The temperature on December 4, 1909 was between 2.8 °C and 6.1 °C and averaged 4.5 °C. There was 12.4 mm of rain. The average windspeed was 6 Bft (strong wind) and was prevailing from the south. Source: KNMI
January 25 » Richard Strauss's opera Elektra receives its debut performance at the Dresden State Opera.
April 6 » Robert Peary and Matthew Henson become the first people to reach the North Pole; Peary's claim has been disputed because of failings in his navigational ability.
April 9 » The U.S. Congress passes the Payne–Aldrich Tariff Act.
August 28 » A group of mid-level Greek Army officers launches the Goudi coup, seeking wide-ranging reforms.
September 7 » Eugène Lefebvre crashes a new French-built Wright biplane during a test flight at Juvisy, south of Paris, becoming the first aviator in the world to lose his life in a powered heavier-than-air craft.
December 4 » The Montreal Canadiens ice hockey club, the oldest surviving professional hockey franchise in the world, is founded as a charter member of the National Hockey Association.
Day of death June 7, 1956
The temperature on June 7, 1956 was between 10.4 °C and 16.5 °C and averaged 13.0 °C. There was 9.2 mm of rain during 2.3 hours. There was -0.1 hours of sunshine (0%). The almost completely overcast was. The average windspeed was 3 Bft (moderate breeze) and was prevailing from the south. Source: KNMI
June 20 » A Venezuelan Super-Constellation crashes in the Atlantic Ocean off Asbury Park, New Jersey, killing 74 people.
July 9 » The 7.7 Mw Amorgos earthquake shakes the Cyclades island group in the Aegean Sea with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). The shaking and the destructive tsunami that followed left fifty-three people dead. A damaging M7.2 aftershock occurred minutes after the mainshock.
July 16 » Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus closes its last "Big Tent" show in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; due to changing economics, all subsequent circus shows will be held in arenas.
October 31 » Suez Crisis: The United Kingdom and France begin bombing Egypt to force the reopening of the Suez Canal.
November 1 » The Springhill mining disaster in Springhill, Nova Scotia kills 39 miners; 88 are rescued.
November 3 » Hungarian Revolution: A new Hungarian government is formed, in which many members of banned non-Communist parties participate. During negotiations on Tököl Island ostensibly on Soviet troop withdrawal, the KGB arrests Pál Maléter and other Hungarian Revolutionary commanders, effectively decapitating the Revolution's military leadership. János Kádár and Ferenc Münnich form a counter-government in Moscow as Soviet troops ready for the final assault.
When copying data from this family tree, please include a reference to the origin: Gert Esterhuizen, "Family tree Eric Esterhuizen", database, Genealogy Online (https://www.genealogieonline.nl/stamboom-eric-esterhuizen/I14776.php : accessed February 26, 2026), "Mathinus Johannes Wessel PRETORIUS (1909-1956)".
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