John Balsley

January 7, 1862 – John Balsley, a Dayton woodworker, invents the first wooden step-ladder with flat steps. Now there's a place for a painter to put the brush while pausing to admire a newly painted wall.
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Ban Johnson

January 6, 1863 – Ban Johnson is born in Norwalk but his family soon moves to Avondale in Cincinnati. Johnson would co-found Major League Baseball’s American League. His pressure on Boston Red Sox owner Harry Frazee to create a better team would lead Frazee to sell Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees for $100,000 and bring a century-long curse upon the Red Sox.
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Brian Hugh Warner

January 5, 1969 – Brian Hugh Warner is born in Canton. He attended Heritage Christian School, moved to Florida, changed his name to Marilyn Manson, donned eye make-up and Gothic clothing and became the bane of conservative politicians everywhere.
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Cleveland temperature

The average Cleveland temperature in January is 18 degrees to 32 degrees F – in other words, no wonder it’s so cold in Cleveland in January: it’s always freezing outside.
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Frank Dicopoulos

January 3, 1957 - Frank Dicopoulos is born in Akron. He graduates from Kenyon College in Gambier, works for a while in a tire store in Houston before finding a gig as a model and then moving to Los Angeles, where he lands a role as Frank Achilles Cooper Jr. on the Soap Opera Guiding Light.
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Sentenced

January 2, 1833 - Prisoners convicted of adultery, rioting or larceny are sentenced to a stone vault dungeon 11-feet high, 5-feet wide and 12-feet long in McConnelsville in Morgan County.
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Hank Williams

January 1, 1953 – Hank Williams, 29, is in route to a concert in Canton when he is found dead in the backseat of a baby blue 1952 Cadillac after his driver stops at Burdette’s Pure Oil Station near Oak Hill, W.Va. Cause of death is unknown but was believed to be a combination of sedatives and alcohol.
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