WHAT ALL HAPPENED JANUARY TO JUNE 1959
Find out what all happened January to June 1959

Separatists in the Maldives declare the establishment of the United Suvadive Republic. (3. 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)

Iakovos is enthroned as Greek Orthodox Archbishop of America. (1. April 1959)

The United States recognizes the new Cuban government of Fidel Castro. (7. January 1959)

Disneyland Monorail System, the first daily operating monorail system in the Western Hemisphere, opens to the public in Anaheim, California. (14. June 1959)

The Federation of Arab Emirates of the South, which will later become South Yemen, is created as a protectorate of the United Kingdom. (11. February 1959)

Launch of the National Liberation Committee of Côte d'Ivoire in Conakry, Guinea. (18. May 1959)

Lee Petty wins the first Daytona 500. (22. February 1959)

Jack Kilby of Texas Instruments files the first patent for an integrated circuit. (6. February 1959)

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

Project Mercury: NASA announces the selection of the United States' first seven astronauts, whom the news media quickly dub the "Mercury Seven". (9. April 1959)

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

The North Vietnamese Army establishes Group 559, whose responsibility is to determine how to maintain supply lines to South Vietnam; the resulting route is the Ho Chi Minh trail. (19. May 1959)

Akihito, future Emperor of Japan, marries Michiko. (10. April 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)

Alaska is admitted as the 49th U.S. state. (3. January 1959)

The Organization of American States drafts an agreement to create the Inter-American Development Bank. (8. April 1959)

At Cape Canaveral, Florida, the first successful test firing of a Titan intercontinental ballistic missile is accomplished. (6. February 1959)

Singapore was declared a self-governing state even though it was still a part of the British Empire. (3. June 1959)

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