February 22 » Filipino forces led by General Antonio Luna launch counterattacks for the first time against the American forces during the Philippine–American War. The Filipinos fail to regain Manila from the Americans.
March 4 » Cyclone Mahina sweeps in north of Cooktown, Queensland, with a 12 metres (39ft) wave that reaches up to 5 kilometres (3.1mi) inland, killing over 300.
March 6 » Bayer registers "Aspirin" as a trademark.
March 31 » Malolos, capital of the First Philippine Republic, is captured by American forces.
June 12 » New Richmond tornado: The eighth deadliest tornado in U.S. history kills 117 people and injures around 200.
Day of death February 5, 1959
The temperature on February 5, 1959 was between -3.4 °C and 3.2 °C and averaged -0.9 °C. There was 7.7 hours of sunshine (83%). The average windspeed was 3 Bft (moderate breeze) and was prevailing from the east-northeast. Source: KNMI
February 6 » Jack Kilby of Texas Instruments files the first patent for an integrated circuit.
April 25 » The Saint Lawrence Seaway, linking the North American Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean, officially opens to shipping.
June 14 » Dominican exiles depart from Cuba and land in the Dominican Republic to overthrow the totalitarian government of Rafael Trujillo. All but four are killed or executed.
July 15 » The steel strike of 1959 begins, leading to significant importation of foreign steel for the first time in United States history.
September 16 » The first successful photocopier, the Xerox 914, is introduced in a demonstration on live television from New York City.
November 19 » The Ford Motor Company announces the discontinuation of the unpopular Edsel.
When copying data from this family tree, please include a reference to the origin: Hendrik Dreyer, "Dreyer Tree", database, Genealogy Online (https://www.genealogieonline.nl/dreyer-tree/I13280.php : accessed January 31, 2026), "Petrus Adriaan Johannes (Piet) Dreyer (1899-1959)".
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