Jim Thorpe’s Medals Returned – Today In Southern History

Jan 18, 2026

Jim Thorpe‘s two confiscated Olympic gold medals from the 1912 Stockholm pentathlon and decathlon were returned to his heirs.

1803 – Thomas Jefferson by secret communication with Congress sought authorization for the first official exploratory expedition by the U.S. government.
1862 – The Confederate Territory of Arizona was formed
1916 – A 611 gram chondrite-type meteorite struck a house near the village of Baxter in Stone County, Missouri.
1939 – Louis Armstrong and his orchestra recorded “Jeepers Creepers.”
1981 – Phil Smith and Phil Mayfield parachuted off a Houston skyscraper, becoming the first two people to BASE jump from objects in all four categories
1990 – Washington, D.C. Mayor Marion Barry was arrested for drug possession in an FBI sting

Today In Southern History