In This Week LogoIn This Week in …

  • 1949, the Soviet blockade of West Berlin is lifted (12 May 1949);
  • 1607, the English colony of Jamestown is founded on the James River in modern day Virginia (13 May 1607);
  • 1804, Lewis and Clark depart for their epic exploration of the vast American interior (14 May 1804);
  • 1941, the first Allied jet plane, the Gloster-Whittle E 28/39, is successfully flown (15 May 1941);
  • 1929, the first Academy Awards ceremony (more famously known as the Oscars) is held (16 May 1929);
  • 1954, the US Supreme Court rules in the landmark civil rights case Brown v Board of Education (17 May 1954);
  • 1920, Pope John Paul II is born in in the Polish town of Wadowice, 35 miles southwest of Krakow (18 May 1920).