October 8
October 8 is the 281st day of the year (282nd in leap years). There are 84 days remaining in the year.
Events
- 451 - At Chalcedon, a city of Bithynia in Asia Minor, the first session of the Council of Chalcedon begins (ends on November 1).
- 1600 - San Marino adopts its written constitution.
- 1862 - American Civil War: Battle of Perryville - Union forces under General Don Carlos Buell halt the Confederate invasion of Kentucky by defeating troops led by General Braxton Bragg at Perryville, Kentucky.
- 1871 - The Great Chicago Fire burns 1,200,000 acres (4,900 km²) in one day, eventually destroying about 17,450 buildings, kills about 250 people and leaves another 90,000 homeless.
- 1871 - In Wisconsin, a forest fire starts to burn across six counties, eventually killing over 1,100 people.
- 1912 - First Balkan War begins: Montenegro declares war against Turkey.
- 1918 - World War I - In the Argonne Forest in France, United States Corporal Alvin C. York almost single-handedly kills 25 German soldiers and captures 132.
- 1939 - World War II: Germany annexes Western Poland.
- 1941 - World War II: In their invasion of the Soviet Union, Germany reaches the Sea of Azov with the capture of Mariupol.
- 1944 - The radio show, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet debuts
- 1956 - New York Yankees pitcher Don Larsen pitches first (and only) perfect game in World Series history in Game 5 of the 1956 World Series.
- 1957 - Walter O'Malley announces that the Dodgers are going to move from Brooklyn, New York to Los Angeles, California
- 1967 - Guerrilla leader Che Guevara and his men are captured in Bolivia.
- 1968 - Vietnam War: Operation Sealords - United States and South Vietnamese forces launch a new operation in the Mekong Delta.
- 1970 - Vietnam War: In Paris, a Communist delegation rejects US President Richard Nixon's October 7 peace proposal as "a maneuver to deceive world opinion."
- 1982 - Poland bans Solidarity.
- 1990 - Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: In Jerusalem, Israeli police kill 17 Palestinians and wound over 100 near the Dome of the Rock mosque on the Temple Mount
- 1991 - The Croatian Parliament cuts all remaining ties with Yugoslavia
- 1998 - Oslo Airport Gardermoen opens.
- 2001 - American radio talk show host, Rush Limbaugh announces to his listeners that he is completely deaf in his left ear and only has partial hearing in his right ear and he doesn't listen.
- 2001 - A twin engine Cessna and Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) jetliner collide in heavy fog during takeoff from Milan, Italy killing 118
- 2003 - Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark's engagement to Australian lawyer Mary Donaldson is announced
Births
- 1747 - Jean-François Rewbell, French politician (d. 1807)
- 1765 - Harman Blennerhassett, Irish lawyer
- 1870 - Louis Vierne, organist (d. 1937)
- 1887 - Huntley Gordon, pioneer Hollywood actor (d. 1956)
- 1889 - C. E. Woolman, founder of Delta Air Lines
- 1890 - Edward Rickenbacker, ace fighter pilot (d. 1973)
- 1895 - Juan Perón, former president of Argentina (d. 1974)
- 1901 - Doris Allen, Founder of CISV organization (d. 2002)
- 1917 - Walter Lord, author (d. 2002)
- 1917 - Billy Conn, boxer (d. 1993)
- 1920 - Frank Herbert, American science fiction writer (d. 1986)
- 1922 - Christian Barnard, heart surgeon
- 1926 - Klaus Kinski, actor (d. 1991)
- 1930 - Toru Takemitsu, composer (d. 1996)
- 1932 - Ray Reardon, Welsh snooker player
- 1938 - Fred Stolle, tennis champion
- 1939 - Paul Hogan, Australian actor
- 1940 - David Carradine, actor
- 1941 - Jesse Jackson, American reverend and civil rights activist
- 1943 - Chevy Chase, comedian, actor
- 1943 - R. L. Stine, author
- 1946 - Dennis Kucinich, Congressman and Presidential Candidate
- 1947 - Tony Wilson, bassist, singer
- 1948 - Johnny Ramone, guitarist
- 1949 - Sigourney Weaver, American actress
- 1950 - Robert Bell, bassist and singer with Kool & the Gang
- 1951 - Johnny Ramone, rock and roll musician
- 1954 - Michael Dudikoff, actor
- 1956 - Stephanie Zimbalist, actress
- 1959 - Nick Bakay actor/comedian, voice of Salem the Cat in Sabrina
- 1964 - CeCe Winans, singer
- 1965 - Ardal O'Hanlon, Irish comedian
- 1968 - Toni Braxton, singer
- 1970 - Matt Damon, actor
- 1976 - Renate Groenewold, Dutch speed skater
Deaths
- 1286 - John I of Dreux, Duke of Brittany
- 1754 - Henry Fielding, author
- 1793 - John Hancock, revolutionary, businessman
- 1869 - Franklin Pierce, President of the United States
- 1894 - Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., physician, writer
- 1944 - Wendell Willkie, politician, candidate for President of the United States
- 1945 - Felix Salten, author (Bambi)
- 1953 - Nigel Bruce, actor
- 1967 - Clement Attlee, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
- 1972 - Prescott Bush, father of President George H. W. Bush
- 1982 - Fernando Lamas, actor
- 1992 - Willy Brandt, German politician
- 1996 - Mignon G. Eberhart, author
Holidays
October 7 - October 9 - September 8 - November 8 - more historical anniversaries
