On This Day in History
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What Happened On This Day in History
Find out what happened on this day in history through today's featured event, latest article, notable birthday, and notable death. Each card opens the complete history page.
How did a deliberate crash decide the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix?
Fernando Alonso won the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, Formula One's first night race, after teammate Nelson Piquet Jr. crashed to trigger a safety car.
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Seymour Cray
Seymour Roger Cray was an American electrical engineer, computer scientist, mathematician, and supercomputer architect who designed a series of computers that were the fastest in the world for decades, and founded Cray Research, which built many of these…
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Althea Gibson
Althea Neale Gibson was an American tennis player and professional golfer, and one of the first Black athletes to cross the color line of international tennis. In 1956, she became the first Black player to win a Grand Slam event.
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Open Holidays CalendarOn This Day in History Articles
A new history article is published every day covering one significant event from the past. Each post explores the causes, key figures, immediate impact, and the legacy that still resonates in the world today.
How did a deliberate crash decide the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix?
Fernando Alonso won the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, Formula One's first night race, after teammate Nelson Piquet Jr. crashed to trigger a safety car.
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How did a disguised gunman kill 14 in the Zug parliament?
Friedrich Leibacher, disguised as a police officer, shot and killed 14 people in the Canton of Zug parliament before taking his own life.
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How did Stanislav Petrov avert a nuclear war in 1983?
Soviet officer Stanislav Petrov identified a nuclear missile warning as a computer error, preventing a retaliatory strike and potential nuclear war.
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How did Congress define Sequoia National Park's 1890 boundaries?
On September 25, 1890, the U.S. Congress established Sequoia National Park in the southern Sierra Nevada, protecting 404,064 acres of forested…
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How did fuel subsidy removal trigger the Saffron Revolution?
Buddhist monks and students led nonviolent protests in Yangon after fuel prices surged following the removal of government subsidies in 2007.
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Israel launches airstrikes against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon
On September 23, 2024, Israel began Operation Northern Arrows, launching deadly airstrikes that killed 558 people in Lebanon in a single day.
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An E-3B AWACS crashes outside Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska
A US Air Force E-3B Sentry crashed into a wooded area near Elmendorf AFB after ingesting Canada geese, killing all 24 crewmembers on board.
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How did the 1938 hurricane reach Category 5 strength?
On September 21, 1938 the Great Hurricane hit Long Island as a Category 3 storm, killing hundreds and destroying tens of thousands of homes across New…
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A new history article every day covering one major event, with sourced facts and key figures behind it.
Visit the BlogHistory in 60 Seconds
Short videos covering one significant historical event each, told through archival imagery and narration. A new video goes up every day alongside the daily article.
How did a deliberate crash decide the 2008 Singapore...
Fernando Alonso won the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, Formula One's first night race, afte...
Watch
How did Congress define Sequoia National Park's 1890...
On September 25, 1890, the U.S. Congress established Sequoia National Park in the south...
Watch
How did fuel subsidy removal trigger the Saffron Rev...
Buddhist monks and students led nonviolent protests in Yangon after fuel prices surged ...
Watch
An E-3B AWACS crashes outside Elmendorf Air Force Ba...
A US Air Force E-3B Sentry crashed into a wooded area near Elmendorf AFB after ingestin...
Watch
How did the 1938 hurricane reach Category 5 strength?
On September 21, 1938 the Great Hurricane hit Long Island as a Category 3 storm, killin...
Watch
The Treaty of Fort Pitt is signed
The first formal treaty between the U.S. and a Native American tribe, the Treaty of For...
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How Did CNJ Train 3314 Plunge into Newark Bay?
A CNJ commuter train ran through signals and derailed off an open lift bridge in Newark...
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How Did Two Merging Black Holes Reveal Gravitational...
LIGO detected the first direct gravitational waves from merging black holes, confirming...
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Historical events told through archival imagery and narration, daily.
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Click any date on the calendar to browse historical events, famous birthdays, and notable deaths from that day. Move between months to explore thousands of years of recorded history.
September
On This Day, September 28
- 2023: The 2023 Rotterdam shootings occurred, during which two people were killed in a shooting and arson incident at a residence in Delfshaven, Rotterdam. Additionally, one person lost their life in a classroom at the Erasmus University Medical Center.
- 2022: Hurricane Ian makes landfall in Cayo Costa State Park, Florida as a category four hurricane, killing 169 and doing $113 billion in damage, becoming Florida's costliest hurricane and the deadliest in 89 years.
- 2018: The 7.5 Mw 2018 Sulawesi earthquake, which triggered a large tsunami, leaves 4,340 dead and 10,679 injured.
- 2016: The 2016 South Australian blackout occurs, lasting up to three days in some areas.
- 2014: The 2014 Hong Kong protests begin in response to restrictive political reforms imposed by the NPC in Beijing.
thisDay.info is a free historical events calendar where you can explore what happened on any date in history. It covers wars, discoveries, natural disasters, famous birthdays and deaths, and landmark moments in world history, all sourced from Wikipedia.
Every day a new article is published covering one significant historical event from that calendar date. Each article includes background context, key figures, a Did You Know section, a Quick Facts block, and an analysis of the lasting impact on the world. A short quiz at the end lets you test what you have learned.
All historical events, birthdays, and deaths are sourced from Wikipedia's On This Day archives. Wikipedia is one of the most thorough and regularly updated references for world history, covering events from ancient civilizations right through to the present day on every continent.
Yes. Use the calendar on this page to go to any date of the year. Clicking a date opens a page listing everything notable that happened on that day in history, from ancient times right through to recent decades.
History in 60 Seconds is a short video series published on YouTube Shorts. Each video tells the story of one historical event using archival imagery and narration. A new video goes up every day so you can keep up with this day in history wherever you are.
A new article and a new video are published every single day. The events calendar is always current with today's On This Day data from Wikipedia. Famous birthdays and notable deaths for the current date load every time you visit the site.
Yes, thisDay.info is completely free. There is no account, no subscription, and no paywall. Every article, video, event listing, and the full historical calendar are open to everyone and will stay that way.
Yes. Every date page includes a list of notable people born or who died on that day, with links to their Wikipedia biographies. You can also browse person pages on thisDay.info to read about the historical figures who appear in our daily articles.
thisDay.info covers all major topics in world history including wars and conflicts, political revolutions, scientific discoveries, space exploration, natural disasters, cultural milestones, and sporting achievements. Events range from ancient history through to the 21st century, covering every part of the world.
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