The Archive
Every story, sorted by the day it happened.
October 2003
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242003
Breakfast in London, breakfast again in New York. For 27 years, that was possible.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 2003 Breakfast in London, breakfast again in New York. For 27 years, that was possible. On October 24, 2003, British Airways flew Concorde's…
October 2001
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252001
Green hill. Blue sky. A Start button. You can probably picture it right now.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 2001 Green hill. Blue sky. A Start button. You can probably picture it right now. On October 25, 2001, Microsoft released Windows XP to the…
October 1998
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291998
At 77, he went back to space.
On October 29, 1998, shuttle Discovery lifted off from Florida on mission STS-95 with Senator John Glenn aboard. Thirty-six years earlier, in 1962, Glenn had become the…
November 1994
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51994
At 45, he won back the title he lost 20 years earlier
George Foreman lost the heavyweight title to Muhammad Ali in 1974. He retired, then came back a decade later. On November 5, 1994, behind on the scorecards against…
October 1994
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261994
After nearly half a century in a formal state of war, two neighbors signed for peace.
On October 26, 1994, Israel and Jordan signed a peace treaty at the Arava/Wadi Araba border crossing. The agreement was signed by Prime Ministers Yitzhak Rabin and…
June 1992
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21992
One small country's vote almost stopped the European Union.
In February 1992, twelve European nations signed the Maastricht Treaty. It could only take effect if every member ratified it. On June 2, 1992, Danish voters rejected…
October 1991
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271991
As the Soviet Union came apart, a desert republic on the Caspian Sea stepped out on its own.
On October 27, 1991, Turkmenistan declared its independence from the Soviet Union, following a referendum the day before. Within weeks the USSR itself ceased to exist.…
October 1990
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251990
Before it was a country, it was a declaration.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1990 Before it was a country, it was a declaration. On October 25, 1990, as the Soviet Union was cracking apart, the parliament of the Kazakh…
November 1988
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21988
The worm that broke the early internet
On the evening of November 2, 1988, a program began copying itself across the young internet. By the next morning, universities and research labs were cutting their…
October 1986
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271986
The day London's trading floor went quiet — and the screens took over.
On October 27, 1986, the London Stock Exchange underwent the 'Big Bang,' a sweeping deregulation. Fixed commissions were abolished, foreign firms were allowed to buy…
October 1984
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261984
She was only 12 days old when she made medical history.
On this day · OCTOBER 26 1984 She was only 12 days old when she made medical history. On October 26, 1984, surgeon Leonard Bailey and his team at Loma Linda University…
October 1980
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251980
When a family splits across borders, which country decides?
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1980 When a family splits across borders, which country decides? On October 25, 1980, the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International…
October 1979
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271979
A country made of one main island and a chain of smaller ones became fully independent on this day.
On October 27, 1979, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines gained independence from the United Kingdom, ending centuries of colonial rule. The island had long been contested…
October 1978
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271978
Two former enemies, one Nobel Peace Prize.
On October 27, 1978, the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced that Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin would share the Nobel Peace…
October 1977
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261977
This man was the last person on Earth to catch smallpox naturally.
On this day · OCTOBER 26 1977 This man was the last person on Earth to catch smallpox naturally. On October 26, 1977, Ali Maow Maalin, a hospital cook in the town of…
October 1975
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241975
What happens to a country when almost every woman stops at once? Iceland found out.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1975 What happens to a country when almost every woman stops at once? Iceland found out. On October 24, 1975, about 90% of Iceland's women…
October 1974
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301974
Nobody gave him much of a chance.
On October 30, 1974, Muhammad Ali stepped into the ring in Kinshasa, Zaire (today the Democratic Republic of the Congo), to face George Foreman, the unbeaten heavyweight…
November 1973
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31973
How NASA reached Mercury by borrowing a push from Venus
Mariner 10 launched on November 3, 1973. Venus's gravity bent its path toward Mercury, and it became the first spacecraft to visit the smallest planet, flying past it…
October 1973
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251973
He won the Olympic marathon without shoes.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1973 He won the Olympic marathon without shoes. Abebe Bikila, the Ethiopian runner who astonished the world, died on October 25, 1973, in…
October 1971
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281971
One vote in Parliament set Britain's course for nearly half a century.
On October 28, 1971, after days of debate, the House of Commons voted 356 to 244 in favor of the principle of joining the European Economic Community. Prime Minister…
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281971
Britain built a rocket, launched one satellite, and then walked away.
On October 28, 1971, a Black Arrow rocket lifted off from Woomera in South Australia and placed the small satellite Prospero into orbit. It made the United Kingdom the…
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271971
Imagine waking up to find your country has a new name.
On October 27, 1971, President Mobutu Sese Seko renamed the Democratic Republic of the Congo the Republic of Zaire. The change was part of his 'authenticity' campaign…
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251971
For 22 years, the question of who represented China at the United Nations hung over world politics.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1971 For 22 years, the question of who represented China at the United Nations hung over world politics. On October 25, 1971, the UN General…
October 1969
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291969
The internet's first word was an accident.
On October 29, 1969, at about 10:30 p.m., UCLA graduate student Charley Kline sat at a terminal and began typing "LOGIN." The message was headed over ARPANET to a…
October 1968
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251968
After a tragedy, the Soviet Union had to prove it could fly people again.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1968 After a tragedy, the Soviet Union had to prove it could fly people again. On October 25, 1968, the Soviet Union launched Soyuz 2, an…
October 1967
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291967
A world's fair built on islands drew more than 50 million visits.
Expo 67 opened in Montreal in April 1967, the year Canada marked 100 years since Confederation. Much of the site sat on islands in the St. Lawrence River, including one…
October 1964
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291964
Some countries get their names from history. Tanzania got its name from a blend.
In April 1964, mainland Tanganyika and the islands of Zanzibar united into one state. At first it carried both names: the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar. On…
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241964
This country entered the Olympics under one name and left under another.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1964 This country entered the Olympics under one name and left under another. On October 24, 1964, the British protectorate of Northern Rhodesia…
October 1962
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281962
For 13 days, the world held its breath.
On October 28, 1962, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev announced on Radio Moscow that the Soviet missiles in Cuba would be dismantled and shipped home. In return…
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271962
For one day in October 1962, the world held its breath.
On October 27, 1962, at the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis, a US U-2 spy plane was shot down over Cuba and its pilot, Major Rudolf Anderson Jr., was killed. Many…
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251962
"Yes or no—don't wait for the translation—yes or no?"
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1962 "Yes or no—don't wait for the translation—yes or no?" On October 25, 1962, the tenth day of the Cuban Missile Crisis, U.S. Ambassador Adlai…
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91962
Sixteen days. That's how long Uganda had been independent when it joined the world stage.
On this day · OCTOBER 9 1962 Sixteen days. That's how long Uganda had been independent when it joined the world stage. Uganda gained independence from Britain on October…
October 1961
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271961
Two countries thousands of miles apart, joined by a single Cold War compromise.
On October 27, 1961, the United Nations admitted Mongolia and Mauritania as members. Mongolia's bid had been blocked for years, while the Soviet Union had threatened to…
October 1958
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281958
They expected a caretaker. They got a revolution.
On October 28, 1958, the cardinals elected Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, the son of farmers from near Bergamo, Italy, as pope. He was 76 and took the name John XXIII. Many…
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261958
Before this day, crossing the Atlantic by air meant a long, noisy ride on a propeller plane.
On October 26, 1958, Pan American World Airways flew its first scheduled Boeing 707 service, from New York to Paris. It was the start of commercial jet service by an…
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231958
He won literature's highest honor and was forced to give it up within a week.
On October 23, 1958, Boris Pasternak was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. His novel Doctor Zhivago had been published abroad after Soviet authorities refused to…
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71958
Three weeks after declaring martial law together, one partner pushed the other out.
On October 7, 1958, Pakistan's President Iskander Mirza abrogated the constitution and appointed army chief General Ayub Khan to run martial law. On October 27, Ayub…
November 1957
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31957
Laika: the stray dog who became the first animal in orbit
On November 3, 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 2 with Laika, a small stray from the streets of Moscow, on board. The capsule was never designed to come back, and…
October 1957
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261957
He gave the world Zorba, a character who taught readers to dance in the face of disaster.
Nikos Kazantzakis, born in Crete, died on October 26, 1957, in Freiburg, Germany. A novelist, poet, philosopher and translator, he wrote "Zorba the Greek" and "The Last…
October 1956
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241956
A nation rose up, and a reformer was carried into power in a single day.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1956 A nation rose up, and a reformer was carried into power in a single day. On October 24, 1956, the day after a mass uprising began in…
October 1955
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281955
Before he could legally drink, he had co-founded one of the most powerful companies in the world.
On October 28, 1955, William Henry Gates III was born in Seattle, Washington. He started programming as a teenager, left Harvard, and in 1975 co-founded Microsoft with…
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261955
Why does Austria throw a national party every October 26?
After World War II, Austria was occupied by the four Allied powers for ten years. The 1955 State Treaty restored its sovereignty, and the last foreign troops left that…
March 1954
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11954
The real disaster that created Godzilla
On March 1, 1954, fallout from the US Castle Bravo hydrogen bomb test showered the Japanese fishing boat Lucky Dragon No. 5. The incident shocked Japan. On November 3…
November 1952
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41952
The computer that called the election, and wasn't believed
On election night, November 4, 1952, CBS brought in a room-sized computer called UNIVAC. Early in the night, it predicted a landslide for Dwight Eisenhower: 438…
November 1948
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31948
The most famous wrong headline in history
The Chicago Daily Tribune's edition dated November 3, 1948 announced DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN. Polls had predicted an easy win for Thomas Dewey, and a printers' strike…
November 1947
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21947
The giant wooden plane that flew exactly once
On November 2, 1947, Howard Hughes took the controls of the H-4 Hercules in Long Beach harbor. The flying boat rose about 70 feet above the water and flew roughly one…
October 1946
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241946
The first-ever picture of Earth from space was grainy, black and white — and it changed how we see our planet.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1946 The first-ever picture of Earth from space was grainy, black and white — and it changed how we see our planet. On October 24, 1946, a…
October 1945
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291945
The pen you grab without thinking was once a $12.50 sensation.
On October 29, 1945, the Gimbels department store in New York began selling the Reynolds ballpoint pen. Shoppers crowded in to see a pen that wrote without an inkwell…
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241945
After the deadliest war in history, the world tried something new.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1945 After the deadliest war in history, the world tried something new. On October 24, 1945, the Charter of the United Nations entered into…
October 1944
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251944
Small ships, a giant enemy, and a fight nobody expected them to survive.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1944 Small ships, a giant enemy, and a fight nobody expected them to survive. On October 25, 1944, during the Battle of Leyte Gulf, a U.S. task…
October 1942
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291942
Before he became TV's calmest painter, he spent 20 years in the Air Force.
Bob Ross was born on October 29, 1942, in Daytona Beach, Florida. He served two decades in the US Air Force, part of it in Alaska, where the mountains and forests would…
November 1940
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51940
The only president elected a third time
Since George Washington, presidents had stepped down after two terms. On November 5, 1940, with war raging in Europe, Franklin D. Roosevelt broke that tradition, beating…
October 1940
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281940
Sometimes history turns on a single word: no.
Before dawn on October 28, 1940, Fascist Italy demanded that Greece allow Italian troops to occupy strategic points in the country. Prime Minister Ioannis Metaxas…
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251940
It took him four decades to earn one star, and he never stopped climbing.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1940 It took him four decades to earn one star, and he never stopped climbing. On October 25, 1940, Benjamin O. Davis Sr. was promoted to…
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241940
The workweek most Americans still live by took effect on this day.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1940 The workweek most Americans still live by took effect on this day. On October 24, 1940, the 40-hour workweek went into effect under the…
October 1939
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271939
And now for something completely different.
John Cleese was born on October 27, 1939, in Weston-super-Mare, England. After studying law at Cambridge, he found his calling in comedy. In 1969 he co-founded Monty…
October 1938
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301938
It sounded like breaking news. It was a radio play about Martians.
On the evening of October 30, 1938, CBS aired Orson Welles and the Mercury Theatre on the Air. Welles, just 23, adapted H.G. Wells's novel The War of the Worlds as a…
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291938
A girl born in Monrovia would become a first for an entire continent.
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was born on October 29, 1938, in Monrovia, Liberia. She studied economics, including at Harvard, and built a career in finance and international…
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271938
You are probably wearing or using something made from it right now.
On October 27, 1938, the DuPont company publicly announced nylon, a new synthetic fiber developed by a team led by chemist Wallace Carothers. It was the first fully…
November 1936
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21936
Two machines. One channel. One winner.
On November 2, 1936, the BBC launched the world's first regular high-definition television service from Alexandra Palace in London. It did it with two rival systems…
October 1933
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291933
A vaccine created a century ago is still given to babies today.
French physician and bacteriologist Albert Calmette died on October 29, 1933. Working at the Pasteur Institute, he and veterinarian Camille Guérin spent years weakening…
October 1931
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241931
In the depths of the Great Depression, New York built a giant.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1931 In the depths of the Great Depression, New York built a giant. The George Washington Bridge was dedicated on October 24, 1931, and opened…
October 1930
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241930
One day in Rio ended an entire political era in Brazil.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1930 One day in Rio ended an entire political era in Brazil. On October 24, 1930, senior military officers in Rio de Janeiro deposed President…
October 1929
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291929
One day of panic ended the Roaring Twenties.
On October 29, 1929, sellers flooded the New York Stock Exchange. About 16 million shares changed hands, and prices collapsed as investors tried to get out at any price.…
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281929
Most people remember Black Tuesday. The day before was just as brutal.
On October 28, 1929, panic swept the New York Stock Exchange. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell nearly 13 percent in a single day, as investors who had bought stocks…
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241929
Tickers ran hours behind. Police stood outside the New York Stock Exchange.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1929 Tickers ran hours behind. Police stood outside the New York Stock Exchange. On October 24, 1929, panic selling swept Wall Street. Nearly…
November 1924
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41924
She refused to campaign, and still made history
After Wyoming governor William Ross died in October 1924, his widow Nellie Tayloe Ross ran to replace him. She won on November 4, 1924, and in January 1925 became…
October 1924
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251924
One letter, published four days before an election, became a mystery that lasted 100 years.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1924 One letter, published four days before an election, became a mystery that lasted 100 years. On October 25, 1924, Britain's Daily Mail…
October 1923
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291923
An empire that lasted six centuries gave way to a republic.
On October 29, 1923, the Grand National Assembly in Ankara proclaimed the Republic of Turkey. The same day, it elected Mustafa Kemal, later known as Atatürk, as the…
November 1922
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41922
One step in the rock led to Tutankhamun
On November 4, 1922, Howard Carter's team found a step cut into the rock in Egypt's Valley of the Kings. It was the top of a staircase leading down to a sealed tomb.…
November 1920
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21920
The night commercial radio began
On November 2, 1920, Westinghouse station KDKA in Pittsburgh read the results of the Harding–Cox presidential election live on air, from 6 p.m. until noon the next day.…
October 1919
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291919
The eight-hour workday got its first international treaty at a meeting in 1919.
The peace treaty that ended World War I created the International Labour Organization, built on the idea that lasting peace depends on social justice. On October 29…
October 1918
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281918
A new country was born in a single day as an empire crumbled.
On October 28, 1918, in the final weeks of World War I, the Czechoslovak National Committee proclaimed an independent Czechoslovak state in Prague. Austria-Hungary…
October 1917
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251917
A revolution that happened in October and is commemorated in November.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1917 A revolution that happened in October and is commemorated in November. On October 25, 1917, by the Julian calendar Russia still used, the…
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241917
One battle gave the Italian language a new word for disaster.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1917 One battle gave the Italian language a new word for disaster. On October 24, 1917, German and Austro-Hungarian forces launched a surprise…
October 1916
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261916
He would lead France for 14 years, longer than any other president of the Fifth Republic.
On this day · OCTOBER 26 1916 He would lead France for 14 years, longer than any other president of the Fifth Republic. François Mitterrand was born on October 26, 1916…
October 1914
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281914
Every summer, parents once feared a single word: polio.
On October 28, 1914, Jonas Salk was born in New York City. Working at the University of Pittsburgh, he developed an inactivated polio vaccine that was tested in a…
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271914
Some poems refuse to fade. His was literally about refusing to fade.
Dylan Thomas was born in Swansea, Wales, on October 27, 1914. He began publishing poetry as a teenager and became famous for the musical richness of his language and his…
October 1911
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291911
The most famous prize in journalism was written into a will.
Joseph Pulitzer, the Hungarian-born publisher of the New York World, died on October 29, 1911, aboard his yacht in the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina. Pulitzer had…
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261911
Her voice filled churches, concert halls and, one summer day in 1963, the National Mall.
Mahalia Jackson was born in New Orleans on October 26, 1911. Raised singing in church, she moved to Chicago as a teenager and became the most celebrated gospel singer of…
September 1911
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171911
The first flight across America took 49 days
Cal Rodgers took off from New York on September 17, 1911, in a plane named Vin Fiz, after the grape soda that sponsored him. He crashed many times and rebuilt along the…
October 1905
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261905
A country gained its independence without firing a shot.
On October 26, 1905, King Oscar II renounced his claim to the Norwegian throne and Sweden recognized Norway as a fully independent state. It peacefully ended the union…
October 1904
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271904
For a nickel, New Yorkers could suddenly cross Manhattan underground.
On October 27, 1904, the Interborough Rapid Transit Company opened New York City's first subway line. It ran 9.1 miles, with 28 stations from City Hall to 145th Street…
November 1903
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31903
What if Panama had stayed part of Colombia?
In August 1903, Colombia's Congress rejected the treaty that would have let the United States build a canal across Panama. On November 3, 1903, Panama declared…
October 1902
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261902
She asked for the vote in 1848. She died before women got it.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton died in New York City on October 26, 1902, at age 86. More than half a century earlier, she helped organize the Seneca Falls Convention and…
October 1901
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241901
She was 63, nearly broke, and about to climb into a barrel above Niagara Falls.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1901 She was 63, nearly broke, and about to climb into a barrel above Niagara Falls. On October 24, 1901, her birthday, Annie Edson Taylor, a…
October 1900
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251900
She led thousands of market women and forced a king off his throne.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1900 She led thousands of market women and forced a king off his throne. Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti was born on October 25, 1900, in Abeokuta, in…
October 1893
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281893
He conducted it himself. Nine days later, he was dead.
On October 28, 1893, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky led the first performance of his Symphony No. 6 in St. Petersburg. The audience's reaction was reportedly reserved, puzzled…
October 1890
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261890
His name wasn't really Collodi, and his most famous character started life in a children's magazine.
Carlo Lorenzini, who wrote under the pen name Carlo Collodi, died in Florence on October 26, 1890. He took his pen name from the Tuscan village where his mother was…
October 1889
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251889
Decades before widescreen movies, he filmed on three screens at once.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1889 Decades before widescreen movies, he filmed on three screens at once. Abel Gance was born in Paris on October 25, 1889. The French director…
October 1888
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291888
A treaty signed in 1888 still shapes how the world's goods move.
The Suez Canal opened in 1869, giving ships a shortcut between Europe and Asia without sailing around Africa. But who could use it, especially in wartime? On October 29…
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251888
He wanted to see the places on the map that were still blank.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1888 He wanted to see the places on the map that were still blank. Richard E. Byrd was born on October 25, 1888, in Winchester, Virginia. A U.S.…
October 1886
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281886
She was shipped across the Atlantic in 350 pieces.
On October 28, 1886, President Grover Cleveland dedicated the Statue of Liberty on Bedloe's Island in New York Harbor. The colossal copper figure was a gift from the…
October 1881
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251881
One baby born in southern Spain would end up changing how the whole world sees.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1881 One baby born in southern Spain would end up changing how the whole world sees. Pablo Picasso was born on October 25, 1881, in Málaga. Over…
October 1875
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251875
"Worthless and unplayable." That's what one famous pianist said about it.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1875 "Worthless and unplayable." That's what one famous pianist said about it. When Tchaikovsky showed his first piano concerto to Nikolai…
November 1872
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51872
The woman arrested for voting
On November 5, 1872, Susan B. Anthony cast a ballot for president in Rochester, New York, at a time when women could not vote in federal elections. About 14 other women…
October 1870
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271870
One surrender, and the balance of power in Europe shifted.
On October 27, 1870, during the Franco-Prussian War, French Marshal François-Achille Bazaine surrendered the fortress city of Metz after a siege of about two months. An…
February 1870
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91870
LOST & FOUND: Your daily weather report began with Army sergeants.
Before 1870, the United States had no national weather service. On February 9, 1870, President Ulysses S. Grant signed a joint resolution that gave the job to the Army.…
November 1869
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41869
A magazine from 1869 later broke the news of DNA's shape
The first issue of Nature came out on November 4, 1869, founded by astronomer Norman Lockyer with publisher Alexander Macmillan. It took 30 years to make a profit, and…
October 1868
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251868
Thirteen golden domes rise above the harbor of Helsinki.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1868 Thirteen golden domes rise above the harbor of Helsinki. On October 25, 1868, the Uspenski Cathedral was inaugurated in Helsinki, then part…
October 1867
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281867
An Irish teacher became one of the most beloved figures in India's history.
On October 28, 1867, Margaret Elizabeth Noble was born in Dungannon, in what is now Northern Ireland. After meeting Swami Vivekananda in London, she moved to India in…
October 1863
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291863
A book about one battlefield led to a movement that spans the world.
After witnessing the suffering of wounded soldiers at Solferino in 1859, Swiss businessman Henry Dunant wrote a book calling for trained volunteers to care for the…
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261863
It began with a businessman who could not forget what he saw on a battlefield.
After witnessing the suffering of wounded soldiers at Solferino in 1859, Henry Dunant called for volunteer relief societies in every country. On October 26, 1863, an…
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261863
The world's most popular sport got its rulebook in a London pub.
On this day · OCTOBER 26 1863 The world's most popular sport got its rulebook in a London pub. On October 26, 1863, representatives of a group of clubs and schools met…
October 1861
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251861
Canada's financial heart started with a resolution in a Masonic hall.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1861 Canada's financial heart started with a resolution in a Masonic hall. On October 25, 1861, the Toronto Stock Exchange was officially…
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241861
Two days. That's how long the Pony Express survived once this wire was finished.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1861 Two days. That's how long the Pony Express survived once this wire was finished. On October 24, 1861, Western Union completed the first…
November 1860
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61860
The election that split the Union
On November 6, 1860, Abraham Lincoln won a four-way race for president against Stephen Douglas, John Breckinridge and John Bell. He took about 40% of the popular vote…
October 1860
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261860
He had just conquered southern Italy. Then he gave it away.
On October 26, 1860, revolutionary general Giuseppe Garibaldi met King Victor Emmanuel II of Sardinia near Teano, north of Naples. After his famous Expedition of the…
October 1858
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271858
As a boy he suffered from severe asthma. As a man he became one of America's most energetic presidents.
Theodore Roosevelt was born on October 27, 1858, in New York City. He became a rancher, a writer, a soldier with the Rough Riders, governor of New York and, in 1901, at…
October 1857
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241857
Every football club on Earth has an older brother — and it's in Sheffield.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1857 Every football club on Earth has an older brother — and it's in Sheffield. On October 24, 1857, two members of the local cricket club…
October 1854
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251854
A single confusing order sent hundreds of cavalrymen in exactly the wrong direction.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1854 A single confusing order sent hundreds of cavalrymen in exactly the wrong direction. On October 25, 1854, during the Battle of Balaclava in…
October 1848
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281848
A 28-kilometer ride changed travel in Spain forever.
On October 28, 1848, the railway between Barcelona and Mataró opened, the first on the Iberian Peninsula. The project was championed by Miquel Biada, a Mataró native who…
October 1846
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281846
Ever wonder why restaurant kitchens have a head chef, a sous-chef and separate stations for sauces and pastry?
On October 28, 1846, Georges Auguste Escoffier was born in Villeneuve-Loubet, near Nice, France. He started cooking as a teenager and went on to run the kitchens of…
October 1838
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251838
He never lived to see his masterpiece become a global hit.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1838 He never lived to see his masterpiece become a global hit. Georges Bizet was born in Paris on October 25, 1838. A gifted pianist and…
October 1835
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311835
LOST & FOUND: The blue in your jeans began in a chemistry lab.
For thousands of years, indigo dye came only from plants. Adolf von Baeyer, born in Berlin on October 31, 1835, spent years studying the molecule. In 1880 he patented a…
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281835
Five years before the Treaty of Waitangi, Māori leaders made a declaration of their own.
On October 28, 1835, 34 northern Māori chiefs gathered at Waitangi and signed He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni, the Declaration of Independence of New…
October 1825
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261825
Skeptics mocked it as "Clinton's Ditch." It ended up reshaping a nation.
On this day · OCTOBER 26 1825 Skeptics mocked it as "Clinton's Ditch." It ended up reshaping a nation. On October 26, 1825, the Erie Canal officially opened. Stretching…
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251825
If you've ever heard The Blue Danube, you've heard his name without knowing it.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1825 If you've ever heard The Blue Danube, you've heard his name without knowing it. Johann Strauss II was born in Vienna on October 25, 1825.…
October 1812
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251812
A young navy took on the world's most powerful fleet and brought home a prize.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1812 A young navy took on the world's most powerful fleet and brought home a prize. On October 25, 1812, during the War of 1812, the American…
October 1811
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271811
He didn't invent the sewing machine. He did something arguably more important: he got it into everyone's home.
Isaac Merritt Singer was born on October 27, 1811, in Pittstown, New York. In 1851 he patented an improved, practical sewing machine and built a company around it. I. M.…
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251811
He lived only 20 years, and mathematicians are still building on what he wrote.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1811 He lived only 20 years, and mathematicians are still building on what he wrote. Évariste Galois was born on October 25, 1811, in…
October 1795
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241795
A country of millions vanished from the map, and stayed gone for 123 years.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1795 A country of millions vanished from the map, and stayed gone for 123 years. On October 24, 1795, Russia, Prussia and Austria reached the…
October 1788
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241788
You probably learned her poem as a child, and you may celebrate her holiday next month.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1788 You probably learned her poem as a child, and you may celebrate her holiday next month. Sarah Josepha Hale was born on October 24, 1788, in…
October 1787
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291787
One of opera's masterpieces opened in Prague, with Mozart himself in charge.
On October 29, 1787, Don Giovanni premiered at Prague's Estates Theatre. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart conducted the first performance, with a libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte…
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271787
Some of the most influential arguments in American history first appeared under a fake name.
On October 27, 1787, New York's Independent Journal published an essay signed 'Publius.' It was Federalist No. 1, written by Alexander Hamilton. Over the following…
October 1783
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291783
Abandoned as a baby, he became one of the great minds of the Enlightenment.
Jean le Rond d'Alembert was found as a newborn on the steps of a Paris church, Saint-Jean-le-Rond, which gave him his name. He grew up to be a leading mathematician and…
October 1782
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271782
Audiences were so stunned by his playing that rumours spread he had sold his soul to the devil.
Niccolò Paganini was born in Genoa on October 27, 1782. He became the most celebrated violinist of his age, touring Europe and dazzling crowds with lightning runs…
October 1776
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261776
At 70 years old, Benjamin Franklin boarded a ship on a mission that could make or break a new nation.
On October 26, 1776, just months after the Declaration of Independence, Franklin set sail for France aboard the Continental warship Reprisal. His task: persuade one of…
October 1767
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251767
What does freedom mean for people who don't want to rule, just to live their lives?
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1767 What does freedom mean for people who don't want to rule, just to live their lives? Benjamin Constant was born on October 25, 1767, in…
October 1764
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261764
Long before comic strips and graphic novels, one English artist told stories in a series of pictures.
William Hogarth died in London on October 26, 1764. He was famous for "modern moral subjects": painting and engraving sequences such as "A Harlot's Progress," "A Rake's…
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251764
Before he was president, he was a young lawyer marrying the minister's daughter.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1764 Before he was president, he was a young lawyer marrying the minister's daughter. On October 25, 1764, John Adams married Abigail Smith in…
October 1760
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251760
He was just 22, and his reign would reshape two continents.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1760 He was just 22, and his reign would reshape two continents. On October 25, 1760, King George II died and his grandson became King George…
October 1747
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251747
Fourteen British ships, one French convoy, and a battle that cut an empire's lifeline.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1747 Fourteen British ships, one French convoy, and a battle that cut an empire's lifeline. On October 25, 1747 (October 14 in Britain's old…
October 1728
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271728
He started life as the son of a farm labourer. He ended up redrawing the map of the world.
James Cook was born on October 27, 1728, in Marton, Yorkshire. He learned his trade on coal ships in the North Sea, joined the Royal Navy and became a superb surveyor.…
October 1726
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281726
Why did one book make the word Lilliputian part of the English language?
On October 28, 1726, Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift was first published in London. It told the story of ship's surgeon Lemuel Gulliver, who meets the tiny people…
October 1704
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281704
Life, liberty and property: three words that echo through modern democracy.
On October 28, 1704, the English philosopher John Locke died at Oates, in Essex, at age 72. In his Two Treatises of Government he argued that people are born with…
October 1685
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261685
Three of the greatest composers of the Baroque era were born in the same year. One of them was born today.
On this day · OCTOBER 26 1685 Three of the greatest composers of the Baroque era were born in the same year. One of them was born today. Domenico Scarlatti came into the…
October 1675
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291675
A single stroke of ink in 1675 still shows up in every calculus class.
On October 29, 1675, the German thinker Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, then working in Paris, wrote a stretched letter S in his private notes. It stood for "summa," Latin…
October 1671
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251671
A moon that seemed to vanish every few weeks puzzled one of the greatest astronomers of his age.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1671 A moon that seemed to vanish every few weeks puzzled one of the greatest astronomers of his age. On October 25, 1671, Giovanni Domenico…
October 1648
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241648
Three decades of war ended with two treaties signed on the same day.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1648 Three decades of war ended with two treaties signed on the same day. On October 24, 1648, the treaties of Münster and Osnabrück were signed…
October 1647
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251647
Checking the weather today? Thank an Italian scientist and a tube of mercury.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1647 Checking the weather today? Thank an Italian scientist and a tube of mercury. Evangelista Torricelli died in Florence on October 25, 1647…
October 1636
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281636
America's oldest college began with a vote and 400 pounds.
On October 28, 1636, the Great and General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony agreed to give 400 pounds toward a school or college. The new school was set up in…
October 1632
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241632
The man who first saw the invisible world wasn't a scientist by trade. He sold cloth.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1632 The man who first saw the invisible world wasn't a scientist by trade. He sold cloth. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek was born on October 24, 1632…
October 1616
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251616
More than 150 years before James Cook reached Australia's east coast, a Dutch ship had already touched the west.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1616 More than 150 years before James Cook reached Australia's east coast, a Dutch ship had already touched the west. On October 25, 1616, Dirk…
October 1601
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241601
He mapped the heavens without a telescope, and his data rewrote astronomy.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1601 He mapped the heavens without a telescope, and his data rewrote astronomy. Tycho Brahe died on October 24, 1601, in Prague, aged 54. The…
October 1597
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261597
Thirteen ships against more than 130. Almost no one would have bet on the smaller fleet.
On October 26, 1597, during the Japanese invasions of Korea, Admiral Yi Sun-sin faced a vastly larger Japanese fleet in the narrow Myeongnyang Strait. Rather than meet…
October 1517
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311517
The Turning Point: What if Luther had stayed silent in 1517?
What happened On October 31, 1517, a monk and theology professor in the small university town of Wittenberg, in Saxony, sat down to write a letter. Martin Luther…
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311517
What If Martin Luther Had Backed Down at Worms? The Full Episode
On October 31, 1517, a university professor in Wittenberg wrote a letter to the Archbishop of Mainz and attached ninety-five short arguments in Latin about the sale of…
January 1517
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—1517
What if one monk had kept his objections to himself?
In 1517, indulgences were being sold across Germany to help pay for St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Martin Luther, a monk and professor in Wittenberg, believed the…
October 1504
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291504
A 16th-century painter now travels in millions of wallets.
Shin Saimdang was born on October 29, 1504, in Joseon-era Korea. She became known as a painter, poet and calligrapher, celebrated for delicate paintings of plants and…
October 1492
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281492
He thought he had found the edge of Asia.
On October 28, 1492, during his first voyage across the Atlantic, Christopher Columbus reached the northeastern coast of Cuba. He was searching for a route to the riches…
October 1415
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251415
An army that was tired, sick and outnumbered should have lost. It didn't.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1415 An army that was tired, sick and outnumbered should have lost. It didn't. On October 25, 1415, St. Crispin's Day, King Henry V of England…
October 1400
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251400
Without him, English literature might look very different.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1400 Without him, English literature might look very different. Geoffrey Chaucer died on October 25, 1400, and was buried in Westminster Abbey…
October 1275
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271275
One of the world's most famous cities has a birthday you can pin to a single document.
On October 27, 1275, Count Floris V of Holland granted a toll privilege to the people living near a dam on the river Amstel, freeing them from paying certain tolls. It…
October 1260
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241260
A fire nearly erased it. What rose from the ashes became a masterpiece.
On this day · OCTOBER 24 1260 A fire nearly erased it. What rose from the ashes became a masterpiece. On October 24, 1260, the Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Chartres in…
October 1147
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251147
Imagine Portugal without Lisbon.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1147 Imagine Portugal without Lisbon. In the summer of 1147, Afonso Henriques, the first king of Portugal, joined forces with a fleet of…
October 1047
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251047
He ruled two kingdoms and earned a nickname most kings never get.
On this day · OCTOBER 25 1047 He ruled two kingdoms and earned a nickname most kings never get. Magnus I Olafsson died on October 25, 1047, in Skibby, Denmark. Son of…
October 939
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27939
Who was the first King of England? Most people guess wrong.
On October 27, 939, Æthelstan died at Gloucester. Grandson of Alfred the Great, he took York in 927 and became the first ruler to govern all the English as a single…
October 899
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26899
Of all England's monarchs, only one is remembered as "the Great."
Alfred, King of Wessex, died on October 26, 899. He came to the throne as Viking armies were overrunning the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, and he fought back, eventually…
October 312
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29312
One victory at a bridge changed the course of Western history.
On October 29, 312, Constantine entered Rome, one day after defeating his rival Maxentius at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge just outside the city. The win made…
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28312
One battle outside Rome helped change the religious map of the world.
On October 28, 312, Constantine defeated his rival Maxentius at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge on the Tiber River. Ancient writers later claimed Constantine had seen a…
October 51
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2451
He rebuilt Rome — and was murdered by his own court.
On this day · 10-24 He rebuilt Rome — and was murdered by his own court. On October 24, AD 51, Domitian was born, the younger son of the future emperor Vespasian. In 81…