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1942 84 years ago Historical Events October 2 3 sources

World War II: Ocean Liner RMS Queen Mary accidentally rams and sinks HMS Curacoa, killing over 300 crewmen aboard Curacoa.

On October 2, in the year 1942, World War II: Ocean Liner RMS Queen Mary accidentally rams and sinks HMS Curacoa, killing over 300 crewmen aboard Curacoa. This event is recorded as a Historical Events event in the history of October 2, one of 308 recorded events on this date across all of history.

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many engaging in total war on an unprecedented scale. World War II was the deadliest conflict in history, causing the deaths of 60 to 75 million people, a majority of whom were civilians. Millions died as a result of massacres, starvation, disease, and genocides including the Holocaust. After the Allied victory, Germany, Austria, Japan, and Korea were occupied, and German and Japanese leaders were tried for war crimes.

Key Facts

  • This event took place on October 2, 1942 (AD era).
  • It is categorised as a Historical Events event in recorded history.
  • Referenced in 3 Wikipedia articles.
  • Wikipedia source last updated on 28 September 2026.

On This Date in History 308

Type Year Date Event
Historical Events 2025 Oct 2 2 people are killed and at least 4 others injured in an attack on a synagogue in Manchester, UK, during Yom Kippur.
Notable Deaths 2024 Oct 2 Susie Berning, American professional golfer (born 1941)
Notable Deaths 2024 Oct 2 Marissa Haque, Indonesian politician (born 1962)
Notable Deaths 2023 Oct 2 Francis Lee, English footballer (born 1944)
Notable Deaths 2022 Oct 2 Sacheen Littlefeather, American actress, model and activist for Native American civil rights (born 1946)
Notable Deaths 2021 Oct 2 Jack Biondolillo, American bowler (born 1940)
Notable Deaths 2020 Oct 2 Anne-Marie Hutchinson, British lawyer (born 1957)
Historical Events 2019 Oct 2 A privately owned Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress conducting a living history exhibition flight crashes shortly after…
Historical Events 2018 Oct 2 The Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi is assassinated in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.
Notable Deaths 2018 Oct 2 Jamal Khashoggi, Saudi journalist (born 1958)
Selected Events 2018 Oct 2 The Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi was assassinated in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.
Notable Deaths 2017 Oct 2 Tom Petty, American musician (born 1950)
Historical Events 2016 Oct 2 Ethiopian protests break out during a festival in the Oromia region, killing dozens of people.
Notable Deaths 2016 Oct 2 Neville Marriner, British conductor (born 1924)
Notable Deaths 2015 Oct 2 Brian Friel, Irish author, playwright, and director (born 1929)
Notable Deaths 2015 Oct 2 Coleridge Goode, Jamaican-English bassist and composer (born 1914)
Notable Deaths 2015 Oct 2 Johnny Paton, Scottish footballer and coach (born 1923)
Notable Deaths 2014 Oct 2 Robert Flower, Australian footballer (born 1955)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 2 Abraham Nemeth, American mathematician and academic (born 1918)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 2 Nguyễn Chí Thiện, Vietnamese-American poet and activist (born 1939)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 2 Charles Roach, Trinidadian-Canadian lawyer and activist (born 1933)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 2 J. Philippe Rushton, English-Canadian psychologist, theorist, academic (born 1943)
Notable Deaths 2010 Oct 2 Kwa Geok Choo, Singaporean lawyer and scholar (born 1920)
Historical Events 2007 Oct 2 President Roh Moo-hyun of South Korea goes to North Korea for an Inter-Korean summit with North Korean leader Kim…
Notable Deaths 2007 Oct 2 Tex Coulter, American football player (born 1924)
Notable Deaths 2007 Oct 2 George Grizzard, American actor (born 1928)
Notable Deaths 2007 Oct 2 Dan Keating, Irish Republican Army volunteer (born 1902)
Historical Events 2006 Oct 2 Five Amish girls are murdered in a shooting at a school in Pennsylvania, United States.
Notable Deaths 2006 Oct 2 Helen Chenoweth-Hage, American politician (born 1938)
Notable Deaths 2006 Oct 2 Paul Halmos, Hungarian-American mathematician (born 1916)
Selected Events 2006 Oct 2 A gunman killed five Amish girls before committing suicide in a one-room schoolhouse in Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania.
Notable Births 2005 Oct 2 Sam Konstas, Australian cricketer
Notable Deaths 2005 Oct 2 Nipsey Russell, American comedian and actor (born 1918)
Notable Deaths 2005 Oct 2 August Wilson, American author and playwright (born 1945)
Selected Events 2005 Oct 2 Typhoon Longwang made landfall in China as the deadliest tropical cyclone in that year to impact the country.
Historical Events 2004 Oct 2 The first parkrun, then known as the Bushy Park Time Trial, takes place in Bushy Park, London, UK.
Notable Deaths 2003 Oct 2 John Thomas Dunlop, American scholar and politician, United States Secretary of Labor (born 1914)
Historical Events 2002 Oct 2 The Beltway sniper attacks begin in Washington, D.C., extending over three weeks and killing 10 people.
Notable Births 2002 Oct 2 Jacob Sartorius, American social media personality and singer
Notable Deaths 2002 Oct 2 Heinz von Foerster, Austrian-American physicist and philosopher (born 1911)
Notable Deaths 2001 Oct 2 Franz Biebl, German composer and academic (born 1906)
Notable Births 2000 Oct 2 Quadeca, American singer-songwriter and YouTuber
Notable Deaths 2000 Oct 2 David Tonkin, Australian politician, Premier of South Australia (born 1929)
Notable Deaths 1999 Oct 2 Heinz G. Konsalik, German journalist and author (born 1921)
Notable Deaths 1998 Oct 2 Gene Autry, American actor, singer, and guitarist (born 1907)
Historical Events 1996 Oct 2 Aeroperú Flight 603 crashes into the ocean near Peru, killing all 70 people on board.
Historical Events 1996 Oct 2 The Electronic Freedom of Information Act Amendments are signed by U.S. President Bill Clinton.
Notable Births 1996 Oct 2 Tom Trbojevic, Australian rugby league player
Notable Deaths 1996 Oct 2 Robert Bourassa, Canadian lawyer and politician, Premier of Quebec (born 1933)
Notable Deaths 1996 Oct 2 Andrey Lukanov, Bulgarian politician, 40th Prime Minister of Bulgaria (born 1938)

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

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