WHAT ALL HAPPENED JANUARY TO NOVEMBER 1959
Find out what all happened January to November 1959

The first section of the M1 motorway, the first inter-urban motorway in the United Kingdom, is opened between the present junctions 5 and 18, along with the M10 motorway and M45 motorway. (2. November 1959)

The Barbie doll makes its debut at the American International Toy Fair in New York. (9. March 1959)

At the national congress of APRA in Peru a group of leftist radicals are expelled from the party. They will later form APRA Rebelde. (12. October 1959)

Founding and first official meeting of the American Football League. (14. August 1959)

U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs an executive order transferring Wernher von Braun and other German scientists from the United States Army to NASA. (21. October 1959)

Solomon Bandaranaike, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka is mortally wounded by a Buddhist monk, Talduwe Somarama, and dies the next day. (25. September 1959)

The anthology series The Twilight Zone premieres on CBS television. (2. October 1959)

The Lincoln Memorial design on the U.S. penny goes into circulation. It replaces the "sheaves of wheat" design, and was minted until 2008. (7. August 1959)

The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, crosses the border into India and is granted political asylum. (31. March 1959)

The Caves of Nerja are rediscovered in Spain. (12. January 1959)

Luna 1, the first spacecraft to reach the vicinity of the Moon and to orbit the Sun, is launched by the Soviet Union. (2. January 1959)

First United States Congress elections in Hawaii as a state of the Union. (29. July 1959)

Fidel Castro becomes Premier of Cuba after dictator Fulgencio Batista was overthrown on January 1. (16. February 1959)

Premiere of Bonanza, the first regularly scheduled TV program presented in color. (12. September 1959)

Tibetan uprising: Fearing an abduction attempt by China, 300,000 Tibetans surround the Dalai Lama's palace to prevent his removal. (10. March 1959)

The Saint Lawrence Seaway opens, opening North America's Great Lakes to ocean-going ships. (26. June 1959)

Quiz show scandals: Twenty One game show contestant Charles Van Doren admits to a Congressional committee that he had been given questions and answers in advance. (2. November 1959)

The MS Princess of Tasmania, Australia's first passenger roll-on/roll-off diesel ferry, makes her maiden voyage across Bass Strait. (23. September 1959)

The USS George Washington is launched. It is the first submarine to carry ballistic missiles. (9. June 1959)

A group of Dominican exiles depart from Cuba and land in the Dominican Republic with the intent of overthrowing the totalitarian government of Rafael Trujillo. All but four are killed or executed. (14. June 1959)