Historical Events on February 5
- 1631: Roger Williams, the founder of Rhode Island, arrives in Boston after traveling from England.
- 1918: The first aerial victory for the United States military occurs on this day when Stephen W. Thompson shoots down a German plane.
- 1918: A shipt carrying American troops to Europe – the SS Tuscania – is torpedoed off of the coast of Ireland.
- 1919: United Artist is launced by D.W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks.
- 1941: The Battle of Keren during World War II begins on this day. The purpose of this battle was to capture Keren, Eritrea.
- 1945: Making good on his promise, U.S General Douglas MacArthur returns to Manila.
- 1953: During the 5th Annual Emmy Awards, “I Love Lucy” and Helen Hayes win Emmys.
- 1958: The Tybee Bomb – an H-Bomb – is lost by the United States Air Force off of the coast of Savannah, Georgia. To this day, it has never been found or recovered.
- 1971: During the Apollo 14 mission, astronauts land on the surface of the moon.
Famous Birthdays on February 5
- Welsh-American actress Peg Entwistle is born in 1908.
- American novelist and short story writer, William S. Burroughs is born in 1914.
- English physiologist and Nobel Prize laureate, Alan Lloyd Hodgkin is born in 1914.
- American physicist and Nobel Prize laureate, Robert Hofstadter is born in 1915.
- American actor Red Buttons is born in 1919.
- American actor Tim Holt is born in 1919.
- American actress Barbara Hershey is born in 1948.
- English actor Tom Wilkinson is born in 1948.
- Australian journalist and author, Frank Walker is born in 1954.
- American actor and screenwriter, Tim Meadows is born in 1961.
- American actress and screenwriter, Jennifer Jason Leigh is born in 1962.
- American actress Laura Linney is born in 1964.
- Welsh actor and director, Michael Sheen is born in 1969.
- American country singer Sara Evans is born in 1971.