Dawson George Baker (1907 - 1981)

Refresh this page to see various historical events that occurred during Dawson's lifetime.

In 1907, in the year that Dawson George Baker was born, in October, over a 3 week period, the New York stock exchange fell almost 50% from the previous year's high mark. Public panic ensued and there were runs on banks since the U.S. was in the middle of a recession. J.P. Morgan offered his own fortune to back the banks and he was followed by other financiers. This temporarily shored up the banking system, stopping the immediate panic. All of this led to the creation of the Federal Reserve.

In 1917, Dawson was only 10 years old when it is believed that a worldwide influenza pandemic began in Asia. By 1920, it is estimated that 50 - 100 million died throughout the world (3 - 5% of the population). In the U.S. alone, 500,000 perished from what came to be called the Spanish Flu or the 1918 flu.

In 1928, Dawson was 21 years old when Mickie Mouse was born! He first appeared in Disney's Steamboat Willie, along with Minnie. Although they were in two previous shorts, this was the first to be distributed. Steamboat Willie took advantage of the new technology and was a "talkie" - music was coordinated with the animation. It became the most popular cartoon of its day.

In 1939, when he was 32 years old, on the 1st of September, Nazi Germany invaded Poland. On September 17th, the Soviet Union invaded Poland as well. Poland expected help from France and the United Kingdom, since they had a pact with both. But no help came. By October 6th, the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany held full control of the previously Polish lands. Eventually, the invasion of Poland lead to World War II.

In 1981, in the year of Dawson George Baker's passing, on January 20th, Ronald Reagan became the 40th President of the United States. He ran against the incumbent, Jimmy Carter, and won 50.7% of the popular vote to Carter's 41.0%.