12 History Lessons + 7 Births & 7 Deaths for September 14, 2025
Today’s History:
- 1752 – Britain and its American colonies adopt the Gregorian calendar; September 2 is followed by September 14.
- 1812 – Napoleon’s Grande Armée enters a largely abandoned Moscow; fires soon consume much of the city.
- 1847 – U.S. forces capture Mexico City during the Mexican–American War.
- 1862 – Battle of South Mountain: Union troops seize key passes in Maryland ahead of Antietam.
- 1901 – President William McKinley dies of his wounds; Vice President Theodore Roosevelt becomes the youngest U.S. president.
- 1959 – USSR’s Luna 2 becomes the first human-made object to impact the Moon.
- 1960 – OPEC is founded in Baghdad by Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela.
- 1984 – The inaugural MTV Video Music Awards air live from Radio City Music Hall.
- 2001 – President George W. Bush delivers his “bullhorn” address to rescue workers at Ground Zero.
- 2003 – Estonia votes to join the European Union in a national referendum.
- 2015 – LIGO makes the first direct detection of gravitational waves (event GW150914).
- 2019 – Drone and missile strikes hit Saudi Aramco’s Abqaiq and Khurais facilities, briefly halving the kingdom’s oil output.
Today’s Birthdays:
- 1947 – Sam Neill, actor (Jurassic Park, The Piano) (78).
- 1965 – Dmitry Medvedev, former Russian president and prime minister (60).
- 1959 – Morten Harket, a-ha lead singer (66).
- 1973 – Nas, Grammy-winning rapper and entrepreneur (52).
- 1973 – Andrew Lincoln, actor (The Walking Dead) (52).
- 1989 – Jimmy Butler, NBA All-Star (36).
- 1978 – Ron DeSantis, governor of Florida (47).
Today’s Deaths:
- 1321 – Dante Alighieri, Italian poet (The Divine Comedy) (56).
- 1712 – Giovanni Domenico Cassini, Italian-French astronomer (87).
- 1901 – William McKinley, 25th U.S. president (assassinated) (58).
- 1936 – Irving Thalberg, influential Hollywood producer (37).
- 1982 – Grace Kelly, Oscar-winning actress and Princess of Monaco (52).
- 2009 – Patrick Swayze, actor and dancer (Dirty Dancing; Ghost) (57).
- 2021 – Norm Macdonald, comedian and SNL alum (61).
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