In 1518, Strasbourg was hit by a bizarre dancing plague where hundreds of people danced uncontrollably for weeks. 

In 1856, a cloud of laughing gas accidentally released over a town in England had the residents giggling for hours.

In 1904, the Great Baltimore Fire was stopped by a firebreak created when firefighters demolished entire blocks of buildings.

During World War II, a British officer named Jack Churchill fought with a longbow, bagpipes, and a Scottish broadsword, famously saying, "Any officer who goes into action without his sword is improperly dressed."

In 1969, a soccer match between Honduras and El Salvador sparked a brief war, known as the Football War, although underlying tensions were the real cause.

In 1923, jockey Frank Hayes won a horse race at Belmont Park despite having died mid-race from a heart attack; his body stayed in the saddle until the horse crossed the finish line.