By: HISTORY.com Editors

Charles Wilkes claims portion of Antarctica for U.S.

Published: February 09, 2010Last Updated: January 16, 2026

During an exploring expedition, Captain Charles Wilkes sights the coast of eastern Antarctica and claims it for the United States. Wilkes’ group had set out in 1838, sailing around South America to the South Pacific and then to Antarctica, where they explored a 1,500-mile stretch of the eastern Antarctic coast that later became known as Wilkes Land. In 1842, the expedition returned to New York, having circumnavigated the globe.

Antarctica was discovered by European and American explorers in the early part of the 19th century, and in February 1821 the first landing on the Antarctic continent was made by American John Davis at Hughes Bay on the Antarctic Peninsula.

During the next century, many nations, including the United States, made territorial claims to portions of the barely inhabitable continent. However, during the 1930s, conflicting claims led to international rivalry, and the United States, which led the world in the establishment of scientific bases, enacted an official policy of making no territorial claims while recognizing no other nation’s claims. In 1959, the Antarctic Treaty made Antarctica an international zone, set guidelines for scientific cooperation, and prohibited military operations, nuclear explosions, and the disposal of radioactive waste on the continent.

The Expedition That Proved Antarctica Was a Continent

Charles Wilkes' discoveries redrew the map of the world.

By: Jordan Friedman

Timeline

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Discover more of the major events, famous births, notable deaths and everything else history-making that happened on January 19th

1807

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1809

Edgar Allan Poe is born

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1915

First air raid on Britain

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1952

PGA approves participation of Black golfers

On January 19, 1952, Professional Golfers Association president Horton Smith announces that a seven-man committee “almost unanimously” votes to allow Black golfers to compete in PGA co-sponsored events. With the announcement, Smith hopes that Black golfers participate in the next two events, the Phoenix Open and Tucson Open. “I shall feel our efforts here will […]

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1953

Lucille Ball gives birth on TV—and in real life

On January 19, 1953, in one of the most widely publicized births in TV history, actress and comedienne Lucille Ball welcomes her second child at Los Angeles’ Cedars of Lebanon Hospital on the same night Lucy Ricardo, her character on the hit TV show “I Love Lucy,” also gives birth. The “Lucy Goes to the […]

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1966

Indira Gandhi becomes Indian prime minister

Following the death of Indian Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi becomes head of the Congress Party and thus prime minister of India. She was India’s first female head of government and by the time of her assassination in 1984 was one of its most controversial. Gandhi was the daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, the […]

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1972

Sandy Koufax becomes youngest player elected to Baseball Hall of Fame

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1977

President Ford pardons Tokyo Rose

President Gerald R. Ford pardons Tokyo Rose. Although the nickname originally referred to several Japanese women who broadcast Axis propaganda over the radio to Allied troops during World War II, it eventually became synonymous with a Japanese-American woman named Iva Toguri. On the orders of the Japanese government, Toguri and other women broadcast sentimental American […]

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1993

Fleetwood Mac reunites to play “Don’t Stop” at Bill Clinton’s first inaugural ball

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1993

Production begins on “Toy Story”

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1999

First BlackBerry device hits the market

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2004

The Howard Dean scream

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2007

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