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1947

From Encyclopedia Jr, free information reference for Kids

Centuries: 19th century · 20th century · 21st century
Decades: 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s
Years: 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950
1947 by topic:
Arts
Architecture - Art - Film - Literature
Music (Country, UK) - Television - Home video
Science and technology
Archaeology - Aviation
Meteorology - Rail transport - Radio - Science
By country
Australia - Canada - France - Germany - India
Ireland - Malaysia - Mexico - New Zealand - Pakistan
Singapore - South Africa - UK - Wales - Zimbabwe
Other topics
Awards - Sport - Law - State leaders - Sovereign states - Religious leaders
Birth and death categories
Births - Deaths
Establishments and disestablishments categories
Establishments - Disestablishments
Works category
Works
1947 in other calendars
Gregorian calendar 1947
MCMXLVII
Ab urbe condita 2700
Armenian calendar 1396
ԹՎ ՌՅՂԶ
Chinese calendar 4643 – 4644
丙戌 – 丁亥
Ethiopian calendar 1939 – 1940
Hebrew calendar 5707 – 5708
Hindu calendars
- Vikram Samvat 2002 – 2003
- Shaka Samvat 1869 – 1870
- Kali Yuga 5048 – 5049
Iranian calendar 1325 – 1326
Islamic calendar 1366 – 1367

1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1947 calendar).

Contents

Events

January

February

March

  • March 1 - The International Monetary Fund begins to operate.
  • March 1 - Wernher von Braun marries his first cousin, 18-year-old Maria von Quirstorp.
  • March 1 - Japanese city Tsushima, Aichi is founded
  • March 6 - USS Newport News, the first air-conditioned naval ship, is launched from Newport News, Virginia.
  • March 12 - The Truman Doctrine is proclaimed to help stem the spread of Communism.
  • March 15 - Hindus and Muslims clash in Punjab
  • March 21 - Homer Collyer of the Collyer brothers is found dead in their house in Harlem, New York City. His brother is found April 8
  • March 25 - A coalmine explosion in Centralia, Illinois kills 111.
  • March 28 - WW2 Japanese booby trap explodes in Corregidor - 28 dead
  • March 29 - Rebellion against French rule erupts in Madagascar

April

  • April 1 - King George II of Greece dies of a heart attack, succeeded by his brother King Paul I.
  • April 15 - Jackie Robinson becomes the first African American to be on a professional baseball diamond.
  • April 16 - The Texas City Disaster - Ammonium nitrate cargo of SS Grandcamp explodes in Texas City, Texas - 552 dead, 3000 injured, 200 lost, 20 city blocks destroyed

May

  • May 1 - Gang of Salvatore Giuliano opens fire on a labor parade near Portella Della Ginestra, Sicily; Eleven killed, thirty wounded
  • May 3 - New post-war Japanese constitution goes into effect.
  • May 22 - Cold War: In an effort to fight the spread of Communism, President Harry S. Truman signs an act implementing the Truman Doctrine. The act granted $400 million in military and economic aid to Turkey and Greece.

June

  • June 5 - Secretary of State Gen George Marshall outlines the Marshall Plan for U.S. aid to Europe.
  • June 7 - The Steaua football club is founded in Bucharest, Romania.
  • June 10 - Saab produces its first automobile.
  • June 15 - Portuguese government orders 11 military officers and 19 university professors to resign accused of revolutionary activity
  • June 20 - Bugsy Siegel found shot in the Beverly Hills mansion of Virginia Hill
  • June 21 - A Seaman named Harold Dahl claims to have seen six UFOs near Maury Island. The next morning Dahl reports the first modern Men in Black encounter.
  • June 21 - The Canadian Parliament voted unaminiously to pass several laws regarding displaced foreign refugees.
  • June 23 - The United States Senate follows the United States House of Representatives in overriding U.S. President Harry S. Truman's veto of the Taft-Hartley Act.

July

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), created July 1947
Enlarge
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), created July 1947
  • July 1 - The Australian real estate franchise L. J. Hooker lists on the Australian Stock Exchange
  • July 5 - Downed UFO allegedly found in the Roswell UFO incident, written about by Stanton T. Friedman.
  • July 10 - Princess Elizabeth announces engagement to Philip Mountbatten
  • July 11 - Exodus (ship) departs France to Palestine with 4500 Jewish Holocaust survivor refugees
  • July 18 - Following wide media and UNSCOP coverage, Exodus (ship) is captured by British troops and refused entry to Palestine in the port of Haifa
  • July 18 - President Harry S. Truman signs the Presidential Succession Act into law which places the Speaker of the House and the Senate President Pro Tempore next in the line of succession after the United States Vice President.
  • July 19 - Murder of Burmese nationalist Aung San
  • July 24 - 100 year anniversary of Brigham Young leading 148 Mormon pioneers into the Salt Lake Valley, resulting in the establishment of Salt Lake City.
  • July 26 - Cold War: U.S. President Harry S. Truman signs the National Security Act into United States law creating the Central Intelligence Agency, Department of Defense, Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the National Security Council.
  • July 29 - After being shut off on November 9, 1946 for a refurbishment, ENIAC, one of the world's first digital computers, is turned on after a memory upgrade. It will remain in continuous operation until October 2, 1955.
  • July 30 - Thor Heyerdahl sails with Kon-Tiki

August

Flag of the newly independent India
Enlarge
Flag of the newly independent India
Flag of the newly independent Pakistan
Enlarge
Flag of the newly independent Pakistan
  • August 4 - UK Betty Moore from Horsham, Sussex, sails in her first Cowes Week. 59 years later she is awarded the Skandia Cowes Week Ladies Day Trophy after campaigning her Solent Sunbeam, WHY, in all 60 consecutive regattas.
  • August 5 - Netherlands stops political actions in Indonesia
  • August 7 - Thor Heyerdahl's balsa wood raft the Kon-Tiki, smashes into the reef at Raroia in the Tuamotu Islands after a 101 day, 4,300 mile journey across the Pacific Ocean proving that pre-historic peoples could have traveled from South America.
  • August 7 - The Bombay Municipal Corporation formally takes over the Bombay Electric Supply and Transport (BEST).
  • August 9 - Beginning the 6 Scout World Jamboree - see Jamboree Scout 1947 (in French)
  • August 14 - Pakistan gains independence from the British Empire under the leadership of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah. While the transition is officially at midnight on this day, Pakistan celebrates its independence on August 14 compared to India on the 15th. Muhammad Ali Jinnah became the first Governor General of Pakistan.
  • August 15 - Following decades of nonviolent resistance and periodic civil unrest from 1919, India gains independence from the British Empire. Pakistan splits from India. Jawaharlal Nehru takes office as first Prime Minister of India.
  • August 15 - The Khan of Baluchistan declares independence (acceeds to Pakistan in 1948)
  • August 16 - In Greece, General Markos Vafiadis takes over
  • August 23 - Prime Minister of Greece Dimitrios Maximos resigns.
  • August 27 - When the French government lowers the bread ration to 200 grams, it causes riots in Verdun and Le Mans
  • August 31 - Communists take power in Hungary.

September

  • September 4-September 21 - Hurricane in southeast Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama - 51 killed
  • September 9 - "First actual case of (a computer) bug being found" - a moth lodged in a relay of a Mark II computer at Harvard.
  • September 13 - Nehru suggests transfer of 4 million Hindus and Muslims between India and Pakistan.
  • September 18 - The United States Army Air Forces, along with some components of the United States Navy's air arm, becomes the United States Air Force.
  • September 1 - Robert L. Haug born, Kansas City, Missouri, USA

October

  • October 14 - American test pilot, Captain Chuck Yeager flies a Bell X-1 faster than the speed of sound, the first man to do so in level flight.
  • October 20 - The Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 begins
  • October 30 - The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which is the foundation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) is founded.

November

  • November 2 - In California, Designer Howard Hughes performs the maiden flight of the Spruce Goose; the largest fixed-wing aircraft ever built (flight lasted only eight minutes).
  • November 2 - Earthquake in Chilean Andes - 233 dead
  • November 10 - Arrest of four steel workers in Marseille begins a communist rioting that spreads to Paris
  • November 16 - 15,000 demonstrate in Brussels against the relatively short sentences of Nazis.
  • November 16 - British begin to withdraw their troops from Palestine.
The Princess Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh on their wedding day
Enlarge
The Princess Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh on their wedding day
  • November 20- The Princess Elizabeth, daughter of King George VI marries the Duke of Edinburgh at Westminster Abbey, London.
  • November 20 - Paul Ramadier resigns as Prime Minister of France - he is succeeded by Robert Schuman. Schuman calls 80,000 reservists to quell the rioting miners
  • November 24 - Red Scare: The United States House of Representatives votes 346 to 17 to approve citations of contempt of U.S. Congress against the so-called Hollywood 10 after the 10 had refused to co-operate with the House Un-American Activities Committee concerning allegations of Communist influence in the movie industry, (the 10 were blacklisted by Hollywood movie studios the next day).
  • November 25 - New Zealand ratifies the Statute of Westminster and thus becomes independent of legislative control by the United Kingdom.
  • November 27 - In Paris, police occupy editorial offices of communist newspapers.
  • November 29 - The United Nations General Assembly votes to partition Palestine between Arabs and Jews.

December

  • December 3 - French communist strikers derail Paris-Tourcoing Express train because of false rumors that it was transporting soldiers - 21 dead
  • December 3 - Tennessee Williams' play A Streetcar Named Desire opens on Broadway.
  • December 4 - French interior minister Jules Moch secures emergency measures against riots after six days of violent arguments in the national assembly
  • December 9 - French labour unions calls off the general strike and begin negotiations with the French government
  • December 22 - the Italian Constituent Assembly votes to accept the new constitution.
  • December 22 - the first practical Transistor is demonstrated.
  • December 30 - King Michael of Romania abdicates

Unknown dates

  • The House Un-American Activities Committee begin their investigations of communism in Hollywood.
  • Cambridge University begins to admits women as full students.
  • Mikhail Kalashnikov designs the AK-47 assault rifle.
  • Walter Frederick Morrison invents the Frisbee.
  • Raytheon produces first commercial microwave oven.
  • Women's suffrage is granted in Argentina.
  • The people's Republic of Mahabad the 2nd kurdish state in kurdish history in Iran is conquered by Iranian forces. The leaders where hanged at the Chuwarchira Square in Mahabad.
  • In a cave in and around the Wadi Qumran (near the ruins of the ancient settlement of Khirbet Qumran, on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea), several tall pottery jars containing leather scrolls are discovered, which later became known as the Dead Sea scrolls. [1]

Births

January

February

March

  • March 4 - Jan Garbarek, Norwegian musician
  • March 6 - Kiki Dee, English singer
  • March 6 - Dick Fosbury, American athlete
  • March 6 - Teru Miyamoto, Japanese author
  • March 6 - Rob Reiner, American actor, comedian, and producer
  • March 7 - Matthew Fisher, British singer, songwriter, and producer
  • March 7 - Walter Röhrl, German race car driver
  • March 7 - Richard Lawson, American actor
  • March 8 - Carole Bayer Sager, American composer
  • March 10 - Kim Campbell, Prime Minister of Canada (1993)
  • March 10 - Tom Scholz, American musician, songwriter, and inventor
  • March 12 - Kalervo Palsa, Finnish artist
  • March 13 - Beat Richner, Swiss pediatrician and cellist
  • March 14 - Pam Ayres, British poet
  • March 14 - Billy Crystal, American actor and comedian
  • March 15 - Ry Cooder, American guitarist
  • March 19 - Glenn Close, American actress
  • March 20 - John Boswell, American historian (d. 1994)
  • March 24 - Louise Lanctôt, Canadian terrorist and writer
  • March 25 - Elton John, English singer, pianist, and songwriter
  • March 27 - Walt Mossberg, American newspaper columnist

April

  • April 1 - Alain Connes, French mathematician
  • April 2 - Emmylou Harris, American singer
  • April 2 - Camille Paglia, American literary critic
  • April 4 - Eliseo Soriano, Philippine preacher
  • April 5 - Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, incumbent Philippine president and daughter of former president Diosdado Macapagal
  • April 6 - John Ratzenberger, American actor
  • April 8 - Tom DeLay, American politician
  • April 11 - Deem Bristow, American video game actor (d. 2005)
  • April 12 - Tom Clancy, American author
  • April 12 - David Letterman, American entertainer
  • April 15 - Mike Chapman, Australian-born record producer and songwriter
  • April 16 - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, American basketball player
  • April 18 - Kathy Acker, American author (d. 1997)
  • April 18 - James Woods, American actor
  • April 19 - Murray Perahia, American pianist
  • April 21 - Iggy Pop, American musician (The Stooges)
  • April 21 - John Weider, British musician (Eric Burdon and the Animals and Family)
  • April 23 - Philip Schneider, American engineer
  • April 25 - Johan Cruijff, Dutch footballer and coach
  • April 29 - Olavo de Carvalho, Brazilian philosopher
  • April 30 - Leslie Grantham, British actor

May

  • May 6 - Martha Nussbaum, American philosopher
  • May 4 - Theda Skocpol, American Sociologist
  • May 8 - H. Robert Horvitz, American biologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
  • May 13 - Stephen R. Donaldson, American novelist
  • May 19 - Paul Brady, Northern Ireland singer/songwriter
  • May 23 - Bernard Comrie, English linguist
  • May 26 - Glenn Turner, New Zealand cricket captains
  • May 27 - Branko Oblak, Slovenian football player and coach

June

  • June 4 - Viktor Klima, Chancellor of Austria
  • June 6 - David Blunkett, British politician
  • June 6 - Ada Kok, Dutch swimmer
  • June 6 - Robert Englund, American Actor
  • June 8 - Eric F. Wieschaus, American biologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
  • June 14 - Barry Melton, American musician (Country Joe and The Fish and The Dinosaurs)
  • June 15 - John Hoagland, American war photographer (d. 1984)
  • June 16 - -minu, Swiss columnist and writer
  • June 19 - Salman Rushdie, Indian-born author
  • June 20 - The Duchess of Gloucester
  • June 20 - Candy Clark, American actress
  • June 21 - Shirin Ebadi, Iranian activist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize
  • June 22 - Octavia Butler, American author (d. 2006)
  • June 22 - David Lander, American actor and baseball scout
  • June 22 - Pete Maravich, American basketball player (d. 1988)
  • June 22 - Mike Stone, American football player
  • June 28 - Mark Helprin, American writer

July

  • July 2 - Larry David, American actor, writer, producer, and director
  • July 3 - Dave Barry, American writer
  • July 7 - Richard Beckinsale, British actor
  • July 7 - Rob Townsend, British drummer (Family)
  • July 8 - Bobby Sowell, pianist and composer
  • July 9 - Haruomi Hosono, Japanese musician (Yellow Magic Orchestra)
  • July 9 - Mitch Mitchell, American drummer (Jimi Hendrix Experience)
  • July 9 - O. J. Simpson, American football player and actor
  • July 10 - Arlo Guthrie, American singer
  • July 10 - Jackie Lane, British actress
  • July 17 - Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall
  • July 18 - Steven W. Mahoney, Canadian politician
  • July 19 - Brian May, English guitarist (Queen)
  • July 20 - Gerd Binnig, German physicis, Nobel Prize laureate
  • July 20 - Carlos Santana, Mexican-born guitarist
  • July 21 - Co Adriaanse, Dutch football manager
  • July 24 - Peter Serkin, American pianist
  • July 30 - Arnold Schwarzenegger, Austrian-born actor, bodybuilder, and Governor of California

August-September

October

November

December

Unknown date

  • Peter Irniq, Commissioner of Nunavut
  • Cleopatra Mathis, American poet
  • Frank Ormsby, Irish poet

Deaths

January-April

May-December

  • May 8 - Harry Gordon Selfridge, American department store magnate (b. 1858)
  • May 16 - Frederick Hopkins, English biochemist, recipient of the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine (b. 1861)
  • May 17 - George William Forbes, Prime Minister of New Zealand (b. 1869)
  • May 20 - Philipp Lenard, Austrian physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1862)
  • May 24 - C. F. Ramuz, Swiss writer (b. 1878)
  • May 31 - Adrienne Ames, American actress (b. 1907)
  • June 26 - Richard Bedford Bennett, eleventh Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1870)
  • July 19 - Aung San, Burmese nationalist (assassinated) (b. 1915)
  • July 30 - Joseph Cook, sixth Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1860)
  • October 4 - Max Planck, German physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1858)
  • October 6 - Leevi Madetoja, Finnish composer (b. 1887)
  • October 29 - Frances Cleveland, wife of President Grover Cleveland (b. 1864)
  • November 25 - Léon-Paul Fargue, French writer (b. 1876)
  • December 1 - Aleister Crowley, British occultist (b. 1875)
  • December 1 - G. H. Hardy, British mathematician (b. 1877)
  • December 7 - Nicholas M. Butler, American president of Columbia University, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1862)
  • December 7 - Tristan Bernard, French writer and lawyer (b. 1866)
  • December 14 - Stanley Baldwin, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1867)
  • December 14 - Edward Higgins, General of The Salvation Army (b. 1864)
  • December 17 - J. N. Brønsted, Danish chemist (b. 1879)
  • December 28 - Victor Emmanuel III of Italy (b. 1869)
  • Emil J. Brach, American candy manufacturer (b. 1859)

Nobel prizes

  • Physics - Edward Victor Appleton
  • Chemistry - Sir Robert Robinson
  • Medicine - Carl Ferdinand Cori, Gerty Cori, Bernardo Houssay
  • Literature - André Gide
  • Peace - The Friends Service Council (UK) and The American Friends Service Committee (USA), on behalf of the Religious Society of Friends

Ship events

  • List of ship commissionings in 1947
  • List of ship decommissionings in 1947
  • List of shipwrecks in 1947

Fictional references

  • The 1988 movie Who Framed Roger Rabbit was set in Hollywood, 1947.
  • In the Futurama episode Roswell That Ends Well, Fry accidentally put metal in the microwave and everyone in Planet Express went back to July 9, 1947.
  • In Back to the Future Part III, Doc Brown said that suitable parts for his time-circuits are invented.

References

  1. ^ "Year by Year 1947" -- History Channel International

Citation Help

APA Style: Reference List

Encyclopedia Jr (2007). 1947. Retrieved July 4, 2008, from http://www.encyclopediajr.com/wikiarticle/1/9/4/1947.

MLA Style: Works Cited Page

"1947." Encyclopedia Jr. 2007. 4 Jul 2008 <http://www.encyclopediajr.com/wikiarticle/1/9/4/1947>.


This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article 1947.


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