February 16: Facts & Historical Events On This Day

Lionel Messi scored his 300th goal for Barcelona’s soccer team.

He promptly scored his 301st goal for the team, winning the game 2-1 against Granada in Spain's La Liga football league.

Reality documentary The Apprentice (UK) premiered with businessman Lord Alan Sugar as the leading judge.

The world’s longest traffic jam from Lyon to Paris, France, extended a lengthy 104 miles (167 km).

The first-ever 911 call was made in the US.

The service went live on this day in Haleyville, Alabama.

NASA’s Explorer 9 satellite launched from the Wallops Flight Facility in eastern Virginia.

The satellite looked like something straight out of a science fiction film, as it was a giant 12-foot (3.66 m) metallic sphere covered in white dots to aid thermal control. The purpose of Explorer 9 was to study the composition and density of Earth's lower exosphere and upper atmosphere. It was the first spacecraft to launch successfully from the Wallops Flight Facility and the first to reach orbit atop a launch vehicle that only used solid fuel.

Fidel Castro was sworn in as Prime Minister of Cuba.

After leading a Communist guerilla campaign that forced dictator Fulgencio Batista into exile, Castro then became the leader and was sworn in.

The first commercial helicopter, Sikorsky S51, had its first test flight.

The test took place in Bridgeport, Connecticut, USA.

Winston Churchill fell ill with pneumonia.

The Austrian Civil War came to an end after four days of bloodshed.

Also known as the February Uprising, this was more a series of conflicts between Austrian socialists and the fascist government than an outright war. The socialists ultimately surrendered after as many as 1,000 casualties.

Egyptian King Tutankhamun’s coffin was discovered.

English archeologist Howard Carter entered the tomb on November 22, where everything was fully intact, untouched for over 3,000 years. Inside there were four rooms, and upon opening the last chamber on this day, they found the golden coffin belonging to King Tutankhamun.

Iceland’s first football club, Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkurv (Reykjavík Football Club), was founded.

The Battle of Fort Donelson ended, with nearly 14,000 Confederate soldiers surrendering.

Even though nearly 1,000 soldiers on both sides were killed at the Battle of Fort Donelson in Tennessee, the Confederate soldiers surrendered to General Ulysses S. Grant.

American explorer Charles Wilkes discovered the Shackleton Ice Shelf in Antarctica.

The first known British check was written for the amount of £400.

In today's money, that's equivalent to £48,000 ($62,525). The check is currently on display at Westminster Abbey.