Today in History

Hi and welcome to another beautiful Thursday morning with us. Now since it has become a popular tradition for us to post old pics/videos or even stories about the past, I decided to look up today's date in History and I was shocked to find may events that took place on this very day years ago. Now we are just going to pick a few and shed some light on it for you but I highly recommend going back and taking time to really read the entire thing. Now let's begin shall we .

Today in History (January 13)

1939 – The Black Friday bushfires burn 20,000 square kilometers of land in Australia, claiming the lives of 71 people.

The Black Friday bushfires of 13 January 1939, in Victoria, Australia, were part of the devastating 1938–1939 bushfire season in Australia, which saw bushfires burning for the whole summer, and ash falling as far away as New Zealand. It was calculated that three-quarters of the State of Victoria was directly or indirectly affected by the disaster, while other Australian states and the Australian Capital Territory were also badly hit by fires and extreme heat. As of 3 November 2011, the event was one of the worst[clarification needed] recorded bushfires in Australia, and the third most deadly.

1942 – Henry Ford patents a soybean car, which is 30% lighter than a regular car.

The soybean car was a concept car built with agricultural plastic. The New York Times in 1941 states the car body and fenders were made from a strong material derived from soy beans, wheat and corn. One article claims that they were made from a chemical formula that, among many other ingredients, included soy beans, wheat, hemp, flax and ramie; while the man who was instrumental in creating the car, Lowell E. Overly, claims it was "…soybean fiber in a phenolic resin with formaldehyde used in the impregnation" (Davis, 51). The body was lighter and therefore more fuel efficient than a normal metal body. It was made in Dearborn, Michigan and was introduced to public view on August 13, 1941.It was made, in part, as a hedge against the rationing of steel during World War II. It was designed to run on hemp fuel.(wait o..hemp fuel... why does that sound familiar?)

1942 – World War II: First use of an aircraft ejection seat by a German test pilot in a Heinkel He 280 jet fighter.

The Heinkel He 280 was the first turbojet-powered fighter aircraft in the world. It was inspired by Ernst Heinkel's emphasis on research into high-speed flight and built on the company's experience with the He 178 jet prototype. A combination of technical and political factors led to it being passed over in favor of the Messerschmitt Me 262. Only nine were built and none reached operational status.

1950 – British submarine HMS Truculent collides with an oil tanker in the Thames Estuary, killing 64 men.

The HMS Truculent was a British submarine of the third group of the T class. She was built as P315 by Vickers Armstrong, Barrow, and launched on 12 September 1942. She sank nine enemy vessels. 

while...

The Thames Estuary is where the River Thames meets the waters of the North Sea, in the south-east of Great Britain

1950 – Finland forms diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China.

Along with Sweden and Denmark, Finland was one of the first Western countries to recognize the People's Republic of China and form diplomatic relations with the country in 1950.

1951 – First Indochina War: The Battle of Vĩnh Yên begins.

The Battle of Vĩnh Yên (Vietnamese: Trận Vĩnh Yên) which occurred from 13 to 17 January 1951, was a major engagement in the First Indochina War between the French Union and the Việt Minh. The French Union forces, led by World War II hero Jean de Lattre de Tassigny, inflicted a decisive defeat on the Việt Minh forces, which were commanded by Võ Nguyên Giáp. The victory marked a turn in the tide of the war, which was previously characterized by a number of Việt Minh victories.

I think I'll stop here. These are just a few out of the many events that happened on this very day in the past. Now I do not claim to own any of the following information. I just conducted a research and decided to share my findings with you. 

Until next time, have a wonderful day.