Timeline: James Gregory Ashley: Our Family History

1947 - 1968 (20 years)

	Date	Event(s)
1	1383	1383—99 9999: Regular series of wills starts in Prerogative Court of Canterbury
2	1898	7 Jul 1898—20 Aug 1959: Territory of Hawaii was Oraganized
3	1912	8 1912—2 Jan 1959: Alaska Territory Organized
4	1936	12 Nov 1936—6 Feb 1952: George VI House of Windsor (name adopted Jul 17, 1917): 2nd son of George V, Duke of York; married Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon
5	1945	12 Apr 1945—20 Jan 1953: Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman U.S. Presidency 4 Dec 1945—20 Jan 1953: Harry Truman
6	1947	1947—1947: First British nuclear reactor developed 1947—1947: Most severe winter in Britain for 53 years at start of the year - heavy snow and much flooding later 1947—1947: British/Hungarian scientist, Dennis Gabor, developed the theory of holography 1947—1947: Mobile phones first invented 1947—1947: Bardeen, Brattain, and Shockley invent the transistor 1947—1947: Earl Silas Tupper patented the Tupperware seal 1 Jan 1947—1 Jan 1947: Coal Mines nationalised 23 Feb 1947—23 Feb 1947: International Organization for Standardization (ISO) founded 1 Mar 1947—1 Mar 1947: International Monetary Fund begins financial operations 1 Apr 1947—1 Apr 1947: School leaving age raised to 15 in Britain 26 Oct 1947—26 Oct 1947: British military occupation ends in Iraq 20 Nov 1947—20 Nov 1947: Marriage of Princess Elizabeth (later Elizabeth II) and Philip Mountbatten in Westminster Abbey 3 1947—21 Mar 1947: 22nd Amendment passed by Congress
7	1948	1948—1948: Transistor radio invented 1948—1948: Long-playing record (LP) invented by Goldmark 1948—1948: British Citizenship Act : all Commonwealth citizens qualify for British passports 1948—1948: The Frisbee® invented by Walter Frederick Morrison and Warren Franscioni 1948—1948: Velcro ® invented by George de Mestral 1948—1948: Robert Hope-Jones invented the Wurlitzer jukebox 1 Jan 1948—1 Jan 1948: British Railways nationalised 5 Jul 1948—5 Jul 1948: National Health Service (NHS) begins in Britain 29 Jul 1948—29 Jul 1948: London Olympics begin
8	1949	1949—1949: De Haviland produces the Comet - first jet airliner 1949—1949: Maiden flight of the Bristol Brabazon (broken up in 1953 for scrap) 1949—1949: Cake mix invented 15 Mar 1949—15 Mar 1949: Clothes rationing ends in Britain 4 Apr 1949—4 Apr 1949: Twelve nations sign The North Atlantic Treaty creating NATO 4 Apr 1949—4 Apr 1949: Canada joins NATO 3 1949—31 Mar 1949: Newfoundland joins Canada Newfoundland becomes Canada's tenth province
9	1950	1950—1950: The first credit card (Diners) invented by Ralph Schneider 4 1950—30 Jun 1950: Winnipeg flood More than 100,000 people forced from their homes in Winnipeg, Manitoba, by the Red River flooding 19 May 1950—19 May 1950: Points rationing ends in Britain 26 May 1950—26 May 1950: Petrol rationing ends in Britain 25 Jun 1950—27 Jul 1953: Korean War Korean War 11 Jul 1950—11 Jul 1950: 'Andy Pandy' first seen on BBC TV 9 Sep 1950—9 Sep 1950: Soap rationing ends in Britain 28 Dec 1950—28 Dec 1950: The Peak District becomes the Britain's first National Park 6 1950—27 Jul 1953: Korean War As part of the United Nations, Canadian troops participate in the Korean War 6 1950—27 Jul 1953: Korean War United States (as part of the United Nations) and South Korea vs. North Korea and Communist China
10	1951	1951—1951: Super glue invented 1951—1951: Power steering invented by Francis W. Davis 1951—1951: Charles Ginsburg invented the first videotape recorder (VTR) 3 May 1951—3 May 1951: Festival of Britain and Royal Festival Hall open on South Bank, London 28 May 1951—28 May 1951: First Goon Show broadcast 20 Dec 1951—20 Dec 1951: Electricity first produced by nuclear power, from Experimental Breeder Reactor 2 1951—27 Feb 1951: 22nd Amendment ratified
11	1952	1952—1952: Bonn Convention: Britain, France and USA end their occupation of West Germany 1952—1952: Radioactive carbon used for dating prehistoric objects 1952—1952: Contraceptive pill invented 1952—1952: Britain explodes her first atomic bomb, in Australia 1952—1952: Mr. Potato Head patented 1952—1952: The first patent for bar code (US Patent #2,612,994) issued to inventors Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver 1952—1952: The first diet soft drink sold 1952—1952: Edward Teller and team build the hydrogen bomb 6 Feb 1952—6 Feb 1952: King George VI dies 21 Feb 1952—21 Feb 1952: Identity Cards abolished in Britain 2 May 1952—2 May 1952: First commercial jet airliner service launched, by BOACComet between London and Johannesburg 2 Jun 1952—2004: Elizabeth II House of Windsor (name adopted Jul 17, 1917):Elder daughter of George VI, acceded Feb 6, 1952 5 Jul 1952—5 Jul 1952: Last tram runs in London (Woolwich to New Cross) 16 Aug 1952—16 Aug 1952: Lynmouth (North Devon) flood disaster 6 Sep 1952—6 Sep 1952: DH110 crashes at Farnborough Air Show, 26 killed 3 Oct 1952—3 Oct 1952: End of tea rationing in Britain 1 Nov 1952—1 Nov 1952: The first H-bomb ever ('Mike') was exploded by the USA - the mushroom cloud was 8 miles across and 27 miles high. The canopy was 100 miles wide. Radioactive mud fell out of the sky followed by heavy rain. 80 million tons of earth was vaporised. 25 Nov 1952—25 Nov 1952: Agatha Christie's 'The Mousetrap' opens in London 4 Dec 1952—4 Dec 1952: Great smog hits London
12	1953	1953—1953: Radial tires invented 1953—1953: The first musical synthesizer invented by RCA 1953—1953: David Warren invented the black box - flight recorder 1953—1953: Transistor radio invented by Texas Instruments 20 Jan 1953—20 Jan 1961: Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight D. Eisenhower U.S. 31 Jan 1953—31 Jan 1953: Said to be the biggest civil catastrophe in Britain in the 20th century - severe storm and high tides caused the loss of hundreds of lives - - effects travelled from the west coast of Scotland round to the south-east coast of England [The Netherlands wer 5 Feb 1953—5 Feb 1953: Sweet rationing ends in Britain 5 Mar 1953—5 Mar 1953: Death of Stalin 26 Mar 1953—26 Mar 1953: Jonas Salk announces his polio vaccine 24 Apr 1953—24 Apr 1953: Winston Churchill knighted 25 Apr 1953—25 Apr 1953: Francis Crick and James D Watson publish the double helix structure of DNA 2 Jun 1953—2 Jun 1953: Coronation of Elizabeth II 26 Sep 1953—26 Sep 1953: Sugar rationing ends in Britain (after nearly 14 years) 1 1953—20 Jan 1961: Dwight Eisenhower
13	1954	1954—1954: First transistor radios sold 1954—1954: Routemaster bus starts operating in London 1954—1954: First comprehensive school opens in London 1954—1954: Oral contraceptives invented 1954—1954: The first nonstick pan produced 1954—1954: The solar cell invented by Chaplin, Fuller and Pearson 1954—1954: Ray Kroc started McDonalds 6 May 1954—6 May 1954: First sub 4 minute mile (Roger Bannister, 3 mins 59.4 secs) 3 Jul 1954—3 Jul 1954: Food rationing officially ends in Britain 5 Jul 1954—5 Jul 1954: BBC broadcasts its first television news bulletin 30 Sep 1954—30 Sep 1954: First atomic powered sumbmarine USS Nautilus commissioned 10 1954—15 Oct 1954: Hurricane Hazel Southwestern Ontario, Toronto and area, hit by Hurricane Hazel -- 81 died, 4,000 homeless
14	1955	1955—1955: 'Mole' self-grip wrench patented by Thomas Coughtrie of Mole & Sons 1955—1955: Tetracycline invented 1955—1955: Optic fiber invented 27 Jul 1955—27 Jul 1955: Jul 27: Allied occupation of Austria (after WW2) ends 22 Sep 1955—22 Sep 1955: Commercial TV starts in Britain
15	1956	1956—1956: Britain constructs world's first large-scale nuclear power station in Cumberland 1956—1956: The first computer hard disk used 1956—1956: The hovercraft invented by Christopher Cockerell 1956—1956: Bette Nesmith Graham invented "Mistake Out," later renamed Liquid Paper, to paint over mistakes made with a typewriter 6 Jan 1956—1 Jun 1956: First nation-wide 5-year census Population-count censuses initiated 11 Jan 1956—1 Nov 1956: Springhill Mine explosion 39 miners killed from explosion in mine at Springhill, Nova Scotia 1 Mar 1956—1 Mar 1956: Radiotelephony spelling alphabet introduced (Alpha, Bravo, etc) 17 Apr 1956—17 Apr 1956: Premium Bonds first launched - first prizes drawn on 1 Jun 1957 3 Jun 1956—3 Jun 1956: 3rd class travel abolished on British Railways (renamed 'Third Class' as 'Second Class', which had been abolished in 1875 leaving just First and Third Class) 31 Oct 1956—31 Oct 1956: Britain and France invade Suez
16	1957	1957—1957: Helvetica typeface developed (in Switzerland) 1957—1957: Britain introduces parking meters 1957—1957: Fortran (computer language) invented 11 Jan 1957—11 Jan 1957: Harold Macmillan becomes Prime Minister 14 May 1957—14 May 1957: Post-Suez petrol rationing ends 15 May 1957—15 May 1957: Britain explodes her first hydrogen bomb, at Christmas Island 25 May 1957—25 May 1957: Treaty of Rome to create European Economic Community (EEC) of six countries: France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, Holland and Luxembourg - became operational Jan 1958 4 Dec 1957—4 Dec 1957: Lewisham rail disaster - 90 killed as two trains collide in thick fog and a viaduct collapses on top of them 25 Dec 1957—25 Dec 1957: Queen's first Christmas TV broadcast
17	1958	1958—1958: USA begins to produce Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs) 1958—1958: Computers begin to be used in research, industry and commerce 1958—1958: Easter: First anti-nuclear protest march to Aldermaston (emergence of CND) 1958—1958: The modem invented 1958—1958: Gordon Gould invents the laser 1958—1958: The Hula Hoop invented by Richard Knerr and Arthur "Spud" Melin 1958—1958: The integrated circuit invented by Jack Kilby and Robert Noyce 13 May 1958—13 May 1958: Velcro trade mark registered 26 Jul 1958—26 Jul 1958: Prince Charles' Investiture as 'Prince of Wales' 5 Dec 1958—5 Dec 1958: Preston by-pass opens - UK's first stretch of motorway 5 Dec 1958—5 Dec 1958: Inauguration of Subscriber Trunk Dialling (STD) in Britain (completed in 1979) 10 1958—23 Oct 1958: Springhill Mine disaster 74 miners killed from third major explosion in mine at Springhill, Nova Scotia
18	1959	1959—1959: The internal pacemaker invented by Wilson Greatbatch 1959—1959: Barbie Doll invented 1959—1959: Jack Kilby and Robert Noyce both invent the microchip 3 Feb 1959—3 Feb 1959: 'The Day The Music Died' - plane crash kills Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper 17 Feb 1959—17 Feb 1959: Vanguard 2 satellite launched - first to measure cloud-cover distribution 1 Mar 1959—3 Jan 1959: Alaska 49th State 24 May 1959—24 May 1959: Empire Day becomes Commonwealth Day Aug 1959—Aug 1959: BMC Mini car launched 26 Sep 1959—30 Apr 1975: Vietnam War Vietnam War 3 Oct 1959—3 Oct 1959: Postcodes introduced in Britain 1 Nov 1959—1 Nov 1959: First section of M1 motorway opened 8 1959—21 Aug 1959: Hawaii 50th State 6 1959—26 Jun 1959: St. Lawrence seaway opens Ocean vessels can now sail as far inland as Lakes Michigan and Superior
19	1960	1960—1975: Vietnam War United States and South Vietnam vs North Vietnam 1960—1960: Canada's Bill of Rights Bans discrimination by federal agencies on grounds of race, national origin, colour, religion or sex -- permits Indians to vote 1960—1960: The halogen lamp invented 17 Mar 1960—17 Mar 1960: New ?1 notes issued by Bank of England 18 Mar 1960—18 Mar 1960: Last steam locomotive of British Railways named 21 Jul 1960—21 Jul 1960: Francis Chichester arrives in New York aboard Gypsy Moth II (took 40 days), winning the first single-handed transatlantic yacht race which he co-founded 12 Aug 1960—12 Aug 1960: Echo I, the first (passive) communications satellite, launched 12 Sep 1960—12 Sep 1960: MoT tests on motor vehicles introduced 1 Oct 1960—1 Oct 1960: HMS 'Dreadnought' nuclear submarine launched 2 Nov 1960—2 Nov 1960: Penguin Books found not guilty of obscenity in the 'Lady Chatterley's Lover' case 6 1960—16 Jun 1960: 23rd Amendment passed by Congress
20	1961	1961—1961: Valium invented 1961—1961: The nondairy creamer invented 1 Jan 1961—1 Jan 1961: Farthing ceases to be legal tender in UK 20 Jan 1961—20 Nov 1963: John F. Kennedy John F. Kennedy U.S. Presidency 13 Mar 1961—13 Mar 1961: Black & White ?5 notes cease to be legal tender 14 Mar 1961—14 Mar 1961: New English Bible (New Testament) published 1 May 1961—1 May 1961: Betting shops legal in Britain 4 1961—19 Apr 1961: Bay of Pigs Invasion United States vs Cuba 1 1961—22 Nov 1963: John F. Kennedy John F. Kennedy assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald in Dallas, Texas 3 1961—29 Mar 1961: 23rd Amendment ratified
21	1962	1962—1962: Britain and France agree to construct 'Concorde' 1962—1962: Thalidomide withdrawn after it causes deformities in babies 1962—1962: Britain passes Commonwealth Immigrants Act to control immigration 1962—1962: The audio cassette invented 1962—1962: The fiber-tip pen invented by Yukio Horie 1962—1962: Spacewar, the first computer video game invented 1962—1962: Dow Corp invents silicone breast implants 7 Jan 1962—1 Jul 1962: Medicare introduced in Saskatchewan Saskatchewan sets medicare prototype for all provinces 9 Mar 1962—3 Sep 1962: Trans-Canada Highway officially opens 25 May 1962—25 May 1962: Consecration of new Coventry Cathedral (old destroyed in WW2 blitz) 15 Jun 1962—15 Jun 1962: First nuclear generated electricity to supplied National Grid (from Berkeley Glos) Jul 1962—Jul 1962: First passenger-carrying hovercraft enters service, along the North Wales Coast from Moreton to Rhyl 10 Jul 1962—10 Jul 1962: First TV transmission between US and Europe (Telstar) - first live broadcast on 23 Jul 24 Oct 1962—24 Oct 1962: Cuba missile crisis - brink of nuclear war 8 1962—27 Aug 1962: 24th Amendment passed by Congress
22	1963	1963—1963: France vetoes Britain's entry into EEC 1963—1963: The first videodisc invented Jan 1963—Jan 1963: Cold weather forces cancellation of most football matches (only 4 English First Division matches in the month) - the first 'pools panel' created 27 Mar 1963—27 Mar 1963: Beeching Report on British Railways (the 'Beeching Axe') 1 Aug 1963—1 Aug 1963: Minimum prison age raised to 17 8 Aug 1963—8 Aug 1963: 'Great Train Robbery' on Glasgow to London mail train 17 Sep 1963—17 Sep 1963: Fylingdales (Yorks) early warning system operational 18 Nov 1963—18 Nov 1963: Dartford Tunnel opens 20 Nov 1963—20 Jan 1969: Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon B. Johnson U.S. Presidency 23 Nov 1963—23 Nov 1963: First episode of 'Dr Who' on BBC TV 11 1963—20 Jan 1969: Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon B. Johnson, vice president under John F. Kennedy, sworn in as president aboard Air Force One upon death of Kennedy.
23	1964	1964—1964: Acrylic paint invented 1964—1964: Permanent-press fabric invented 1964—1964: BASIC (an early computer language) is invented by John George Kemeny and Tom Kurtz 4 1964—Apr 1964: Social Insurance cards first issued Social Insurance cards issued to all Canadian adults -- privacy concerns limit their use for genealogy puposes 1 Jan 1964—1 Jan 1964: First 'Top of the Pops' on BBC TV 9 Apr 1964—9 Apr 1964: First Greater London Council (GLC) election 21 Apr 1964—21 Apr 1964: BBC2 TV launched 22 Aug 1964—22 Aug 1964: 'Match of the Day' starts on BBC2 4 Sep 1964—4 Sep 1964: Forth road bridge opens 3 1964—1993: Canadian troops in Cyprus Canadian troops serve in Cyprus as part of the UN peace-keeping force 1 1964—23 Jan 1964: 24th Amendment ratified
24	1965	1965—1965: Britain enacts first Race Relations Act 1965—1965: Astroturf invented 1965—1965: Soft contact lenses invented 1965—1965: NutraSweet invented 1965—1965: The compact disk invented by James Russell 1965—1965: Kevlar invented by Stephanie Louise Kwolek 7 Feb 1965—7 Feb 1965: First US raids against North Vietnam 7 Apr 1965—7 Apr 1965: Winston Churchill dies 7 Jun 1965—6 Jul 1965: 25th Amendment passed by Congress 1 Aug 1965—1 Aug 1965: TV cigarette advertising banned in Britain 8 Oct 1965—8 Oct 1965: Post Office Tower operational in London 28 Oct 1965—28 Oct 1965: Death penalty for murder suspended in Britain for five-year trial period, then abolished 18 Dec 1969 22 Dec 1965—22 Dec 1965: 70mph speed limit introduced on British roads 2 1965—15 Feb 1965: Canadian Flag changed Maple Leaf flag is adopted by Parliament as the official flag of Canada. It replaces the "Canadian" (modified) Red Ensign
25	1966	1966—1966: Electronic Fuel injection for cars invented 14 Feb 1966—14 Feb 1966: Australia converts from ? to $ 3 May 1966—3 May 1966: 'The Times' begins to print news on its front page in place of classified Advertisements 30 Jul 1966—30 Jul 1966: World Cup won by England at Wembley (4-2 in extra time v West Germany) 8 Sep 1966—8 Sep 1966: First Severn road bridge opens 21 Oct 1966—21 Oct 1966: Aberfan disaster - slag heap slip kills 144, incl. 116 children 1 Dec 1966—1 Dec 1966: First Christmas stamps issued in Britain
26	1967	1967—1967: The first handheld calculator invented 4 Jan 1967—4 Jan 1967: Donald Campbell dies attempting to break his world water speed record on Conniston Water - his body and Bluebird recovered in 2002 18 Mar 1967—18 Mar 1967: 'Torrey Canyon' oil tanker runs aground off Lands End first major oil spill 28 May 1967—28 May 1967: Francis Chichester arrives in Plymouth after solo circumnavigation in Gipsy Moth IV (he was knighted 7th July at Greenwich by the queen using the sword with which Elizabeth I had knighted Sir Francis Drake four centuries earlier 27 Jun 1967—27 Jun 1967: First withdrawal from a cash dispenser (ATM) in Britain - at Enfield branch of Barclays 1 Jul 1967—1 Jul 1967: First colour TV in Britain 14 Aug 1967—14 Aug 1967: Offshore pirate radio stations declared illegal by the UK 20 Sep 1967—20 Sep 1967: 'QE2' launched on Clydebank 27 Sep 1967—27 Sep 1967: 'Queen Mary' arrives Southampton at end of her last transatlantic voyage 30 Sep 1967—30 Sep 1967: BBC Radios 1 2 3 & 4 open first record played on Radio 1 was the controversial 'Flowers in the Rain' by 'The Move' 2 Oct 1967—10 Feb 1967: 25th Amendment ratified 5 Oct 1967—5 Oct 1967: Introduction of majority verdicts in English courts 4 1967—25 Apr 1967: Canadian Armed Forces established The Canadian Army, Navy and Air Force unite into one combined military force -- a world first
27	1968	1968—1968: The computer mouse invented by Douglas Engelbart 1968—1968: The first computer with integrated circuits made 1968—1968: Robert Dennard invented RAM (random access memory) 18 Feb 1968—18 Feb 1968: British Standard Time introduced - Summer Time became permanent but arguments prevailed and Britain reverted to GMT in October 1971 18 Apr 1968—18 Apr 1968: London Bridge sold (and eventually moved to Arizona) - modern London Bridge, built around it as it was demolished, was opened in Mar 1973 20 Apr 1968—20 Apr 1968: Enoch Powell 'Rivers of Blood' speech on immigration 23 Apr 1968—23 Apr 1968: Issue of 5p and 10p decimal coins in Britain 29 May 1968—29 May 1968: Manchester United first English club to win the European Cup 11 Aug 1968—11 Aug 1968: Last steam passenger train service ran in Britain (Carlisle- Liverpool) 16 Sep 1968—16 Sep 1968: Two-tier postal rate starts in Britain 5 Oct 1968—5 Oct 1968: Beginning of disturbances in N Ireland

My Footsteps

through our family History

James Gregory Ashley