What Happened on February 29

Historical Events

  • 1692 First people are accused of witchcraft in Salem, Massachusetts - Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne and Tituba, a West Indian slave
  • 1904 Theodore Roosevelt, appoints 7-man Panama Canal Commission to proceed with completing a canal at the Isthmus
  • 1960 Agadir earthquake in Morocco kills a third of the population (12,000-15,000)

Feb 29 in Film & TV

  • 1940 Hattie McDaniel becomes 1st African American woman to win an Oscar for "Gone With The Wind"

Feb 29 in Music

  • 1968 Beatles' "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" wins Grammy Award for Album of the Year, the first rock LP to do so

Feb 29 in Sport

  • 1980 Future Hockey Hall of Fame right wing Gordie Howe scores in the 3rd period to become first NHL player to score 800 career goals as Hartford Whalers beat St. Louis Blues, 3-0 at Springfield Civic Center

Did You Know?

1st Playboy Club, featuring bunnies, opens in Chicago

On February 29, 1960

Would You Believe?

Michael Bracey ends 59 h 55 m trapped in an elevator, England

On February 29, 1980

Famous Weddings

  • 1816 Dutch (King) Willem II marries Russian grand-duchess Anna Paulowna
  • 1996 Fashion designer Nicole Miller (44) weds Kim Taipale (42) in the office of New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani
  • 2012 Actor Dick Van Dyke (86) weds make-up artist Arlene Silver (40) in Malibu, California

More Weddings