• In
Greensboro, North Carolina,
four black students from
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University began a sit-in at the
Woolworth's department store, at a
lunch counter that, like many in the South, would not serve African-American customers except for take-out orders. After their classes, the four young men (
Joseph McNeil, David Richmond,
Franklin McCain and
Ezell Blair Jr.) entered Woolworth's, made some purchases, and at 4:30, took seats at the counter and politely placed orders for desserts and coffee. When the waitress told them they could not be served, they stayed until closing time. The next morning, at least 20 students came to Woolworth's and began taking up seats as they became available. By Wednesday, the sit-ins were national news, and the next week, spread to other cities. By summer, most chain stores ended their whites-only policy. •
Viscount Dunrossil (William Shepherd Morrison) became the 14th
Governor-General of Australia, succeeding
William Slim, 1st Viscount Slim, who had served two terms before retiring. • A study was completed for
Project Mercury on the "External and Internal Noise of Space Capsules." This study covered the acoustic environments of missile and space vehicles including noise generated by the rocket engines, air-boundary layers, and on-board equipment.
NASA officials thought that the internal noise level was too high for pilot comfort.
Space Task Group felt that data were needed on noise transmission through an actual production-model
spacecraft structure. ==
February 2, 1960 (Tuesday)==