Vintage News · Odd history for February 16

What Happened On February 16

Q: What happened on February 16?

1804: First Barbary War: Stephen Decatur leads a raid to burn the pirate-held frigate USS Philadelphia. 1699: First Leopoldine Diploma is issued by the Holy Roman Emperor, recognizing the Greek Catholic clergy enjoyed the same privileges as Roman Catholic priests in the Principality of Transylvania. 1646: Battle of Torrington, Devon: The last major battle of the First English Civil War. 1804: First Barbary War: Lieutenant Stephen Decatur led a U.S. Navy raid to destroy the captured USS Philadelphia in the harbor of Tripoli (depicted), denying her use to the Barbary States. 1899: Iceland's first football club, Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkur, is founded. 1961: The DuSable Museum, the first museum dedicated to the study and conservation of African American history, culture, and art, was chartered. 1900: The Southern Cross Expedition led by Carsten Borchgrevink (pictured) achieved a new Farthest South of 78° 50'S, making the first landing at the Great Ice Barrier. 1859: The French government passed a law setting the musical note A4 to a frequency of 435 hertz, in the first attempt to standardize concert pitch. 2006: The last Mobile army surgical hospital (MASH) is decommissioned by the United States Army. 1978: The first computer bulletin board system is created (CBBS in Chicago).

48 events and 195 births, refreshed daily. OddlyTrue's own archive for 16 February →

February 15 February 17

10 odd things that happened on February 16

1804 First ever
First Barbary War: Stephen Decatur leads a raid to burn the pirate-held frigate USS Philadelphia.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1699 First ever
First Leopoldine Diploma is issued by the Holy Roman Emperor, recognizing the Greek Catholic clergy enjoyed the same privileges as Roman Catholic priests in the Principality of Transylvania.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1646 First ever
Battle of Torrington, Devon: The last major battle of the First English Civil War.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1804 First ever
First Barbary War: Lieutenant Stephen Decatur led a U.S. Navy raid to destroy the captured USS Philadelphia in the harbor of Tripoli (depicted), denying her use to the Barbary States.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1899 First ever
Iceland's first football club, Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkur, is founded.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1961 First ever
The DuSable Museum, the first museum dedicated to the study and conservation of African American history, culture, and art, was chartered.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1900 First ever
The Southern Cross Expedition led by Carsten Borchgrevink (pictured) achieved a new Farthest South of 78° 50'S, making the first landing at the Great Ice Barrier.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1859 First ever
The French government passed a law setting the musical note A4 to a frequency of 435 hertz, in the first attempt to standardize concert pitch.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
2006 Oddly true
The last Mobile army surgical hospital (MASH) is decommissioned by the United States Army.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1978 First ever
The first computer bulletin board system is created (CBBS in Chicago).
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Observed today

2021Five thousand people gathered in the town of Kherrata, Bejaia Province to mark the second anniversary of the Hirak protest movement. Demonstrations had been suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic in Algeria. Wikipedia →
2013A bomb blast at a market in Hazara Town, Quetta, Pakistan kills more than 80 people and injures 190 others. Wikipedia →
2006The last Mobile army surgical hospital (MASH) is decommissioned by the United States Army. Wikipedia →
2005The Kyoto Protocol comes into force, following its ratification by Russia. Wikipedia →
2005The National Hockey League cancels the entire 2004–05 regular season and playoffs. Wikipedia →
2000Emery Worldwide Airlines Flight 17 crashes near Sacramento Mather Airport in Rancho Cordova, California, killing all three aboard. Wikipedia →
1998China Airlines Flight 676 crashes into a road and residential area near Chiang Kai-shek International Airport in Taiwan, killing all 196 aboard and six more on the ground. Wikipedia →
1996A Chicago-bound Amtrak train, the Capitol Limited, collides with a MARC commuter train bound for Washington, D.C., killing 11 people. Wikipedia →
1991Nicaraguan Contras leader Enrique Bermúdez is assassinated in Managua. Wikipedia →
1986The Soviet liner MS Mikhail Lermontov runs aground in the Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand. Wikipedia →
1986China Airlines Flight 2265 crashes into the Pacific Ocean near Penghu Airport in Taiwan, killing all 13 aboard. Wikipedia →
1985Hezbollah is founded. Wikipedia →
1984Iran launches Operation Dawn 5, a major offensive during the Iran–Iraq War targeting the Basra–Baghdad highway, resulting in heavy casualties on both sides. Wikipedia →
1983The Ash Wednesday bushfires in Victoria and South Australia kill 75. Wikipedia →
1978The first computer bulletin board system is created (CBBS in Chicago). Wikipedia →
1968In Haleyville, Alabama, the first 9-1-1 emergency telephone system goes into service. Wikipedia →
1968Civil Air Transport Flight 010 crashes near Shongshan Airport in Taiwan, killing 21 of the 63 people on board and one more on the ground. Wikipedia →
1962The Great Sheffield Gale impacts the United Kingdom, killing nine people; the city of Sheffield is devastated, with 150,000 homes damaged. Wikipedia →
1962Flooding in the coastal areas of West Germany kills 315 and destroys the homes of about 60,000 people. Wikipedia →
1961Explorer program: Explorer 9 (S-56a) is launched. Wikipedia →
1960The U.S. Navy submarine USS Triton begins Operation Sandblast, setting sail from New London, Connecticut, to begin the first submerged circumnavigation of the globe. Wikipedia →
1959Fidel Castro becomes Premier of Cuba after dictator Fulgencio Batista was overthrown on January 1. Wikipedia →
1945World War II: American forces land on Corregidor Island in the Philippines. Wikipedia →
1945The Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945, the first anti-discrimination law in the United States, was signed into law. Wikipedia →
1943World War II: In the early phases of the Third Battle of Kharkov, Red Army troops re-enter the city. Wikipedia →
1942World War II: In Athens, the Greek People's Liberation Army is established Wikipedia →
1942World War II: Attack on Aruba, first World War II German shots fired on a land based object in the Americas. Wikipedia →
1940World War II: Altmark incident: The German tanker Altmark is boarded by sailors from the British destroyer HMS Cossack. A total of 299 British prisoners are freed. Wikipedia →
1937Wallace H. Carothers receives a United States patent for nylon. Wikipedia →
1936The Popular Front wins the 1936 Spanish general election. Wikipedia →
1934The Austrian Civil War ends with the defeat of the Social Democrats and the Republikanischer Schutzbund. Wikipedia →
1934The Commission of Government is officially sworn in; ending 79 years of responsible government in Newfoundland. Wikipedia →
1930The Romanian Football Federation joins FIFA. Wikipedia →
1923Howard Carter unseals the burial chamber of Pharaoh Tutankhamun. Wikipedia →
1918The Council of Lithuania unanimously adopts the Act of Independence, declaring Lithuania an independent state. Wikipedia →
1900The Southern Cross expedition led by Carsten Borchgrevink achieves a new Farthest South of 78° 50'S, making the first landing at the Great Ice Barrier. Wikipedia →
1899Iceland's first football club, Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkur, is founded. Wikipedia →
1881The Canadian Pacific Railway is incorporated by Act of Parliament at Ottawa (44th Vic., c.1). Wikipedia →
1866Spencer Compton Cavendish, Marquess of Hartington becomes British Secretary of State for War. Wikipedia →
1862American Civil War: General Ulysses S. Grant captures Fort Donelson, Tennessee. Wikipedia →
1804First Barbary War: Stephen Decatur leads a raid to burn the pirate-held frigate USS Philadelphia. Wikipedia →
1796Colombo in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) falls to the British, completing their invasion of Ceylon. Wikipedia →
1742Spencer Compton, Earl of Wilmington, becomes British Prime Minister. Wikipedia →
1699First Leopoldine Diploma is issued by the Holy Roman Emperor, recognizing the Greek Catholic clergy enjoyed the same privileges as Roman Catholic priests in the Principality of Transylvania. Wikipedia →
1646Battle of Torrington, Devon: The last major battle of the First English Civil War. Wikipedia →
1630Dutch forces led by Hendrick Lonck capture Olinda in what was to become part of Dutch Brazil. Wikipedia →
1270The Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeats the Livonian Order in the Battle of Karuse. Wikipedia →
1249Andrew of Longjumeau is dispatched by Louis IX of France as his ambassador to meet with the Khagan of the Mongol Empire. Wikipedia →

From The Guardian Archives — On This Day

2021The Guardian
Fema opens mass vaccination sites in bid to reach communities of color
Sites in Los Angeles and Oakland are part of Biden administration’s work to speed Covid-19 immunization process
Read on The Guardian →
2012The Guardian
Treasury investigates 4,000 civil service jobs in tax deals review
Positions in Whitehall and quangos come under scrutiny after discovery of salary payments made direct to private comp…
Read on The Guardian →
1975The New York Times
Mets’ Fate Decidedly Iffy
Consider the New York Mets, the once‐amazing Mets: Hopelessly last or next‐to‐last for seven years,…
Read on NYTimes.com →

Headlines via The Guardian Open Platform · Historic front pages via the NYT Archive API

Facts from Wikipedia On This Day API (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Wikimedia. Thumbnails CC BY-SA. Headlines via The Guardian Open Platform and the NYT Archive API. Historic pages via Library of Congress Chronicling America. Curated by OddlyTrue.