What are the important events that happened on October 8? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.

October 8: Facts & Myths About This Day

October 8 is the 281^st day of the year 2025 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 84 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Wednesday.

Under the Julian calendar, this day is September 25, 2025 – a Wednesday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?

When this day started, 1,759,881,600 seconds has elapsed since midnight of January 1, 1970 – the Unix epoch.

Strange as it may, if we name this day after a polygon then it will be called ‘dihectaoctacontahenagon’ day.

Libra is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Opal is the modern birthstone for this month. Jasper is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.

According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 132 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year.

The ancient Maya civilization believes that the end of the world will happen on December 21, 2012. There are now 4,674 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.

October 8 Historical Events

• 451 –
  At Chalcedon, a city of Bithynia in Asia Minor, the first session of the Council of Chalcedon begins (ends on November 1).
• 1075 –
  Dmitar Zvonimir is crowned King of Croatia.
• 1860 –
  Telegraph line between Los Angeles and San Francisco opens.
• 1871 –
  Four major fires break out on the shores of Lake Michigan in Chicago, Peshtigo, Wisconsin, Holland, Michigan, and Manistee, Michigan including the Great Chicago Fire, and the much deadlier Peshtigo Fire.
• 1904 –
  Edmonton, Alberta was incorporated as a city.
• 1904 –
  Prince Albert, Saskatchewan was incorporated as a city.
• 1918 –
  World War I: In the Argonne Forest in France, United States Corporal Alvin C. York kills 25 German soldiers and captures 132.
• 1962 –
  Spiegel scandal: Der Spiegel publishes the article “Bedingt abwehrbereit” (“Conditionally prepared for defense”) about a NATO manoeuver called “Fallex 62”, which uncovered the sorry state of the Bundeswehr (Germany’s army) facing the communist threat from the east at the time. The magazine is soon accused of treason.
• 1967 –
  Guerrilla leader Che Guevara and his men are captured in Bolivia.
• 1973 –
  Yom Kippur War: Gabi Amir’s armored brigade attacks Egyptian occupied positions on the Israeli side of the Suez Canal, in hope of driving them away. The attack fails, and over 150 Israeli tanks are destroyed.

Who were born on October 8?

• 1935 –
  Albert Roux, French chef
• 1938 –
  Walter Gretzky, father of Wayne Gretzky
• 1949 –
  Sigourney Weaver, American actress
• 1955 –
  Bill Elliott, American racing driver
• 1965 –
  C-Jay Ramone, American musician (The Ramones)
• 1970 –
  Anne-Marie Duff, English actress
• 1974 –
  Martin Henderson, New Zealand actor
• 1980 –
  Nick Cannon, American actor
• 1981 –
  Kalil Wilson, American vocalist
• 1993 –
  Angus T. Jones, American actor

Who died on October 8?

• 1317 –
  Emperor Fushimi of Japan (b. 1265)
• 1652 –
  John Greaves, English mathematician (b. 1602)
• 1772 –
  Jean Joseph de Mondonville, French composer (b. 1711)
• 1834 –
  François-Adrien Boïeldieu, French composer (b. 1775)
• 1945 –
  Felix Salten, Austrian author (b. 1869)
• 1953 –
  Kathleen Ferrier, British contralto (b. 1912)
• 1958 –
  Ran Bosilek, Bulgarian author (b. 1886)
• 1977 –
  Giorgos Papasideris, Greek country singer, composer, lyricist (b. 1902)
• 1987 –
  Konstantinos Tsatsos, 2nd President of Greece (b. 1899)
• 2011 –
  Dennis Ritchie, American computer scientist (b. 1941)