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OCTOBER 9 | Birthdays and Events

7 min. read
October 9, 2025

NOTABLE BIRTHDAYS FOR OCTOBER 9

  • John J. Pettus (1813-1867) - Confederate governor in Mississippi.

  • Mary Ann Shadd Cary (1823-1893) - First African American newspaper publisher (The Provincial Freeman).

  • Harriet Hosmer (1830-1908) - Acclaimed Neoclassical sculptor.

  • Harry Lawrence Freeman (1869-1954) - American opera composer known as the "Black Wagner".

  • Robert Warwick (1878-1964) - American actor most famously known for his role in Falcon's Adventure.

  • Martin Elmer Johnson (1884-1937) - American adventurer and filmmaker who brought South Africa into homes.

  • Frank Newburg (1886-1969) - American actor known for his role in Homemaker.

  • Hank Patterson (1888-1975) - Actor best known as Fred Ziffel from Green Acres.

  • Irving Cummings (1888-1959) - American silent screen actor and director of Curly Top, starring Shirley Temple. 

  • Eugene Bullard (1895-1961) - First African-American military pilot who flew for France in World War I, but was an American citizen born in Georgia.

  • Joe Sewell (1898-1990) - Baseball Hall of Fame infielder.

  • Bruce Catton (1899-1978) - Historian and Civil War writer.

  • Walter O'Malley (1903-1979) - Baseball Hall of Fame executive for the Brooklyn Dodger, which later became known as the LA Dodgers.

  • Howard St. John (1905-1974) - American stage and film actor best known for his role in Li'l Abner.

  • Lee Wiley (1908-1975) - Famous American jazz singer during the 1930s.

  • Phil Hanna (1910-1957) - American singer of Once Upon a Tune.

  • Joe Rosenthal (1911-2006) - American photographer and Pulitzer Prize winner for his image Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima.

  • Edward Andrews (1914-1985) - American actor best known for his roles in Tea and Sympathy and Glass Bottom Boat.

  • Roger Goeb (1914-1997) - American composer who composed music for individual instruments.

  • E. Howard Hunt (1918-2007) - Intelligence officer involved in the Watergate break-in on June 17, 1972.

  • Walter Burkemo (1918-1986) - American golfer and PGA champion of 1953.

  • Vivienne Della Chiesa (1920-2009) - American singer on the radio during the 1940s and '50s.  

  • Yusef Lateef (1920-2013) - Prominent American jazz musician of the Ahmadiyya Community in the US.

  • Dot Wilkinson (1921 -2023) - Pro bowler and All American softball player.

  • Philip "Fyvush" Finkel (1922-2016) - Actor of Picket Fences.

  • Helen Jones Woods (1923-2020) - American jazz and swing trombone player with the International Sweethearts of Rhythm.

  • Johnny Stompanato (1925-1958) - Organized crime figure and abusive partner of actress Lana Turner.

  • Robert Finch (1925-1995) - The eighth U.S. Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare.

  • Judy Tyler (1932-1957) - American actress of Jailhouse Rock, Bop Girl Goes Calypso and Miss Stardust.

  • Overton Vertis "O.V." Wright (1939-1980) - American singer who considered a favorite to people in the deep south because how his music related to their lives.

  • Brian Lamb (1941-Still Living) - Founder of C-Span.

  • James Robison (1943-Still Living) - Televangelist for the Outreach International.

  • Nona Hendryx (Still Living) - American R&B singer-songwriter and the third LaBelle.

  • Tony Zappone (1947-Still Living) - American broadcaster and journalist.

  • Dave Samuels (1948-2019) - American vibraphonist with the band Spyro Gyra.

  • Jackson Browne (1948-Still Living) - Rock singer-songwriter.

  • Shep Messing (1949-Still Living) - Soccer goalkeeper for the NY Cosmos.

  • Darlene Koldenhoven (1950-Still Living) - Vocalist with credits with Pink Floyd, Sister Act, and 2+2.

  • Robert Wuhl (1951-Still Living) - American actor with notable parts in Bull Durham and Good Morning Vietnam.

  • Tony Shalhoub (1953-Still Living) - Acclaimed actor of Wings, Monk, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.

  • John O'Hurley (1954 -Still Living) - Actor who played J. Peterman on Seinfeld.

  • Scott Bakula (1954-Still Living) - Talented actor of Quantum Leap and Murphy Brown.

  • Michael Paré (1958-Still Living) - Actor who played Eddie in Eddie and the Cruisers.

  • Mike Singletary (1959-Still Living) - NFL middle linebacker for the Chicago Bears.

  • Eddie Guerrero (1967-2005) - 2004 WWE Championship pro wrestler.

  • Steve Burns (Still Living) - Television host for the original Blue's Clues.

  • Terry Balsamo (1973-Still Living) - Guitarist for the band Evanescence.

  • Sean Ono Lennon (1975-Still Living) - Rock musician and producer, but most well known as the son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono.

  • Nick Swardson (1976-Still Living) - Stand up comedian.

  • Brandon Routh (1979-Still Living) - Superman Returns and Chuck actor.

  • Zachery Ty Bryan (1981-Still Living) - Home Improvement actor that played the brother Brad.

  • Kassa Overall (1982-Still Living) - Drummer and hip-hop drummer, rapper, and bandleader.

  • Tyler James Williams (1992-Still Living) - Actor in Everybody Hates Chris and Abbott Elementary.

  • Jacob Batalon (1996-Still Living) - Filipino-American actor with credits in Spider Man - Homecoming and Reginald the Vampire.

HISTORICAL EVENTS FOR OCTOBER 9

  • 1000 - Leif Erikson reaches "Vinland" becoming the first European to reach North America.

  • 1635 - Roger Williams is banished from Massachusetts Bay Colony for advocating for complete religious freedom.

  • 1701 - Yale opens its doors in New Haven, Connecticut.

  • 1779 - Savannah, Georgia, is surrounded by the Continental Army. 

  • 1781 - Yorktown is bombarded under George Washington, marking the last battle of the American Revolutionary War.

  • 1837 - The United States Naval Institute is established.

  • 1855 - Isaac Singer patents the sewing machine motor.

  • 1855 - Joshua Stoddard patents first steam powered musical instrument.

  • 1865 - First pipeline to carry crude oil is laid in Pennsylvania to carry oil refineries and shipping docks.

  • 1888 - The Washington Monument in opens for public admittance for the first time. 

  • 1915 - Gil Anderson sets a new race record, traveling at 102.6 mph. 

  • 1924 - Soldier Field (Municipal Grant Park Stadium) in Chicago is dedicated.

  • 1926 - The National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) forms.

  • 1928 - Babe Ruth hits 3 homeruns during the World Series.

  • 1936 - Hoover Dam begins transmission of electricity to LA.

  • 1941 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt approves the Manhattan Project.

  • 1952 - Construction for the United Nations Headquarters is completed in NY City.

  • 1961 - Members of the communist party in the US agree to report to police.

  • 1969 - Diana Ross makes her last recording (Someday We'll Be Together) with the Supremes. 

  • 1979 - Howard Stern begins his first broadcast on WCCC in Connecticut.

  • 1980 - Consumers begin home banking online for the first time with American Bank.

  • 1984 - Kathy Sullivan is the first American astronaut to walk in space.

  • 1985 - The Strawberry Fields memorial to John Lennon opens in Central Park.

  • 1989 - Art Shell, the first Black NFL coach is aired on Monday Night Football.

  • 1992 - A meteorite is seen from Kentucky to NY.

  • 2001 - Anthrax letters are mailed for the second time from Trenton, NH.

  • 2023 - A world record set for heaviest pumpkin is grown by Travis Gienger (Anoka, MN), weighing 2,749 pounds.