September 16 is the 259th day of the year (260th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 106 days remaining until the end of the year.
1901 – 2000
- 1902 – Alagoas becomes a state of Brazil.
- 1908 – General Motors is founded.
- 1918 – On the British Monitor (a type of warship), a munitions explosion occurs while it is located in Dover Harbour, killing 77 people.
- 1919 – The American Legion is incorporated
- 1920 – Wall Street bombing: A bomb in a horse wagon explodes in front of the J. P. Morgan building in New York City, killing 38 people and injuring over 400.
- 1925 – HC Rotterdam, the biggest field hockey team in the Netherlands, is founded.
- 1928 – The Okeechobee hurricane in Florida kills 2500 people.
- 1939 – The Japanese-Soviet border conflict is settled.
- 1941 – The Shah of Iran is forced to resign by the United Kingdom and Soviet Union.
- 1943 – World War II: The Allied invasion of Italy concludes.
- 1945 – Japanese forces in Hong Kong surrender.
- 1947 – Typhoon Kathleen hits Saitama, Tokyo and the Tone River in Japan, killing at least 1,930 people.
- 1947 – The United Kingdom formally ends its state of war with Austria.
- 1955 – Juan Peron is removed from power in a coup in Argentina.
- 1955 – A Soviet Navy Zulu class submarine becomes the first submarine to launch a ballistic missile.
- 1959 – The first successful photocopier, the Xerox 914, is introduced in a demonstration in live television in New York City.
- 1961 – The remainder of Hurricane Debbie causes damage in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
- 1963 – Malaysia is formed by the Federation of Malaya, Singapore, British North Borneo (Sabah), and Sarawak. Singapore withdraws a short time later.
- 1966 – The Metropolitan Opera House opens in New York City.
- 1970 – King Hussein of Jordan declares military rule following the hijacking of four civilian airlineers by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
- 1971 – Typhoon Nancy makes landfall in Osaka, Japan, killing 173 people.
- 1975 – Papua New Guinea becomes independent from Australia.
- 1975 – Cape Verde, Mozambique and São Tomé and Príncipe join the UN.
- 1976 – Sharvash Karapetyan saves 20 people from a trolleybus that had fallen into a Yerevan reservoir.
- 1978 – An earthquake with a magnitude of over 7.5 hits Tabas in Iran, killing at least 25,000 people.
- 1980 – Saint Vincent and the Grenadines join the UN.
- 1982 – Sabra and Shatila massacre in Lebanon.
- 1983 – Arnold Schwarzenegger becomes a US citizen.
- 1987 – The Monntreal Protocol for preservation of ozone layer against ozone depletion enters into force.
- 1990 – The railroad connecting China and Kazakhstan is completed.
- 1991 – The trial of the deposed Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega begins in the United States.
- 1992 – The pound sterling, the UK's currency, is forced out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism.
- 1995 – Greece ends its embargo on the Republic of Macedonia.
- 1998 – Meryl Streep receives a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Up to 1850
- 16 – Drusilla, daughter of Germanicus and Agrippina the Elder (d. 38)
- 1098 – Hildegard of Bingen, German writer, composer, and saint (d. 1179)
- 1387 – King Henry V of England (d. 1422)
- 1494 – Francesco Mauriloco, Italian polymath (d. 1575)
- 1507 – Jiajing Emperor, Emperor of China (d. 1567)
- 1615 – Heinrich Bach, German organist and composer (d. 1692)
- 1666 – Antoine Parent, French mathematician (d. 1716)
- 1678 – Henry St John, 1st Viscount Bolingbroke, English statesman and philosopher (d. 1751)
- 1688 – John Gay, English writer (d. 1732)
- 1716 – Angelo Maria Amorevoli, Italian Baroque tenor (d. 1798)
- 1725 – Nicolas Demarest, French geologist (d. 1815)
- 1736 – Carter Braxton, American founding father (d. 1797)
- 1745 – Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov, Russian field marshal (d. 1813)
- 1777 – Nathan Mayer Rothschild, English banker and financier (d. 1813)
- 1782 – Daoguang Emperor, Emperor of China (d. 1850)
- 1812 – Robert Fortune, Scottish gardener, scientist and explorer (d. 1880)
- 1823 – Mihailo Obrenovic III, Prince of Serbia (d. 1868)
- 1825 – Simeon Bavier, Swiss diplomat, engineer and politician (d. 1896)
- 1830 – Patrick Francis Moran, Irish-Australian cardinal (d. 1911)
- 1837 – King Peter V of Portugal (d. 1861)
- 1842 – Alessandro Fortis, Prime Minister of Italy (d. 1909)
- 1844 – Paul Taffanel, French flautist and conductor (d. 1908)
1851 – 1900
- 1851 – Emilia Pardo Bazan, Galician-Spanish writer (d. 1912)
- 1853 – Albrecht Kossel, German doctor, won the 1910 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 1917)
- 1858 – Andrew Bonar Law, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1923)
- 1859 – Yuan Shikai, Chinese military leader and politician (d. 1916)
- 1866 – Georg Voigt, German politician (d. 1927)
- 1867 – Vantila Bratianu, Romanian politician (d. 1930)
- 1870 – John Pius Boland, Irish jurist, politician and tennis player (d. 1958)
- 1875 – James C. Penney, founder of American department store J.C. Penney (d. 1971)
- 1877 – Jacob Schick, American-Canadian inventor and businessman (d. 1937)
- 1878 – Herwarth Walden, German writer, publisher and composer (d. 1941)
- 1886 – Demetre Chiparis, Romanian sculptor (d. 1947)
- 1886 – Jean Arp, German-French sculptor, painter and writer (d. 1966)
- 1887 – Nadia Boulanger, French composer and pianist (d. 1979)
- 1888 – Frans Eemil Sillanpaa, Finnish writer (d. 1964)
- 1888 – W. O. Bentley, British racing driver and entrepreneur (d. 1971)
- 1891 – Stephanie von Hohenlohe, Austrian-born German spy (d. 1972)
- 1891 – Karl Dönitz, German naval leader (d. 1980)
- 1893 – Alexander Korda, Hungarian movie director (d. 1956)
- 1893 – Albert Szent-Györgyi de Nagyrápolt, Hungarian scientist, won the 1937 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 1986)
- 1898 – H. A. Rey, American author and illustrator (d. 1977)
- 1899 – Hans Swarowsky, Austrian conductor (d. 1975)
1901 – 1950
- 1901 – Ugo Frigerio, Italian athlete (d. 1968)
- 1903 – Joe Venuti, Italian-American jazz violinist (d. 1978)
- 1903 – Gwen Bristow, American writer and journalist (d. 1980)
- 1905 – Vladimir Holan, Czech poet (d. 1980)
- 1909 – Marshall Carter, American general, Director of the NSA (d. 1993)
- 1912 – Gyorgy Sarosi, Hungarian footballer (d. 1993)
- 1913 – Felicien Marceau, French journalist and writer (d. 2012)
- 1916 – Robert Llewellyn Bradshaw, 1st Prime Minister of Saint Kitts and Nevis (d. 1978)
- 1917 – Alexander Schmorell, German Resistance activist (d. 1943)
- 1919 – Lawrence Dobkin, American actor (d. 2002)
- 1920 – J. J. C. Smart, British-Australian philosopher (d. 2012)
- 1920 – Staryl C. Austin, American air force general (d. 2015)
- 1921 – Jon Hendricks, American jazz songwriter and singer
- 1922 – Guy Hamilton, English movie director (d. 2016)
- 1922 – Janis Paige, American actress
- 1923 – Lee Kuan Yew, Prime Minister of Singapore and statesman (d. 2015)
- 1924 – Lauren Bacall, American actress (d. 2014)
- 1924 – Hank Peters, American baseball executive (d. 2015)
- 1925 – Charlie Byrd, American jazz guitarist (d. 1999)
- 1925 – Charles Haughey, Prime Minister of Ireland (d. 2006)
- 1925 – B. B. King, American blues musician (d. 2015)
- 1926 – Robert H. Schuller, American televangelist (d. 2015)
- 1927 – Peter Falk, American actor (d. 2011)
- 1927 – Sadako Ogata, Japanese academic, diplomat ad writer
- 1928 – Rex Trailer, American television presenter, actor and singer (d. 2013)
- 1929 – Stan Stephens, American politician, 20th Governor of Montana
- 1930 – Anne Francis, American actress (d. 2011)
- 1930 – Jerry Parr, American secret service agent (d. 2015)
- 1934 – Ronnie Drew, Irish singer (The Dubliners) (d. 2008)
- 1935 – Jules Bass, American Stop-motion animator
- 1935 – Billy Boy Arnold, American blues musician and songwriter
- 1937 – Pavel Bobek, Czech singer (d. 2013)
- 1942 – Bernie Calvert, British musician
- 1943 – Oskar Lafontaine, German politician
- 1943 – James Alan McPherson, American writer (d. 2016)
- 1944 – B. J. Ward, American actress and singer
- 1945 – Alexander Rutskoy, Russian politician
- 1946 – Mike Reynolds, Australian politician
- 1946 – Camilo Sesto, Spanish singer-songwriter
- 1947 – Russ Abbot, British comedian
- 1948 – Rosemary Casals, American tennis player
- 1948 – Julia Donaldson, English writer
- 1948 – Kenney Jones, English musician
- 1949 – Ed Begley, Jr., American actor
- 1949 – Chrisye, Indonesian singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2007)
- 1950 – Loyd Grossman, American television presenter and food critic
- 1950 – Loyola de Palacio, Spanish politician (d. 2006)
1951 – 1975
- 1951 – Andy Irvine, Scottish rugby player
- 1952 – Fatos Nano, Albanian politician
- 1952 – Mickey Rourke, American actor
- 1953 – Kurt Fuller, American actor
- 1953 – Jerry Pate, American golfer
- 1953 – Manuel Pellegrini, Chilean footballer and coach
- 1953 – Mark Malloch Brown, British politician
- 1954 – Sanjoy Bandopadhyay, Indian sitarist and composer
- 1954 – Colin Newman, British singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer
- 1955 – Janet Ellis, British television presenter
- 1956 – David Copperfield, American magician
- 1957 – Norman Lamb, English politician
- 1957 – Pierre Moscovici, French politician
- 1958 – Jennifer Tilly, American actress
- 1958 – Neville Southall, Welsh footballer
- 1958 – Orel Hershiser, American baseball player and coach
- 1960 – Ean Evans, American musician (Lynyrd Skynyrd) (d. 2009)
- 1960 – Danny John-Jules, English actor
- 1961 – Bilinda Butcher, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1964 – Molly Shannon, American actress
- 1965 – Karl-Heinz Riedle, German footballer
- 1966 – John Bel Edwards, American attorney and politician
- 1968 – Rafael Alkorta, Spanish footballer
- 1968 – Marc Anthony, American musician
- 1971 – Amy Poehler, American actress, comedienne and writer
- 1972 – Liz Bonnin, Irish television presenter
- 1972 – Sprent Dabwido, Nauruan politician, former President of Nauru
- 1973 – Alexander Vinokourov, Kazakhstani cyclist
- 1974 – Mario Haas, Austrian footballer
- 1974 – Loona, Dutch singer
- 1975 – Adel Chedli, Tunisian footballer
From 1976
- 1976 – Tina Barrett, British singer (S Club)
- 1976 – Greg Buckner, American basketball player
- 1978 – Ebrahim Mirzapour, Iranian footballer
- 1978 – Carolina Dieckmann, Brazilian actress
- 1979 – Keisuke Tsuboi, Japanese footballer
- 1979 – Flo Rida, American rapper
- 1979 – Fanny, French singer
- 1980 – Patrik Stefan, Czech ice hockey player
- 1981 – Alexis Bledel, American actress
- 1983 – Kirsty Coventry, Zimbabwean swimmer
- 1983 – Brandon Moss, American baseball player
- 1984 – Katie Melua, Georgian-British singer
- 1984 – Sabrina Bryan, American actress and singer
- 1986 – Ian Harding, British actor
- 1987 – Kyle Lafferty, Northern Irish footballer
- 1987 – Burry Stander, South African cyclist (d. 2013)
- 1987 – Daren Kagasoff, American actor
- 1988 – Teddy Geiger, American singer-songwriter, guitarist and actor
- 1988 – Sarah Steele, American actress
- 1989 – José Salomon Rondon, Venezuelan footballer
- 1992 – Nick Jonas, American singer and guitarist (The Jonas Brothers)
- 1992 – Jake Roche, English actor and singer
- 2005 – Princess Jalilah bint Ali of Jordan
Up to 1900
- 96 – Domitian, Roman Emperor (b. 51)
- 307 – Flavius Valerius Severus, Roman Emperor
- 655 – Pope Martin I
- 1087 – Severus II, Roman Emperor
- 1100 – Bernold of Constance, German chronicler and writer (b. 1054)
- 1345 – John IV, Duke of Brittany (b. 1295)
- 1380 – King Charles V of France (b. 1338)
- 1394 – Avignon Pope Clement VII (b. 1342)
- 1498 – Tomas de Torquemada, Spanish grand inquisitor (b. 1420)
- 1589 – Michael Baius, Flemish theologian (b. 1513)
- 1701 – James II of England and VII of Scotland (b. 1633)
- 1736 – Gabriel Fahrenheit, physicist (b. 1686)
- 1782 – Farinelli, Italian singer (b. 1705)
- 1792 – Quang Trung, Emperor of Vietnam (b. 1753)
- 1803 – Nicolas Baudin, French explorer, cartographer and naturalist (b. 1754)
- 1819 – John Jeffries, American physician, balloonist and meteorologist (b. 1744)
- 1824 – King Louis XVIII of France (b. 1755)
- 1843 – Ezekiel Hart, Canadian businessman and politician (b. 1770)
- 1845 – Thomas Davis, Irish nationalist and writer (b. 1814)
- 1887 – Sakoigawa Namiemon, Japanese sumo wrestler (b. 1841)
- 1911 – Edward Whymper, English mountain climber (b. 1840)
- 1925 – Alexander Friedmann, Russian mathematician and cosmologist (b. 1888)
- 1925 – Leo Fall, Austrian composer (b. 1873)
- 1932 – Ronald Ross, British doctor, won the 1902 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1857)
- 1931 – Omar Mukhtar, resistance leader in Italian Libya
- 1936 – Jean-Baptiste Charcot, French scientist (b. 1867)
- 1940 – Charles Cochrane-Baillie, 2nd Baron Lamington, British politician, 8th Governor of Queensland, Australia (b. 1860)
- 1944 – Gustav Bauer, Chancellor of Germany (b. 1870)
- 1946 – James Hopwood Jeans, English physicist, astronomer and mathematician (b. 1877)
From 1951
- 1957 – Qi Baishi, Chinese painter (b. 1864)
- 1965 – Ahn Eak-tai, Korean composer and conductor (b. 1906)
- 1965 – Fred Quimby, American animation producer (b. 1886)
- 1977 – Marc Bolan, English musician (b. 1947)
- 1977 – Maria Callas, Greek-American soprano (b. 1923)
- 1980 – Jean Piaget, Swiss psychologist (b. 1896)
- 1984 – Louis Reard, French engineer and fashion designer (b. 1897)
- 1987 – Christopher Soames, Baron Soames, British politician (b. 1920)
- 1987 – Howard Moss, American poet, playwright and critic (b. 1922)
- 1991 – Olga Spessivtseva, Russian ballerina (b. 1895)
- 1992 – Millicent Fenwick, American politician and writer (b. 1910)
- 1993 – Oodgeroo Noonuccal, Australian poet and activist (b. 1920)
- 1996 – Gene Nelson, American actor, director and screenwriter (b. 1920)
- 2000 – Georgiy Gongadze, Georgian-Ukrainian journalist (b. 1969)
- 2002 – James Gregory, American actor (b. 1911)
- 2003 – Sheb Wooley, American actor and singer (b. 1921)
- 2004 – Izora Armstead, American singer (The Weather Girls) (b. 1942)
- 2005 – Gordon Gould, American inventor (b. 1920)
- 2006 – Floyd Curry, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1925)
- 2006 – Fouad el-Mohandes, Egyptian actor (b. 1924)
- 2007 – Robert Jordan, American writer (b. 1948)
- 2009 – Mary Travers, American singer (b. 1936)
- 2012 – Princess Ragnhild of Norway, Norwegian royal, sister of Harald V of Norway (b. 1930)
- 2012 – John Ingle, American actor (b. 1928)
- 2013 – Kim Hamilton, American actress (b. 1932)
- 2013 – Patsy Swayze, American dancer and choreographer (b. 1927)
- 2014 – Buster Jones, American actor and television presenter (b. 1943)
- 2014 – Alf Ivar Samuelsen, Norwegian politician (b. 1942)
- 2015 – Guy Béart, French singer-songwriter (b. 1930)
- 2015 – Ton van de Ven, Dutch industrial designer (b. 1944)
- 2015 – David Ashby, British motorcycle racer (b. 1949)
- 2016 – Edward Albee, American playwright (b. 1928)
- 2016 – Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, 10th President of Italy (b. 1920)
- 2016 – Gabriele Amorth, Italian priest and exorcist (b. 1925)
- 2016 – Antonio Mascarenhas Monteiro, former President of Cape Verde (b. 1944)