May 1 is the 121st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 244 days remain until the end of the year.
We have some interesting facts & historic events all about May 1st, including areas in religion, crime, health and more.
Keep reading for more interesting facts about May 1st in history!
Table of Contents
Global Celebrations
- May Day.
- National Mother Goose Day
- National School Principals Day
- Lei Day
- National Purebred Dog Day
- International Workers Day
- Executive Coaching Day
- National New Homeowners Day
Historic Events
What Happened On This Day – May 1
2012: Occupy Wall Street protesters gather on International Workers’ Day in 2012.
1978: Naomi Uemura becomes of the first person to reach the North Pole alone
The Japanese adventurer is also credited with the first solo ascent of Mount McKinley and the first solo rafting of the Amazon river. He disappeared in 1984 during a winter ascent of Mount McKinley.
1961: Fidel Castro declares Cuba a socialist nation and bans elections
A month after Cuban troops had fought off a U.S. backed military invasion at the Bay of Pigs, Castro announces that “The revolution has no time for elections.”
1945: Adolf Hitler’s death is announced on German radio
As the Soviet flag is raised over the Reich Chancellery, the German people are informed that “our leader, Adolf Hitler, has fallen for Germany, fighting to his last breath against Bolshevism.”
1925: The world’s largest trade union is founded
The All-China Federation of Trade Unions has more than 300 million members.
1840: The world’s first adhesive postage stamp is issued in the United Kingdom
The Penny Black shows a portrait of Queen Victoria. Despite its historical significance, the stamp can be bought for around £25 as over 68 million copied were distributed.
1961: Elections were banned in Cuba under Fidel Castro in 1961.
1956: An Uzi-armed Israeli Soldier on guard – Negev Desert, 1956
1945: An M4 Sherman and other vehicles of the US 11th Armored Division crossing the Mühl River in Austria, May 1945.
1945: US Soldiers put a warning sign on burned German tank in front of a bomb-damaged cathedral after Allied air attacks on the devastated city. Cologne, Germany, 1945.
1931: The Empire State Building in New York Officially opens in 1931.
1922: Explosion and fire at the Four Courts in Dublin at the start of the Irish Civil War in 1922
1906: San Francisco City Hall, after earthquake and fire.
Famous Birthdays
Births On This Day, May 1
1987: Shahar Pe’er, Israeli tennis player
1967: Tim McGraw, American singer-songwriter, actor
1924: Terry Southern, American author, screenwriter
1923: Joseph Heller, American author, playwright
1769: Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, Irish/English field marshal, politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
James Dornan was born.
YNW Melly was born.
Anushka Sharma was born.
Heartbreaking Deaths
Deaths On This Day, May 1
1994: Ayrton Senna, Brazilian race car driver
1990: Sergio Franchi, Italian/American singer, actor
1960: Charles Holden, English architect, designed the Bristol Central Library
1904: Antonín Dvořák, Czech composer
1873: David Livingstone, Scottish missionary, explorer
Henry Copper died.
Ayrton Senna died.
Joseph Goebbles died.