Born on October 6

Marie de Gournay (1565-1645) was a French woman of letters, the first editor of Montaigne's Essays, whose “fille d'alliance” (adopted daughter) she became. An author and polemicist, she championed intellectual equality between the sexes.

King of the French from 1830 to 1848, Louis-Philippe I came to power following the July Revolution. His July Monarchy embodied the triumph of the liberal bourgeoisie before being overthrown by the Revolution of 1848.

Nineteenth-century Swedish singer, a coloratura soprano of international fame nicknamed “the Swedish Nightingale.” She enjoyed immense success in Europe and then in the United States during a tour organized by the impresario P. T. Barnum.

American engineer and industrialist (1846–1914), George Westinghouse invented the air brake for trains, revolutionizing railroad safety. He championed alternating current (AC) against Thomas Edison in the famous "War of Currents," helping to electrify the modern world.

Franco-Swiss architect, urban planner, decorator, painter, sculptor, and writer

An American civil rights activist, Fannie Lou Hamer was a leading figure in the movement for Black voting rights in Mississippi. Co-founder of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, she challenged American apartheid through her courage and her voice.