February 5
February 5
Hank Aaron is born
On February 5, 1934, Henry Louis Aaron Jr., the baseball slugger who broke Babe Ruth’s legendary record of 714 homers, is born in Mobile, Alabama. Aaron began his professional baseball…
A Year In History: 1934
This Year in History:
1934
Discover what happened in this year with HISTORY’s summaries of major events, anniversaries, famous births and notable deaths.
March 22
March 22
First Masters golf tournament begins
On March 22, 1934, the first Masters golf championships tees off in Augusta, Georgia. The Augusta National Golf Club course presents difficulties for many of the golfers, but Emmet French,…
May 11
May 11
Dust storm sweeps from Great Plains across Eastern states
On May 11, 1934, a massive storm sends millions of tons of topsoil flying from across the parched Great Plains region of the United States as far east as New…
May 23
May 23
Police kill famous outlaws Bonnie and Clyde
On May 23, 1934, notorious criminals Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow are shot to death by Texas and Louisiana state police while driving a stolen car near Sailes, Louisiana. Bonnie…
June 1
June 1
Nissan Motor Company founded
On June 1, 1934, the Tokyo‑based Jidosha‑Seizo Kabushiki‑Kaisha (Automobile Manufacturing Co., Ltd. in English) takes on a new name: Nissan Motor Company. Jidosha‑Seizo Kabushiki‑Kaisha had been established in December 1933.…
June 18
June 18
Indian Reorganization Act is signed into law
In a major reversal of federal policy toward Native Americans, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signs the Indian Reorganization Act into law on June 18, 1934. Also known as the IRA,…
June 23
June 23
Even without the corpse, a murderer is uncovered
William Bayly is convicted of murder in New Zealand despite the fact that the body of one of his alleged victims was never found. Most of the evidence against Bayly…
June 30
June 30
Hitler purges members of his own Nazi party in Night of the Long Knives
In Germany, Nazi leader Adolf Hitler orders a bloody purge of his own political party, assassinating hundreds of Nazis whom he believed had the potential to become political enemies in…
July 22
July 22
John Dillinger gunned down
Outside Chicago’s Biograph Theatre, notorious criminal John Dillinger—America’s “Public Enemy No. 1″—is killed in a hail of bullets fired by federal agents. In a fiery bank‑robbing career that lasted just…
August 2
August 2
Hitler becomes dictator of Germany
With the death of German President Paul von Hindenburg, Chancellor Adolf Hitler becomes absolute dictator of Germany under the title of Fuhrer, or “Leader.” The German army took an oath…
August 11
August 11
Federal prisoners land on Alcatraz
A group of federal prisoners classified as “most dangerous” arrives at Alcatraz Island, a 22‑acre rocky outcrop situated 1.5 miles offshore in San Francisco Bay, on August 11, 1934. The…
August 19
August 19
Adolf Hitler becomes president of Germany
On August 19, 1934, Adolf Hitler, already chancellor, is also elected president of Germany in an unprecedented consolidation of power in the short history of the republic. In 1932, German…
October 16
October 16
The Long March
On October 16, 1934, the embattled Chinese Communists break through Nationalist enemy lines and begin an epic flight from their encircled headquarters in southwest China. Known as Ch’ang Cheng—the “Long…
October 22
October 22
FBI agents kill fugitive “Pretty Boy” Floyd
Charles “Pretty Boy” Floyd is shot by FBI agents in a cornfield in East Liverpool, Ohio. Floyd, who had been a hotly pursued fugitive for four years, used his last…
November 21
November 21
Ella Fitzgerald wins Amateur Night at Harlem’s Apollo Theater
On the evening of November 21, 1934, a young and gangly would‑be dancer took to the stage of Harlem’s Apollo Theater to participate in a harrowing tradition known as Amateur…
December 1
December 1
Russian revolutionary Sergei Kirov murdered
Sergei Kirov, a leader of the Russian Revolution and a high‑ranking member of the Politburo, is shot to death at his Leningrad office by Communist Party member Leonid Nikolayev, likely…
December 9
December 9
New York Giants beat Chicago Bears in ‘Sneakers Game’
On December 9, 1934, the New York Giants win the NFL championship by beating the Chicago Bears, 30‑13, in the famous “Sneakers Game.” With the temperature at 9 degrees and…
