- 1279 Nichiren, a Japanese Buddhist monk, founder of Nichiren Buddhism, inscribes the Dai-Gohonzon
- 1285 180 Jews refuse baptism in Munich Germany and are set on fire
- 1366 King Frederick III of Siciliy forbids decorations on synagogues
- 1398 The Treaty of Salynas is signed between Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas the Great and the Teutonic Knights, who received Samogitia.
- 1459 Battle at Ludford Bridge: Richard of York defeated
- 1492 Flemish rebel leader Philip van Kleef surrenders
Historic Expedition
1492 Christopher Columbus's expedition makes landfall on a Caribbean island he names San Salvador (likely Watling Island, Bahamas). The explorer believes he has reached East Asia (OS 21 Oct)
Christopher Columbus
Event of Interest
1504 Queen Isabella I of Spain signs her testament
Isabella I of Castile
- 1509 Emperor Maximilian leaves Italy
The Protestant Reformation
1518 Pontifical ambassador interrogates Martin Luther
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- 1549 John Dudley, Earl of Warwick, forces the Duke of Somerset out of his office as Lord Protector.
- 1576 Rudolf II succeeds Maximilian II as Holy Roman Emperor
- 1609 Children's rhyme "Three Blind Mice" published in London
- 1654 The Delft Explosion (gunpowder) devastates the city in the Netherlands, killing more than 100
- 1659 English "Rump" Parliament dimisses John Lambert & other generals
- 1711 Karel VI Habsburg crowned Roman Catholic emperor
- 1729 Willem KH Friso installed as viceroy of Gelderland
- 1730 Christian VI succeeds Frederik IV as king of Denmark
Event of Interest
1740 English evangelist George Whitefield preaches to 30,000 people in Boston in the US during the 'Great Awakening'
George Whitefield
- 1792 First celebration of Columbus Day in the USA held in New York
- 1798 Flemish uprising against French occupied Boerenkrijg
- 1798 Friedrich von Schiller's "Wallensteins Lager" premieres in Weimar
- 1815 Ex-king Joachim Murat of Naples sentenced to death
- 1822 Second eruption of Galunggung in Java destroys summit of mountain
- 1823 Charles Macintosh of Scotland begins selling raincoats (Macs)
- 1836 18" of snow falls in Bridgewater, NY
- 1853 John Morrissey wins boxing title, when Yankee Sullivan leaves ring after 36th round to slug Morrissey's fans
- 1854 Lincoln University founded in Pennsylvania as Ashmun Institute
Event of Interest
1859 Self-proclaimed Emperor of the USA, Emperor Norton issues edict abolishing the US Congress
Emperor Norton
George McClellan
J.E.B. Stuart
Event of Interest
1864 War of the Triple Alliance begins with Brazilian troops under the command of Gen. João Propício Mena Barreto invading Uruguay
Francisco Solano López
- 1871 US President Grant condemns Ku Klux Klan
- 1872 Montreal Foot Ball Club 1st game playing Quebec City to 0-0 tie
- 1879 British troops occupy Kabul, Afghanistan
- 1881 Henry M Stanley signs contract with Congo monarch
- 1886 Hurricane & sea surge kills 250 at Indianola Texas
- 1891 Astronomical Society of France is inaugurated
- 1892 US Pledge of Allegiance first recited in public schools during Columbus Day
- 1898 Establishment of the first town council in Mateur.
- 1899 South Africa Boer Republic declares war on Britain
Event of Interest
1900 The first modern submarine is commissioned by the U.S. Navy as the USS Holland, named for its designer John Philip Holland
John Philip Holland
Event of Interest
1901 Theodore Roosevelt renames the "Executive Mansion" as "The White House"
Theodore Roosevelt
Model T
1915 Ford Motor Company under Henry Ford manufactures its 1 millionth automobile at the River Rouge plant in Detroit
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- 1915 Theodore Roosevelt criticizes US citizens who identify themselves with dual nationalities
Execution
1915 Despite international protest, Edith Cavell an English nurse in Belgium, is executed by the Germans for aiding the escape of Allied prisoners
Edith Cavell
- 1916 Boston Red Sox beat Bkln Dodgers, 4 games to 1 in 13th World Series
- 1918 Cloquet fire kills 453 and injures or displaces 52,000 people
- 1920 Cleveland Indians beat Bkln Dodgers, 5 games to 2 in 17th World Series
- 1920 Construction begins on Holland Tunnel connecting NJ & NYC
- 1920 Man O'War's last race & win
- 1923 NY Giant's Casey Stengel HR beats Yanks 1-0 in World Series
- 1924 Sokolnicheskaya Radio begins broadcasting from Moscow
- 1925 Albert Michelsen runs world record marathon (2:19:01.8)
- 1925 German-Russian trade agreement signed
- 1927 Hermann Goerner of Germany raises 24 men weighing 4,123 lbs on a plank with soles of his feet
- 1928 1st use of iron lung (Boston's Children Hospital)
- 1929 Cubs blow 8-0 World Series lead, A's score 10 in 1 inning
- 1931 1st International Conference on Calendar Reform
Christ the Redeemer
1931 Christ the Redeemer statue opens standing 30 meters high (98 ft) on top of Mount Corcovado overlooking Rio de Janeiro, built by engineer Heitor da Silva Costa
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- 1933 Alcatraz becomes a federal prison (unofficially)
Event of Interest
1933 John Dillinger escapes from jail in Allen County, Ohio
John Dillinger
Melvin Purvis
Event of Interest
1933 Gangster George Francis Barnes, aka Machine Gun Kelly, is sentenced to life imprisonment
George "Machine Gun" Kelly
- 1935 Cole Porters musical "Jubilee" premieres in NYC
- 1941 Soviet government moves from Moscow to Volga as Nazis forces close in on Moscow
- 1942 Successful Soviet counter attack through 37th Guard division
- 1942 US navy defeats Japanese in WW II Battle of Cape Esperance
- 1943 US bombs Rabaul, New Britain
- 1944 German army retreats from Athens
- 1948 Casey Stengel takes over as Yankee manager
- 1950 "Call Me Madam" opens at Imperial Theater NYC for 644 performances
- 1952 Hanif Mohammad scores twin 100s v N Zone (India) his 1st first class cricket centuries
- 1952 KBTV (now KUSA) TV channel 9 in Denver, CO (ABC) begins broadcasting
- 1953 US & Greece sign peace treaty (US bases)
- 1956 Marga Klompe becomes first Dutch women elected minister
- 1957 "Mask & Gown" closes at John Golden Theater NYC after 39 performances
- 1957 "Simply Heavenly" closes at Playhouse Theater NYC after 62 performances
- 1957 First commercial flight between California & Antarctica
- 1957 Canadian Prime Minister Lester Bowles Pearson wins Nobel Peace Prize
- 1958 CVP wins municipal elections in Belgium
- 1958 USSR performs nuclear test at Novaya Zemlya USSR
- 1958 WJRT TV channel 12 in Flint, MI (ABC) begins broadcasting
- 1959 At the national congress of APRA in Peru a group of leftist radicals are expelled from the party. They will later form APRA Rebelde.
Event of Interest
1960 JFK & Richard Nixon's third presidential debate
Richard Nixon
Event of Interest
1960 Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev bangs his shoe on his desk at UN General Assembly session
Nikita Khrushchev
- 1960 Japanese politician Inejiro Asanuma is assassinated with a sword during a televised debate live on TV by 17-year old nationalist Otoya Yamaguchi
- 1961 "Let It Ride" opens at Eugene O'Neill Theater NYC for 68 performances
- 1961 USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR
- 1962 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
- 1962 US/USSR sign joint space effort in telecommunications & meteorology
- 1962 Infamous Columbus Day Storm strikes the U.S. Pacific Northwest with record wind velocities; 46 dead and at least U.S. $230 million in damages
- 1963 "Student Gypsy" closes at 84th St Theater NYC after 16 performances
- 1963 Archaeological digs begin at Masada, Israel
- 1963 San Francisco's Oakland Bay Bridge converted to 1-way on each deck
- 1964 KCSM TV channel 60 in San Mateo-SF, CA (PBS) begins
- 1964 Launch of Voskhod 1, first time 3 people in space (Komarov, Feokistov, Yegorov)
- 1964 WSBK TV channel 38 in Boston, MA (IND/ABC/CBS/NBC) begin
- 1964 WUCM TV channel 19 in University Center, MI (PBS) begins broadcasting
- 1964 American Don Schollander swims an Olympic record 53.4s to beat Briton Robert McGregor by 0.1s and win the 100m freestyle gold medal in Tokyo; first of Schollander's 4 gold medals at the Games
Event of Interest
1966 Jimi Hendrix Experience forms with Jimi Hendrix, Noel Redding & Mitch Mitchell
Jimi Hendrix
- 1967 St Louis Cards beat Boston Red Sox, 4 games to 3 in 64th World Series as Lou Brock steals a record 7 bases in 1 World Series
Event of Interest
1968 "Noël Coward's Sweet Potato" closes at Barrymore NYC after 17 performances
Noël Coward
- 1968 IXX Summer Olympic Games open at Mexico City, Mexico; first Olympics in Latin America
- 1968 Equatorial Guinea (Spanish Guinea) declares independence from Spain
- 1968 Norma Enriqueta Basilio Satelo is 1st woman to light Olympic flame
- 1969 1st time 5 people in space
- 1969 KDB-AM in Santa Barbara CA changes call letters to KAPN
- 1969 KHOF (now KAGL) TV ch 30 in San Bernardino/Glenda, CA (IND) begins
- 1969 Soviet spacecraft Soyuz 7 is launched
- 1970 Rock Memorabilia Auction at Filmore East
- 1971 "Jesus Christ Superstar" opens at Mark Hellinger NYC for 711 performances
- 1972 "Hurry, Harry" opens at Ritz Theater NYC for 2 performances
- 1972 46 sailors injured in race riot on American aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk
- 1972 Billy Harris failed in 1st Islander penalty shot
- 1972 Mariner 9 takes pictures of Martian north pole
- 1972 MLB American League Championship: Oakland Athletics beat Detroit Tigers, 3 games to 2
- 1973 Israeli counter offensive in southern Syria
Event of Interest
1973 US President Richard Nixon nominates Gerald Ford to replace Spiro Agnew as Vice President
Gerald Ford
Spiro Agnew
Richard Nixon
Event of Interest
1976 Hua Guo-feng succeeds Mao Zedong as chairman of Communist Party
Mao Zedong
- 1976 MLB National League Championship: Cincinnati Reds beat Philadelphia Phillies, 3 games to 0
- 1977 "Throwaway Game" Catfish Hunter loses WS 6-1 resting Yank pitchers
- 1977 4th test of space shuttle Enterprise
- 1977 Psychic Romark attempts to drive blindfolded, smashed into cop van
- 1977 US Supreme Court heard arguments in "reverse discrimination" case of Allan Bakke, white student denied admission to University of California Med School
- 1978 Representatives of Israel & Egypt open talks in Washington
Murder of Interest
1978 Sid Vicious charged with murder of girlfriend Nancy Spungen
Sid Vicious
- 1979 Typhoon Tip becomes the most intense tropical cyclone ever recorded with peak sustained winds of 305km/h (190mph) and a wind diameter of 2,220km (1,380mi)
- 1979 The lowest recorded non-tornadic atmospheric pressure, 87.0 kPa (870 mbar or 25.69 inHg), occurred in Guam, in the Western Pacific during Typhoon Tip
Event of Interest
1979 Boston Celtics guard Chris Ford scores first 3-point basket in NBA history in 1st quarter of 114-106 win v Houston at Boston Garden; game also marks debut of Boston rookie Larry Bird
Larry Bird
Event of Interest
1979 Future Basketball Hall of Fame forward Magic Johnson makes his debut for Los Angeles Lakers at the San Diego Clippers; Lakers win, 103-102
Magic Johnson
- 1980 "Your Arm's Too Short to Box" closes at Ambassador NYC after 149 performances
- 1980 7 stabbed at Blood, Sweat & Tears concert in LA
- 1980 MLB National League Championship: Philadelphia Phillies beat Houston Astros, 3 games to 2
- 1981 "Marlowe" opens at Rialto Theater NYC for 48 performances
- 1981 15th Country Music Association Award: Barbara Mandrell & George Jones wins
- 1982 38.6 cm (15.2") of rainfall, Angoon Alaska (state record)
- 1982 Milwaukee Brewer Paul Molitor gets World series record 5 hits
- 1983 5225 Loral & 5424 Covington
Event of Interest
1984 IRA bombs the Grand Hotel, Brighton, where British PM Margaret Thatcher is staying, 5 die
Margaret Thatcher
Event of Interest
1986 Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, visit the People's Republic of China
Elizabeth II
Prince Philip
- 1987 21st Country Music Association Award: Hank William Jr wins
Event of Interest
1987 George Harrison releases "Got My Mind Set On You"
George Harrison
- 1987 Oscar Arias (Costa Rican Pres) wins Nobel Peace Prize
- 1987 Minnesota Twins beat Detroit Tigers, 9-5 in ALCS Game 5 at Tiger Stadium for 4-1 series win; go on to win club's first Baseball World Series
- 1988 George H. W. Bush and Michael Dukakis meet in their second presidential debate
- 1988 Israel & China sign trade deal, plan diplomatic relations
Event of Interest
1988 Pope John Paul II is the target of anti-papal heckling by Protestant leader Ian Paisley at a European Parliament meeting in Strasbourgh, France
Ian Paisley
John Paul II
- 1988 MLB National League Championship: Los Angeles Dodgers beat New York Mets, 4 games to 3
- 1989 Dallas running back Herschel Walker is traded from Cowboys to Minnesota Vikings for 5 players and 6 future draft picks leading to stars Emmitt Smith, Russell Maryland, Kevin Smith and Darren Woodson to Dallas
- 1989 Musical "Buddy" with Paul Hipp premieres in London
- 1990 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
- 1990 MLB National League Championship: Cincinnati Reds beat Pittsburgh Pirates, 4 games to 2
- 1991 Boxer Hector Comacho arrested for driving while getting oral sex
- 1991 Mike Lerch of Princeton ties NCAA record with 370 receiving yards
- 1991 Statler Brothers Show premieres on TNN
- 1991 Professional wrestler Rip is Oliver forced to retire after being injured by Crush
- 1991 Doug Flutie of BC Lions sets CFL passing record of 582 yards despite losing to Edmonton Eskimos, 45-38 in overtime
- 1992 5.8 earthquake at Cairo (at least 510 die)
- 1992 Arecibo radio telescope begins Microwave Observing Project search for occupied planets
- 1992 Brett "Hitman" Hart beats Ric Flair for WWF heavyweight title
- 1992 Expo '92 closes in Seville Spain
- 1992 Howard Stern radio show premieres in Albany NY (WQBK 103.5 & 103.9 FM)
- 1992 Wash Redskin Art Monk sets NFL record with 820th reception
- 1993 "Mixed Emotions" opens at John Golden Theater NYC for 48 performances
- 1993 MLB American League Championship: Toronto Blue Jays beat Chicago White Sox, 4 games to 2
- 1994 Contact with NASA Venus orbitter Magellan broken
- 1994 Iranian Fokker F28 explodes between Isfahan and Tehran, killing 66
- 1995 "Patti LuPone on Broadway" opens at Walter Kerr NYC for 46 performances
- 1997 Sidi Daoud massacre in Algeria; 43 killed at a fake roadblock
- 1999 Pervez Musharraf takes power in Pakistan from Nawaz Sharif through a bloodless coup
- 1999 The Day of Six Billion: the proclaimed 6 billionth living human in the world is born
Event of Interest
1999 Pat LaFontaine formally retires from the NHL due to lingering concussion problems
Pat LaFontaine
Event of Interest
2003 Michael Schumacher in a Ferrari finishes 8th at the season-ending Japanese F1 Grand Prix at Suzuka; clinches 4th consecutive World Drivers Championship by 2 points from Kimi Räikkönen
Michael Schumacher
Kimi Räikkönen
- 2003 FIFA Women's World Cup Final, Home Depot Center, Carson, CA: Nia Künzer scores winner in sudden death extra time as Germany beats Sweden, 2-1
