Today in History....January 26

On this day in …

1788, Captain Arthur Phillip guides a fleet of 11 British ships carrying convicts to the colony of New South Wales, effectively founding Australia. After overcoming a period of hardship, the fledgling colony began to celebrate the anniversary of this date with great fanfare
1838, the first Prohibition law in the history of the United States is passed in Tennessee, making it a misdemeanor to sell alcoholic beverages in taverns and stores

1841, Britain formally occupied Hong Kong, which the Chinese had ceded to the British

1861, Louisiana seceded from the Union

1870, Virginia rejoined the Union

1907, Congress passed the Tillman Act, which prohibited corporations from making direct campaign contributions to federal election candidates

1942, the first American expeditionary force to go to Europe during World War II went ashore in Northern Ireland

1945, Soviet troops enter Auschwitz, Poland, freeing the survivors of the network of concentration camps-and finally revealing to the world the depth of the horrors perpetrated there

1950, India officially proclaimed itself a republic as Rajendra Prasad took the oath of office as president

1962, the United States launched Ranger 3 to land scientific instruments on the moon --- but the probe missed its target by some 22,000 miles

1980, at the request of President Jimmy Carter, the U.S. Olympic Committee votes to ask the International Olympic Committee to cancel or move the upcoming Moscow Olympics. The action was in response to the Soviet military invasion of Afghanistan the previous month

1997, the Green Bay Packers beat the New England Patriots 35-21 to win their first Super Bowl in 29 years

2006, Saudi Arabia recalled its ambassador from Denmark to protest caricatures of Muhammad published in a Danish newspaper. (Protests spread across the Muslim world for weeks, and dozens of people were killed by practitioners of that "religion of peace")