January 17 Birthdays

January 17 in History

1706

Benjamin Franklin was born in Boston.

1806

James Madison Randolph, the grandson of Thomas Jefferson, became the first child born in the White House.

1893

Hawaii's Queen Liliuokalani was forced to abdicate by a group of planters and businessmen.

1945

Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg disappeared in Hungary while in Soviet custody.

1977

Gary Gilmore became the first person executed in the U.S. since the death penalty was reintroduced.

1991

Operation Desert Storm was launched against Iraq.

1998

President Clinton became the first sitting U.S. president to testify as a defendant in a criminal or civil suit.

2001

Gov. Gray Davis declared a state of emergency concerning California's electricity crisis.