What Are the Important Events Happening on Leap Year?

Leap year. It’s kind of weird when we think about it. The person who gets their birthday on leap year, which is on February 29, gets to celebrate it once every four years. Then, think about the important events that happened in Leap Year. Did you know what happened on a leap year and which famous event happens each leap year? Get to know about those great events that happened in leap year through our historical quiz.

Julius Caesar was behind the origin of the leap year in 45 BCE. The reason behind the leap year is the early Romans had a 355-day calendar. In order to keep the festivals occurring on the same day, Julius Caesar decided to simplify things by adding days to different months of the year to create a 365-day calendar. Find out more unexpected leap year facts below.

Historical Events That Have Happened during the Leap Years

• Rare Disease Day – The first Rare Disease Day was marked on February 29, 2008. In order to raise awareness about the rare diseases found around the world, this day is marked as Rare Disease Day.
• Electricity – Electricity was discovered by Benjamin Franklin in 1752, which is also a leap year. He conducted his experiments with a kite, a key, and a storm to prove that lightning and tiny electric sparkles are the same things.
• The beginning of Salem witches – It was in 1692, three women – Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne, and Tituba were accused of performing witchcraft. This year has been marked as the beginning of the Salem witch trials in history.
• Discovery of Solid Helium – In 1908, Heike Kamerlingh, the Dutch scientist made an announcement of his discovery of “ Solid Helium.”
• First American to win an Academy Award – In 1940, Actress Hattie McDaniel became the first American to win the Academy Award, for the role of a best-supporting actress in the movie “Gone with the Wind.”
• First Royal Baby – The very first royal baby to be born on a leap year was James Ogilvy. In 1964, Princess Alexandra of Kent gave birth to a son. This baby is believed to be the first royal baby born on Leap year, February 29.
• Henriksen Siblings – The famous siblings were born in Leap year. On Feb 29, 1960, Heidi Henriksen was born and 4 years later Olav, her brother was born, and in 1968, Leif-Martin Henriksen also joined the family on the leap year. The family also held the Guinness Record for having the most babies born on Leap Year.