National Day Calendar Logo

FEBRUARY 19 | Birthdays and Events

2 min. read
February 14, 2025 9:09 pm CST

Memorable Birthdays for February 19

Charles Robert Woods (1827-1855) - American Brevet Major General (Union Army).

Bill Bowerman (1911-1999) - Co-founder of Nike.

Frank Tashlin (1913-1972) - Animator who worked for Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies

Smokey Robinson (1940-Still Living) - Legendary Motown singer.

William Messner-Loebs (1949-Still Living) - Comic writer and artist for Flash and  Wonder Woman.

Amy Tan (1952-Still Living) - Author of the The Joy Luck Club.

Jeff Daniels (1955-Still Living) - Actor with roles in Dumb & Dumber and The Newsroom.

Roderick MacKinnon (1956-Still Living) - Biologist who received the Nobel Prize for his work and discoveries on ion channels.

John Laroche (1962-Still Living) - Horticulturist who became known as the orchid poacher.

Justine Bateman (1966-Still Living) - Former actress best known for her role as Mallory on Family Ties.

Jeff Kinney (1971-Still Living) - Author and illustrator who wrote the Diary of a Wimpy Kid book series.

Memorable Events for February 19

1807 - Former VP Aaron Burr is arrested for treason.

1856 - Hamilton Smith patented the first tin-type camera.

1878 - Thomas Edison is granted a patent for his cylinder phonograph.

1881 - Kansas becomes the first state to prohibit all alcoholic.

1906 - Will Keith Kellogg co-founds Battle Creek Toasted Corn Flake Company (Kellogg's).

1913 - Cracker Jack adds its first prize inserted to their box.

1914 - Charlotte May Pierstorff is mailed to her grandparents by train through the post office. 

1942 - President Roosevelt signs Executive Order 9066 to detain and intern all Japanese Americans into camps across the country. 

1945 - Nearly 30,000 Marines land on the island of Iwo Jima. 

1953 - Georgia becomes the first state to censor literature.

1968 - Mister Rogers' Neighborhood makes its first debut.

1985 - Coca-Cola introduces Cherry Coke.

1997 - The FCC creates 311 for non-emergency calls and 711 for hearing or speech-impaired emergency calls.