Timeline: James Hardy Bodily: Our Family History

1950 - 1955 (5 years)

	Date	Event(s)
1	1898	21 Apr 1898—13 Aug 1989: Spanish-American War
2	1945	12 Apr 1945—20 Jan 1953: Harry S. Truman U.S. Presidency
3	1950	19 May 1950—19 May 1950: Points rationing ends in Britain 26 May 1950—26 May 1950: Petrol rationing ends in Britain 25 Jun 1950—27 Jul 1953: Korean War 11 Jul 1950—11 Jul 1950: 'Andy Pandy' first seen on BBC TV 9 Sep 1950—9 Sep 1950: Soap rationing ends in Britain 28 Dec 1950—28 Dec 1950: The Peak District becomes the Britain's first National Park
4	1951	3 May 1951—3 May 1951: Festival of Britain and Royal Festival Hall open on South Bank, London 28 May 1951—28 May 1951: First Goon Show broadcast 20 Dec 1951—20 Dec 1951: Electricity first produced by nuclear power, from Experimental Breeder Reactor
5	1952	1952—1952: Contraceptive pill invented 1952—1952: Britain explodes her first atomic bomb, in Australia 1952—1952: Radioactive carbon used for dating prehistoric objects 1952—1952: Bonn Convention: Britain, France and USA end their occupation of West Germany 6 Feb 1952—6 Feb 1952: King George VI dies 21 Feb 1952—21 Feb 1952: Identity Cards abolished in Britain 2 May 1952—2 May 1952: First commercial jet airliner service launched, by BOACComet between London and Johannesburg 5 Jul 1952—5 Jul 1952: Last tram runs in London (Woolwich to New Cross) 16 Aug 1952—16 Aug 1952: Lynmouth (North Devon) flood disaster 6 Sep 1952—6 Sep 1952: DH110 crashes at Farnborough Air Show, 26 killed 3 Oct 1952—3 Oct 1952: End of tea rationing in Britain 1 Nov 1952—1 Nov 1952: The first H-bomb ever ('Mike') was exploded by the USA - the mushroom cloud was 8 miles across and 27 miles high. The canopy was 100 miles wide. Radioactive mud fell out of the sky followed by heavy rain. 80 million tons of earth was vaporised. 25 Nov 1952—25 Nov 1952: Agatha Christie's 'The Mousetrap' opens in London 4 Dec 1952—4 Dec 1952: Great smog hits London
6	1953	20 Jan 1953—20 Jan 1961: Dwight D. Eisenhower U.S. Presidency 31 Jan 1953—31 Jan 1953: Said to be the biggest civil catastrophe in Britain in the 20th century - severe storm and high tides caused the loss of hundreds of lives - - effects travelled from the west coast of Scotland round to the south-east coast of England [The Netherlands were even worse affected with over a thousand deaths] 5 Feb 1953—5 Feb 1953: Sweet rationing ends in Britain 5 Mar 1953—5 Mar 1953: Death of Stalin 26 Mar 1953—26 Mar 1953: Jonas Salk announces his polio vaccine 24 Apr 1953—24 Apr 1953: Winston Churchill knighted 25 Apr 1953—25 Apr 1953: Francis Crick and James D Watson publish the double helix structure of DNA 2 Jun 1953—2 Jun 1953: Coronation of Elizabeth II 26 Sep 1953—26 Sep 1953: Sugar rationing ends in Britain (after nearly 14 years)
7	1954	1954—1954: First comprehensive school opens in London 1954—1954: Routemaster bus starts operating in London 1954—1954: First transistor radios sold 6 May 1954—6 May 1954: First sub 4 minute mile (Roger Bannister, 3 mins 59.4 secs) 3 Jul 1954—3 Jul 1954: Food rationing officially ends in Britain 5 Jul 1954—5 Jul 1954: BBC broadcasts its first television news bulletin 30 Sep 1954—30 Sep 1954: First atomic powered sumbmarine USS Nautilus commissioned
8	1955	1955—1955: 'Mole' self-grip wrench patented by Thomas Coughtrie of Mole & Sons 27 Jul 1955—27 Jul 1955: Jul 27: Allied occupation of Austria (after WW2) ends 22 Sep 1955—22 Sep 1955: Commercial TV starts in Britain