The McKinley Birthplace Memorial gold dollar was a commemorative coin struck by the United States Bureau of the Mint in 1916 and 1917, with the obverse designed by Mint Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber, and the reverse by his assistant, George T. Morgan. As William McKinley had appeared on a version of the 1903-dated Louisiana Purchase Exposition gold dollar, the 1916 release made him the first person to appear on two issues of U.S. coins. The coins benefitted the National McKinley Birthplace Memorial at Niles, Ohio. The issue was originally proposed as a silver dollar; this changed when it was realized it would not be appropriate to honor a president who had supported the gold standard with such a piece. The coins were poorly promoted, and did not sell well. Despite an authorized mintage of 100,000, only about 20,000 were sold, many of these at a reduced price to Texas coin dealer B. Max Mehl. Another 10,000 pieces were returned to the Mint for melting. ( Full article...)

Nitehawk Cinema in Park Slope, Brooklyn

• ... that in 2011, Nitehawk Cinema (pictured) successfully lobbied to overturn a Prohibition-era liquor law that prevented movie theaters in New York from serving alcohol?
• ... that tenor Enea Scala has appeared in roles by Rossini, most recently in the title role of Otello, an opera which requires at least five tenors?
• ... that the U.S. Armed Forces created Female Engagement Teams to interact with women in Afghanistan?
• ... that Georg Forster's 1777 report A Voyage Round the World, about the second voyage of James Cook, was not reprinted in English for nearly two centuries?
• ... that Arizona Cardinals offensive tackle Brett Toth was the first Army Black Knights football player to play in the Senior Bowl?
• ... that the naked-rumped tomb bat is among a number of species of bat that roost in different parts of the Karnak Temple Complex in Egypt?
• ... that 19th-century Scottish heiress and philanthropist Margaret Macpherson Grant died, aged 42, shortly after her female partner had abandoned her to marry a man?
• ... that more than 4 million videos on TikTok feature the song " Mia Khalifa" – also known as the "Hit or Miss" song – even though the app had not licensed its use and has never paid the artists?

Abhijit Banerjee

• The trial of Catalonia independence leaders concludes with nine jail sentences, sparking protests around Barcelona.
• The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences is awarded to Abhijit Banerjee (pictured), Esther Duflo, and Michael Kremer for their work in poverty reduction.
• Ten days of protests in Ecuador end after President Lenín Moreno agrees to repeal austerity measures and restore fuel subsidies.
• Kenyan Brigid Kosgei breaks the women's marathon world record at the Chicago Marathon.

October 16

Mushroom cloud of the Project 596 test

• 1813 – The Sixth Coalition attacked French forces led by Napoleon in the Battle of Leipzig, the largest conflict in the Napoleonic Wars, with over 500,000 troops involved.
• 1905 – Authorities of the British Raj partitioned the Bengal Presidency, separating the largely Muslim eastern areas from the largely Hindu western areas.
• 1943 – The Holocaust: The Gestapo conducted a raid on the Roman Ghetto, capturing 1,259 members of the Jewish community, most of whom were sent to Auschwitz.
• 1964 – With the success of Project 596 ( mushroom cloud pictured), China became the world's fifth nuclear power.
• 1991 – A man drove his vehicle through the window of a Luby's Cafeteria in Killeen, Texas, and opened fire, killing 23 people before he committed suicide.

John Cook (d. 1660) · Kathleen Winsor (b. 1919) · Tessa Munt (b. 1959)