Today in history: Oct. 8
Major events that happened around the world on this day in history.
1871: Great Chicago Fire

In 1871, the Great Chicago Fire erupted; fires also broke out in Peshtigo, Wisconsin, and in several communities in Michigan.
1934: Hauptmann Lindbergh

In 1934, Bruno Hauptmann was indicted by a grand jury in New Jersey for murder in the death of the kidnapped son of Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh.
1956: Don Larsen

In 1956, Don Larsen pitched the only perfect game in a World Series to date as the New York Yankees beat the Brooklyn Dodgers in Game 5, 2-0.
1985: Leon Klinghoffer

In 1985, the hijackers of the Italian cruise ship Achille Lauro (ah-KEE'-leh LOW'-roh) killed American passenger Leon Klinghoffer, who was in a wheelchair, and threw his body overboard.
1997: Mars Pathfinder

In 1997, Scientists reported the Mars Pathfinder had yielded what could be the strongest evidence yet that Mars might once have been hospitable to life.
1998: President Bill Clinton

On Oct. 8, 1998, the House triggered an open-ended impeachment inquiry against President Bill Clinton in a momentous 258-176 vote; 31 Democrats joined majority Republicans in opening the way for nationally televised impeachment hearings.
2002: West Coast Ports

In 2002, A federal judge approved President George W. Bush's request to reopen West Coast ports, ending a 10-day labor lockout that was costing the U.S. economy an estimated $1 to $2 billion a day.
2004: Sinai Bombings

In 2004, thirty-four people, most of them Israelis, were killed when suicide bombers blew up the Taba Hilton Hotel in Egypt.
2005: Kashmir Earthquake

In 2005, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake flattened villages on the Pakistan-India border, killing an estimated 86,000 people.
2009: Kabul Bomb Attack

Ten years ago: A powerful car bomb exploded outside the Indian Embassy in Kabul, killing 17 people.
2009: Nobel Prize in Literature

Ten years ago: Romanian-born German writer Herta Mueller won the Nobel Prize in literature.
2009: Sweat Lodge Deaths

Ten years ago: An Arizona sweat lodge ceremony turned deadly as some participants became ill and collapsed inside the 415-square-foot structure; three died. (Motivational speaker James Arthur Ray, who'd led the ceremony, was convicted in 2011 of three counts of negligent homicide and served 20 months in prison.)
2014: Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Five years ago: U.S. researchers Eric Betzig and William Moerner and German scientist Stefan Hell were named recipients of the Nobel Prize for chemistry for giving optical microscopes much sharper vision than was thought possible.
2014: President Barack Obama

Five years ago: President Barack Obama told top military commanders at the Pentagon that he was confident the U.S. would keep making progress in its fight against the Islamic State group.
2014: Thomas Eric Duncan

Thomas Eric Duncan, a Liberian man who was the first person diagnosed with Ebola in the United States, died at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas 10 days after being admitted.
2017: Vice President Mike Pence

In 2017, Vice President Mike Pence left the 49ers-Colts game in Indianapolis after about a dozen San Francisco players took a knee during the national anthem.
2018: Boston Red Sox

One year ago: The New York Yankees lost by the largest margin in the team's long post-season history, 16-1, to the Boston Red Sox; Boston's Brock Holt became the first player ever to hit a single, double, triple and home run in the same post-season game.
2018: Drew Brees

One year ago: New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees became the NFL's all-time leader in yards passing during a 43-19 win over the Washington Redskins.
2018: Nobel Prize in Economics

One year ago: The Nobel Prize in economics was awarded to American researchers William Nordhaus of Yale University and Paul Romer of New York University; Nordhaus was honored for his work on the economics of climate change, and Romer had produced research showing how governments can advance innovation.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.