January 8
January 8
“Colorado Cannibal” Alfred Packer is paroled
The confessed Colorado cannibal Alfred Packer is released from prison on parole after serving 18 years. One of the ragged legions of gold and silver prospectors who combed the Rocky…
A Year In History: 1901
This Year in History:
1901
Discover what happened in this year with HISTORY’s summaries of major events, anniversaries, famous births and notable deaths.
January 10
January 10
Gusher signals new era of U.S. oil industry
On January 10, 1901, a drilling derrick at Spindletop Hill near Beaumont, Texas, produces an enormous gusher of crude oil, coating the landscape for hundreds of feet and signaling the…
January 22
January 22
Queen Victoria dies
The death of Queen Victoria on January 22, 1901, ends an era in which most of her British subjects know no other monarch. Her 63‑year reign saw the growth of…
January 28
January 28
American League is founded
On January 28, 1901, professional baseball’s American League is founded in Milwaukee, reconstituting itself from a minor‑league entity to a major‑league one. The league plans for a 140‑game schedule, 14‑man rosters…
March 11
March 11
Newspaper reports signing of so‑called Chief Tokohama
On this day in 1901, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports the signing of a mysterious player named “Chief Tokohama” to baseball’s Baltimore Orioles by manager John McGraw. Chief Tokohama was later…
March 15
March 15
Van Gogh paintings shown in first retrospective exhibit
On March 15, 1901, paintings by the late Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh are shown at the Bernheim‑Jeune gallery in Paris in what was the artist’s first retrospective exhibit. The…
May 7
May 7
Legendary actor Gary Cooper is born
Gary Cooper, the star of High Noon and other classic Westerns, is born in Helena, Montana. Born Frank James Cooper, he was the son of well‑to‑do lawyer who eventually won…
May 7
May 7
Gary Cooper born
On May 7, 1901, Gary Cooper, who will become famous for his performances in such movies as High Noon and The Pride of the Yankees, is born in Helena, Montana.…
May 21
May 21
Connecticut enacts first speed‑limit law
On May 21, 1901, Connecticut becomes the first state to pass a law regulating motor vehicles, limiting their speed to 12 mph in cities and 15 mph on country roads.…
June 24
June 24
Picasso exhibited in Paris
On June 24, 1901, the first major exhibition of Pablo Picasso’s artwork opens at a gallery on Paris’ rue Lafitte, a street known for its prestigious art galleries. The precocious…
July 24
July 24
Short story writer O. Henry is released from prison
William Sydney Porter, otherwise known as O. Henry, is released from prison on this day, after serving three years in jail for embezzlement from a bank in Austin, Texas. To…
July 28
July 28
Rudy Vallée is born
Before the electronic microphone became commonplace in the 1920s, the one quality that was required of every professional singer in every musical genre was a talent for vocal projection—i.e., the…
September 6
September 6
President William McKinley is shot
On September 6, 1901, President William McKinley is shaking hands at the Pan‑American Exhibition in Buffalo, New York, when a 28‑year‑old anarchist named Leon Czolgosz approaches him and fires two…
September 14
September 14
President William McKinley dies from gunshot wounds
On this day in 1901, President William McKinley succumbs to gunshot wounds inflicted by an assassin on September 6. According to witnesses, McKinley’s last words were those of the hymn…
September 14
September 14
An adoptive westerner becomes president of the United States
On this day in 1901, the 42‑year‑old Theodore Roosevelt is suddenly elevated to the White House when President McKinley dies from an assassin’s bullet. But while McKinley’s untimely death brought…
September 14
September 14
President McKinley dies of infection from gunshot wounds
U.S. President William McKinley dies on September 14, 1901, eight days after being shot by a deranged anarchist during the Pan‑American Exposition in Buffalo, New York. McKinley won his first…
September 28
September 28
TV host Ed Sullivan born
On September 28, 1901, Ed Sullivan, who will become the host of the long‑running TV variety program “The Ed Sullivan Show,” is born in New York City. During the peak…
October 24
October 24
First barrel ride down Niagara Falls
On October 24, 1901, a 63‑year‑old schoolteacher named Annie Edson Taylor becomes the first person to successfully take the plunge over Niagara Falls in a barrel. After her husband died…
October 29
October 29
President William McKinley’s assassin is executed
On October 29, 1901, President William McKinley’s assassin, Leon Czolgosz, is executed in the electric chair at Auburn Prison in New York. Czolgosz had shot McKinley on September 6, 1901;…
November 9
November 9
Teddy Roosevelt establishes a naval base in the Philippines
On this day in 1901, President Theodore Roosevelt establishes a naval base in the Philippines at Subic Bay, on territory won from Spain during the Spanish‑American War. In 1898, a…
