October 26th in History
On This Day in History
- George III of Great Britain declares to Parliament that the American colonies are in a state of rebellion, and authorizes a military response (1775)
- Benjamin Franklin leaves for France to solicit support for the American Revolution (1776)
- The Erie Canal opens, allowing passage from Albany, New York, to Lake Erie (1825)
- The Pony Express officially ceases operations after 18 months, two days after the first transcontinental telegraph line connects Omaha with Sacramento (1861)
- The Gunfight at the O. K. Corral takes place in Tombstone, Arizona (1881)
- Norway gains independence from Sweden (1905)
- Battle of Caporetto (World War I): Oberleutnant Erwin Rommel and a force of 100 German mountain infantrymen defeats a force of over 7,000 Italians and captures Mount Matajur (1917)
- Hoover Dam’s first electric generator goes on line (1936)
- The North American P-51 Mustang flies for the first time (1940)
- Battle of Santa Cruz (Guadalcanal Campaign, World War II): The carrier USS Hornet is sunk and USS Enterprise is heavily damaged (1942)
- The Dornier Do 335 Pfeil (Arrow), famous for its one engine in front/one engine in the rear in-line design, flies for the first time (1943) [Only one surviving Pfeil remains; it is in the Udvar-Hazy Center of the National Air and Space Museum.]
- The Battle of Leyte Gulf, which began October 23, ends with a total American victory (1944)
- The Maharaja of Kashmir and Jammu, leader of the only Indian state with a Hindu ruler and a mostly Muslim population, agrees to join India (1947)
- The coronation of محمد رضا شاه پهلوی (Mohammad Rezā Shāh Pahlavī) as Shah of Iran (1967)
- According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this is the date smallpox was eradicated (1977)
- Human girl Baby Fae receives a transplanted baboon heart but dies 21 days later (1984)
- The House of Lords ends the automatic voting rights of hereditary peers (1999)
- The PATRIOT Act becomes law in the United States (2001)
Birthdays
- Domenico Scarlatti (1685)
- Georges Danton, French Revolution leader (1759)
- Helmuth von Moltke the Elder, Prussian field marshal (1800)
- Ferdinand Georg Frobenius, mathematician (1849)
- C.W. Post, cereal magnate (1854)
- Benjamin Guggenheim, went down with the Titanic (1865)
- Napoleon Hill, pioneering self-help author (1883)
- “Judy” Johnson, Negro League baseball hall of famer (1899)
- Beryl Markham, Kenyan aviator and adventurer (1902)
- Jack Sharkey, heavyweight champion (1902)
- Sid Gillman, football player and coach (1911)
- Mahalia Jackson, singer (1911)
- Jackie Coogan, Chaplin kid and Addams uncle (1914)
- François Mitterand, French president (1916)
- Buzz Wagner, first US fighter ace of World War II (1916)
- Baby Peggy, silent film child star (1918)
- Edward Brooke, first African-American US Senator (1919)
- محمد رضا شاه پهلوی (Mohammad Rezā Shāh Pahlavī), Iranian monarch (1919)
- Madelyn Dunham, Barack Obama’s grandmother (1922)
- Bob Hoskins, actor (1942)
- Pat Conroy, author (1945)
- Jaclyn Smith, actress (1945)
- Pat Sajak, game show host (1946)
- Hillary Clinton, political figure (1947)
- Bootsie Collins, Parliament-Funkadelic bass player (1951)
- David Was, singer-songwriter (1952)
- Keith Strickland, B-52s guitarist (1953)
- Lauren Tewes, The Love Boat’s cruise director (1953)
- Rita Wilson, actress, spouse of Tom Hanks (1956)
- Evo Morales, Bolivian president (1959)
- Dylan McDermott, actor (1961)
- Cary Elwes, actor (1962)
- Ted Demme, director (1963)
- Natalie Merchant, singer-songwriter (1963)
- Keith Urban, singer-songwriter (1967)
- Seth MacFarlane, animator (1973)
Deaths
- Alfred the Great, English monarch (899)
- William Hogarth, painter (1764)
- “Bloody Bill” Anderson, Confederate guerrilla leader (1864)
- John Labatt, brewer (1866)
- Carlo Collodi, created Pinocchio (1890)
- Elizabeth Cady Stanton, women’s rights activist (1902)
- Charles Comiskey, baseball player, manager, and team owner (1931)
- “The Unsinkable” Molly Brown, Titanic survivor (1923)
- Hattie McDaniel, actress (1952)
- Walter Gieseking, pianist (1956)
- Νίκος Καζαντζάκης (Nikos Kazantzakis), author of Zorba the Greek and The Last Temptation of Christ (1957)
- Louise Beavers, actress (1962)
- Igor Sikorsky, aircraft designer (1889)
- Hoyt Axton, singer-songwriter (1999)
- Keith Parkinson, fantasy artist* (2005)
- Tony Hillerman, mystery writer (2008)
- Paul the Octopus, octopus used to predict the outcome of football (soccer) matches (2010)
*I worked with Keith at TSR. He was an enormously talented, decent, and kind man.
Holidays
- Angam Day (Republic of Nauru)
- Armed Forces Day (Benin)
- Day of Mourning (Libya)
- First day of the Ludi Victoriae Sullanae (Sulla’s Victory Games, through November 1) (Roman Republic)
- Mule Day (US), honors the importation of the first Spanish Jack mules to the US, a gift from Charles III of Spain, arrived October 26, 1785
- National Day (Austria)
- National Mincemeat Day (US)
- National Pumpkin Day (US)
Image: Advertisement for Pony Express services
October 26 is the 299th day of the year (300th in leap years).
There are 66 days remaining until the end of the year.