January 8 Blackstone Library1697 Scottish student Thomas Aikenhead became the last person in Great Britain to be executed for blasphemy.1904 Blackstone Library (pictured), the first branch of the Chicago Public Library system, was dedicated.1977 Three bombs attributed to Armenian nationalists exploded across Moscow, killing seven people and injuring 37 people.1981 In Trans-en-Provence, France, a local farmer reported a UFO sighting claimed to be "perhaps the most completely and carefully documented sighting of all time".2011 Jared Lee Loughner opened fire at a public meeting held by U.S. representative Gabby Giffords in Tucson, Arizona, killing six people and injuring twelve others.Prince Albert Victor (b.1864)Mary Arthur McElroy (d.1917)Joseph Franklin Rutherford (d.1942)T.J. Hamblin (d.2012)More anniversaries: January 7January 8January 9ArchiveBy emailList of days of the yearAbout