US Congress in response in 2006 which sought to enhance emergency response and mining safety measures. One of the deadliest mining accidents in American history is still the Sago Mine disaster.