1247 – William II of Holland elected Roman Catholic anti-king of Germany
1605 – Sangley Rebellion: Overseas Chinese, known as the Sangley, rise up against Spanish authorities in Manila, Philippines. Spanish, local Japanese, and indigenous Tagalog forces massacre an estimated 20,000 ethnic Chinese.
1922 – Governor of Georgia names Progressive writer Rebecca Felton (87) to fill an unexpired term in the US Senate; she becomes the first woman in Congress, the oldest person, and the shortest-termed, as she serves only 24 hours in November
1953 – NY Yankees legendary center fielder Mickey Mantle hits a grand slam off Russ Meyer; Bronx Bombers hold on to win 11-7 against Brooklyn Dodgers in Game 5 of Baseball World Series; NY wins series, 4-2
1968 – US performs a nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
2008 – The $700 billion bailout bill for the US financial system is signed by President George W. Bush
2021 – Record rainfall in Europe as 36 inches (925 mm) of rain begin falling in the northern Italian town of Rossiglione
2024 – UK announces it is handing over sovereignty of the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean to Mauritius
Author: gil7
Today in History for 3rd October 2026
Historical Events
1926 – English long-distance runner Violet Piercy sets the first recognized female marathon record in 3:40:22 on the Polytechnic Marathon course between Windsor and London
1947 – First telescope lens 200 inches (508 cm) in diameter is completed
1988 – Discovery 7 returns to Earth after a 4-day excursion
1988 – WBMW-FM in Washington, D.C. changes its call sign to WJFK and begins airing The Howard Stern Radio Show
2018 – Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to Frances Arnold, Gregory Winter, and George Smith for their use of evolution to produce new enzymes and antibodies
Famous Birthdays
1901 – Jean Grémillon, French film director (Remorques, Light of Summer), born in Bayeux, France (d. 1959)
1954 – Stevie Ray Vaughan, American blues guitarist (Texas Flood; “Pride And Joy”; David Bowie – “Let’s Dance”), born in Dallas, Texas (d. 1990)
1966 – Frank Hannon, American blues and rock guitarist (Tesla – The Great Radio Controversy), born in Sacramento, California
1981 – Andreas Isaksson, Swedish soccer goalkeeper (133 caps; PSV, Kasımpaşa), born in Smygehamn, Sweden
1987 – Zuleyka Rivera, Puerto Rican beauty queen (2006 Miss Universe winner), actress and TV host, born in Cayey, Puerto Rico
Famous Deaths
1568 – Elisabeth of Valois, daughter of King Henry II of France and 3rd wife of Philip II of Spain, dies in childbirth at 23
1611 – Margarita of Austria, Queen of Spain and Portugal by marriage to King Philip III and II of Spain, dies at 26
1860 – Rembrandt Peale, American portrait and historical painter (Margaret Irvine Miller ,1805; Court of Death, 1820), and museum keeper (Baltimore), dies at 82
1953 – Arnold Bax, British composer known for his orchestral music (Tintagel), and memoirist (Farewell My Youth), dies of heart failure at 69
2018 – Leon M. Lederman, American experimental physicist (Nobel Prize in Physics, 1988 – for research on quarks and leptons) and author (The God Particle), dies from complications of dementia at 96
Famous Deaths for 2nd October 2026
1113 – Mawdoed, Selchuk emir/governor of Mosul, dies
1678 – Wu San-kuei, gen, invited Manchus to China, dies trying to expel them
1920 – Max Bruch, German composer (Kol Nidre), dies at 82
1962 – Boris Y. Bukreev, Russian mathematician (b. 1859)
1967 – Albertina Rasch, Austrian-born American ballerina and choreographer, dies at 76
1985 – (Georgios) “George” Savalas, Greek-American actor (Kojak; Kelly’s Heroes), dies of leukemia at 58
1998 – Korla Pandit [John Roland Redd], American pianist and Hammond B-3 organist, exotica and television pioneer (Adventures in Music), dies at 77
2007 – (Elfriede) “Elfi” von Dassanowsky, Austrian-American opera singer, pianist, vocal coach, and film producer, dies of heart failure at 83
2022 – Shirley Englehorn, American golfer (Women’s PGA C’ship 1970), dies at 81
2025 – Roland Bertranne, French rugby union centre (69 Tests; Stade Bagnérais RFC, RC Toulon, Barbarians Rugby; World XV 1980), dies at 75
Historical Events for 2nd October 2026
1904 – White Sox left-hander Doc White’s streak of 45 consecutive MLB scoreless innings is snapped by the New York Highlanders in Chicago; White Sox win 7-1 at South Side Park III
1947 – Revised International Telecommunication Convention is adopted
1972 – Danish population votes for membership in the European Common Market
1972 – Montreal Expos pitcher Bill Stoneman no-hits the New York Mets 7-0 at Parc Jarry, the first MLB no-hitter ever pitched in Canada
1972 – Ron Johnson becomes the first New York Giant to score four touchdowns (against Philadelphia)
1983 – Carl Yastrzemski’s last at-bat
1992 – VP Itamar Franco becomes President of Brazil
2014 – A gunpowder plant explodes in Gorni Lom, Bulgaria, killing 15 people
Today in History for 2nd October 2026
Historical Events
1799 – Duke of York and Russians capture Alkmaar in the Netherlands
1889 – First Pan-American Conference is held in Washington, D.C.
1901 – First Royal Navy submarine launched at Barrow-in-Furness
1943 – New York Yankees sweep 14th MLB doubleheader of the year, beating St. Louis Browns 5-1 and 7-6 at Yankee Stadium
1971 – Homing pigeon averages a record 133 km/h in a 1,100 km race in Australia
Famous Birthdays
1800 – Nat Turner, American leader of a major slave rebellion in Virginia in 1831, born in Southampton County, Virginia (d. 1831)
1835 – Louis-Antoine Ranvier, French anatomist and historian, born in Lyon, France (d. 1922)
1920 – James Dobson, American actor (Impulse, Jet Attack), born in Greeneville, Tennessee (d. 1987)
1935 – Robert Henry Lawrence, Jr., 1st African-American astronaut and U.S. Air Force major, born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 1967)
1967 – Floyd “Bud” Gaugh, American ska-punk rock drummer (Sublime), born in Kihei, Hawaii
Famous Deaths
1802 – Giuseppe Millico, Italian soprano castrato (Christoph Willibald Gluck operas), composer, and pedagogue, dies at 65
1899 – Percy Pilcher, British inventor and pioneer aviator (unpowered gliders), dies in a flight crash at 32
1955 – O. B. Clarence, English actor (Saint Joan), dies at 85
1970 – Alfred Swan, Russian composer, dies at 79
1996 – Robert Bourassa, Prime Minister of Quebec province (1970-76, 85-93), dies at 63
Famous Deaths for 1st October 2026
1310 – Beatrice of Burgundy, Lady of Bourbon (b. 1257)
1633 – Filaret Romanov, patriarch of Moscow, dies (b. 1550)
1904 – William Harcourt, British Home Secretary and Chancellor of the Exchequer, dies at 76
1930 – Ricacrdo Drigo, Italian composer of opera and ballet music, (Le Réveil de Flore; “La Flûte magique), conductor (Imperial Mariinsky Ballet, 1886- 1917). and pianist, dies at 84
1943 – John Charles Boissevain, resistance fighter, executed at 23
1970 – Hans Poser, German composer, dies at 52
1975 – Larry MacPhail, American Baseball Hall of Fame executive (Cincinnati Reds, Brooklyn Dodgers, New York Yankees), dies at 85
1988 – Sacheverell Sitwell, English writer (People’s Palace), dies at 90
2004 – Joyce Jillson, American newspaper columnist, author, astrologer and actress (Superchick, Jill Smith in “Peyton Place”), dies at 58
2017 – Samuel Irving Newhouse Jr., American magazine publisher (Parade, Vogue, Vanity Fair), dies at 89
Historical Events for 1st October 2026
1871 – General Dutch Werkliedenverbond (ANWV) forms in Utrecht
1890 – Germany’s anti-socialist laws lapse
1953 – Brooklyn Dodgers pitcher Carl Erskine sets a World Series record with 14 strikeouts in a 3-2 Game 3 win against the New York Yankees at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn
1960 – Nigeria gains independence from the United Kingdom and becomes the 99th member of the United Nations
1979 – The US returns the Canal Zone (but not the canal) to Panama after 75 years
1979 – Shehu Shagari becomes the first and only President of Nigeria’s Second Republic
1989 – Thousands of East Germans flee to West Germany
2000 – NBA stars Ray Allen and Vince Carter each score 13 points as the US beats France 85-75 to win the men’s basketball gold medal at the Sydney Olympics
Today in History for 1st October 2026
Historical Events
911 – During a siege in Constantinople, the Theotokos (Mary, the mother of Jesus) appears at the church in Blachernae, holding her veil over the praying faithful, among them St. Andrew of Constantinople
1791 – First session of the new French legislative assembly
1939 – Winston Churchill calls Russia a “riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma”
1995 – The NY Yankees (AL) and Colorado Rockies (NL) become the first wild-card teams in the new MLB playoff system; the Rockies are the first team to reach the postseason before their 7th year and post the best-ever record for a 3rd-year team, 10 games over .500 (77-67)
1998 – LA’s Mauricio Cienfuegos and Martin Machon equal the MLS playoff record of three assists each as the Galaxy roll to a 6-1 win over the Dallas Burn at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California
Famous Birthdays
1847 – Annie Besant, English social reformer and supporter of Indian independence, born in London (d. 1933)
1878 – Othmar Spann, Austrian economist and sociologist (Geschichtsfilosofie), born in Vienna (d. 1950)
1910 – Bonnie Parker, American outlaw of Bonnie and Clyde fame, born in Rowena, Texas (d. 1934)
1960 – Elizabeth Dennehy, American actress (Guiding Light, Start Trek: The Next Generation), born in Jacksonville, North Carolina
1963 – Mark McGwire, American MLB first baseman, coach (12-time All Star, Oakland A’s, St. Louis Cardinals), born in Pomona, California
Famous Deaths
540 – Vedastus St Vaast, 1st bishop of Atrecht/saint, dies
1500 – John Alcock, English bishop and chancellor (founded Jesus College, Cambridge), dies at about 70
1943 – Johan Kalshoven, resistance fighter, executed at 20
2002 – Walter Annenberg, American publisher (Triangle-TV Guide) and philanthropist, dies at 94
2007 – Ned Sherrin, English broadcaster, author and stage director (b. 1931)
Famous Deaths for 30th September 2026
1897 – Therese of Lisieux, French Roman-Catholic nun, made a saint in 1925, dies of tuberculosis at 24
1948 – Edith Roosevelt, US First Lady and wife of Teddy Roosevelt, dies at 87
1960 – St John Philby, British explorer and Arabist, dies at 75
1983 – William Elliott, American actor (Bridget Loves Bernie – “Otis”; Adam-12- “Officer Grant”), and jazz drummer, dies at 49
1984 – Ellsworth Bunker, US ambassador (South-Vietnam, dies at 90)
1989 – Virgil Thomson, American composer and music critic (Four Saints in Three Acts; Louisiana Story), dies at 92
1996 – Udom Patpongsiri, Thai property developer (Father of the Thai sex industry), dies at 79
2010 – Stephen J. Cannell, American TV producer (The Rockford Files, The A-Team, 21 Jump Street) and writer, dies of melanoma at 69
2012 – César Bolaños, Peruvian electro-acoustic and experimental musician and composer, dies at 81
2021 – José Pérez Francés, Spanish road racing cyclist (Tour de France 1963 overall 3rd), dies at 84
Historical Events for 30th September 2026
1857 – US occupies Sand, Baker, Howland, and Jarvis Islands, south of Hawaii
1862 – Minister-President of Prussia Otto von Bismarck delivers his famous “Blood and Iron” speech on the unification of German territories
1960 – On Howdy Doody’s last show, the traditionally silent clown, Clarabell the Clown, finally speaks his first and only words, whispering “Goodbye, kids”
1963 – 56th Postmaster General: John A. Gronouski of Wisconsin takes office
1969 – Atlanta’s 10th consecutive win clinches the NL West pennant
1989 – Toronto Blue Jays win AL East title
1997 – John Howard’s Australian government gun buyback scheme ends with more than 640,000 firearms compulsorily acquired, including many newly illegal semi-automatic rifles and shotguns
2023 – Bipartisan deal to avoid US government shutdown is signed just hours before the midnight deadline and provides funding for 45 days