September 14 Birthday
On September 14, 1901, William McKinley died of gangrene from bullet wounds received eight days earlier. He was the third president to be assassinated. Theodore Roosevelt, then forty-two, became the youngest president in history. McKinley's assassination prompted the Secret Service to begin protecting the president — a duty it assumed in 1902 after the previous practice of informal protection proved inadequate. OPEC was founded on this day in 1960 by Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela at a meeting in Baghdad. The organization's purpose was to coordinate oil production and prices among producing nations. In 1973, OPEC embargoed oil exports to the US and other nations supporting Israel, quadrupling prices and causing a global economic crisis. OPEC's power has declined as new oil sources — North Sea, shale, offshore — have reduced dependence on its members. People born on September 14 fall under the zodiac sign of Virgo. The birthstone is Sapphire and the birth flower is Aster. Historical events on September 14 include 1901: President McKinley dies from gunshot wounds (shot Sept 6), 1960: OPEC founded by five oil-producing nations in Baghdad, 1982: Princess Grace of Monaco dies after car crash. Famous people born on September 14 include Ivan Pavlov (1849), Sam Neill (1947), Amy Winehouse (1983).