October: that month of multicolored foliage and spooky celebrations. The month’s name comes from its position as the eighth month in the old Roman calendar: octo means “eight” in Latin. The name remained even when the calendar changed. In Old English, October was Winterfylleth, meaning “winter full moon,” because the early Anglo-Saxons marked the beginning of winter by October’s first full moon. The month was also called Winmonath, “wine month,” because of wine production during that time of the year.

Here are some other interesting events that happened during autumn’s golden month.

• October 1, 1908, Ford Motor Company completed the first production Model T.
• October 3, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln announced an official Thanksgiving holiday for November 26 that year. He further declared that November’s last Thursday would be an official holiday of Thanksgiving thereafter.
• October 3, 2014, the podcast “Serial” debuted: the first podcast to reach five million downloads and the first to win a Peabody Award.
• October 5, 1947, President Harry Truman delivered the first-ever televised presidential address.
• October 6, 1926 and October 9, 1928, Babe Ruth became the first—and only—player to hit three home runs in two different World Series games.
• October 7, 1985, Lynette Woodard became the first female player for the Harlem Globetrotters. She had previously captained the 1984 gold-medal U.S. Olympic womens basketball team.
• October has two notable meteor showers. The Draconid meteor shower peaks October 9 in the late evening, coming from the northwest. It begins a busy season with a shower happening every 1 to 2 weeks through December. The Orionid meteor shower is October’s second shower. It peaks October 22 in the predawn hours, coming from the south.
• October 15, 1973, Dolly Parton released her chart-topping country hit “Jolene.”
• October 16, 1970, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice released the double-LP album Jesus Christ Superstar, which later became a Broadway smash hit.
• October 17, 1835, the Texas Rangers were created as a semi-official force of armed, mounted lawmen who would defend isolated frontier settlers.
• October 20, 1962, the Bobby Pickett and the Crypt-Kickers song “Monster Mash” topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
• October 23, 1850, the first National Women’s Rights Convention was held in Massachusetts.
• October 26, 1985, Whitney Houston’s first chart-topping hit “Saving All My Love for You” topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
• October 31, 1997, Violet Palmer became the first woman to officiate an NBA game.
• October 31, the ancient Celts celebrated Samhain, “summer’s end,” which morphed into Halloween.
• The month also has its share of whimsical events. October is National Popcorn Poppin’ Month, a great reason to enjoy this snack all month long. International Sloth Day is October 20, a day to honor and increase awareness about these slow-moving mammals. National Hagfish Day, the third Wednesday in October, honors and promotes awareness of the slimy, deep-sea scavenger fish.

For more October facts and events, visit almanac.com and history.com and search “October.”

Article and photo by Susan Helton