May 26 » The original manuscript of William Bradford's history, "Of Plymouth Plantation" is returned to the Governor of Massachusetts by the Bishop of London after being taken during the American Revolutionary War.
July 11 » Salomon August Andrée leaves Spitsbergen to attempt to reach the North Pole by balloon. He later crashes and dies.
July 26 » Anglo-Afghan War: The Pashtun fakir Saidullah leads an army of more than 10,000 to begin a siege of the British garrison in the Malakand Agency of the North West Frontier Province of India.
August 21 » Oldsmobile, an American automobile manufacturer and marque, is founded.
November 1 » The first Library of Congress building opens its doors to the public; the library had previously been housed in the Congressional Reading Room in the U.S. Capitol.
December 6 » London becomes the world's first city to host licensed taxicabs.
Day of death September 17, 1903
The temperature on September 17, 1903 was between 4.9 °C and 16.0 °C and averaged 10.4 °C. There was 6.2 hours of sunshine (49%). Source: KNMI
January 4 » Topsy, an elephant, is electrocuted by the owners of Luna Park, Coney Island. The Edison film company records the film Electrocuting an Elephant of Topsy's death.
February 23 » Cuba leases Guantánamo Bay to the United States "in perpetuity".
May 29 » In the May Coup, Alexander I, King of Serbia, and Queen Draga, are assassinated in Belgrade by the Black Hand (Crna Ruka) organization.
June 16 » The Ford Motor Company is incorporated.
September 27 » The Wreck of the Old 97, an American rail disaster that became the subject of a popular ballad.
December 16 » Taj Mahal Palace & Tower hotel in Bombay first opens its doors to guests.
When copying data from this family tree, please include a reference to the origin: Sim Mostert, "Genealogy Pot en Smit", database, Genealogy Online (https://www.genealogieonline.nl/genealogie_pot_smit/I7160.php : accessed September 28, 2026), "WILHELMUS van 't KLOOSTER (1897-1903)".
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