October 2024

Do you like to hear ghost stories? This spooky season, we’re highlighting the Ghosts of North America genealogy project on Geni. This project brings together historical figures whose spirits are said to roam some of the most notable sites across North America. Let’s take a closer look at a few of these spectral personalities who may still walk among us in the shadows. Hiram Mills Perkins Image: Lawrence Sun American, July 20, 1922 / OldNews.com… Read the full story

Remember watching Little House on the Prairie? On this day in 1936, star Michael Landon was born in Queens, New York. Image: Michael Landon / photo by Alan Light, Wikimedia Commons He was born Eugene Maurice Orowitz to Peggy O’Neill, a dancer and comedy actress, and Eli Maurice Orowitz, a theater manager and publicist. Once he started acting school, he changed his name to “Michael Landon” after finding the name in a phone book. In 1959,… Read the full story

On this day in 1735, the second President of the United States, John Adams, was born. A Founding Father, Adams served as the first Vice President to President George Washington before he was elected into office himself as the second President of the United States. Image: John Adams / Wikimedia Commons Adams was born in Braintree, Massachusetts to John Adams, Sr., a farmer and minister, and Susanna Boylston, an American socialite from a prominent Massachusetts family. The… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Winona Ryder! Today the actress turns 53. Image: Winona Ryder / Karon Liu, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0) Ryder was born Winona Laura Horowitz on October 29, 1971 in Winona, Minnesota. Her parents named her after the city she was born in and gave her the middle name “Laura” after their friend, Laura Huxley, the wife of author Aldous Huxley. Her father worked as an archivist for Timothy Leary, a psychologists who advocated… Read the full story

Today marks the 110th birthday of Dr. Jonas Salk, who developed the first successful polio vaccine. Image: Jonas Salk / San Diego Air and Space Museum Archive Jonas Edward Salk was born on October 28, 1914 in New York City to Ashkenazi Jewish immigrants. An intellectually gifted child, Salk was encouraged by his parents to pursue his education. He earned his degree in medicine from New York University, where he determined he did not want to practice… Read the full story

Remember the nursery rhyme “Mary Had a Little Lamb”? On this day in 1788, writer Sarah Josepha Hale was born. Image: Sarah Josepha Hale / Wikimedia Commons Hale was born Sarah Josepha Buell on October 24, 1788 in Newport, New Hampshire to captain Gordon Buell and Martha Whittlesay. She was homeschooled by her mother and elder brother and later became a teacher at a local school. In 1813, she married lawyer David Hale and together they had… Read the full story

Heeere’s Johnny! Today we remember late-night host Johnny Carson on what would have been his 99th birthday. Do you remember watching the “King of Late Night”? Image: Johnny Carson / State Library and Archives of Florida Carson was born on October 23, 1925 in Corning, Iowa to Homer Lloyd Carson and Ruth Elizabeth Hook. He showed a talent for entertainment at a young age and performed public magic shows as “The Great Carsoni.” At the age… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Jeff Goldblum! Today the actor turns 72. Image: Jeff Goldblum / Gage Skidmore, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) Goldblum was born on October 22, 1952 in West Homestead, Pennsylvania to Jewish parents, Shirley Jane Temeles, a radio broadcaster, and Harold Leonard Goldblum, a doctor and major in the U.S. Army during World War II. From a young age, Goldblum wanted to become an actor and at 17, went to New York City… Read the full story

Do you have Swedish connections? On this day in 1833, Swedish chemist and inventor Alfred Nobel was born in Stockholm, Sweden. Image: Alfred Nobel / Library of Congress The fourth son of Immanuel Nobel, an inventor and engineer, and Karolina Andriette Ahlsell, Alfred was the one of eight children born to the couple. Only he and his three brothers survived past childhood. His third great grandfather, Olof Rudbeck, was a Swedish scientist and writer. Alfred… Read the full story

On this day in 1926, music legend Chuck Berry was born. A rock and roll pioneer, Berry’s sound helped to define the genre and inspire generations of future musicians. Image: Chuck Berry / Nationaal Archief, CC0 Berry was born on October 18, 1926 in Saint Louis, Missouri to Henry William Berry, a contractor and deacon, and Martha Banks, a public school principal. He grew up in the Ville, a middle-class Black community in St. Louis…. Read the full story

Hollywood legend Rita Hayworth was born on October 17, 1918 in Brooklyn, New York. One of the top stars of the 1940s, Hayworth appeared in a total of 61 films throughout her long career. Image: Rita Hayworth / Wikimedia Commons Margarita Carmen Dolores Cansino was the oldest child of two dancers. Her father, Eduardo Cansino, Sr., and her mother, Volga Hayworth, had performed with the Ziegfeld Follies. Her paternal grandfather, Antonio Cansino, was a renowned Spanish… Read the full story

Irish writer and poet Oscar Wilde was born 170 years ago today. Known for his intellect and wit, Wilde was one of London’s most popular playwrights in the early 1890s. Image: Oscar Wilde / Library of Congress He was born Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde on October 16, 1854 in Dublin, Ireland. His parents were successful intellectuals. His father, William Wilde, was a doctor and an accomplished author and his mother, Jane Francesca, was a poet. In… Read the full story

On this day in 1943, Penny Marshall was born. After gaining fame as Laverne in the hit television show Laverne & Shirley, Marshall would go on to direct several box office hits on the big screen. Image: Penny Marshall / Wikimedia Commons Marshall was born on October 15, 1943 in New York City, New York to Anthony “Tony” Masciarelli, later known as Anthony W. Marshall, and Marjorie Irene Ward. Her father worked as a director… Read the full story

On this day in 1890, Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th President of the United States, was born. Image: Dwight D. Eisenhower / Library of Congress Eisenhower was born on October 14, 1890 in Denison, Texas to David Jacob Eisenhower and Ida Elizabeth Stover. The third of seven sons, Eisenhower grew up in Abilene, Kansas and formed a great fondness for the outdoors. An excellent athlete, Eisenhower excelled at sports in high school and received an… Read the full story

On this day in 1884, former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt was born in New York City, New York. Image: Eleanor Roosevelt / Library of Congress Anna Eleanor Roosevelt was the eldest daughter born to American socialites Elliot Bullock Roosevelt, Sr. and Anna Rebecca Hall. The niece of President Theodore Roosevelt, Roosevelt was sadly an orphan by the age of 10. In 1892, her mother and her younger brother died from diphtheria. On August 14, 1894, her father,… Read the full story

Do you have an ear for music? Perhaps it’s in your genes! In 1813, Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi was born in Le Roncole, Italy. A dominant figure of the Italian opera scene, Verdi is remembered as one of the most renowned opera composers in history. Image: Giuseppe Verdi / Bergen Public Library Norway, Flickr He was born Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi to Carlo Giuseppe Verdi, an innkeeper, and Luigia Uttini, a spinner, in a small Italian… Read the full story

It’s Leif Erikson Day! The 11th-century Norse explorer is believed to have led the first Europeans to North America, 500 years before Christopher Columbus set sail to the New World. Image: Wikimedia Commons Leif Erikson was the son of Erik the Red and Thjodhild Jorundsdottir and was likely born in Iceland around 970. He grew up in Greenland, where his father had established the first Norse settlements. Around 1000, Erikson sailed to Norway where he was converted to Christianity by King… Read the full story

Happy 75th birthday to actress Sigourney Weaver! Image: Sigourney Weaver / Gage Skidmore, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) She was born Susan Alexandra Weaver on October 8, 1949 in Manhattan, New York. The only child of actress Elizabeth Inglis and former NBC president Sylvester “Pat” Weaver, Weaver chose to follow her parents into the entertainment industry. At the age of 14, she began going by the name “Sigourney” after a character in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby. In the early… Read the full story

Are you a fan of the spooky tales written by Edgar Allan Poe? 175 years ago today, the famous poet and writer died in Baltimore, Maryland at the age of 40. Image: Edgar Allan Poe / U.S. National Archives Born in Boston, Massachusetts on January 19, 1809, Poe was orphaned as a young child. He was taken in by John Allan, a successful merchant, and his wife. Considered the inventor of detective fiction, Poe is… Read the full story

On this day in 1822, Rutherford B. Hayes, the 19th President of the United States, was born. He was born in Delaware, Ohio to Sophia Richard and Rutherford Hayes, Jr., who died a few weeks before his birth. His great-grandfather, Ezekiel Hayes, was a militia captain during the American Revolutionary War. Image: Rutherford B. Hayes / Library of Congress Hayes was a staunch abolitionist and during the Civil War, served in the Union Army. While still serving… Read the full story

On this day in 1960, the classic sitcom The Andy Griffith Show premiered for the first time on television. The show starred Andy Griffith as a widower and sheriff of the small town of Mayberry and introduced the world to a 6-year-old Ron Howard as his young son, Opie. Image: Andy Griffith / Wikimedia Commons Rounding out the cast was actor Don Knotts, who played bumbling deputy Barney Fife, and Francis Bavier as the lovable Aunt Bee. Knotts would… Read the full story

On this day in 1452, Richard III of England was born. With his death at the age of 32, Richard III became the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty. Image: Richard III of England / Wikimedia Commons Richard was the fourth son born to Richard, Duke of York, and Cecily Neville. After the death of his brother, Edward IV, in 1483, Edward’s twelve-year old son, Edward V, succeeded him and Richard was named Lord Protector of the Realm. However, after Richard succeeded in declaring his brother’s marriage… Read the full story

Today former President Jimmy Carter celebrates his 100th birthday. Carter served as the 39th President of the United States and is the oldest living former President. Image: Jimmy Carter / Photo by Lauren Gerson, LBJ Presidential Library Carter was born on October 1, 1924 in Plains, Georgia to James Earl Carter, Sr., a farmer and businessman, and Bessie Lillian Gordy, a registered nurse. After graduating from the United States Navel Academy at Annapolis, Carter married… Read the full story