United States Historical Events is a daily guide to the important events that shaped America to what it is today. This is a compilation of significant events for the month of February including the birth and death of famous Americans as well as laws promulgated by authorities. The list is constantly updated to incorporate the most recent events.
United States Historical Events in February
| Day | Year | Event |
| 1 | 1861 | The State of Texas secedes from the United States and a week later joins the Confederacy. |
| 1 | 1958 | The first US satellite, Explorer 1, was launched at the Cape Canaveral Missile Test Center of the Atlantic Missile Range (AMR) in Florida. |
| 2 | 1653 | New Amsterdam (later renamed The City of New York) is incorporated. |
| 2 | 1915 | Birth: Joseph P. Williams, the creator of the BankAmericard, the first nationwide bank credit card, which later evolved into the VISA brand. |
| 2 | 2018 | Gateway Arch National Park was established in St. Louis, Missouri. |
| 3 | 1690 | The first paper money in the Americas was issued by the colony of Massachusetts. |
| 3 | 1924 | Death: Woodrow Wilson, the 28th US president, died in Washington, D.C. at age 67. |
| 4 | 2004 | Mark Zuckerberg creates a social media platform which he called Facebook. |
| 5 | 1917 | The United States Congress passes the Immigration Act of 1917 overriding President Woodrow Wilson’s veto. |
| 6 | 1788 | Massachusetts became the 6th State to be admitted to the Union. |
| 6 | 1911 | Birthday: Ronald Reagan, the 40th US President, was born in Illinois, United States. |
| 7 | 1795 | Ratification of the 11th Amendment to the United States Constitution restricting the ability of individuals to bring suit against states in federal court. |
| 7 | 1847 | Pope Pius IX approves the choice of Our Lady in her Immaculate Conception as Patroness of the United States. |
| 7 | 1885 | Birth: Harry Sinclair Lewis, the first American writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature |
| 8 | 1693 | King William III and Queen Mary II grants charter to the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, America. |
| 8 | 1910 | Boy Scout of America (BSA) was established by William D. Boyce. |
| 8 | 1962 | Establishment of the U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) to assist the Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG) Vietnam in response to the increase in United States military assistance to South Vietnam. |
| 8 | 1971 | The Nasdaq Stock Exchange (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) was established in New York City. It is now the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume. |
| 9 | 1773 | Birthday: William Henry Harrison, the 9th US President, was born in Charles City, Virginia. |
| 10 | 1923 | Texas Technological College which later became Texas Tech University is founded in Lubbock, Texas. |
| 10 | 1967 | The Twenty-fifth Amendment (Amendment XXV) to the United States Constitution which provides presidential succession and disability was ratified. |
| 11 | 1794 | First session of United States Senate opens to the public. |
| 11 | 1847 | Birthday: Tomas Alva Edison, an American inventor and businessman who developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. |
| 12 | 1809 | Birthday: President Abraham Lincoln, the 16th US president, was born in Kentucky, United States. |
| 13 | 1914 | The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers is established in New York City to protect the copyrighted musical compositions of its members. |
| 14 | 1859 | Oregon became the 33rd State to be admitted to the Union. |
| 14 | 1912 | Arizona became the 48th State to be admitted to the Union. |
| 14 | 1942 | Birthday: Michael Bloomberg, a former mayor of New York and a business magnate who co-founded media company Bloomberg LP. |
| 15 | 1764 | Establishment of the city of St. Louis in Spanish Louisiana (now in the state of Missouri). |
| 15 | 1898 | The United States Navy armored cruiser Maine mysteriously exploded and sank in Havana Harbor, Cuba. The event led to the Spanish-American War. |
| 16 | 1885 | Foundation day of the Dow Jones Average, precursor of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. |
| 16 | 1937 | A United States patent for nylon is granted to Wallace H. Carothers. |
| 17 | 1815 | The War of 1812 between the United States and the United Kingdom officially ended with the ratification of the Treaty of Ghent by the US Senate. |
| 18 | 1735 | The ballad opera called Flora or Hob in the Well opens in Charleston, South Carolina, becoming the first opera of any kind to be produced in North America. |
| 19 | 1807 | Former Vice President of the United States Aaron Burr is arrested for treason in Wakefield, Alabama and confined to Fort Stoddert. |
| 19 | 1878 | First patent for the phonograph was issued to Thomas A. Edison. |
| 20 | 1685 | René-Robert Cavelier establishes Fort St. Louis at Matagorda Bay giving basis for France’s claim to Texas. |
| 21 | 1842 | John Greenough receives the first United States patent for the sewing machine. |
| 21 | 1972 | Start of a historic week-long visit of US President Richard Nixon to Mainland China, the first time in over two decades. |
| 22 | 1732 | Birthday: George Washington, the 1st US president, was born in Westmoreland County, Virginia, United States. |
| 23 | 1848 | Death: John Quincy Adams, the 6th US president, died in Washington, D.C. at age 80. |
| 24 | 1803 | The Supreme Court of the United States establishes the principle of judicial review in Marbury v. Madison. |
| 24 | 1860 | Huntsville, the largest city of Alabama in terms of population, was incorporated as a city. |
| 25 | 1796 | Samuel Seabury, the first American Episcopal bishop, died in New London, Connecticut. |
| 25 | 1836 | Samuel Colt receives a United States patent for revolver firearm. |
| 25 | 1881 | Phoenix, the capital of Arizona, was incorporated as a city. |
| 26 | 1813 | Death: Robert Livingston, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States |
| 26 | 1919 | President Woodrow Wilson signs an act of Congress establishing the Grand Canyon National Park. |
| 27 | 1850 | Sacramento became the first incorporated city in the state of California. |
| 27 | 1951 | Ratification of the Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution which limits presidents to two terms. |
| 28 | 1867 | The United States Congress bans federal funding of diplomatic envoys to the Vatican after seventy years of Holy See–United States relations. (Relations would be restored again on January 10, 1984.) |
| 28 | 1900 | The Association of American Universities (AAU), an organization of American research universities devoted to maintaining a strong system of academic research and education, was founded. |
RELATED: United States Historical Events in January, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
