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Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Born in a one-room log cabin in Kentucky, he was self-educated and became a lawyer, Illinois state legislator, and U.S. representative. An anti-slavery advocate, he joined the new Republican Party and won the 1860 presidential election, prompting a majority of slave states in the South to secede and form the Confederate States. As he led the country during civil war, Lincoln supervised the Union army, implemented a naval blockade of Southern ports, and issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed slaves in the Confederate states. On November 19, 1863, he delivered the now famous Gettysburg Address. Lincoln was re-elected in 1864, and on April 14, 1865, five days after the Confederate surrender at Appomattox, he was fatally shot by John Wilkes Booth. For his role in preserving the Union and ending slavery, Lincoln is ranked as the greatest US president. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

William Bloomfield

... that William Bloomfield (pictured) is recognized as the first known Māori architect?
... that rock wrens build pavements made of flat stones to keep their nests dry?
... that the developers of Arlington Forest followed the U.S. government's recommendations for both residential architecture and racially restrictive covenants?
... that David Barsum Perley used his writings to explore what he considered the British betrayal of the Assyrian people?
... that an NFL team shared City Stadium with a local high school for over thirty years?
... that although An Ordinary Youth is based on the author's real-life experience, it begins with an epigraph saying "All details completely made up"?
... that the American Civil War inspired the design of the British Amazon-class sloops?
... that all Aboriginal languages in mainland Australia may have descended from a common ancestor spoken around 6,000 years ago?
... that powerlifter Stefi Cohen went down a weight class to bring her world record total to 25?

In the news

Tarique Rahman

The Nationalist Party, led by Tarique Rahman (pictured), wins the Bangladeshi general election.
In the Barbadian general election, the Labour Party wins a third term and every seat in the House of Assembly.
Shootings at a residence and a school in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, Canada, leave nine people dead.
In American football, the Seattle Seahawks defeat the New England Patriots to win the Super Bowl.

On this day

February 16: J'ouvert morning, Carnival begins in Trinidad and Tobago; Chinese New Year's Eve (2026); Day of the Shining Star in North Korea; Presidents' Day in the United States (2026); Elizabeth Peratrovich Day in Alaska; Daisy Gatson Bates Day in Arkansas (2026)

Carsten Borchgrevink

1270 – Livonian Crusade: In the Battle of Karuse, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania achieved a decisive victory over the Livonian Order on the frozen surface of the Baltic Sea.
1900 – The Southern Cross Expedition led by Carsten Borchgrevink (pictured) achieved a new Farthest South of 78° 50'S, making the first landing at the Great Ice Barrier.
1936 – The Popular Front, a coalition of left-wing parties, came to power in the Spanish general election, a factor in the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War five months later.
1961 – The DuSable Museum, the first museum dedicated to the study and conservation of African American history, culture, and art, was chartered.
2013 – At least 91 people were killed and 190 others injured after a bomb hidden in a water tank exploded at a market in Hazara Town, Pakistan.

Roberta Williams (b. 1953)
Valentino Rossi (b. 1979)
Yan Bingtao (b. 2000)
Boutros Boutros-Ghali (d. 2016)

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Ruth Harrison (left) and Ellen Eddowes, finalists in the 1931 championship

The World Women's Billiards Championship was first held in 1931, when the British cue sports company Burroughes and Watts organised a women's amateur billiards championship, which was later recognised as the world championship. As of 1930, many billiard halls in the UK did not admit women. Ruth Harrison (pictured) was the champion from 23 participants, and the highest break made was 28. The Women's Billiards Association took over responsibility for the amateur tournament from the 1932 edition, which had 41 entries. The tournament was held regularly until 1940, but then put on hold until after World War II. From 1947 to 1980, the tournament was held in most years, with Vera Selby winning eight titles, and Maureen Baynton (née Barrett) winning six. After a period of dormancy from 1980, the tournament was revived by the World Ladies' Billiards and Snooker Association (WLBSA) in 1998. Emma Bonney has won the title a record 13 times, between 2000 and 2018. (Full list...)

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Gangabal Lake is a high-altitude glacial lake situated at the foot of Harmukh, a mountain in the Himalayas in Jammu and Kashmir, India. The lake is called Gangabal, meaning 'place of Ganga' in the Kashmiri language, and is considered to be sacred in Hinduism as an abode of Shiva. The lake has been described as a place of pilgrimage in several ancient Hindu texts such as the Mahabharata, the Nilamata Purana and the Vishnu Smriti, and an annual Hindu pilgrimage to the lake starts from the nearby 8th-century Wangath temple complex. Kashmiri Hindus perform their ancestral rites at the lake and immerse the ashes of the dead into the lake after cremation. This photograph depicts a shrine dedicated to Shiva carved into a boulder at the shore of Gangabal Lake.

Photograph credit: UnpetitproleX

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