A Brief History
This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on February 8th. For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event.
Digging Deeper
On February 8, 1587, Mary Stuart, also known as Mary, Queen of Scots or even Mary I of Scotland, was executed by the order of Queen Elizabeth I of England, her own cousin!
On February 8, 1837, the United States Senate elected Richard Mentor Johnson of Kentucky as the incoming Vice President of the United States, the only time in US history that the Senate was required to make such an election due to the failure of any Vice Presidential candidate to garner enough Electoral votes to get elected.
In the night of February 8-9, 1855, the fresh snow of Devon, England was marked with mysterious, bipedal, cloven-hoofed tracks often referred to as “The Devil’s Footprints.”
On February 8, 1879, Scottish Canadian inventor and engineer Sandford Fleming proposed the adoption of Universal Standard Time at The Royal Canadian Institute.
On February 8, 1904, the Japanese Navy started the Russo-Japanese War by conducting a sneak attack against the Russian naval fleet at anchor at Port Arthur, Manchuria, a key strategic Pacific port then under the administration of Imperial Russia.
On February 8, 1960, Queen Elizabeth II of the UK proclaimed that henceforth the House of Windsor and the surname Mountbatten-Windsor would apply to all her descendants.
On February 8, 1960, the Hollywood Walk of Fame was officially opened with the placement of the first 8 brass and terrazzo stars in the famous sidewalk.
On February 8, 1960, the Hollywood Walk of Fame was officially opened with the placement of the first 8 brass and terrazzo stars in the famous sidewalk. (NOTE: The link in the date for this entry leads to a different article than the other mention to this same event above.)
On February 8, 1983, a successful Irish racehorse, Shergar, was kidnapped for ransom, a crime that resulted in the killing of the swift steed that had been enjoying life as a stud.
On February 8, 1993, General Motors Corporation announced a lawsuit against NBC’s Dateline “news” show for falsely portraying Chevrolet pickup trucks as fire hazards!
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Andrews, John and Matt Baker. Timeline of World History. Thunder Bay Press, 2020.
You can also watch video versions of this article on YouTube.