October 11

October 11 in recent years

2024 (Friday)

2023 (Wednesday)

2022 (Tuesday)

2021 (Monday)

2020 (Sunday)

2019 (Friday)

2018 (Thursday)

2017 (Wednesday)

2016 (Tuesday)

2015 (Sunday)

October 11 is the 284th day of the year (285th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 81 days remain until the end of the year.

Events

• 1138 – A massive earthquake struck Aleppo, Syria.
• 1531 – Huldrych Zwingli is killed in battle with the Roman Catholic cantons of Switzerland.
• 1582 – Because of the implementation of the Gregorian calendar, this day does not exist in this year in Italy, Poland, Portugal and Spain.
• 1614 – Adriaen Block and 12 Amsterdam merchants petition the States General for exclusive trading rights in the New Netherland colony.
• 1634 – The Burchardi flood — "the second Grote Mandrenke" killed around 15,000 men in North Friesland, Denmark and Germany.
• 1649 – Sack of Wexford: After a ten-day siege, English New Model Army troops (under Oliver Cromwell) stormed the town of Wexford, killing over 2,000 Irish Confederate troops and 1,500 civilians.
• 1727 – George II and Caroline of Ansbach are crowned King and Queen of Great Britain.
• 1776 – American Revolution: Battle of Valcour Island – On Lake Champlain 15 American gunboats are defeated but give Patriot forces enough time to prepare defenses of New York City.
• 1809 – Along the Natchez Trace in Tennessee, explorer Meriwether Lewis dies under mysterious circumstances at an inn called Grinder's Stand.
• 1811 – Inventor John Stevens' boat, the Juliana, begins operation as the first steam-powered ferry (service between New York, New York, and Hoboken, New Jersey).
• 1852 – The University of Sydney, Australia's oldest university, is inaugurated in Sydney.
• 1862 – American Civil War: In the aftermath of the Battle of Antietam, Confederate General J.E.B. Stuart and his men loot Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, during a raid into the north.
• 1864 – Campina Grande, Brazil is established as a city.
• 1865 – Paul Bogle led hundreds of black men and women in a march in Jamaica, starting the Morant Bay rebellion.
• 1890 – In Washington, DC, the Daughters of the American Revolution is founded.
• 1899 – Second Boer War begins: In South Africa, a war between the United Kingdom and the Boers of the Transvaal and Orange Free State erupts.
• 1899 – The Western League is renamed the American League.
• 1906 – San Francisco public school board sparks United States diplomatic crisis with Japan by ordering Japanese students to be taught in racially segregated schools.
• 1910 – Ex-president Theodore Roosevelt becomes the first U.S. president to fly in an airplane. He flew for four minutes with Arch Hoxsey in a plane built by the Wright Brothers at Kinloch Field (Lambert-St. Louis International Airport), St. Louis, Missouri.
• 1929 – JC Penney opens store #1252 in Milford, Delaware, making it a nationwide company with stores in all 48 U.S. states.
• 1941 – Beginning of the National Liberation War of Macedonia.
• 1942 – World War II: Battle of Cape Esperance – On the northwest coast of Guadalcanal, United States Navy ships intercept and defeat a Japanese fleet on their way to reinforce troops on the island.
• 1944 – Tuvinian People's Republic or formerly Tannu Tuva is annexed by the U.S.S.R
• 1950 – Television: CBS's mechanical color system is the first to be licensed for broadcast by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission.
• 1954 – First Indochina War: The Viet Minh take control of North Vietnam.
• 1957 – Space Race: M.I.T. scientists calculate Sputnik I's booster rocket's orbit.
• 1958 – Pioneer program: NASA launches the lunar probe Pioneer 1 (the probe falls back to Earth and burns up).
• 1962 – Second Vatican Council: Pope John XXIII convenes the first ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church in 92 years.
• 1968 – Apollo program: NASA launches Apollo 7, the first successful manned Apollo mission, with astronauts Wally Schirra, Donn F. Eisele and Walter Cunningham aboard.
• 1972 – A race riot occurs on the United States Navy aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk off the coast of Vietnam during Operation Linebacker.
• 1975 – The NBC sketch comedy/variety show Saturday Night Live debuts with George Carlin as the host and Andy Kaufman, Janis Ian and Billy Preston as guests.
• 1976 – George Washington's appointment, posthumously, to the grade of General of the Armies of the United States by congressional joint resolution Public Law 94-479 is approved by President Gerald R. Ford.
• 1982 – The Mary Rose, a Tudor gunship which sank on July 18 1545, is raised from the sea bed in the Solent Channel, near Portsmouth.
• 1984 – Aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger, astronaut Kathryn D. Sullivan becomes the first American woman to perform a space walk.
• 1986 – Cold War: U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev meet in Reykjavík, Iceland, in an effort to continue discussions about scaling back their intermediate missile arsenals in Europe.
• 1987 – Start of Operation Pawan by Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka that killed few thousand ethnic Tamil civilians, several hundred Tamil Tigers and few hundred Indian Army soldiers.
• 1996 – Pala accident: a wood lorry and school bus collide in Jõgeva county, Estonia, killing eight children.
• 1998 – A Congo Airlines Boeing 727 is shot down by rebels in Kindu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, killing 40 people.
• 2000 – The 100th Space Shuttle mission (STS-92) is flown.
• 2001 – The Polaroid Corporation files for federal bankruptcy protection.
• 2002 – A bomb attack in a shopping mall in Vantaa, Finland kills seven.
• 2007 – The record high of the Dow Jones Industrial Average occurs at 14,198.10 points.

Births

• 1335 – Taejo of Joseon, ruler of Korea (d. 1408)
• 1616 – Andreas Gryphius, German writer (d. 1664)
• 1661 – Melchior de Polignac, French diplomat (d. 1742)
• 1671 – Frederick IV of Denmark (d. 1730)
• 1671 – Richard Moungler (d. 1730)
• 1672 – Pylyp Orlyk, Ukrainian Zaporozhian Cossack starshina, diplomat (d. 1742)
• 1675 – Samuel Clarke, English philosopher (d. 1729)
• 1738 – Arthur Phillip, Governor of New South Wales (d. 1814)
• 1758 – Heinrich Wilhelm Matthäus Olbers, German astronomer (d. 1840)
• 1786 – Stevenson Archer, American Congressman (d. 1848)
• 1788 – Simon Sechter, Austrian music teacher (d. 1867)
• 1809 – Orson Squire Fowler, American phrenologist (d. 1887)
• 1814 – Jean Baptiste Lamy, first Archbishop of Santa Fe (d. 1888)
• 1815 – Pierre Napoleon Bonaparte, Italian-born adventurer (d. 1881)
• 1821 – George Williams, English founder of the YMCA (d. 1905)
• 1844 – Henry Heinz, American food manufacturer (d. 1916)
• 1865 – Hans E. Kinck, Norwegian author and philologist (d. 1926)
• 1871 – Johan Oscar Smith, Norweigian religious leader (d. 1943)
• 1872 – Harlan Fiske Stone, 12th Chief Justice of the United States (d. 1946)
• 1879 – Ernst Mally, Austrian philosopher (d. 1944)
• 1881 – Hans Kelsen, Austrian legal theorist (d. 1973)
• 1884 – Friedrich Bergius, German chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1949)
• 1884 – Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady of the United States and humanitarian (d. 1962)
• 1884 – Sig Ruman, German-American actor (d. 1967)
• 1885 – François Mauriac, French author, Nobel laureate (d. 1970)
• 1895 – Jakov Gotovac, Croatian composer (d. 1982)
• 1897 – Nathan Twining, USAF general (d. 1982)
• 1899 – Eddie Dyer, American baseball player (d. 1964)
• 1902 – Jayaprakash Narayan, Indian freedom fighter and political leader (d. 1979)
• 1905 – Fred Trump, American real estate developer, father of Donald Trump (d. 1999)
• 1912 – Betty Noyes, singer who dubbed Debbie Reynolds' singing voice in Singin' in the Rain
• 1913 – Dorothy Woolfolk, American comic book editor (d. 2000)
• 1913 – Joe Simon, American comic book artist and writer
• 1915 – T. Llew Jones, Welsh author (d. 2009)
• 1918 – Jerome Robbins, American choreographer (d. 1998)
• 1919 – Art Blakey, American jazz drummer (d. 1990)
• 1919 – Jean Vander Pyl, American voice actress (d. 1999)
• 1924 – Mal Whitfield, American athlete
• 1925 – Elmore Leonard, American novelist
• 1926 – Neville Wran, Premier of New South Wales
• 1926 – Nhất Hạnh, Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk
• 1927 – Princess Joséphine-Charlotte of Belgium (d. 2005)
• 1928 – Alfonso de Portago, Spanish race car driver (d. 1957)
• 1929 – Liselotte Pulver, Swiss actress
• 1930 – Sam Johnson, American politician
• 1930 – LaVell Edwards, American football coach
• 1932 – Dottie West, American singer (d. 1991)
• 1936 – Billy Higgins, American jazz drummer (d. 2001)
• 1937 – Sir Bobby Charlton, English footballer
• 1937 – R. H. W. Dillard, American poet
• 1939 – Maria Bueno, Brazilian tennis player
• 1939 – Austin Currie, Northern Irish politician
• 1941 – Lester Bowie, American jazz trumpeter (d. 1999)
• 1941 – Charles Shyer, American film director
• 1942 – Amitabh Bachchan, Indian actor
• 1943 – John Nettles, English actor
• 1944 – Mike Fiore, American baseball player
• 1944 – Rodney Marsh, English Footballer
• 1946 – Sawao Kato, Japanese gymnast
• 1946 – Oba Chandler, American convicted murderer
• 1946 – Daryl Hall, American rock singer (Hall & Oates)
• 1946 – Gary Mallaber, American musician (The Steve Miller Band)
• 1947 – Al Atkins, English musician
• 1947 – Lucas Papademos, Greek economist
• 1947 – Thomas Boswell, American sports columnist
• 1948 – Cecilia, Spanish singer-songwriter
• 1950 – Patty Murray, American politician, senior senator from Washington
• 1951 – Jean-Jacques Goldman, French singer/songwriter
• 1953 – David Morse, American actor
• 1954 – Vojislav Seselj, Serbian politician
• 1955 – Norm Nixon, American basketball player
• 1956 – Nicanor Duarte Frutos, President of Paraguay
• 1957 – Paul Bown, English actor
• 1957 – Dawn French, Welsh comedian,actress and screenwriter
• 1957 – Paul Sereno, American paleontologist
• 1958 – Gregory Dudek, Canadian roboticist and computer scientist
• 1959 – Wayne Gardner, Australian racing driver
• 1960 – Curt Ford, American baseball player
• 1960 – Randy Breuer, American basketball player
• 1961 – Neil Buchanan, English television presenter
• 1961 – Amr Diab, Egyptian singer
• 1961 – Steve Young, American football player
• 1962 – Nicola Bryant, English actress
• 1962 – Joan Cusack, American actress and comedian
• 1963 – Prince Faisal bin Al Hussein of Jordan
• 1963 – Ronny Rosenthal, Israeli footballer
• 1964 – Michael J. Nelson, American actor
• 1965 – Alexander Hacke, German musician (Einstürzende Neubauten)
• 1965 – Sean Patrick Flanery, American actor
• 1966 – Solofa Fatu, aka Rikishi, American professional wrestler
• 1966 – Luke Perry, American actor
• 1967 – Daniel Razon, Vice Presiding Minister, Church of God International
• 1967 – Tony Chimel, American professional wrestling announcer
• 1967 – Artie Lange, American actor and comedian
• 1967 – David Starr, American race car driver
• 1967 – Tazz, American professional wrestler and commentator
• 1968 – Claude Lapointe, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1968 – Jane Krakowski, American actress
• 1969 – Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands
• 1969 – Stephen Moyer, British actor
• 1970 – Chidi Ahanotu, American football player
• 1970 – Andy Marriott, English footballer
• 1970 – Constance Zimmer, American actress
• 1971 – MC Lyte, American rapper
• 1971 – Petra Haden, American musician (The Rentals)
• 1971 – Jason Ellis, Australian professional skateboarder
• 1972 – Claudia Black, Australian actress
• 1972 – Cherokee Parks, American basketball player
• 1973 – Takeshi Kaneshiro, actor/model
• 1973 – Steven Pressley, Scottish footballer
• 1973 – Mike Smith, American guitarist (Snot, Limp Bizkit)
• 1973 – Dmitri Young, American baseball player
• 1973 – Niki Xanthou, Greek long jumper
• 1974 – Jason Arnott, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1974 – Terje Haakonsen, Norwegian snowboarder
• 1974 – Jamie Thomas, American skateboarder
• 1976 – Dominic Aitchison, Scottish musician (Mogwai)
• 1976 – Brent Bennett, American mercenary
• 1976 – Emily Deschanel, American actress
• 1977 – Matthew Bomer, American actor
• 1977 – Desmond Mason, American basketball player
• 1977 – Claudia Palacios, Colombian television journalist
• 1977 – Ty Wigginton, American baseball player
• 1978 – Kali, Angolan footballer
• 1979 – Bae Doona, South Korean model and actress
• 1979 – Andy Douglas, American professional wrestler
• 1979 – Gabe Saporta, Uruguayan-born American musician (Cobra Starship, Midtown)
• 1980 – Nyron Nosworthy, English footballer
• 1981 – Beau Brady, Australian Actor
• 1982 – Kristy Wu, American Actress
• 1982 – Jeff Larish, American Baseball Player
• 1983 – William Sledd, American internet personality
• 1983 – Ruslan Ponomariov, Ukrainian chess player
• 1983 – Bradley James, British actor
• 1984 – Sergio Hellings, Dutch footballer
• 1984 – Martha MacIsaac, Canadian actress
• 1985 – Michelle Trachtenberg, American actress
• 1987 – Mike Conley, Jr., American basketball player
• 1989 – Henry Lau, member of Korean Boy Band Super Junior M
• 1989 – Michelle Wie, American golfer
• 1991 – Chauncey Matthews, American Juniors singer

Deaths

• 1188 – Robert I of Dreux, son of Louis VI of France
• 1303 – Pope Boniface VIII
• 1347 – Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1282)
• 1424 – Jan Žižka, leader of the Hussites (b. 1360)
• 1531 – Huldrych Zwingli, Swiss Protestant leader (b. 1484)
• 1705 – Guillaume Amontons, French physicist and instrument maker (b. 1663)
• 1708 – Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus, German mathematician (b. 1651)
• 1721 – Edward Colston, English merchant and philanthropist (b. 1636)
• 1725 – Hans Herr, Swiss-born Mennonite bishop (b. 1639)
• 1779 – Kazimierz Pułaski, Polish fighter for American independence (b. 1745)
• 1809 – Meriwether Lewis, American explorer (b. 1774)
• 1811 – Johann Conrad Ammann, Swiss physician and naturalist (b. 1724)
• 1821 – John Ross Key, American judge and lawyer (b. 1754)
• 1852 – Ferdinand Eisenstein, German mathematician (b. 1823)
• 1889 – James Prescott Joule, English physicist (b. 1818)
• 1896 – Anton Bruckner, Austrian composer (b. 1824)
• 1896 – Edward White Benson, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1829)
• 1897 – Léon Boëllmann, French composer (b. 1862)
• 1935 – Steele Rudd, Australian author (b. 1868)
• 1940 – Lluís Companys, President of Generalitat of Catalonia (shot) (b. 1882)
• 1940 – Vito Volterra, Italian mathematician and physicist (b. 1860)
• 1961 – Chico Marx, American comedian (b. 1887)
• 1963 – Jean Cocteau, French writer (b. 1889)
• 1963 – Édith Piaf, French Singer and Actress (b. 1915)
• 1965 – Dorothea Lange, American photographer (b. 1895)
• 1965 – Walther Stampfli, member of the Swiss Federal Council (b. 1884)
• 1971 – Chesty Puller, the most decorated american Marine in history (b. 1898)
• 1976 – Alfredo Bracchi, Italian author (b. 1897)
• 1977 – MacKinlay Kantor, American author (b. 1904)
• 1986 – Norm Cash, American baseball player (b. 1934)
• 1988 – Bonita Granville, American actress (b. 1923)
• 1989 – M. King Hubbert, American geophysicist (b. 1904)
• 1991 – Steven Jesse Bernstein, American underground poet (suicide) (b. 1950)
• 1991 – Redd Foxx, American comedian and actor (b. 1922)
• 1993 – Jess Thomas, American tenor (b. 1927)
• 1996 – Lars Ahlfors, Finnish mathematician (b. 1907)
• 1996 – Joe Morris, C.C., LL.D., Canadian trade unionist (b. 1913)
• 1996 – Renato Russo, Brazilian rock singer-songwriter (b. 1960)
• 1998 – Richard Denning, American actor (b. 1914)
• 2000 – Donald Dewar, First Minister of Scotland (b. 1937)
• 2002 – Dina Pathak, Indian Actress (b. 1922)
• 2004 – Keith Miller, Australian sportsman (b. 1919)
• 2005 – Edward Szczepanik, Polish economist and Prime Minister in exile (b. 1915)
• 2005 – Shan-ul-Haq Haqqee, Linguist, and writer of Pakistan (b. 1917)
• 2006 – Cory Lidle, American baseball pitcher (b. 1972)
• 2006 – Howard Kerzner, Chief Executive Officer of Kerzner International (b. 1964)
• 2007 – Werner von Trapp, member of the Trapp Family Singers (b. 1915)
• 2007 – David Lee "Tex" Hill, World War II fighter pilot, flying ace, 1st American Volunteer Group (b. 1915)
• 2007 – Sri Chinmoy Chinmoy Kumar Ghose founder of the Sri Chinmoy meditation centres (b. 1931)
• 2008 – Jörg Haider, Austrian politician (b. 1950)
• 2009 – Veronika Neugebauer, German actress and voice actress (b. 1969)

Holidays and observances

• Christian Feast Day:
  • Alexander Sauli
  • Andronicus, Probus, and Tarachus (Roman Catholic Church)
  • Gummarus
  • Lommán of Trim
  • Nectarius of Constantinople
  • Pope John XXIII (Roman Catholic Church)
• Meditrinalia, in honor of Meditrina. (Roman Empire)
• National Coming Out Day (United States)
• Revolution Day (Republic of Macedonia)

External links

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada

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