Welcome to Wikipedia

,

the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

113,258 active editors
7,064,670 articles in English

From today's featured article

John Dobbin, Opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway in 1825

The Stockton and Darlington Railway (S&DR), the world's first public railway to use steam locomotives, first operated on 27 September 1825. It initially connected collieries near Shildon with Darlington and Stockton in County Durham, north-east England. The transport of coal proved profitable, and the line was soon extended to a new port at Middlesbrough. The opening of the S&DR was seen as proof of steam railway effectiveness. While coal was hauled by steam locomotives, horses drew passenger coaches along the rails until carriages hauled by locomotives were introduced in 1833. The S&DR suffered severe financial difficulties at the end of the 1840s but the discovery of iron ore in Cleveland led to an increase in revenue. At the beginning of the 1860s it took over railways that had crossed the Pennines, but was itself taken over by the North Eastern Railway, continuing to operate independently until 1876. Much of the original route is now served by the Tees Valley line. (Full article...)

Recently featured:

Did you know ...

A Bugis poetry collection taken in 1814

... that after capturing the Bone Sultanate's palace in an 1814 expedition, the British brought back 30 Bugis and Makassarese manuscripts (example pictured)?
... that fan-art of a romantic pairing between two South Park characters later appeared in the show itself?
... that the English inventor Horace Dall invented a foldable telescope, a tube for flow measurements, and a pantograph which allowed him to engrave "280 bibles/square inch"?
... that the urban legend Polybius shares its name with a historian who warned against reporting stories that cannot be verified?
... that the Red October ouster plot allegedly tried to "brainwash and incite students" in multiple universities across the Philippines?
... that Li Gang, a top member of China's anti-corruption agency, was arrested on suspicion of bribery?
... that the US Coast Guard canceled a class of 96 ships simply stating that, "times have changed"?
... that Alexander McQueen was accused of misogyny after a model in his Eshu collection was fitted with a mouthpiece that forced her lips into a snarling expression?
... that Wonderful Terrific Monds' father, son, and grandson are also named Wonderful Monds?

In the news

Peter Mutharika

Peter Mutharika (pictured) is elected president of Malawi.
Typhoon Ragasa leaves at least 28 people dead in Taiwan and the Philippines.
Saudi Arabia and Pakistan sign an agreement to defend each other against attacks.
American actor and filmmaker Robert Redford dies at the age of 89.
In boxing, Terence Crawford defeats Canelo Álvarez, becoming undisputed champion in his third weight class.

On this day

September 27: Meskel (Orthodox Tewahedo)

Flag of China

1422 – The Treaty of Melno was signed, establishing the Prussian–Lithuanian border, which afterwards remained unchanged for about 500 years.
1875 – The merchant ship Ellen Southard was wrecked in a storm at Liverpool, England; the U.S. Congress subsequently awarded 27 Gold Lifesaving Medals to the men who rescued her crew.
1940 – World War II: Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy and the Empire of Japan signed the Tripartite Pact in Berlin, officially forming a military alliance known as the Axis.
1949 – Members of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference unanimously selected Zeng Liansong's design for the flag of China (pictured).
2014 – Mount Ontake in central Japan unexpectedly erupted, killing 63 people in the nation's deadliest eruption in more than 100 years.

Guillaume Rondelet (b. 1507)
Ivan Goncharov (d. 1891)
Gwyneth Paltrow (b. 1972)
Madeleine Tchicaya (d. 2021)

More anniversaries:

Today's featured picture

Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula CaSO₄·2H₂O. It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, drywall and blackboard or sidewalk chalk. The Mohs scale of mineral hardness defines gypsum as hardness value 2 based on scratch hardness comparison. Other forms of gypsum include the fine-grained, lightly-tinted alabaster, used for sculpture by many cultures in history, and the translucent crystals of selenite. This specimen of gypsum originates in Carresse-Cassaber, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, France.

Photograph credit: Didier Descouens

Recently featured:

Other areas of Wikipedia

Community portal – The central hub for editors, with resources, links, tasks, and announcements.
Village pump – Forum for discussions about Wikipedia itself, including policies and technical issues.
Site news – Sources of news about Wikipedia and the broader Wikimedia movement.
Teahouse – Ask basic questions about using or editing Wikipedia.
Help desk – Ask questions about using or editing Wikipedia.
Reference desk – Ask research questions about encyclopedic topics.
Content portals – A unique way to navigate the encyclopedia.

Wikipedia's sister projects

Wikipedia is written by volunteer editors and hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation, a non-profit organization that also hosts a range of other volunteer projects: