Notable people who died on March 9 include: Abu Ma'shar al-Balkhi, Sverre of Norway, Frances of Rome, Leonardo Bruni, Catherine of Bologna.

Notable Deaths on March 9

Q: What is Willard Metcalf known for?

Willard Metcalf, American painter and academic (born 1858)

74 people 886 – 2023

March 9 has seen 74 notable figures pass away throughout recorded history — from 886 – 2023. Below are the most significant names who died on this date.

By thisDay.info Editorial Team · March 9 — Wikipedia

1925 — Willard Metcalf

American painter and academic (born 1858)

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In 1893 he became a member of the American Watercolor Society, New York

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After early figure-painting and illustration, he became prominent as a landscape painter

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He was one of the Ten American Painters who in 1897 seceded from the Society of American Artists

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Willard Leroy Metcalf was an American painter born in Lowell, Massachusetts

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For some years he was an instructor in the Women's Art School, Cooper Union, New York, and in the Art Students League, New York

Abu Ma'shar al-Balkhi

Muslim scholar and astrologer (born 787)

Abu Ma‘shar al-Balkhi, Latinized as Albumasar, was an early Persian Muslim astrologer, thought to be the greatest astrologer of the Abbasid court in Baghdad. While he was not a major innovator, his practical manuals for…

886

Sverre of Norway

King of Norway and founder of the House of Sverre

Sverre Sigurdsson was the king of Norway from 1184 to 1202.

1202

Frances of Rome

Italian nun and saint (born 1384)

Francesca Bussa de' Leoni, known as Frances of Rome, was an Italian Catholic mystic, organizer of charitable services and a Benedictine oblate who founded a religious community of oblates, who share a common life…

1440

Leonardo Bruni

Italian humanist (born c. 1370)

Leonardo Bruni or Leonardo Aretino was an Italian humanist, historian and statesman, often recognized as the most important humanist historian of the early Renaissance. He has been called the first modern historian. He…

1444

Catherine of Bologna

Italian nun and saint (born 1463)

Catherine of Bologna was an Italian Poor Clare, writer, teacher, mystic, artist, and saint. The patron saint of artists and against temptations, she was venerated for nearly three centuries in her native Bologna before…

1463

David Rizzio

Italian-Scottish courtier and politician (born 1533)

David Rizzio or Riccio was an Italian courtier and the private secretary of Mary, Queen of Scots. Mary's husband, Lord Darnley, is said to have been jealous of their friendship because of rumours that Rizzio had…

1566

James Hamilton

1st Duke of Hamilton, Scottish soldier and politician (born 1606)

James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton, known as the 3rd Marquess of Hamilton from March 1625 until April 1643, was a Scottish nobleman and influential political and military leader during the Thirty Years' War and the…

1649

Henry Rich

1st Earl of Holland, English soldier and politician (born 1590)

Henry Rich, 1st Earl of Holland, was an English courtier and politician executed by Parliament after being captured fighting for the Royalists during the Second English Civil War. Younger brother of Robert Rich, 2nd…

1649

Cardinal Mazarin

Italian-French academic and politician, Prime Minister of France (born 1602)

Jules Mazarin, from 1641 known as Cardinal Mazarin, was an Italian Catholic prelate, diplomat and politician who served as the chief minister to the Kings of France Louis XIII and Louis XIV from 1642 to his death. He…

1661

Ralph Montagu

1st Duke of Montagu, English courtier and politician (born 1638)

Ralph Montagu, 1st Duke of Montagu was an English courtier, diplomat and politician.

1709

Joseph Bonomi the Elder

Italian architect (born 1739)

Joseph Bonomi the Elder was an Italian architect and draughtsman who spent most of his career in England where he became a successful designer of country houses. Bonomi was Robert Adam’s leading draughtsman.

1808

Ozias Humphry

English painter and academic (born 1742)

Ozias Humphry was an English painter who specialised in portrait painting, including portrait miniatures. Humphry was elected to the Royal Academy in 1791, and in 1792 he was appointed Portrait Painter in Crayons to the…

1810

Anna Laetitia Barbauld

English poet, author, and critic (born 1743)

Anna Laetitia Barbauld was a prominent English poet, essayist, literary critic, editor, and author of children's literature. A prominent member of the Blue Stockings Society and a "woman of letters" who published in…

1825

Friedrich Maximilian von Klinger

German author and playwright (born 1752)

Friedrich Maximilian von Klinger was a German dramatist and novelist. His play Sturm und Drang (1776) gave its name to the Sturm und Drang artistic epoch. He was a childhood friend of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and is…

1831

Mary Anning

English paleontologist (born 1799)

Mary Anning was an English fossil collector, dealer, and palaeontologist. She became known internationally for her discoveries in Jurassic marine fossil beds in the cliffs along the English Channel at Lyme Regis in the…

1847

Hans Christian Ørsted

Danish physicist and chemist, discovered electromagnetism and the element aluminium (born 1777)

Hans Christian Ørsted, sometimes transliterated as Oersted, was a Danish chemist and physicist who discovered that electric currents create magnetic fields. This phenomenon is known as Oersted's law. He also discovered…

1851

Louise Colet

French poet (born 1810)

Louise Colet, born Louise Revoil de Servannes, was a French poet and writer.

1876

William I

German Emperor (born 1797)

Wilhelm I was King of Prussia from 1861 and German Emperor from 1871 until his death in 1888. A member of the House of Hohenzollern, he was the first head of state of a united Germany. He was regent of Prussia from 1858…

1888

Leopold von Sacher-Masoch

Austrian journalist and author (born 1836)

Leopold Ritter von Sacher-Masoch was an Austrian nobleman, writer and journalist, who gained renown for his romantic stories of Galician life. The term masochism is derived from his name, invented by his contemporary,…

1895

Sondre Norheim

Norwegian-American skier (born 1825)

Sondre Norheim, born Sondre Auverson, was a Norwegian skier and pioneer of modern skiing. Sondre Norheim is known as the father of Telemark skiing.

1897

Frank Wedekind

German author and playwright (born 1864)

Benjamin Franklin Wedekind was a German playwright. His work, which often criticizes bourgeois attitudes, is considered to anticipate expressionism and was influential in the development of epic theatre.

1918

Mikao Usui

Japanese spiritual leader, founded Reiki (born 1865)

Mikao Usui was the father of a form of energy medicine and spiritual practice known as Reiki, used as an alternative therapy for the treatment of physical, emotional, and mental diseases. According to the inscription on…

1926

Paul Elmer More

American journalist and critic (born 1864)

Paul Elmer More was an American journalist, critic, essayist and Christian apologist.

1937

Otto Freundlich

German painter and sculptor (born 1878)

Otto Freundlich was a German painter and sculptor of Jewish origin. One of the first generation of abstract artists, Freundlich deeply admired cubism and spent much of his life in France. He was murdered at the Majdanek…

1943

Vagn Walfrid Ekman

Swedish oceanographer and academic (born 1874)

Vagn Walfrid Ekman was a Swedish oceanographer.

1954

Miroslava Stern (Miroslava)

Czech-Mexican actress (born 1925)

Miroslava Šternová, known mononymously as Miroslava, was a Mexican actress.

1955

Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck

German general (born 1870)

Paul Emil von Lettow-Vorbeck (popularly known as the Lion of Africa, was a general in the Imperial German Army and the commander of its forces in the German East Africa campaign. For four years, with a force of about…

1964

Abdul Munim Riad

Egyptian general (born 1919)

Abdul Munim Riad was an Egyptian military officer and the Chief of Staff of the Egyptian Armed Forces from 1967 to 1969. He commanded the Jordanian Armed Forces during the 1967 Six-Day War and later led the Egyptian…

1969

Pope Cyril VI of Alexandria

Coptic Orthodox Pope (born 1902)

Pope Cyril VI was the 116th Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark from 10 May 1959 until his death in 1971.

1971

Earl Wilbur Sutherland

Jr., American pharmacologist and biochemist, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1915)

Earl Wilbur Sutherland Jr. was an American pharmacologist and biochemist born in Burlingame, Kansas. Sutherland won a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1971 "for his discoveries concerning the mechanisms of the…

1974

Harry Womack

American singer (born 1945)

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1974

Faye Emerson

American actress (born 1917)

Faye Margaret Emerson was an American film and stage actress and television interviewer who gained fame as a film actress in the 1940s before transitioning to television in the 1950s and hosting her own talk show.

1983

Ulf von Euler

Swedish physiologist and pharmacologist, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1905)

Ulf Svante von Euler was a Swedish physiologist and pharmacologist. He shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1970 for his work on neurotransmitters.

1983

Kurt Georg Kiesinger

German lawyer, politician and Chancellor of Germany (born 1904)

Kurt Georg Kiesinger was a German politician and lawyer who served as the chancellor of West Germany from 1 December 1966 to 21 October 1969. Before he became chancellor, he served as Minister-President of…

1988

Robert Mapplethorpe

American photographer (born 1946)

Robert Michael Mapplethorpe was an American photographer, best known for his black-and-white photographs. His work featured an array of subjects, including celebrity portraits, male and female nudes, self-portraits, and…

1989

Jim Hardin

American baseball player (born 1943)

James Warren Hardin was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from 1967 through 1972, most notably as a member of the Baltimore Orioles dynasty that won…

1991

Menachem Begin

Belarusian-Israeli soldier, politician and Prime Minister of Israel, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1913)

Menachem Begin was an Israeli politician who founded Herut and Likud and served as prime minister of Israel from 1977 to 1983.

1992

C. Northcote Parkinson

English historian and author (born 1909)

Cyril Northcote Parkinson was a British naval historian and author of some 60 books, the most famous of which was his best-seller Parkinson's Law (1957), in which Parkinson named the satirical Law stating that "work…

1993

Charles Bukowski

American poet, novelist, and short story writer (born 1920)

Henry Charles Bukowski was a German-American poet, novelist, and short story writer. His writing was influenced by the social, cultural, and economic ambience of his adopted home city of Los Angeles. Bukowski's work…

1994

Eddie Creatchman

Canadian wrestler, referee, and manager (born 1928)

Eddie Creatchman was a Canadian professional wrestling manager. He was known as Eddie "The Brain" Creatchman, manager of wrestlers such as The Sheik and Steve Strong.

1994

Fernando Rey

Spanish actor (born 1917)

Fernando Casado Arambillet, best known as Fernando Rey, was a Spanish film, theatre, and television actor, who worked in both Europe and the United States. A suave, international actor best known for his roles in the…

1994

Edward Bernays

Austrian-American propagandist (born 1891)

Edward Louis Bernays was an Austrian-American pioneer in the field of public relations and propaganda, referred to in his obituary as "the father of public relations". While credited with advancing the profession of…

1995

George Burns

American comedian, actor, and writer (born 1896)

George Burns was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer, and one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, radio, film, and television. His arched eyebrow and cigar-smoke punctuation…

1996

Jean-Dominique Bauby

French journalist and author (born 1952)

Jean-Dominique Bauby was a French journalist, author and editor of the French fashion magazine Elle.

1997

Terry Nation

Welsh author and screenwriter (born 1930)

Terence Joseph Nation was a Welsh screenwriter and novelist. Especially known for his work in British television science fiction, he created the Daleks and Davros for Doctor Who, as well as the series Survivors and…

1997

The Notorious B.I.G.

American rapper, songwriter, and actor (born 1972)

Christopher George Latore Wallace, known professionally as the Notorious B.I.G. or Biggie Smalls, was an American rapper and songwriter. Rooted in the East Coast hip-hop and gangsta rap traditions, he is widely…

1997

Harry Somers

Canadian pianist and composer (born 1925)

Harry Stewart Somers, CC was a contemporary Canadian composer.

1999

George Singh

Belizean jurist and Chief Justice of Belize (born 1937)

George Bawa Singh was a Belizean judge who served as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in 1998 and as a Puisne Justice of the Supreme Court from 1991 to 1998. He previously served as Solicitor General and Director of…

1999

Jean Coulthard

Canadian composer and educator (born 1908)

Jean Coulthard, was a Canadian composer and music educator. She was one of a trio of women composers who dominated Western Canadian music in the twentieth century: Coulthard, Barbara Pentland, and Violet Archer. All…

2000

Stan Brakhage

American director and cinematographer (born 1933)

James Stanley Brakhage was an American experimental filmmaker. He is considered to be one of the most important figures in 20th-century experimental film.

2003

Bernard Dowiyogo

Nauruan politician, President of Nauru (born 1946)

Bernard Annen Auwen Dowiyogo was a Nauruan politician who served as President of Nauru on seven separate occasions. During this time, he also served as a Member of Parliament for the constituency of Ubenide.

2003

John Mayer

Indian composer (born 1930)

John Henry Basil Mayer was an Indian composer known primarily for his fusions of jazz with Indian music in the British-based group Indo-Jazz Fusions with the Jamaican-born saxophonist Joe Harriott.

2004

Tom Fox

American activist (born 1951)

Thomas William Fox was an American Quaker peace activist, affiliated with Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) in Iraq. He was kidnapped by Islamists on November 26, 2005, in Baghdad along with three other CPT activists,…

2006

Anna Moffo

American soprano (born 1932)

Anna Moffo was an American opera singer, television personality, and actress. One of the leading lyric-coloratura sopranos of her generation, she possessed a warm and radiant voice of considerable range and agility.…

2006

John Profumo

English soldier and politician, Secretary of State for War (born 1915)

John Dennis Profumo was a British politician whose career ended in 1963 after a sexual relationship with the 19-year-old model Christine Keeler in 1961. The scandal, which became known as the Profumo affair, led to his…

2006

Brad Delp

American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1951)

Bradley Edward Delp was an American singer and musician who was the original lead vocalist of the American rock band Boston. A Massachusetts native, Delp began collaborating with leader Tom Scholz in 1970, and was the…

2007

Glen Harmon

Canadian ice hockey player (born 1921)

David Glen Harmon was a Canadian ice hockey defenceman who played for the Montreal Canadiens from 1942 to 1951. He was born in Holland, Manitoba and died in Mississauga, Ontario.

2007

Willie Davis

American baseball player and manager (born 1940)

William Henry Davis was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball and the Nippon Professional Baseball league as a center fielder from 1960 through 1979, most prominently as an…

2010

Doris Haddock

American activist and politician (born 1910)

Doris "Granny D" Haddock was an American political activist from New Hampshire. Haddock achieved national fame when, between the ages of 88 and 90, starting on January 1, 1999, and culminating on February 29, 2000, she…

2010

Wilfy Rebimbus

Indian singer (born 1942)

Wilfred Gerald "Wilfy" Rebimbus was an Indian singer-songwriter, lyricist and playwright known for his Konkani and Tulu language compositions. He has been nicknamed the Konkan Kogul meaning cuckoo (songbird) of the…

2010

Henry Wittenberg

American wrestler (born 1918)

Henry Wittenberg was an American New York police officer, coach, competitor and Olympic champion in freestyle wrestling. He won two Olympic medals in freestyle wrestling, becoming the first American wrestler since 1908…

2010

David S. Broder

American journalist and academic (born 1929)

David Salzer Broder was an American journalist, writing for The Washington Post for over 40 years. He was also an author, television news show pundit, and university lecturer.

2011

Max Jakobson

Finnish journalist and diplomat (born 1923)

Max Jakobson was a Finnish diplomat and journalist of Finnish-Jewish descent. Jakobson was an instrumental figure in shaping Finland's policy of neutrality during the Cold War.

2013

Merton Simpson

American painter and art collector (born 1928)

Merton Daniel Simpson was an American abstract expressionist painter and African and tribal art collector and dealer.

2013

James Molyneaux

Baron Molyneaux of Killead, Northern Irish soldier and politician (born 1920)

James Henry Molyneaux, Baron Molyneaux of Killead, KBE, PC, often known as Jim Molyneaux, was a unionist politician from Northern Ireland who served as leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) from 1979 to 1995, and as…

2015

Robert Horton

American actor (born 1924)

Mead Howard "Robert" Horton Jr. was an American actor and singer. He is known for playing Flint McCullough in Wagon Train (1957–1962).

2016

Clyde Lovellette

American basketball player and coach (born 1929)

Clyde Edward Lovellette was an American professional basketball player. Lovellette was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1988. He was the first basketball player in history to achieve the…

2016

Howard Hodgkin

British painter (born 1932)

Sir Gordon Howard Eliot Hodgkin was a British painter and printmaker. His work is most often associated with abstraction.

2017

Jo Min-ki

Korean actor (born 1965)

Jo Min-ki was a South Korean actor. He is best known for his roles in the television series Love and Ambition, East of Eden, Queen Seondeok, and Flames of Desire. He was also a noted photographer and published two books…

2018

John Bathersby

Australian Catholic bishop (born 1936)

John Alexius Bathersby was an Australian bishop of the Roman Catholic Church. He was the sixth archbishop of the Archdiocese of Brisbane, serving from 1991 until his retirement in 2011. Bathersby was conferred with the…

2020

James Levine

American conductor and pianist (born 1943)

James Lawrence Levine was an American conductor and pianist. He was music director of the Metropolitan Opera from 1976 to 2016, and conducted 2577 Met performances. At the end of his career, his reputation was tarnished…

2021

Roger Mudd

American journalist (born 1928)

Roger Harrison Mudd was an American broadcast journalist who was a correspondent and anchor for CBS News and NBC News. He also worked as the primary anchor for the History Channel. Previously, Mudd was weekend and…

2021

Chaim Topol

Israeli actor (born 1935)

Chaim Topol, mononymously known as Topol, was an Israeli actor and singer. He is best known for his portrayal of Tevye, the lead character in the stage musical Fiddler on the Roof. Topol estimated that he played Tevye…

2023

March 9 in the Blog

Battle of the Ironclads - March 9, 1862

1862 Battle of Hampton Roads: ironclads clash in Virginia, changing naval warfare

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Notable deaths

Who died on March 9?

Willard Metcalf — American painter

FeaturedWillard Metcalf

Death year1925

Known forHe studied at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and later attended Académie Julian, Paris

Deaths on this date74 (886 – 2023)

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Also on March 9 in History

2023

A shooting in the Alsterdorf quarter of Hamburg, Germany, kills eight people and injures another eight. Wikipedia →

2020

Giuseppe Conte, Prime Minister of Italy, announces in a televised address and signs the decree imposing the first nationwide COVID-19 lockdown in the world. Wikipedia →

2015

Two Eurocopter AS350 Écureuil helicopters collide in mid-air over Villa Castelli, Argentina, killing all 10 people on board both aircraft, including French athletes Florence Arthaud, Camille Muffat and Alexis Vastine, as well as producers and guests for the French TV show Dropped. Wikipedia →

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