November 1916

[November 1], 1916 (Wednesday)

• Ninth Battle of the Isonzo - Italy expanded its attacks on the Soča Valley and other parts of the Karst Plateau bordering Italy and Austria-Hungary.
• Romanian Campaign - Germany launched a renewed offensive to conquer the Oltenia region of Romania.
• The Australian government under Billy Hughes split over the results of the plebiscite on conscription in October, which most of the electorate voted against despite strong advocacy from Hughes.
• Pavel Milyukov, leader of the Constitutional Democratic Party in Russia, delivered his "stupidity or treason" speech in the Russian State Duma, precipitating the downfall of the Boris Shturmer government.
• American shoe manufacturer Endicott Johnson became one of the first U.S. companies to introduce the eight-hour work day, in this case for workers of the Endicott-Johnson factories in the Binghamton metropolitan area of New York.
• Italian cargo ship SS Torero was sunk in the Mediterranean Sea by German submarine, with all crew rescued.
• The Royal Flying Corps established the No. 78 Squadron.
• The U.S. pilot training unit 3rd Aero Squadron, precursor to the 3rd Fighter Training Squadron, was established to fill in for domestic air defense when 1st Aero Squadron was assigned to support the U.S. Army and its hunt for Mexican rebel leader Pancho Villa.
• The second shortened version of the Richard Strauss opera Ariadne auf Naxos was performed in Berlin, with future runs in Zürich, Budapest and Graz, Austria.
• Born: Mohan Kumaramangalam, Indian politician, leading member of the Communist Party of India and member of the Indira Gandhi cabinet from 1972 to 1973; in London, England
• Died: Franz Anton von Thun und Hohenstein, 69, Austrian noble and state leader, 15th Prime Minister of Austria

  [November 2], 1916 (Thursday)

• Battle of Verdun - The Germans abandoned Fort Vaux near Verdun, France, allowing French soldiers to retake it without firing a single shot.
• Born:
• * Al Campanis, Greek-born American sports executive, general manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers from 1968 to 1987; as Alexander Sebastian Campanis, in Kos, Dodecanese, Kingdom of Italy
• * Kebede Michael, Ethiopian writer, considered the nation's most prolific writer of non-fiction, poetry and drama including A Spark of Knowledge and The Light of the Mind; in Debre Birhan, Ethiopian Empire
• Died:
• * Frank Hugh O'Donnell, 70, Irish politician, leading member of the Irish Parliamentary Party, Member of Parliament for Dungarvan, Ireland from 1877 to 1885
• * Sarah Francisco, 77, Irish-Australian housekeeper, racked up a record 295 public drunkenness convictions in Australia before sobering in 1910 when she joined The Salvation Army

  [November 3], 1916 (Friday)

• British passenger ship collided with British cargo ship Retriever off the coast of Ireland, killing 97 passengers and crew.
• Anglo-Egyptian Darfur Expedition - A British force of 150 men was dispatched to the Sudanese mountain village of Kulme, outside of the regional capital of El Fasher, to locate Sultan Ali Dinar of the Sultanate of Darfur. The leader of a rebellion against British colonial rule in what is now Sudan was rumored to be hiding out there, however, the British force found the village deserted.
• French destroyer collided with British cargo ship Teviot and sank in the English Channel, with all crew rescued.
• The first Gala Day was held in Geelong, Victoria, Australia to raise money for the Australian Red Cross in support of its aid efforts during World War I.

  [November 4], 1916 (Saturday)

• Ninth Battle of the Isonzo - The battle ended in a stalemate with Italians suffering 75,000 casualties and the Austro-Hungarians sustaining 63,000.
• German submarine SM U-20, which sank British ocean liner RMS Lusitania the previous year, ran aground off the coast of Denmark and was scuttled the following day.
• Born:
• * John Basilone, American marine, recipient of the Medal of Honor for action during the Guadalcanal campaign; in Buffalo, New York, United States
• * Walter Cronkite, American television journalist, anchorman for CBS Evening News from 1962 to 1981, most significantly announcing to the American viewing public the assassination of John F. Kennedy in Dallas and the first Moon landing in 1969; in St. Joseph, Missouri, United States
• * Ruth Handler, American inventor, co-founder of Mattel with husband Elliot Handler which produced popular toys as Barbie and Hot Wheels; as Ruth Marianna Mosko, in Denver, United States
• Died: James D. Moffat, 70, American academic, third president of Washington & Jefferson College

  [November 5], 1916 (Sunday)

• The Kingdom of Poland was proclaimed by a joint act of the emperors of Germany and Austria-Hungary.
• Battle of Verdun - France gained all the ground lost to the Germans since February 24, allowing them to suspend military operations for a month for the soldiers to rest and be reequipped.
• Battle of Le Transloy - British forces made one last attack on the German-held Butte de Warlencourt burial ground, with a loss of.
• Anglo-Egyptian Darfur Expedition - The British forces relocated and began final pursuit of rebel leader Sultan Ali Dinar along with the remainder of his men still loyal to him.
• An armed confrontation between 300 striking dock workers and 200 citizen "vigilantes" organized by the sheriff of Everett, Washington resulted in 5 killed and 20 wounded, in what was known at the Everett massacre.
• A British submarine on patrol in the North Sea was able to attack and damage two out of four ships in a German squadron. While there no major casualties and all German ships were able to return to port, it resulted in Germany shifting its naval offensive from surface ships to submarines.
• Honan Chapel, built by the Irish Arts and Crafts movement, was dedicated at University College Cork in Ireland.
• Born: Jim Tabor, American baseball player, third baseman for the Boston Red Sox from 1938 to 1944 and Philadelphia Phillies from 1946 to 1947; as James Reubin Tabor, in New Hope, Alabama, United States

  [November 6], 1916 (Monday)

• Anglo-Egyptian Darfur Expedition - British colonial troops tracked down rebel leader Sultan Ali Dinar's camp and engaged the last of his troops. Most fled soon after the fighting started and Dinar's body was found in the camp shot through the head. The Sultan's death ended the Sultanate of Darfur where afterward it was absorbed into the Sudan.
• German submarine struck a mine and sank in the Black Sea, killing 16 of her crew.
• German submarine fired a torpedo on British armed passenger ship in the Mediterranean Sea. It hit the engine room and killed 11 ship engineers but the rest of the 187 passengers and crew on board were able to abandon ship and be rescued.
• American cargo ship Chester A. Congdon ran aground in Lake Superior. It capsized two days later, the first time a ship valued over $1 million was lost in the Great Lakes.
• Kilauea Military Camp was established on the Big Island of Hawaii within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park as a leisure retreat for U.S. soldiers.
• Born:
• * Ray Conniff, American jazz musician, best known for his group the Ray Conniff Singers during the 1960s and best-selling albums 'S Wonderful! and Dance the Bop!; as Joseph Raymond Conniff, in Attleboro, Massachusetts, United States
• * Seth J. McKee, American air force officer, commander of the North American Aerospace Defense Command from 1969 to 1973; in McGehee, Arkansas, United States
• * Lauri Pekuri, Finnish air force officer, commander of Karelia Air Command, fighter ace during World War II and first Finn to break the sound barrier; as Lauri Olavi Ohukainen, in Helsinki, Grand Duchy of Finland, Russian Empire

  [November 7], 1916 (Tuesday)

• Democratic U.S. President Woodrow Wilson narrowly defeated Republican Charles E. Hughes in the U.S. presidential election.
• Republican Jeannette Rankin of Montana became the first woman elected to the United States House of Representatives.
• Battle of the Crna Bend - The Allies concentrated intense shelling of Bulgarian defenses between the towns of Krape and Polog along the Crna River in Macedonia.
• A streetcar loaded with passengers in Boston plunged off an open draw bridge into the Fort Point Channel, killing 46 people.
• Born:
• * Galaktion Alpaidze, Soviet army officer, chief of the Plesetsk Cosmodrome from 1963 to 1975, recipient of the USSR State Prize; in Kursebi, Russian Empire
• * George William Gregory Bird, British medical researcher, established the modern blood donation system in Great Britain; in Bombay, British India
• * Norman Wengert, American political scientist, author of Natural Resources and the Political Struggle; in Milwaukee, United States
• * George W. Gibbs Jr., American naval serviceman, first African American to set foot on Antarctica; in Jacksonville, Florida, United States
• * H. Louis Nichols, American lawyer, only attorney to see Lee Harvey Oswald while he was in custody by the Dallas Police Department after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy; in Collin County, Texas, United States
• Died:
• * Marie Heim-Vögtlin, 71, Swiss physician, first Swiss woman to practice medicine and co-founder of Switzerland's first gynecological hospital
• * Henry Ward Ranger, 58, American artist, founder of the Old Lyme Art Colony

  [November 8], 1916 (Wednesday)

• Japanese manufacturer NSK Ltd. was established to produce industrial bearings.
• Born:
• * Hans Beißwenger, German fighter pilot, recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for action as fighter pilot for the Luftwaffe over the Eastern Front during World War II; in Schwäbisch Hall, German Empire
• * Andrés Fleitas, Cuban baseball player, catcher and first baseman for the Cuba national team, most valuable player during the 1942 Amateur World Series; in Santa Clara Province, Cuba
• * Peter Weiss, German playwright, best known for plays Marat/Sade and The Investigation, and his novel The Aesthetics of Resistance; in Babelsberg, German Empire
• Died: Cai E, 33, Chinese revolutionary leader, Governor of Yunnan from 1911 to 1913 and opposition leader to Yuan Shikai; died of tuberculosis