12 History Lessons + 7 Births & 7 Deaths for October 18, 2024
Today’s History:
- 1685 – Edict of Fontainebleau revokes the Edict of Nantes, triggering Huguenot persecution and flight.
- 1775 – The Burning of Falmouth (now Portland, Maine) by the British intensifies colonial resistance.
- 1779 – Franco-American forces lift the Siege of Savannah after a failed assault.
- 1851 – Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick is first published as The Whale in London.
- 1867 – The United States formally takes possession of Alaska from Russia (Alaska Day).
- 1898 – The U.S. raises its flag in Puerto Rico as Spain cedes control after the Spanish-American War.
- 1922 – British Broadcasting Company Ltd. is formed, the forerunner to today’s BBC.
- 1954 – Texas Instruments announces the Regency TR-1, the first commercial transistor radio.
- 1962 – Amid the Cuban Missile Crisis, JFK meets Soviet FM Andrei Gromyko at the White House.
- 1968 – Bob Beamon shatters the long jump world record (8.90 m) at the Mexico City Olympics.
- 1972 – Congress overrides President Nixon’s veto; the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (Clean Water Act) becomes law.
- 1977 – “Mr. October” Reggie Jackson hits three homers in Game 6, clinching the World Series for the Yankees.
Today’s Birthdays:
- 1939 – Mike Ditka, Hall of Fame tight end & Super Bowl-winning coach (85).
- 1956 – Martina Navratilova, tennis legend (68).
- 1960 – Jean-Claude Van Damme, action film star (64).
- 1961 – Wynton Marsalis, Pulitzer-winning jazz/trumpet virtuoso (63).
- 1979 – Ne-Yo, Grammy-winning R&B singer-songwriter (45).
- 1984 – Lindsey Vonn, Olympic & World Cup alpine skiing champion (40).
- 1987 – Zac Efron, actor (“The Greatest Showman,” “The Iron Claw”) (37).
Today’s Deaths:
- 1871 – Charles Babbage, mathematician/“father of the computer” (79).
- 1893 – Charles Gounod, French composer of Faust (75).
- 1931 – Thomas Edison, prolific American inventor (84).
- 2000 – Gwen Verdon, Tony-winning dancer/actor (75).
- 2000 – Julie London, jazz singer and film/TV actor (74).
- 2007 – Lucky Dube, South African reggae star (43).
- 2021 – Colin Powell, former U.S. Secretary of State & Joint Chiefs Chair (84).
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