Explorer I – Today In Southern History

31 January 1958

On this date in 1958…

Explorer I was the first satellite launched by the United States. Explorer was launched from Cape Canaveral in Florida on the Jupiter C rocket and was designed, built, and launched under the direction of Dr. Wernher Von Braun. Explorer was also the first satellite to carry scientific instruments

Other Years:

• 1861 – Louisiana state troops seized the U.S. Mint and Customs House in New Orleans.

• 1865 – General Robert E. Lee was appointed commander-in-chief of the Confederate States forces.

• 1865 – The US House of Representatives passed the constitutional amendment to abolish slavery.

• 1874 – The James-Younger gang was blamed for the robbery of a train at Gads Hill, Missouri.

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