27 January in history.

1880

Edison patents his light bulb. Thomas Edison was granted a patent for his electric lamp with a glowing filament, a key step towards bringing electric light into homes.

Wikipedia: Incandescent light bulb

Photo: KMJ , alpha masking by Edokter / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

More from 27 January

1. 

   1785

   A public university in Georgia

   The University of Georgia was founded, the first public university in the United States to be chartered by a state.

   Wikipedia: University of Georgia

   Photo: Unknown author / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)

2. 

   1820

   Antarctica is sighted

   A Russian expedition led by Fabian von Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev came close to the coast of Antarctica, one of the first sightings of the continent.

   Wikipedia: Fabian Gottlieb von BellingshausenWikipedia: Mikhail Lazarev

   Photo: unidentified artist / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)

3. 

   1874

   Boris Godunov premieres

   Modest Mussorgsky's opera Boris Godunov was performed for the first time, at the Mariinsky Theatre in St Petersburg.

   Wikipedia: Boris Godunov (opera)Wikipedia: Modest Mussorgsky

   Photo: Unknown author / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)

4. 

   2003

   Sounds worth keeping

   The Library of Congress named the first recordings to be saved in the National Recording Registry, a list of sounds important to American history and culture.

   Wikipedia: National Recording RegistryWikipedia: Library of Congress

   Photo: Carol M. Highsmith / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)

Moments chosen for discovery, creativity and courage. Each one links to a source where you can read more; photos are credited to their owners.