Portal:United States/Anniversaries/September/September 13
- 1814 – War of 1812: Fort McHenry in Baltimore's Inner Harbor was attacked by British forces during the Battle of Baltimore, inspiring Francis Scott Key to write "Defence of Fort McHenry", later used as the lyrics to the United States national anthem.
- 1847 – Mexican–American War: Six teenagers known as Los Niños Héroes fought to their death defending the military academy at Castillo de Chapultepec in Mexico City during the Battle of Chapultepec.
- 1848 – An explosion drove an iron rod through the head of railroad foreman Phineas Gage, making him an important early case of personality change after brain injury.
- 1956 – IBM unveiled the 305 RAMAC (Random Access Method of Accounting and Control), the first commercial computer that used magnetic disk storage.
- 1971 – The Attica Prison riot ended when New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller ordered the storming of the prison, in which 38 people died by gunfire.
- 1993 – After rounds of secret negotiations in Norway, PLO leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin formally signed the Oslo Peace Accords. (pictured)
On this day for the United States
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Events
- 1609 – Henry Hudson reaches the river that would later be named after him – the Hudson River.
- 1782 – American Revolutionary War: Franco-Spanish troops launch the unsuccessful "grand assault" during the Great Siege of Gibraltar.
- 1788 – The Philadelphia Convention sets the date for the first presidential election in the United States, and New York City becomes the country's temporary capital.
- 1812 – War of 1812: A supply wagon sent to relieve Fort Harrison is ambushed in the Attack at the Narrows.
- 1814 – In a turning point in the War of 1812, the British fail to capture Baltimore. During the battle, Francis Scott Key composes his poem "Defence of Fort McHenry", which is later set to music and becomes the United States' national anthem.
- 1847 – Mexican–American War: Six teenage military cadets known as Niños Héroes die defending Chapultepec Castle in the Battle of Chapultepec. American troops under General Winfield Scott capture Mexico City in the Mexican–American War.
- 1848 – Vermont railroad worker Phineas Gage survives an iron rod 1+1⁄4 inches (3.2 cm) in diameter being driven through his brain; the reported effects on his behavior and personality stimulate discussion of the nature of the brain and its functions.
- 1862 – American Civil War: Union soldiers find a copy of Robert E. Lee's battle plans in a field outside Frederick, Maryland. It is the prelude to the Battle of Antietam.
- 1898 – Hannibal Goodwin patents celluloid photographic film.
- 1899 – Henry Bliss is the first person in the United States to be killed in an automobile accident.
- 1942 – World War II: Second day of the Battle of Edson's Ridge in the Guadalcanal Campaign. U.S. Marines successfully defeat attacks by the Japanese with heavy losses for the Japanese forces.
- 1948 – Margaret Chase Smith is elected United States senator, and becomes the first woman to serve in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the United States Senate.
- 1956 – The IBM 305 RAMAC is introduced, the first commercial computer to use disk storage.
- 1962 – An appeals court orders the University of Mississippi to admit James Meredith, the first African-American student admitted to the segregated university.
- 1964 – Martin Luther King Jr. addresses a crowd of 20,000 West Berliners on Sunday, in Waldbühne.
- 1971 – State police and National Guardsmen storm New York's Attica Prison to quell a prison revolt, which claimed 43 lives.
- 1977 – General Motors introduces Diesel engine, with Oldsmobile Diesel engine, in the Delta 88, Oldsmobile 98, and Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser models amongst others.
- 1988 – Hurricane Gilbert is the strongest recorded hurricane in the Western Hemisphere, later replaced by Hurricane Wilma in 2005 (based on barometric pressure).
- 1993 – Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin shakes hands with Palestine Liberation Organization chairman Yasser Arafat at the White House after signing the Oslo Accords granting limited Palestinian autonomy.
- 2008 – Hurricane Ike makes landfall on the Texas Gulf Coast of the United States, causing heavy damage to Galveston Island, Houston, and surrounding areas.
- 2013 – Taliban insurgents attack the United States consulate in Herat, Afghanistan, with two members of the Afghan National Police reported dead and about 20 civilians injured.
- 2018 – The Merrimack Valley gas explosions: One person is killed, 25 are injured, and 40 homes are destroyed when excessive natural gas pressure caused fires and explosions.
Births
- 1755 – Oliver Evans, American inventor, engineer and businessman (d. 1819)
- 1813 – John Sedgwick, American general and educator (d. 1864)
- 1818 – Lucy Goode Brooks, Former American slave and a founder of Friends' Asylum for Colored Orphans (d. 1900)
- 1842 – John H. Bankhead, American soldier and politician (d. 1920)
- 1851 – Walter Reed, American physician and biologist (d. 1902)
- 1857 – Milton S. Hershey, American businessman, founded The Hershey Company (d. 1945)
- 1860 – John J. Pershing, American general and lawyer (d. 1948)
- 1874 – Henry F. Ashurst, American lawyer and politician (d. 1962)
- 1876 – Sherwood Anderson, American novelist and short story writer (d. 1941)
- 1880 – Jesse L. Lasky, American film producer, co-founded Famous Players-Lasky (d. 1958)
- 1893 – Larry Shields, American clarinet player (d. 1953)
- 1895 – Morris Kirksey, American rugby player and sprinter (d. 1981)
- 1903 – Claudette Colbert, American actress (d. 1996)
- 1904 – Gladys George, American actress (d. 1954)*1908 – Chu Berry, American saxophonist (d. 1941)
- 1908 – Mae Questel, American actress and vocal artist (d. 1998)
- 1911 – Bill Monroe, American singer-songwriter and mandolin player (d. 1996)
- 1912 – Maurice K. Goddard, American colonel and politician (d. 1995)
- 1912 – Reta Shaw, American actress (d. 1982)*1914 – Leonard Feather, English-American pianist, composer, producer, and journalist (d. 1994)
- 1917 – Carol Kendall, American historian and author (d. 2012)
- 1917 – Robert Ward, American soldier, composer, and educator (d. 2013)
- 1918 – Ray Charles, American singer-songwriter and conductor (d. 2015)*1920 – Else Holmelund Minarik, Danish-American journalist and author (d. 2012)
- 1922 – Charles Brown, American singer and pianist (d. 1999)
- 1922 – Caroline Duby Glassman, American lawyer and jurist (d. 2013)
- 1924 – Scott Brady, American actor (d. 1985)
- 1925 – Mel Tormé, American singer-songwriter and actor (d. 1999)
- 1926 – Andrew Brimmer, American economist and academic (d. 2012)
- 1926 – J. Frank Raley Jr., American soldier and politician (d. 2012)
- 1928 – Robert Indiana, American painter and sculptor (d. 2018)
- 1931 – Barbara Bain, American actress
- 1933 – Eileen Fulton, American actress
- 1933 – Lewie Steinberg, American bass player (d. 2016)
- 1937 – Don Bluth, American animator, director, and producer, co-founded Sullivan Bluth Studios and Fox Animation Studios
- 1939 – Arleen Auger, American soprano and educator (d. 1993)
- 1939 – Richard Kiel, American actor and voice artist (d. 2014)
- 1939 – Joel-Peter Witkin, American photographer
- 1943 – Mildred D. Taylor, American author* 1944 – Peter Cetera, American singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer
- 1948 – Nell Carter, American actress and singer (d. 2003)
- 1949 – John W. Henry, American businessman
- 1950 – Jeff Lowe, American mountaineer (d. 2018)
- 1951 – Jean Smart, American actress
- 1952 – Randy Jones, American pop and disco singer
- 1952 – Don Was, American bass player and producer
- 1955 – Joe Morris, American guitarist and composer* 1956 – Joni Sledge, American singer and songwriter (d. 2017)
- 1957 – Vinny Appice, American rock drummer
- 1957 – Judy Blumberg, American ice dancer and sportscaster
- 1957 – John G. Trueschler, American lawyer and politician
- 1957 – Mark Wiebe, American golfer
- 1957 – Keith Black, American neurosurgeon and academic
- 1961 – Dave Mustaine, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
- 1961 – Peter Roskam, American lawyer and politician
- 1962 – Neal Lancaster, American golfer
1964 – Tavis Smiley, American talk show host, journalist, and author
- 1965 – Annie Duke, American poker player and author
- 1965 – Jeff Ross, American comedian, director, and author*1967 – Michael Johnson, American former sprinter and journalist
- 1967 – Tim "Ripper" Owens, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1967 – Stephen Perkins, American drummer and songwriter
- 1968 – Brad Johnson, American football player
- 1968 – Bernie Williams, Puerto Rican-American baseball player and guitarist
- 1969 – Tyler Perry, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
- 1970 – Lee Abramson, American bass player and composer (d. 2016)
- 1974 – Travis Knight, American basketball player
- 1975 – Joe Don Rooney, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1976 – Ro Khanna, American politician
- 1977 – Fiona Apple, American singer-songwriter, producer, and pianist
- 1978 – Swizz Beatz, American rapper and producer
- 1981 – Angelina Love, Canadian-American wrestler
- 1982 – Rickie Weeks, American baseball player
- 1983 – Molly Crabapple, American illustrator and journalist
- 1984 – Nabil Abou-Harb, American director, producer, and screenwriter
- 1984 – Baron Corbin, American wrestler
- 1986 – Derek Hardman, American football player
- 1986 – Sean Williams, American basketball player
Deaths
- 1881 – Ambrose Burnside, American general and politician, 30th Governor of Rhode Island (b. 1824)
- 1915 – Andrew L. Harris, American general and politician, 44th Governor of Ohio (b. 1835)
- 1918 – Frederic Crowninshield, American artist and author (b. 1845)
- 1953 – Mary Brewster Hazelton, American painter (b. 1868)
- 1973 – Betty Field, American actress (b. 1913)*1982 – Reed Crandall, American illustrator (b. 1917)*1987 – Mervyn LeRoy, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1900)
- 1993 – Carl Voss, American ice hockey player and referee (b. 1907)
- 1996 – Tupac Shakur, American rapper, producer, and actor (b. 1971)
- 1998 – George Wallace, American sergeant, lawyer, and politician, 45th Governor of Alabama (b. 1919)
- 1999 – Benjamin Bloom, American psychologist and academic (b. 1913)
- 2001 – Johnny Craig, American sailor and illustrator (b. 1926)
- 2001 – Dorothy McGuire, American actress (b. 1916)
- 2003 – Frank O'Bannon, American publisher, lawyer, and politician, 47th Governor of Indiana (b. 1930)
- 2006 – Ann Richards, American educator and politician, 45th Governor of Texas (b. 1933)
- 2009 – Paul Burke, American actor (b. 1926)
- 2012 – William Duckworth, American composer and author (b. 1943)
- 2013 – Robert J. Behnke, American biologist and academic (b. 1929)
- 2013 – Rick Casares, American football player (b. 1931)
- 2014 – Helen Filarski, American baseball player (b. 1924)
- 2014 – Frank Torre, American baseball player and manager (b. 1931)* 2015 – Erma Bergmann, American baseball player (b. 1924)
- 2015 – Moses Malone, American basketball player and sportscaster (b. 1955)*2017 – Pete Domenici, American politician, senator of New Mexico (b. 1932)
- 2019 – Eddie Money, American musician (b. 1949)