Historical Events
Assassination Attempt on Edward VII
Apr 4 Assassination attempt on Prince of Wales, later British King Edward VII when shot by Jean-Baptiste Sipido in protest over Boer war
- Apr 4 British garrison of Reddersberg surrenders to Boer General De Wet
- Apr 5 Attempted assassination of Edward Prince of Wales in Brussels, fails
Jeffries vs Finnegan
Apr 6 James J. Jeffries KOs Jack Finnegan in 1 for heavyweight boxing title
USS Holland
Apr 11 The first modern submarine designed and built by John Philip Holland, USS Holland is acquired by the U.S. Navy
- Apr 12 The US Congress passes the Foraker Act, establishing Puerto Rico as an unincorporated territory (effective 1 May)
- Apr 14 Veteran's Hospital at Ft Miley forms
- Apr 15 An early 50 mile race is won by an electric car in over 2 hrs
- Apr 15 Exposition Universelle (World's Fair) in Paris opens (till 12th Nov)
- Apr 16 4th Boston Marathon won by Canadian Jim Caffrey in race record 2:39:44.4
- Apr 16 US Post Office issues its first stamp booklets, containing 12, 24, or 48 two-cent stamps [1]
- Apr 17 High chiefs of American Samoa sign the Instrument of Cession of Tutuila and swear allegiance to the United States [1]
- Apr 19 Highest scoring opening game, Phils beat Braves 19-17 in 10
- Apr 23 1st know occurrence of word "hillbillie" (NY Journal)
- Apr 26 Newly renamed American League opener in Cleveland draws 6,500 (still as a minor league, was Western League)
- Apr 30 Casey Jones dies heroically in a train wreck at Vaughn, Mississippi, while driving Cannonball Express (immortalized in "Ballad of Casey Jones")
- Apr 30 The "Hawaiian Organic Act" is enacted by US Congress making Hawaii a US territory
Fitzsimmons KOs Dunkhost
Apr 30 Weighing in at 170 lbs British former world heavyweight boxing champion Bob Fitzsimmons KOs 270 lb American Ed Dunkhost in round 2 of a lop-sided bout in Brooklyn, New York
Famous Birthdays
- Apr 1 Robert McDowell, Mayor of Maryborough, Queensland (d. 1988)
- Apr 1 Stefanie Clausen, Danish diver (Olympic gold 10m platform 1920), born in Vesterbro, Denmark (d. 1981)
- Apr 2 Alfred Strange, English soccer right half (20 caps, 3 as captain; Sheffield Wednesday, 253 games), born in Ripley, England (d. 1978)
- Apr 2 Anis Fuleihan, Lebanese-American classical pianist, composer (Theremin Concerto), conductor, and pedagogue, born in Kyrenia, British Cyprus (d. 1970)
- Apr 2 Heinrich Besseler, German musicologist, born in Hörde, Germany (d. 1969)
- Apr 2 Roberto Arlt, Argentine writer (The Seven Madmen), born in Buenos Aires, Argentina (d. 1942)
- Apr 3 Camille Chamoun, President of Lebanon (1952-58), born in Deir el Qamar, Ottoman Empire (d. 1987)
- Apr 5 Herbert Bayer, Austrian-American Bauhaus trained graphic artist (invented Universal typeface), photographer and designer, born in Haag, Austria-Hungary (d. 1985) [1]
Spencer Tracy (1900-1967)
Apr 5 American actor (Woman of the Year, Adam's Rib), born in Milwaukee
- Apr 6 Andres Sas, Belgian-Peruvian composer, born in Paris, France (d. 1967)
- Apr 6 Leo Robin, American songwriter ("Thanks For The Memory"; "Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend"), born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (d. 1984)
- Apr 7 Tebbs Lloyd Johnson, English race walker (Olympic bronze 50k 1948; oldest Olympic medal-winning athlete; 48 years and 115 days), born in Melton Mowbray, England (d. 1984)
- Apr 9 Allen Jenkins, American actor (Hey Jeannie, Top Cop, Girl Habit), born in Staten Island, New York (d. 1974)
- Apr 10 Jean Duvieusart, 36th Prime Minister of Belgium, born in Les Bons Villers, Belgium (d. 1977)
- Apr 11 Sándor Márai, Hungarian writer (A gyertyák csonkig égnek), born in Kassa, Hungary (d. 1989)
- Apr 13 Pierre Molinier, French painter and photographer, born in Agen, France (d. 1976)
- Apr 14 Salvatore Baccaloni, Italian opera singer and actor (Merry Andrew; Rock-a-Bye Baby), born in Rome, Italy (d. 1969)
- Apr 16 Polly Adler, Russian bordello proprieter and author (House is not a Home), born in Yanow, Russia (d. 1962)
- Apr 19 Richard Hughes, English writer (Fiction as Truth), born in Weybridge, Surrey (d. 1976)
- Apr 19 Roland Michener, 20th Governor General of Canada (1967-74), born in Lacombe, Alberta, Canada (d. 1991)
- Apr 20 Fred Raymond, Austrian composer, born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1954)
- Apr 20 Kees Verwey, Dutch painter and cartoonist, born in Amsterdam (d. 1995)
- Apr 23 Ary Verhaar, Dutch composer, born in The Hague, Netherlands (d. 1994)
- Apr 23 Harold French, British director and actor (The Cavalier of the Streets, Trio, Quartet), born in Lambeth, London (d. 1997)
- Apr 23 Henry Barraud, French composer, born in Bordeaux, France (d. 1997)
Jim Bottomley (1900-1959)
Apr 23 American Baseball HOF first baseman (MLB all-time single game RBI record [12] 1924; World Series 1926, 31; NL MVP & NL HR leader 1928; St. Louis Cardinals), born in Oglesby, Illinois
- Apr 23 Joseph Green, Polish-American filmmaker, born in Łódź, Poland (d. 1996)
- Apr 25 Hubert Miles Gladwyn Jebb, 1st Baron Gladwyn, British politician and diplomat, born in Firbeck Hall, England (d. 1996)
- Apr 25 Wolfgang Pauli, Swiss-American theoretical physicist (Pauli inhibition, Nobel 1945), born in Vienna, Austria-Hungary (d. 1958)
- Apr 26 Charles F. Richter, American physicist and seismologist (developed the Richter scale for measuring earthquake magnitude), born in Overpeck, Ohio (d. 1985)
Hack Wilson (1900-1948)
Apr 26 American Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder (MLB single season record 191 RBI 1930; NL HR leader 1926–28, 30; NL RBI leader 1929, 30; Chicago Cubs), born in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania
- Apr 27 Walter Lantz, American cartoonist (Woody Woodpecker's creator), born in New Rochelle, New York (d. 1994)
- Apr 28 Bruno Apitz, German writer (Nackt unter Wölfen, born in Leipzig (d. 1979)
- Apr 28 Heinrich Müller, German Nazi, Director of the Gestapo (1939-45) and most senior Nazi official never captured or confirmed to have died, born in Munich, German Empire (d. ?)
- Apr 28 Jan Hendrik Oort, Dutch astronomer (hypothesized "Oort Cloud"), born in Franeker, Friesland (d. 1992)
- Apr 28 Kenneth Horne, British writer and playwright (Fools Rush In; The Coming-Out Party), born in Westminster, London, England (d. 1975)
- Apr 28 Maurice Thorez, French politician and secretary-general (French Communist Party), born in Noyelles-Godault, Pas-de-Calais, France (d. 1964)
Famous Deaths
- Apr 5 Comte de Villebois-Marevil, French/South African general, dies in battle
- Apr 7 Frederick Edwin Church, American romantic landscape painter (Hudson River School), dies at 73
- Apr 11 Seth Barton, American Brigadier General (Confederate Army), dies at 70
- Apr 20 Alexandre Falguière, French sculptor and painter, dies at 68
- Apr 21 Heinrich Vogl, composer, dies at 55
- Apr 24 Andrew Smith Hallidie, American inventor and cable car pioneer, dies at 64
- Apr 24 George Campbell, 8th Duke of Argyll and Secretary of State for India (1868-74, 1880-85), dies at 76
- Apr 25 Alexandra Petrovna of Russia (née Duchess Alexandra of Oldenburg), German-Russian noblewoman and philanthropist, dies at 61
- Apr 30 Casey Jones, American railroad engineer, dies at 36 heroically in Cannonball Express train wreck
