1840

The board applied for incorporation. On January 8, 1840, the nine members of the society—Sumner, Cogswell, Fisher, Chickering, Peabody, Web, Shattuck, Felt, and Simonds—voted that an application be made to the legislature for an act of incorporation and that said application be signed by all the present members. Felt was unable to officiate the meeting because of an inflamed eye, so Shattuck was appointed secretary pro tempore.

1941

The first issue of the American Statistical Association Bulletin was published. The subscription rate was $1 per annum or twenty-five cents per copy.

1974

The first issue of Amstat News is mailed to members. The newsletter was approved by the ASA Board to transfer the news departments that originally appeared in The American Statistician.

“The Committee on Publications wishes the membership to know that articles on computers in their relations to statistics are welcome in the association’s journals.”

1989

The ASA Founders Award is established. An ad hoc committee on service awards, chaired by Noel Bartlett, presented recommendations to the ASA Board during the December board meeting to recognize members who have rendered distinguished service to the association. No more than two awards would be granted annually, and the award does not have to be granted every year. Today, up to five awards may be given each year.

2008

The American Statistical Association was featured in the satirical newspaper The Onion. According to the humorous article, the association announced a groundbreaking new study was published in the Journal of the American Statistical Association that stated, “Somewhere on the planet, someone is totally doing it as this very moment.”

2010

The ASA joins Facebook and Twitter.

Famous January Birthdays

Gertrude Cox, Sam Greenhouse, Jack Keifer, Oscar Kempthorne, Mollie Orshansky, Arnold Zellner