25 February
February 25 is the 56th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 309 days remaining, 310 in leap years.
Events
- 138 - The Emperor Hadrian adopts Antoninus Pius, effectively making him his successor.
- 1570 - Pope Pius V excommunicates Queen Elizabeth I of England.
- 1793 - George Washington holds the first Cabinet meeting as President of the United States.
- 1837 - First US electric printing press patented by Thomas Davenport
- 1870 - Hiram Rhoades Revels, a Republican from Mississippi, is sworn into the United States Senate, becoming the first African American ever to sit in the United States Congress.
- 1901 - J.P. Morgan incorporates the United States Steel Corporation.
- 1912 - Eldest of six daughters of William IV, Marie-Adélaïde became the first reigning Grand Duchess of Luxembourg.
- 1913 - The 16th Amendment to the United States Constitution, authorizing a graduated income tax, is ratified.
- 1919 - Oregon places a 1 cent per gallon tax on gasoline, becoming the first U.S. state to levy a gasoline tax.
- 1921 - The Democratic Republic of Georgia is occupied by the Soviet Russia.
- 1928 - Charles Jenkins Laboratories of Washington, DC becomes the first holder of a television license from the Federal Radio Commission.
- 1933 - The USS Ranger is launched, becoming the first custom-built aircraft carrier.
- 1951 - The first Pan American Games are held, in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
- 1954 - Gamal Abdul Nasser is made premier of Egypt.
- 1972 - Terrorism: Germany gives $5 million to an Arab terrorist as ransom for the passengers and crew of a hijacked jumbo jet.
- 1986 - EDSA Revolution: President Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines flees the nation after 20 years of rule; Corazon Aquino becomes the first Filipino woman president.
- 1991 - Gulf War: An Iraqi Scud missile hits an American military barracks in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia killing 28 US Marines.
- 2004 - Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ is released in movie theaters across the United States, grossing approximately $370 million domestically.
Births
- 1707 - Carlo Goldoni, lyricist (d. 1793)
- 1752 - John Graves Simcoe, first Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada (d. 1806)
- 1778 - José de San Martín, Argentine general, liberator of Spanish South America along with Simón Bolívar.
- 1841 - Pierre-Auguste Renoir, painter, graphic artist and sculptor (d. 1919)
- 1842 - Karl May, writer (d. 1912)
- 1845 - George Reid, fourth Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1918)
- 1848 - Edward Harriman, railroad entrepreneur
- 1877 - Erich von Hornbostel, musicologist (d. 1935)
- 1888 - John Foster Dulles, United States Secretary of State (d. 1959)
- 1890 - Vyacheslav Molotov, Soviet politician (d. 1986)
- 1901 - Zeppo Marx, actor (d. 1979)
- 1904 - Adelle Davis, nutritionist, writer (d. 1974)
- 1913 - Jim Backus, actor (d. 1989)
- 1913 - Gert Fröbe, actor (d. 1988)
- 1917 - Anthony Burgess, author of A Clockwork Orange (d. 1993)
- 1918 - Bobby Riggs, tennis player (d. 1995)
- 1918 - Barney Ewell, American athlete (d. 1996)
- 1921 - Pierre Laporte, statesman, murdered by FLQ terrorists (d. 1970)
- 1925 - Edward Gorey, illustrator (d. 2000)
- 1932 - Faron Young, country music singer (d.1996)
- 1935 - Sally Jessy Raphael, talk show host
- 1937 - Tom Courtenay, actor
- 1938 - Herb Elliott, Australian runner
- 1940 - Ron Santo, baseball player
- 1943 - George Harrison, musician
- 1946 - Franz Xaver Kroetz, dramatist
- 1947 - Lee Evans, American athlete
- 1950 - Neil Jordan, director, writer, producer
- 1950 - Néstor Kirchner, President of Argentina
- 1951 - Don Quarrie, Jamaican sprinter
- 1953 - José María Aznar, Prime Minister of Spain
- 1954 - John Doe, musician
- 1961 - Davey Allison, NASCAR driver (d. 1993)
- 1966 - Samson Kitur, Kenyan athlete (d. 2003)
- 1971 - Sean Astin, actor
Deaths
- 1577 - King Eric XIV of Sweden (b. 1533)
- 1723 - Sir Christopher Wren, architect (b. 1632)
- 1852 - Thomas Moore, poet (b. 1779)
- 1899 - Paul Julius Reuter, founder of the Reuters News Agency (b. 1816)
- 1957 - George "Bugs" Moran, Chicago gangster (b. 1893)
- 1964 - Grace Metalious, writer (b. 1924)
- 1975 - Elijah Muhammad, Black Muslim leader
- 1983 - Tennessee Williams, playwright (b. 1911)
- 1994 - Jersey Joe Walcott, boxer (b. 1914)
- 1996 - Haing S. Ngor, actor
- 1999 - Glenn T. Seaborg, American atomic scientist (b. 1912)
- 2000 - Victoria Climbié, murder victim (b. 1991)
- 2001 - Sir Donald Bradman, cricketer (b. 1908)
Holidays and observances
- Februaristaking (Netherlands) - strike against Nazi occupier, 1941
February 24 - February 26 - January 25 - March 25 -- listing of all days
