Explore 5191 historical events from 1950–1959.
Jonas Edward Salk was an American virologist and medical researcher who developed one of the first successful polio vaccines. He was born in New York City and attended the City Col…
The first clinical trials of Jonas Salk's polio vaccine begin in Fairfax County, Virginia
Sir Roger Gilbert Bannister was an English neurologist and middle-distance athlete who ran the first sub-4-minute mile.
Roger Bannister becomes the first person to run the mile in under four minutes
The Kengir uprising was a prisoner rebellion that occurred in Kengir (Steplag), a Soviet MVD special camp for political prisoners, during May and June 1954. Its duration and intens…
Beginning of the Kengir uprising in the Gulag
Dwight David Eisenhower, also known as Ike, was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. A General of the Army, Eisenhower was the supreme commander of t…
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Rationing was introduced temporarily by the British government several times during the 20th century, during and immediately after a war.
Food rationing in Great Britain ends, with the lifting of restrictions on sale and purchase of meat, 14 years after it…
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster that serves as the primary national public broadcasting company of the United Kingdom, headquarte…
The BBC broadcasts its first daily television news bulletin.
The Boeing 367-80, also known as the Dash 80, is a retired American four-engined prototype jet aircraft by Boeing to demonstrate the advantages of jet propulsion for commercial avi…
The Boeing 367-80, the prototype for both the Boeing 707 and C-135 series, takes its first flight.
The First Indochina War, known alternatively internationally as the French Indochina War, was fought in French Indochina between France and the Viet Minh and their respective allie…
First Indochina War: The Geneva Conference partitions Vietnam into North Vietnam and South Vietnam.
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein was an Egyptian military officer and revolutionary who served as the second president of Egypt from 1954 until his death in 1970. Nasser led the Egyptian…
Gamal Abdel Nasser seizes power in Egypt
Massena is a town in St. Lawrence County, New York, United States. Massena is along the county's northern border, just south of the St. Lawrence River and the Three Nations Crossin…
At Massena, New York, the groundbreaking ceremony for the Saint Lawrence Seaway is held.
Alfredo Stroessner Matiauda was a Paraguayan politician, army general, and military dictator who ruled as the 42nd president of Paraguay from 15 August 1954 until his overthrow in …
Alfredo Stroessner begins his dictatorship in Paraguay.
Sports Illustrated (SI) is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million …
The first issue of Sports Illustrated is published.
The Cruise of the Kings was a royal cruise around the Mediterranean Sea in the summer of 1954, organised by Queen Frederica and King Paul of Greece.
The Cruise of the Kings, a royal cruise organised by the Queen Consort of Greece, Frederica of Hanover, departs from…
McCarthyism is a political practice defined by the political repression and persecution of left-wing individuals and a campaign spreading fear of communist and Soviet influence on …
Red Scare: Witnesses begin testifying and live television coverage of the Army–McCarthy hearings begins
A solar cell, also known as a photovoltaic cell, is an electronic device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by using the photovoltaic effect. It is a type …
The first practical solar cell is publicly demonstrated by Bell Telephone Laboratories
The Geneva Conference was intended to settle outstanding issues resulting from the Korean War and the First Indochina War and involved several nations. It took place in Geneva, Swi…
The Geneva Conference, an effort to restore peace in Indochina and Korea, begins
The First Indochina War, known alternatively internationally as the French Indochina War, was fought in French Indochina between France and the Viet Minh and their respective allie…
Indochina War: The Battle of Dien Bien Phu ends in a French defeat and a Viet Minh victory (the battle began on March 13
In December 1953, the British colonial government in Singapore passed the National Service Ordinance, requiring all male British subjects and Federal citizens between the ages of 1…
The anti-National Service Riots, by Chinese middle school students in Singapore, take place
João Fernandes Campos Café Filho was a Brazilian politician who served as the 18th president of Brazil, taking office upon the suicide of President Getúlio Vargas. He was the first…
Vice president João Café Filho takes office as president of Brazil, following the suicide of Getúlio Vargas.
Marilyn Monroe was an American actress and model. Known for playing comic "Blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s…
Marilyn Monroe's iconic skirt scene is shot during filming for The Seven Year Itch.
Route 7 is a national road in Bolivia. Prior to its opening in 1954 western and eastern Bolivia were poorly connected. It remains the main road connecting Bolivia's montainious wes…
The Cochabamba–Santa Cruz highway connecting western and eastern Bolivia is inaugurated.
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal cou…
The United States Supreme Court hands down a unanimous decision in Brown v
Joseph Nye Welch was an American lawyer who served as the chief counsel for the United States Army while it was under investigation for Communist activities by Senator Joseph McCar…
Joseph N
Pope Pius XII was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City from 2 March 1939 until his death on 9 October 1958.
Pope Pius XII canonises Dominic Savio, who was 14 years old at the time of his death, as a saint, making him at the time