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1859 167 years ago Selected Events September 17 2 sources

Disgruntled with the legal and political structures of the United States, Joshua Norton (pictured) distributed letters to various newspapers in San Francisco proclaiming himself to be Emperor Norton.

On September 17, in the year 1859, Disgruntled with the legal and political structures of the United States, Joshua Norton (pictured) distributed letters to various newspapers in San Francisco proclaiming himself to be Emperor Norton. This event is recorded as a Selected Events event in the history of September 17, one of 492 recorded events on this date across all of history.

San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the fourth-most populous city in California and the 17th-most populous in the United States, with a population of 826,079 in 2025. Among U.S. cities with a population of 200,000 or more, San Francisco is ranked first by per capita income, third by population density, and sixth by aggregate income as of 2024. Some 4.6 million residents live in the city's metropolitan statistical area, which is the 13th-largest in the United States. Around 9.2 million live in the San Jose–San Francisco–Oakland combined statistical area, the fifth-largest in the United States.

Key Facts

  • This event took place on September 17, 1859 (AD era).
  • It is categorised as a Selected Events event in recorded history.
  • Referenced in 2 Wikipedia articles.
  • The event is associated with a specific geographical location (see map below).
  • Wikipedia source last updated on 28 August 2026.

On This Date in History 492

Type Year Date Event
Historical Events 2025 Sep 17 Saudi Arabia and Pakistan sign the Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement.
Notable Deaths 2025 Sep 17 Roger Climpson, English-Australian journalist and television host (born 1932)
Notable Deaths 2024 Sep 17 Nelson DeMille, American lieutenant and author (born 1943)
Notable Deaths 2024 Sep 17 Neil King Jr., American journalist and author (born 1959)
Notable Deaths 2024 Sep 17 JD Souther, American singer, songwriter, and actor (born 1945)
Notable Deaths 2022 Sep 17 Maarten Schmidt, Dutch astronomer (born 1929)
Notable Deaths 2021 Sep 17 Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Algerian politician, President of Algeria (born 1937)
Notable Deaths 2020 Sep 17 Robert W. Gore, American engineer and businessman, co-inventor of Gore-Tex (born 1937)
Notable Deaths 2019 Sep 17 Cokie Roberts, American journalist and bestselling author (born 1943)
Historical Events 2018 Sep 17 A Russian reconnaissance aircraft carrying 15 people on board is brought down by a Syrian surface-to-air missile over…
Selected Events 2018 Sep 17 The Israeli Air Force conducted missile strikes that hit multiple targets in western Syria; Syrian air defences…
Notable Deaths 2017 Sep 17 Bobby Heenan, American professional wrestling manager (born 1944)
Historical Events 2016 Sep 17 Two bombs explode in Seaside Park, New Jersey, and Manhattan. Thirty-one people are injured in the Manhattan bombing.
Notable Deaths 2016 Sep 17 Bahman Golbarnezhad, Iranian racing cyclist (born 1968)
Notable Deaths 2016 Sep 17 Sigge Parling, Swedish footballer (born 1936)
Notable Deaths 2015 Sep 17 Ingrīda Andriņa, Latvian actress (born 1944)
Notable Deaths 2015 Sep 17 Dettmar Cramer, German footballer and manager (born 1925)
Notable Deaths 2015 Sep 17 Vadim Kuzmin, Russian physicist and academic (born 1937)
Notable Deaths 2015 Sep 17 David Willcocks, English organist, composer, and conductor (born 1919)
Notable Deaths 2014 Sep 17 George Hamilton IV, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1937)
Notable Deaths 2014 Sep 17 Andriy Husin, Ukrainian footballer and manager (born 1972)
Notable Deaths 2014 Sep 17 Wakachichibu Komei, Japanese sumo wrestler (born 1939)
Notable Deaths 2014 Sep 17 Charles Read, Australian air marshal (born 1918)
Notable Deaths 2014 Sep 17 Peter von Bagh, Finnish historian, director, and screenwriter (born 1943)
Notable Deaths 2014 Sep 17 China Zorrilla, Uruguayan actress (born 1922)
Historical Events 2013 Sep 17 Grand Theft Auto V earns more than half a billion dollars on its first day of release.
Notable Deaths 2013 Sep 17 Kristian Gidlund, Swedish drummer and journalist (born 1983)
Notable Deaths 2013 Sep 17 Larry Lake, American-Canadian trumpet player and composer (born 1943)
Notable Deaths 2013 Sep 17 Bernie McGann, Australian saxophonist and composer (born 1937)
Notable Deaths 2013 Sep 17 Alex Naumik, Lithuanian-Norwegian singer-songwriter and producer (born 1949)
Notable Deaths 2013 Sep 17 Michael J. Noonan, Irish farmer and politician, 25th Irish Minister of Defence (born 1935)
Notable Deaths 2013 Sep 17 Marvin Rainwater, American singer-songwriter (born 1925)
Notable Deaths 2013 Sep 17 Eiji Toyoda, Japanese businessman (born 1913)
Notable Deaths 2012 Sep 17 Melvin Charney, Canadian sculptor and architect (born 1935)
Historical Events 2011 Sep 17 Occupy Wall Street movement begins in Zuccotti Park, New York City.
Notable Deaths 2011 Sep 17 Colin Madigan, Australian architect and author, designed the National Gallery of Australia (born 1921)
Selected Events 2011 Sep 17 Adbusters, a Canadian anti-consumerist publication, organized a protest against corporate influence on democracy at…
Selected Events 2008 Sep 17 Seven al-Qaeda fighters attack the embassy of the United States in Sanaa, Yemen, leaving 20 people dead.
Historical Events 2006 Sep 17 Fourpeaked Mountain in Alaska erupts, marking the first eruption for the volcano in at least 10,000 years.
Historical Events 2006 Sep 17 An audio tape of a private speech by Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsány is leaked to the public, in which he…
Notable Deaths 2005 Sep 17 Jacques Lacarrière, French journalist and critic (born 1925)
Notable Deaths 2005 Sep 17 Alfred Reed, American composer and educator (born 1921)
Notable Deaths 2003 Sep 17 Erich Hallhuber, German actor (born 1951)
Notable Births 2002 Sep 17 Elina Avanesyan, Russian-Armenian tennis player
Historical Events 2001 Sep 17 The New York Stock Exchange reopens for trading after the September 11 attacks, the longest closure since the Great…
Historical Events 2001 Sep 17 George W. Bush, president of the United States, delivers remarks at the Islamic Center of Washington praising Muslim…
Selected Events 2001 Sep 17 American president George W. Bush delivered remarks at the Islamic Center of Washington (pictured) condemning…
Notable Deaths 2000 Sep 17 Georgiy Gongadze, Georgian-Ukrainian journalist and director (born 1969)
Notable Births 1999 Sep 17 Jaimee Fourlis, Australian tennis player
Notable Births 1999 Sep 17 Daniel Huttlestone, English actor

This article draws on content from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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