October 26, Newborn receives baboon heart in experimental transplant

Today is Sunday, Oct. 26, the 299th day of 2025. There are 66 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On October 26,1984, “Baby Fae,” a newborn with a severe heart defect, was given the heart of a baboon in an experimental transplant in Loma Linda, California. (She lived 21 days with the animal heart.)

Also on this date:

In 1774, the First Continental Congress adjourned in Philadelphia.

In 1881, four lawmen, including Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday, exchanged gunfire with five outlaws, killing three of them, in the “Shootout at the O.K. Corral” in Tombstone, Arizona.

In 1825, the Erie Canal opened in upstate New York, connecting Lake Erie and the Hudson River.

In 1861, the legendary Pony Express officially ceased operations, giving way to the transcontinental telegraph. (The last run of the Pony Express was completed the following month.)

In 1979, South Korean President Park Chung-hee was shot to death by the head of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency, Kim Jae-kyu.

In 2000, the New York Yankees became the first team in more than a quarter-century to win three straight World Series championships, beating the New York Mets in Game 5 of their “Subway Series.”

In 2001, President George W. Bush signed the USA Patriot Act, giving authorities unprecedented ability to search, seize, detain or eavesdrop in their pursuit of possible terrorists.

In 2002, a hostage siege by Chechen rebels at a Moscow theater ended with 129 of the 800-plus captives dead, most from a knockout gas used by Russian special forces who stormed the theater; 41 rebels also died.

In 2020, Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed to the Supreme Court by a deeply divided Senate, installing President Donald Trump’s nominee days before the U.S. general election.

In 2024, Israel launched predawn airstrikes against military targets in Iran in retaliation for a barrage of ballistic missiles the Islamic Republic fired on Israel on Oct. 1. It was the first time Israel’s military had openly attacked Iran.