October 16 is the 289th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 76 days remain until the end of the year.
We have some interesting facts & historic events all about October 16th, including areas in religion, crime, health and more.
Keep reading for more interesting facts about October 16th in history!
Table of Contents
Global Celebrations
- World Food Day
- National Dictionary Day
- National Boss’s Day
- Steve Jobs Day
- National Feral Cat Day
- Department Store Day
- National Sweetest Day
Historic Events
What Happened On This Day – October 16
1986: First Person to Scale all Eight-Thousanders
Italian Mountaineer, Reinhold Messner, scaled the Lhotse, in Nepal. It is the world’s 4th tallest peak, and it is one of the 14 eight-thousanders – mountains that are more than 8000 meters above sea level.
1978: First Non-Italian to Win the Papacy since 1523
Karol Józef Wojtyła, the Archbishop of Kraków, won the papal elections that were held after his predecessor Pope John Paul I died after only 33 days in office. As Pope, Wojtyła took on the name of John Paul II. He was the second-longest serving pope in modern history, after Pope Pius IX, who was in office for over 31 years.
1964: First Chinese Nuclear Test
Codenamed Chic-1 or 596, the 22 kiloton uranium fission device was dropped at Lop Nur. With this test, China became the fifth nuclear power state in the World. The other four are the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, and France. Israel is thought to have nuclear weapons, however, they do not publicly admit the fact.
1945: Food and Agriculture Organization established
The Food and Agriculture Organization, popularly known as the FAO was established in Quebec City, Canada.
1923: The Walt Disney Company is Founded
A leader in the international entertainment industry, the company was created by brothers Walt and Roy as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio. Today, the company is synonymous with cartoon and animated movies and characters.
1923: Disney was founded. This garage was its first studio.
Famous Birthdays
Births On This Day, October 16
1977: John Mayer, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer
1974: Paul Kariya, Canadian ice hockey player
1925: Angela Lansbury, English/American actress, singer
1888: Eugene O’Neill, American playwright, Nobel Prize laureate
1886: David Ben-Gurion, Israeli politician, 1st Prime Minister of Israel
Heartbreaking Deaths
Deaths On This Day, October 16
2011: Dan Wheldon, English race car driver
1981: Moshe Dayan, Israeli general, politician, 5th Minister of Foreign Affairs for Israel)
1951: Liaquat Ali Khan, Indian/Pakistani lawyer, politician, Prime Minister of Pakistan
1793: Marie Antoinette, Austrian wife of Louis XVI of France
1791: Grigory Potemkin, Russian military leader, politician