Historical Events on January 31

Abolishing Slavery

Here are some historical events that happened on January 31:

1606: Guy Fawkes, a conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot, was executed in London.

1747: The first venereal diseases clinic opened at London Lock Hospital.

1865: The United States Congress passed the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, abolishing slavery.

1919: The first constitutional assembly of the Weimar Republic was convened in Germany.

1943: The Battle of Stalingrad, one of the largest and bloodiest battles of World War II, ended with the surrender of German forces to the Soviet Union.

1950: United States President Harry S. Truman announced the decision to support the development of the hydrogen bomb.

1961: Ham the Chimp became the first hominid to travel into space aboard the Mercury-Redstone 2 mission.

1971: Astronauts Alan Shepard, Edgar Mitchell, and Stuart Roosa launched on Apollo 14, the third successful manned moon landing mission.

2000: Alaska Airlines Flight 261 crashed into the Pacific Ocean, killing all 88 people on board.

2010: Avatar became the first film to gross over $2 billion worldwide.

These are just a few examples, and there are many more historical events that occurred on January 31 throughout history.