1. In 1870, the Iowa State Agricultural Society held its first meeting in Des Moines. The organization, created to promote Iowa's agricultural industry, still operates today and hosts the annual Iowa State Fair.

2. On January 31, 1916, the town of Keosauqua experienced a record low temperature of -44 degrees Fahrenheit, the coldest temperature ever recorded in Iowa.

3. In 1945, Iowa Governor Robert Blue signed into law the first medical school in the state, now known as the Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine at the University of Iowa.

4. On January 31, 1964, the Beatles played their first concert in Iowa at the Coliseum in Davenport. The show marked the beginning of their first US tour and drew a crowd of 5,000 fans.

5. Iowa native and legendary folk singer-songwriter John Prine performed a benefit concert in Des Moines on January 31, 1998, to help raise money for a local church that had been damaged by a tornado.