On This Day: 26 September

26 September in world history

• 2024Hurricane Helene makes landfall in Perry, Florida as a Category 4 hurricane, killing over 250 people, causing US$78.7 billion in damage and becoming the deadliest hurricane in the mainland United States since Katrina.
• 2016The Ecnomiohyla rabborum became extinct when the last known surviving member died in captivity.
• 2014Forty-three students of the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers' College in Iguala, Mexico, were kidnapped and probably later killed.
• 1992A Nigerian Air Force Lockheed C-130 Hercules crashes in Ejigbo, Lagos, killing 159.
• 1983Cold War: Soviet lieutenant colonel Stanislav Petrov averted a potential nuclear war by identifying as a false alarm signals that appeared to indicate an impending U.S. missile attack.
• 1983The racing yacht Australia II, captained by John Bertrand, won the America's Cup and ended the New York Yacht Club's 132-year defence of the trophy.
• 1983Soyuz 7K-ST No. 16L, intended to launch a crew to the Salyut 7 space station, explodes on the launch pad. The launch escape system is activated before the Soyuz-U rocket explodes, saving the crew.
• 1968The Beatles completed the recording of John Lennon's song "Happiness Is a Warm Gun", regarded by all the band members as their favourite on the album The Beatles.
• 1942Holocaust: Senior SS official August Frank issues a memorandum detailing how Jews should be "evacuated".
• 1936Spanish Civil War: Lluis Companys reshuffles the Generalitat de Catalunya, with the marxist POUM and anarcho-syndicalist CNT joining the government.
• 1933As gangster Machine Gun Kelly surrenders to the FBI, he shouts out, "Don't shoot, G-Men!", which becomes a nickname for FBI agents.
• 1928The Republic of China adopted Gwoyeu Romatzyh as the official system for romanization of Mandarin Chinese.
• 1919Ukrainian War of Independence: The Revolutionary Insurgent Army of Ukraine defeats the White Russian Volunteer Army at the Battle of Peregonovka.
• 1918World War I: The Meuse-Argonne Offensive began which would last until the total surrender of German forces.
• 1917World War I: The Battle of Polygon Wood, part of the Battle of Passchendaele, began near Ypres, Belgium.
• 1777American Revolutionary War: British troops capture and begin the occupation of Philadelphia, which had been serving as the American capital city, during the Philadelphia campaign.
• 1687Morean War: The Parthenon in Athens, used as a gunpowder depot by the Ottoman garrison, is partially destroyed after being bombarded during the Siege of the Acropolis by Venetian forces.
• 1580English explorer Francis Drake's galleon the Golden Hind sailed into Plymouth, completing his circumnavigation of the globe.

Born on 26 September

• 1943Ian Chappell, Australian cricketer and sportscaster
• 1932Manmohan Singh, Indian economist and politician, 13th Prime Minister of India (died 2024)India
• 1923Dev Anand, Indian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (died 2011)India
• 1876Ghulam Bhik Nairang, Indian poet, lawyer, and politician (died 1952)India
• 1876Edith Abbott, American economist, social worker, and author (died 1957)
• 1865Archibald Butt, United States Army Officer (died 1912)

Died on 26 September

• 1990Alberto Moravia, Italian author and critic (born 1907)
• 1989Hemanta Kumar Mukhopadhyay, Indian singer-songwriter and producer (born 1920)India
• 1977Uday Shankar, Indian dancer and choreographer (born 1900)India
• 1945Béla Bartók, Hungarian pianist and composer (born 1881)

Frequently asked questions

What happened on 26 September in history?

2024: Hurricane Helene makes landfall in Perry, Florida as a Category 4 hurricane, killing over 250 people, causing US$78.7 billion in damage and becoming the deadliest hurricane in the mainland United States since Katrina. 2016: The Ecnomiohyla rabborum became extinct when the last known surviving member died in captivity. 2014: Forty-three students of the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers' College in Iguala, Mexico, were kidnapped and probably later killed. 1992: A Nigerian Air Force Lockheed C-130 Hercules crashes in Ejigbo, Lagos, killing 159.

Which famous people were born on 26 September?

Ian Chappell, Australian cricketer and sportscaster (1943); Manmohan Singh, Indian economist and politician, 13th Prime Minister of India (died 2024) (1932); Dev Anand, Indian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (died 2011) (1923); Ghulam Bhik Nairang, Indian poet, lawyer, and politician (died 1952) (1876).

Which day is observed on 26 September?

Day of the National Flag (Ecuador); Dominion Day (New Zealand); European Day of Languages (European Union); International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons; Petrov day.