September is over and October has arrived. October is always an action packed month, with the NFL season in full swing, the MLB playoffs about to begin, the fall season making things a little chilly outside (or hotter if you’re in the Southern hemisphere), and of course, Halloween! To celebrate October, here is a list of major world events in history that happened in the month of October (in no particular order):
1.) Russia launches Sputnik 1 – October 4, 1957
The launch of Russian satellite Sputnik caused a huge uproar. It was the first artificial satellite launched to orbit the Earth. The launch caused the United States to send their own satellites into orbit, and thus the Space Race began. The Space Race culminated in July 21, 1969 when Neil Armstrong became the first person to set foot on the Moon.
2.) The October Revolution in Russia – October 25, 1917
Under the Julian calendar, the revolution happened in October (November under the Gregorian). The Bolsheviks took over the government of Russia, after previously ousting Czar Nicholas II in the February Revolution. The October Revolution directly led to the Russian Civil War, and Russia’s withdrawal from WWI. This in turn led to the creation of communist Soviet Union.
3.) Stock Market Crashes – October 24-29, 1929
Collectively known as Black Thursday, Friday, Monday, and Tuesday, the Stock Market Crash of 1929 began the Great Depression, the longest and most devastating economic depression in history. Stock prices plummeted and investors lost over $30 billion in the four day span. On Black Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 12% and over 16 million shares were traded in that day (a record that would not be broken until 1968). The Roaring 20′s era of overspending and boundless credit came to a crashing end.
4.) Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, FL opens – October 1, 1971
The Walt Disney World Resort is the most visited resort in the world. Prior to Disney’s presence, Orlando was a relatively small city and swampland. Now, Orlando is one of the most visited tourist destinations in the world, rivaling Las Vegas. The resort also helped usher in global tourism, as other parks have been built in other countries such as France and Japan.
5.) President Bush signs the bailout – October 3, 2008
When the economy started to decline in 2007 and 2008, a number of measures were taken to prevent a full collapse. On October 3, the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 was signed by then President of George W. Bush. The bailout called for the creation of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP, to help give banks the capital they needed to survive. The bailout was unpopular with the general public and inflated the budget deficit for fiscal 2009 to over $1 trillion and the national debt to over $11 trillion.
