Thursday Headlines: February 19, 2026

Here's a quick overview of our top stories for Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026:

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TOP HEADLINES:

Big Sky creates affordable homeownership options for local workers

Ready for some fun? Check out the 'Menagerie of Imaginary' lantern parade on Saturday in Bozeman

Glacier Park announces 2026 summer operations

Bridger Ridge Trail secures easement allowing full public access

Missing man found dead in an apparent climbing accident

THAT’S INTERESTING:

Historical Events on February 19th

Ancient & Medieval Times

• 356 AD - Roman Emperor Constantius II closes all pagan temples
• 1408 - The revolt of Henry Percy, Earl of Northumberland, against King Henry IV ends with his defeat and death at Bramham Moor

16th-18th Century

• 1473 - Birth of Nicolaus Copernicus (see notable births)
• 1600 - Peruvian stratovolcano Huaynaputina explodes in the most violent eruption in South American recorded history
• 1712 - Russian Tsar Peter the Great officially marries Polish-Lithuanian peasant Martha Skavronskaya at Saint Isaac's Cathedral in Saint Petersburg

19th Century

• 1878 - Thomas Edison is awarded U.S. Patent No. 200,521 for his invention of the phonograph - the first machine able to reproduce recorded sound
• 1884 - More than sixty tornadoes strike the Southern United States, one of the largest tornado outbreaks in U.S. history

20th Century

• 1934 - Bob Hope marries his second wife Dolores DeFina in Erie, Pennsylvania (they remained married for 69 years until his death)
• 1942 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs Executive Order 9066, ordering the detention and internment of all Japanese Americans on the West Coast
• 1942 - An estimated 150 Japanese warplanes attack the Australian city of Darwin
• 1945 - U.S. Marines launch the invasion of Iwo Jima with 30,000 troops; the famous flag-raising photo becomes one of WWII's most iconic images
• 1945 - 980 Japanese soldiers reportedly killed by crocodiles over two days on Ramree Island, Burma
• 1976 - George Harrison is ordered to pay $587,000 for "subconscious plagiarism" of "My Sweet Lord" from "He's So Fine"
• 1984 - Phil and Steve Mahre become the first brother pair to win Gold and Silver medals in the same Olympic event (slalom skiing)
• 1986 - The Soviet "Mir" Space Station is launched, becoming the world's first modular space station (remained in orbit for 15 years)

21st Century

• 2008 - Fidel Castro steps down as Cuba's president after 49 years in power at age 81
• 2008 - Toshiba announces its formal recall of HD DVD format, ending the format war with Sony's Blu-ray

Notable Births on February 19th

• 1473 - Nicolaus Copernicus - Polish mathematician and astronomer who proposed the heliocentric model of the solar system
• 1630 - Shivaji Bhonsle (Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj) - Indian warrior and founder of the Maratha Empire
• 1865 - Sven Hedin - Swedish geographer and explorer
• 1942 - Will Provine - American biologist and historian (died 2015)
• 1953 - Cristina Fernández de Kirchner - Argentinian politician, 55th President of Argentina
• 1957 - Falco - Austrian singer-songwriter ("Rock Me Amadeus")
• 1963 - Seal - English singer-songwriter ("Kiss from a Rose")

Notable Deaths on February 19th

• 1916 - Ernst Mach - Austrian physicist (Mach number named after him)
• 1952 - Knut Hamsun - Norwegian writer and Nobel Prize laureate
• 1997 - Deng Xiaoping - Chinese politician and paramount leader who modernized China
• 2000 - Friedensreich Hundertwasser - Austrian/New Zealand painter and architect
• 2001 - Stanley Kramer - American film director

Interesting Facts

• February 19th has been particularly significant for "first blows" in history - from Copernicus challenging the geocentric universe to Edison's first sound recording device
• The date marks both technological breakthroughs (phonograph, space station) and tragic wartime events (Darwin bombing, Japanese internment)
• It's been a day of both great achievements in exploration and science, as well as significant political changes (Castro's resignation, Roosevelt's controversial executive order)

Parts of this story were adapted for this platform with AI assistance. Our editorial team verifies all reporting across all platforms for fairness and accuracy.