July 3 » A Spanish squadron, led by Pascual Cervera y Topete, is defeated by an American squadron under William T. Sampson in the Battle of Santiago de Cuba.
July 4 » En route from New York to Le Havre, the SS La Bourgogne collides with another ship and sinks off the coast of Sable Island, with the loss of 549 lives.
August 23 » The Southern Cross Expedition, the first British venture of the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration, departs from London.
October 14 » The steam ship SSMohegan sinks near the Lizard peninsula, Cornwall, killing 106.
November 3 » France withdraws its troops from Fashoda (now in Sudan), ending the Fashoda Incident.
December 26 » Marie and Pierre Curie announce the isolation of radium.
Day of death October 16, 1959
The temperature on October 16, 1959 was between 5.3 °C and 20.0 °C and averaged 11.9 °C. There was 9.0 hours of sunshine (84%). The average windspeed was 4 Bft (moderate breeze) and was prevailing from the south east. Source: KNMI
February 6 » At Cape Canaveral, Florida, the first successful test firing of a Titan intercontinental ballistic missile is accomplished.
July 7 » Venus occults the star Regulus. This rare event is used to determine the diameter of Venus and the structure of the Venusian atmosphere.
July 21 » Elijah Jerry "Pumpsie" Green becomes the first African-American to play for the Boston Red Sox, the last team to integrate. He came in as a pinch runner for Vic Wertz and stayed in as shortstop in a 2–1 loss to the Chicago White Sox.
October 7 » The Soviet probe Luna 3 transmits the first-ever photographs of the far side of the Moon.
October 30 » Piedmont Airlines Flight 349 crashes on approach to Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport in Albemarle County, Virginia, killing 26 of the 27 on board.
December 1 » Cold War: Opening date for signature of the Antarctic Treaty, which sets aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve and bans military activity on the continent.
When copying data from this family tree, please include a reference to the origin: Peeters Mathieu, "FutureHistory", database, Genealogy Online (https://www.genealogieonline.nl/stamboom-riske/I5121.php : accessed September 24, 2026), "Alfons de Meirleir (1898-1959)".
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