February 16 birthdays & history

Famous people born on February 16

• 1848Octave Mirbeau, French journalist, novelist, and playwright
• 1941Kim Jong Il, North Korean commander and politician, 2nd Supreme Leader of North Korea
• 1834Ernst Haeckel, German biologist, physician, and philosopher
• 1989Elizabeth Olsen, American actress
• 1497Philip Melanchthon, German astronomer, theologian, and academic
• 1959John McEnroe, American tennis player and sportscaster
• 1986Diego Godín, Uruguayan footballer
• 1822Francis Galton, English biologist and statistician
• 1990The Weeknd, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer
• 1873Radoje Domanović, Serbian journalist and author

What happened on February 16

• 1249King Louis IX dispatched André de Longjumeau as the French ambassador to the Mongol Empire.
• 1859The French government passed a law setting the musical note A4 to a frequency of 435 hertz, in the first attempt to standardize concert pitch.
• 1881The Canadian Pacific Railway is incorporated by Act of Parliament at Ottawa (44th Vic., c.1).
• 1899Iceland's first football club, Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkur, is founded.
• 1900The Southern Cross Expedition led by Carsten Borchgrevink achieved a new Farthest South of 78° 50'S, making the first landing at the Great Ice Barrier.
• 1934The Commission of Government is officially sworn in; ending 79 years of responsible government in Newfoundland.
• 1937Wallace H. Carothers receives a United States patent for nylon.
• 1945The Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945, the first anti-discrimination law in the United States, was signed into law.
• 1959Fidel Castro was sworn in as Prime Minister of Cuba, beginning his decades-long rule over the country.
• 1961The DuSable Museum, the first museum dedicated to the study and conservation of African American history, culture, and art, was chartered.
• 1961Explorer program: Explorer 9 (S-56a) is launched.
• 1978The first computer bulletin board system is created (CBBS in Chicago).

Also observed on February 16

• Day of the Shining Star (Kim Jong Il's birthday) (North Korea)
• Elizabeth Peratrovich Day (Alaska)