1. In 1859, the abolitionist John Brown was executed for his failed raid on the federal armory at Harpers Ferry. Brown's raid, in which he and his followers attempted to spark a slave rebellion by seizing the armory and its weapons, galvanized both abolitionists and slaveholders in the lead-up to the Civil War.

2. On January 27, 1912, Virginia became the ninth state to ratify the Sixteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which allowed for the federal government to levy an income tax on individuals and corporations.

3. In 1973, a fire broke out at the Beverly Hills Supper Club in Southgate, Kentucky, killing 165 people and injuring more than 200. Many of the victims were from nearby Ohio, and several Virginia families lost loved ones in the tragedy.

4. On January 27, 2018, Virginia politician Ralph Northam was inaugurated as the state's 73rd governor. Northam, a Democrat, had previously served as lieutenant governor under Terry McAuliffe.

5. Virginia Tech's men's basketball team achieved a notable victory on January 27, 2021, when they defeated the University of Virginia's defending national champions 65-51. The Hokies had not beaten the Cavaliers in six years, and the win solidified their position as a contender in the Atlantic Coast Conference.