This is a list of selected September 21 anniversaries that appear in the "On this day" section of the Main Page. To suggest a new item, in most cases, you can be bold and edit this page. Before doing so, please review the selected anniversaries guidelines. If your suggestion is potentially controversial or relates to a day currently or soon to appear on the Main Page, post it on the talk page instead.
Please note:
- Events listed on the Main Page are selected based on article quality and to provide a diverse range of topics, rather than solely on the importance or significance of the events.
- Only four or five events are featured each day; therefore, not all important or significant events can be included.
- An event is generally excluded if it is already the subject of the scheduled featured article, featured list or picture of the day.
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A B-29 Superfortress
The Angel Moroni delivers the golden plates to Joseph Smith, Jr.
Empress Dowager Cixi
Great Fire of New York
No Kum-Sok
Armand Călinescu
Ineligible
| Blurb | Reason |
|---|---|
| Oktoberfest begins (2012); | refimprove section, needs cleanup |
| Independence Day in Armenia (1991), Belize (1981) and Malta (1964) | Armenia: refimprove section; Belize: outdated; Malta: refimprove section |
| 454 – Roman emperor Valentinian III killed Aetius in Ravenna. | unreferenced section |
| 1745 – Jacobite risings: Jacobite troops led by Charles Edward Stuart defeated the Hanoverians in Prestonpans, East Lothian, Scotland. | refimprove |
| 1823 – According to Joseph Smith, Jr., he was first visited by the angel Moroni, who would guide him to the golden plates that became the basis of the Book of Mormon. | Unreferenced section |
| 1898 – The Hundred Days' Reform in China was abruptly terminated when Empress Dowager Cixi forced the reform-minded Guangxu Emperor into seclusion and took over the government as regent. | needs more footnotes |
| 1921 – A tower silo storing 4,500 tonnes of a mixture of ammonium sulfate and ammonium nitrate fertilizer exploded at a BASF plant in Oppau, Germany, killing at least 500 people. | refimprove |
| 1942 – The prototype model of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, a four-engine heavy bomber that became one of the largest aircraft to see service during World War II, flew for the first time. | refimprove section |
| 1976 – Chilean political figure Orlando Letelier was assassinated in Washington, D.C., by DINA agents. | refimprove section |
| 1981 – Sandra Day O'Connor became the first female Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. | refimprove section |
| 2005 – Hurricane Rita, the most intense tropical cyclone ever observed in the Gulf of Mexico, achieved Category 5 status, and left up to 125 dead over the following days. | refimprove section |
Eligible
- 1776 – American Revolutionary War: The Great Fire of New York broke out during British occupation of New York City, destroying up to 1,000 buildings.
- 1860 – Second Opium War: Anglo-French forces earned a decisive victory against Qing dynasty troops in the Battle of Palikao, allowing them to capture Beijing.
- 1933 – Salvador Lutteroth ran the first Empresa Mexicana de la Lucha Libre event in Mexico City, the world's oldest continuously operating professional wrestling promotion.
- 1938 – The Great New England Hurricane made landfall on Long Island, New York, killing at least 500 people and injuring about 700 others.
- 1939 – Romanian Prime Minister Armand Călinescu was assassinated in Bucharest by pro-Nazi members of the Iron Guard.
- 1953 – North Korean No Kum-sok defected with his MiG-15, inadvertently making Operation Moolah, an American effort to bribe communist pilots, a success.
- 1965 – Portugal accepted a Rhodesian mission in Lisbon despite objections by Britain, which had required its colony to implement democratic majority rule as a condition of independence..
- 1996 – The Defense of Marriage Act was passed by the United States Congress prohibiting federal recognition of same-sex marriage, while allowing states to adopt any marital definition of their choosing.
- 1999 – A 7.6 Mw earthquake struck Jiji, Nantou County, Taiwan, killing 2,416 people, injuring over 11,000 others and causing about NT$300 billion in damage.
- 2013 – Unidentified gunmen began a three-day attack on the upmarket Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi, Kenya, resulting in the deaths of 67 people with at least another 175 wounded.
- Born/died: Arthur Schopenhauer (d. 1860) ·
September 21: International Day of Peace; Islamic New Year (2017, 1439 AH); first day of Rosh Hashanah (Judaism, 2017, AM 5778)
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Virginia O'Hanlon
- 1170 – Combined English and Irish forces seized Dublin, forcing Ascall mac Ragnaill, King of Dublin, into exile.
- 1897 – In response to a letter written by eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon (pictured), The New York Sun published an editorial by Francis Pharcellus Church stating, "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus".
- 1937 – J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy children's novel The Hobbit, which later served as a prequel to The Lord of the Rings, was first published.
- 1993 – Nirvana released their third and final studio album, In Utero, which went on to sell 15 million copies.
- 2001 – With racial tensions high after the September 11 attacks, a gang of British Muslim youths in Peterborough, England, murdered 17-year-old Ross Parker.
Barbara Longhi (b. 1552) · H. G. Wells (b. 1866) · Leonard Cohen (b. 1934)
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