Prince Arthur (elder brother of Henry VIII and 1st husband to Catherine of Aragon) dies suddenly at age 15, possibly from consumption (1502) - Apr. 02
CN Tower (communications and observation tower in Canada) is completed reaching 1,815.4 ft in height, making it the world's tallest free-standing structure (1975) - Apr. 02
Hans Christian Andersen (Danish author and poet most famous for his fairy tales) is born in Odense Denmark (1805) - 4/2
International Children's Book Day - Apr. 02
Rita Johnson becomes the 29th Premiere of British Columbia and the first female to hold the position (1991) - Apr. 02
Samuel Morse (American painter of portraits and the creator of the single wire telegraph system and the Morse Code) dies at home at the age of 81 (1872) - Apr. 02
As the World Turns (American TV soap opera) premieres along with The Edge of Night as the first half-hour serials (1956) - Apr. 02
LexisNexis (computerized legal research service) is launched (1973) - 4/2
The first panda crossing officially opens on York Road opposite Waterloo Station in London and causes confusion (1962) - Apr. 02
Pope John Paul II died in his private apartment of heart failure from hypotension and circulatory collapse from septic shock at age 84 (2005) - Apr. 02
World Autism Awareness Day - 4/2
Pope Fire is a picture taken from a bonfire during a service on the 2nd anniversay of Pope John Paul II's death (2007) - Apr. 02
National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day - 4/2
Reconciliation Day (a day to patch relationships and make amends) - Apr. 02
Great Lovers Day - 4/2
April 3, 2017
American Circus Day - Apr. 03
Edward the Confessor (King of England) is crowned at Westminster Abbey (1043) - Apr. 03
Find A Rainbow Day - Apr. 03
IBM PC Convertible (IBM's first laptop computer and 1st to use 3.5" floppy disks) is released (1986) - Apr. 03
Jesse James (American outlaw) is shot in the back of the head by Robert Ford while Jesse stood on a chair to dust or adjust a picture (1882) - Apr. 03
Truman signs the Marshall Plan authorizing $5 billion in aid for 16 countries to help rebuild cities damaged during WWII (1948) - Apr. 03
Michigan Hudsonville-Standale tornado is an F5 tornado that devastated the area killing 18 and injuring 340 (1956) - Apr. 03
Oscar Wilde's criminal libel trial against the Marquess of Queensberry opens (1895) - Apr. 03
Pony Express has its first successful runs (1860) - 4/3
Super Tornado Outbreak (biggest tornado outbreak in recorded history) involves 148 confirmed tornados in 13 US states that kill 315 with nearly 5,500 injured (1974) - Apr. 03
TGV (French high-speed train) breaks a world speed record when it achieves a speed of 574.8 km/h or 357.2 mph (2007) - Apr. 03
USAF CT-43 crashes in Croatia while on an official trade mission resulting 35 fatalities including US Secretary of Commerce, Ron Brown (1996) - Apr. 03
Baseball Opening Day begins in Cincinnati, OH with the Findlay Market Opening Day Parade (2017) - Apr. 3
April 4, 2017
Apollo VI (NASA's second and last unmanned flight of its Saturn V launch vehicle) is launched from the Kennedy Space Center, FL (1968) - 4/4
Dr. Denton Cooley implants the first total artificial heart (developed by Domingo Liotta) into Haskell Karp for 64 hours until a human heart was available (1969) - 4/4
Francis Drake is hailed as the first Englishman to circumnavigate the Earth and is awarded a knighthood (1581) - Apr. 04
Great Fire of Cottenham starts in High Street spreading rapidly burning down 40 to 50 cottages under suspicious circumstances (1850) - 4/4
Henry John Heinz (US Senator from Pennsylvania) dies along with 6 others when a helicopter collides with his plane over Merioan Elementary School in PA (1991) - Apr. 04
Senegal declares its independence from France (1960) - Apr. 04
Kangra (India) earthquake kills close to 19,800 people and destroys most buildings (1905) - Apr. 04
Martin Luther King, Jr. is assassinated while standing on the Lorraine Motel's 2nd balcony struck by a single bullet fired by a rifle (1968) - Apr. 04
NATO (military alliance) is established by the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty (1949) - Apr. 04
Robert Walpole is appointed First Lord under George I, serving as the de facto first Prime Minister (1721) - Apr. 04
Susanna Salter (nominated by several local-area men as a joke) wins the Argonia, KS election with a 2/3 majority vote to become the world's first female mayor (1887) - Apr. 04
William Henry Harrison dies in office from pneumonia, jaundice and overwhelming septicemia only 1 month after taking office (1841) - Apr. 04
Flag Act of 1818 (adopted by US Congress) results in a flag with 13 red and white stripes and one star for each of the 20 states (1818) - Apr. 04
Microsoft Corporation is founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in Albuquerque, NM (1975) - apr. 04
World Trade Center in New York City, NY is dedicated in a ribbon cutting ceremony, the two buildings having cost the Port Authority $900 million (1973) - Apr. 04
April 5, 2017
Charlton Heston (American Oscar-winning actor) dies at his home in Beverly Hills, CA at age 84 (2008) - Apr. 05
Mayflower (ship that transported the Pilgrims to Plymouth) returns to England (1621) - Apr. 05
West Virginia Mine explodes killing 7 miners who were leaving the site in a vehicle at the time of the explosion (2010) - Apr. 05
Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge (aka Pearl Bridge and the world's longest suspension bridge) is opened for traffic (1998) - 4/5
Bell Bottom Day - 4/5
Fireside Theater (American anthology drama series) premieres on NBC (1949) - Apr. 05
Pocahontas (Virgina native American who reportedly saved colonist John Smith's life) is baptised Rebecca and marries John Rolfe (1614) - Apr. 05
Winston Churchill resigns as Prime Minister due to his failing health (1955) - Apr. 05
Lady Luck Day - 4/5
Ramanavami (Hindu festival celebrating the birth of Lord Rama) falls on the ninth day of the Chaitra month in the Hindu calendar (2017) - 4/5
Qingming Festival (Tomb Sweeping Day) traditional Chinese festival on the 104th day after the Winter Solstice held the 15th day from the Spring Equinox (2017) - 4/5
April 6, 2017
Unprecedented blizzard for April dumps 1-2 feet of snow bringing the northeast coast of the U.S. to a halt, even cancelling several Major League Baseball games (1982) - Apr. 06
Raphael (Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance) is born in Urbino Italy (1483) and dies prematurely at age 37 (1520) - Apr. 06
Raphael (Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance) is born in Urbino Italy (1483) and dies prematurely at age 37 (1520) - Apr. 06
Tupelo-Gainesville Tornado outbreak results in seventeen tornadoes striking the southeastern U.S. and killing approximately 436 people (1936) - Apr. 06
Richard I of England (son of Henry II and brother to John Lackland) dies in his mother's arms after being shot by an arrow on March 25 (1199) - Apr. 06
Tony Awards holds its first awards ceremony at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York City (1947) - Apr. 06
A 5.8 earthquake strikes L'Aquila in central Italy killing 307 people (2009) - Apr. 06
Salt Lake Temple (largest best-known temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) is dedicated by Wilford Woodruff (1893) - Apr. 06
Tartan Day observes the anniversary on which the Declaration of Arbroath was created (1320) - Apr. 06
Corin Redgrave (English actor, political activist and brother to Vanessa and Lynn Redgrave) dies at age 70, most likely from complications of prostate cancer (2010) - 4/6
L'Aquila Italy still recovering from 2009 earthquake 1 year later (2010) - Apr. 06
Caramel Popcorn Day - 4/6
April 7, 2017
Charles VIII of France (aka "The Affable) dies as the result of an accident when he struck his head on the lintel of a door while playing court tennis (1498) - Apr. 07
Dick Turpin (infamous English rogue and highwayman) is hanged in York, England after being convicted of being a "horse rustler" (1739) - Apr. 07
El Greco (Greek Spanish Renaissance painter, sculptor and architect) dies in Toledo, Spain after falling suddenly ill at age 73 (1614) - 4/7
John Walker (English chemist from Stockton on Tees) invents the friction match and has his first recorded sale from his store (1827) - Apr. 07
Jim Clark (Scottish motor racing world champion) is killed in a car crash during a Formula Two race at Hockenheimring in Germany (1968) - 4/7
Mars Odyssey (robotic spacecraft) is launched from Cape Canaveral (2001) - Apr. 07
P.T. Barnum (American showman remembered for his hoaxes and for founding the Ringling Bros Barnum & Bailey Circus) dies at home in his sleep at age 81 (1891) - Apr. 07
Mount Vesuvius erupts killing over 100 people and ejecting the most lava ever recorded from a Vesuvian eruption (1906) - Apr. 07
World Health Day commemorates the day that the WHO (World Health Organization) is established by the United Nations (1948) - Apr. 07
No Housework Day - 4/7
Ham Radio Day - Apr. 7
Coffeecake Day
April 8, 2017
Hana-matsuri (Flower Festival in Japan) commemorates the birth of Buddha - 4/8
Venus de Milo (ancient Greek statue created between 130 and 100 BC that is believed to depict Aphrodite) is discovered by Yorgos Kentrotas in a buried niche (1820) - Apr. 08
Winchester Cathedral (one of the largest cathedrals in England) is dedicated by Bishop Walkelin 14 years after its construction began (1093) - Apr. 08
BOAC Flight 712 suffers engine failure at takeoff that quickly leads to a major fire that thanks to flight attendant Barbara Jane Harrison only 5 of 127 aboard died (1968) - 4/8
George IV (then the Prince of Wales) marries his cousin Caroline of Brunswick at the Chapel Royal in St James's Palace (1795) - Apr. 08
International Day of the Roma is a day to celebrate the Romani culture and raise awareness of the issues facing their people - Apr. 08
Longacre Square (intersection in midtown Manhattan of 42nd St, Blooming dale Road and 7th Avenue) is renamed Times Square (1904) - Apr. 08
Pablo Picasso (Spanish painter, draftsman and sculptor who co-founded the Cubist movement) dies in Mougins, France from heart failure at age 91 (1973) - Apr. 08
Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held 6 days after his death on April 2 (2005) - Apr. 08
April 9, 2017
Frank Lloyd Wright (American architect, interior designer, writer and educator) dies at age 91 in Phoenix, AZ (1959) - Apr. 09
Henry V of England has his coronation at Westminster Abbey (1413) - Apr. 09
Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (mother to Queen Elizabeth) is given a state funeral at Westminster Abbey and is interred in St. George's Chapel at Windsor (2004) - Apr. 09
Glazier-Higgins-Woodward Tornadoes are a system of tornadoes that swept through Kansas, Texas and Oklahoma kill 181 and injure 970 (1947) - Apr. 09
Georgia (Soviet Country) declares its independence from the Soviet Union (1991) - Apr. 09
Charles, Prince of Wales, marries Camilla Parker Bowles at Windsor Guildhall in a civil ceremony, the 1st time a royal has been civilly wed in England (2005) - Apr. 09
Lorenzo de Medici (Italian statesman and de factor ruler of the Florentine Republic during the Italian Renaissance) grows ill suddenly and dies at age 43 (1492) - Apr. 09
Cincinnati, OH tornado resulted in 59 confirmed cyclones that struck in the early morning hours, killing 6 people in total 4 in the Blue Ash and Montgomery areas (1999) - Apr. 09
Glazier-Higgins-Woodward Tornadoes are a system of tornadoes that swept through Kansas, Texas and Oklahoma kill 181 and injure 970 (1947) - Apr. 09
Laurence Olivier Awards (London's Best in Theatre Awards) named after the actor Laurence Olivier (2017) - Apr. 9
Orthodox Palm Sunday (2017) - April 9
Palm Sunday (Christian moveable feast held on the Sunday before Easter) commemorates the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem (2015) - 3/29
Most Photos and Descriptions are courtesy of Wikipedia
