#MiddleburyCT
On Feb. 10, 1957, Laura Ingalls Wilder – author of the best-selling “Little House” series of books based on her childhood on the American frontier, which later inspired a popular TV series starring Melissa Gilbert as the young Laura and Michael Landon as her father, Charles – died at age 90 in Mansfield, Missouri.
- On Feb. 11, 1878, the first organization for recreational cyclists, called the Boston Bicycle Club, was formed. The club organized rides ranging from tricycle races to 100-mile trips, and less than 20 years after its founding, more than 100 similar clubs had formed in Massachusetts as middle-class participation in cycling increased in popularity.
- On Feb. 12, 1947, French fashion designer Christian Dior launched his first collection, which he dubbed the “New Look.” While some appreciated its exaggerated femininity as a departure from the more drab and boxy stylings of wartime austerity, others still living with rationing decried it as wasteful, and fellow French designer Coco Chanel declared that “Dior doesn’t dress women. He upholsters them!”
- On Feb. 13, 1905, President Theodore Roosevelt, who had just won re-election, gave a speech to the New York City Republican Club about the state of American race relations and his plan for improving them. However, it was not until President Lyndon Johnson passed the Civil Rights Act in 1964 that government efforts to correct racial bias were actually set into law.
- On Feb. 14, ca. 270 A.D., Valentine, a priest in Rome, was beheaded for the crime of continuing to marry young lovers in defiance of Emperor Claudius, who had banned all engagements and weddings in the city due to his belief that Roman men were unwilling to enlist in the military because of their strong attachment to their wives and families.
- On Feb. 15, 1968, Henry Lewis was chosen over more than 150 other candidates as the first Black conductor of a major U.S. orchestra, the New Jersey Symphony.
- On Feb. 16, 2016, former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was placed under investigation over his campaign funds, related to spending in his unsuccessful 2012 bid for re-election when his campaign costs were more than twice the legal limit.
© 2025 King Features Synd., Inc.
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