January 17 » El Yunque National Forest in Puerto Rico becomes part of the United States National Forest System as the Luquillo Forest Reserve.
March 14 » Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge, the first national wildlife refuge in the US, is established by President Theodore Roosevelt.
April 19 » The Kishinev pogrom in Kishinev (Bessarabia) begins, forcing tens of thousands of Jews to later seek refuge in Palestine and the Western world.
June 16 » Roald Amundsen leaves Oslo, Norway, to commence the first east–west navigation of the Northwest Passage.
July 1 » Start of first Tour de France bicycle race.
July 20 » The Ford Motor Company ships its first automobile.
Day of marriage May 20, 1937
The temperature on May 20, 1937 was between 12.2 °C and 22.5 °C and averaged 17.1 °C. There was 9.6 hours of sunshine (60%). The average windspeed was 3 Bft (moderate breeze) and was prevailing from the east. Source: KNMI
April 12 » Sir Frank Whittle ground-tests the first jet engine designed to power an aircraft, at Rugby, England.
June 3 » The Duke of Windsor marries Wallis Simpson.
June 11 » Great Purge: The Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin executes eight army leaders.
September 10 » Nine nations attend the Nyon Conference to address international piracy in the Mediterranean Sea.
September 21 » J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit is published.
December 13 » Second Sino-Japanese War: Battle of Nanking: The city of Nanjing, defended by the National Revolutionary Army under the command of General Tang Shengzhi, falls to the Japanese. This is followed by the Nanking Massacre, in which Japanese troops rape and slaughter hundreds of thousands of civilians.
When copying data from this family tree, please include a reference to the origin: Hans Weening, "Family tree Weening", database, Genealogy Online (https://www.genealogieonline.nl/stamboom-weening/I122387.php : accessed February 14, 2026), "Martinus Douwes (1903-)".
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