Today in History for 18th October 2025

[CoM Moderators]

Historical Events

1240 - Ukrainian city of Chernihiv surrenders, but despite this, it is still sacked and pillaged by the Mongolian army of Batu
1912 - The Treaty of Lausanne ends the Italo-Turkish War; Italy annexes Libya
1921 - Charles Strite is granted US patent #1,394,450 for his invention, the automatic pop-up toaster
1931 - Gangster Al Capone is convicted on five of the 23 counts of tax evasion against him, later fined $50,000 and sentenced to 11 years in prison
1979 - USSR performs a nuclear test at the Semipalatinsk Test Site in northeastern Kazakhstan

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1844 - Harvey W. Wiley, American chemist known for leadership in the passage of the landmark Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, born in Kent, Indiana (d. 1930)
1870 - D. T. Suzuki, Japanese-American Zen Buddhist scholar, born in Kanazawa, Japan (d. 1966)
1947 - (John) "JJ" Johnson, American NBA basketball player, 1970-82 (Cleveland Cavaliers, Seattle SuperSonics, and 2 other teams), born in Carthage, Mississippi (d. 2016)
1948 - Isabel Elaine Allen, American biostatistician known for her work on distance education, born in the United States
1960 - Jean-Claude Van Damme, Belgian actor (Double Impact, Kickboxer, No Retreat), born in Brussels, Belgium

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1570 - Manoel da Nóbrega, Portuguese missionary, founder of the Jesuit mission in Brazil, dies at 53
1788 - Jean-Guillain Cardon, French harpist, composer, and teacher, dies at 56
1845 - Jean-Dominique, comte de Cassini, French astronomer, dies at 97
1997 - Bill Rotsler, cartoonist/writer, dies of cancer at 62
2000 - Julie London, American singer ("Cry Me A River") and actress (Emergency - "Nurse McCall"), dies at 74

More Famous Deaths »