18 February

February 18 is the 49th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 316 days remain until the end of the year.

We have some interesting facts & historic events all about February 18th, including areas in religion, crime, health and more.

Keep reading for more interesting facts about February 18th in history!

Table of Contents

  1. Global Celebrations
  2. Historic Events
  3. Famous Birthdays
  4. Heartbreaking Deaths

Global Celebrations

  • National Battery Day
  • Pluto Day
  • National Drink Wine Day

Historic Events

What Happened On This Day – February 18

1978: Hawaii hosts the first Ironman Triathlon

Contestants have to swim 2.4 miles (3.86 km), bike 112 miles (180.25 km) and complete a marathon run measuring 26.2 miles (42.2 km).

1977: The Space Shuttle takes off on its maiden flight

The “Enterprise” was mounted on a Boeing 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft; the first free flight took place on August 12, 1977

1954: The first Church of Scientology is established

Despite many controversies, Scientology has gained thousands of members since its inception.

1943: The Gestapo arrests German resistance fighter Sophie Scholl and other White Rose activists

21-year-old student Scholl and her fellow campaigners were executed for having distributed flyers criticizing the Nazi regime.

1930: Pluto is discovered

Clyde W. Tombaugh discovered the dwarf planet when sifting through photographs taken a month earlier.

It’s the first big oil well in Iran and it sets off a wave of exploration, extraction and exploitation that will change the region’s – and the world’s – history, 1908

It's the first big oil well in Iran and it sets off a wave of exploration, extraction and exploitation that will change the region's – and the world's – history, 1908
It’s the first big oil well in Iran and it sets off a wave of exploration, extraction and exploitation that will change the region’s – and the world’s – history, 1908

Test Pilot George Aird flying an English Electric Lightning F1 ejected from his plane at only about 100 feet in 1962… he survived –

Test Pilot George Aird flying an English Electric Lightning F1 ejected from his plane at only about 100 feet in 1962… he survived -
Test Pilot George Aird flying an English Electric Lightning F1 ejected from his plane at only about 100 feet in 1962… he survived –

Abraham Lincoln and George McClellan after the Battle of Antietam in 1862.

Abraham Lincoln and George McClellan after the Battle of Antietam in 1862.
Abraham Lincoln and George McClellan after the
Battle of Antietam in 1862.

Famous Birthdays

Births On This Day, February 18

1974: Yevgeny KafelnikovRussian tennis player

1967: Roberto Baggio, Italian footballer

1954: John Travolta, American actor, singer, producer

1933: Yoko Ono, Japanese/American singer-songwriter

1838: Ernst Mach, Austrian physicist

Heartbreaking Deaths

Deaths On This Day, February 18

1967: J. Robert Oppenheimer, American physicist

1906: John Batterson Stetson, American businessman, founded the John B. Stetson Company

1564: Michelangelo, Italian painter, sculptor

1546: Martin Luther, German monk, priest, leader of the Protestant Reformation

1294: Kublai Khan, Mongolian Emperor

1851: Mary Shelley, English author

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