February 20, 1939

1939Herbert Kohler Jr., American businessman (died 2022)^[†]

Herbert Vollrath Kohler Jr. was an American billionaire businessman, a member of the Kohler family of Wisconsin, and the executive chairman of the Kohler Company, a manufacturing and hospitality company in Kohler, Wisconsin, best known for its plumbing products, golf courses, and resorts, with the latter two fields of business directly entered into under his chairmanship. Before his death, Forbes estimated the net worth of him and his family at US$8.8 billion.

1939Madison Square Garden Nazi rally: The largest ever pro-Nazi rally in United States history is convened in Madison Square Garden, New York City, with 20,000 members and sympathizers of the German American Bund present.^[†]

On February 20, 1939, a Nazi rally took place at Madison Square Garden, organized by the German American Bund. More than 20,000 people attended, and Fritz Julius Kuhn was a featured speaker. The Bund billed the event, which took place two days before George Washington's Birthday, as a pro-"Americanism" rally; the stage at the event featured a huge portrait of George Washington with swastikas on each side. Approximately 100,000 anti-Nazi counter-protesters gathered outside and on three occasions attempted to break through lines of police officers guarding the rally.