Easter in the western Christian church can occur as early as March 22 and as late as April 25. It is observed on the Sunday after the Paschal Full Moon (a fixed spring date set by the church). This Christian holy day celebrates the resurrection of Christ after his Crucifixion and was probably the earliest of the church’s annual festivals. Folk customs attached to the festival date from pre-Christian times. Eggs, traditionally forbidden during Lent, symbolize new life. The Easter Bunny recalls the hare, the Egyptian symbol of fertility. Easter may have derived its name from the Saxon goddess Eostre, whose feast was celebrated each spring at about this time. Or it may have derived from the word oster, meaning “rising.” Learn more about Easter.
Daily Calendar for Sunday, April 5, 2026
Daily Calendar
View daily calendar information including holidays, advice, and daily features.
Sunday, April 5, 2026
Died
- John Winthrop (founder of Mass. Bay Colony, died in Boston (date was 03/26/1649 on the Julian calendar)) –
- Howard Hughes (industrialist, aviator, and movie producer; died in Houston, Texas) –
- Sam Walton (businessman) –
- Kurt Cobain (musician) –
- Allen Ginsberg (poet) –
- Lee Petty (race car driver) –
- Saul Bellow (author of Humboldt’s Gift and other novels, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature) –
- Charlton Heston (actor) –
Born
- Booker T. Washington (educator & activist) –
- Washington Atlee Burpee (botanist, seedsman) –
- Spencer Tracy (actor) –
- Bette Davis (actress) –
- Gregory Peck (actor) –
- Colin Powell (former U.S. Secretary of State) –
- Franklin Chang-Diaz (astronaut) –
- Agnetha Fältskog (singer in the Swedish rock group ABBA) –
- Krista Allen (actress) –
Events
- Pocahontas married Englishman John Rolfe –
- New York Chamber of Commerce formed –
- Anne Sullivan made a breakthrough with blind/deaf student Helen Keller, by conveying the meaning of the word water –
- Jess Willard knocked out Jack Johnson to win world heavyweight boxing title –
- Women granted the right to vote in British Columbia –
- Richard J. Daley elected to his first term as Chicago’s 39th mayor –
- J. Robert Oppenheimer, US physicist, declared a security risk in 1954, is named winner of the Atomic Energy Commission’s Enrico Ferni award –
- My Fair Lady won an Academy Award for Best Picture –
- Bobby Orr first NHL defenseman to win scoring title –
- Basketball star Kareem Abdul- Jabbar of the L.A. Lakers became the highest scoring player in NBA history. He reached 31,420 points, beating Wilt Chamberlain’s record –
- A camel named Bert was deputized, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, California –
- A minor earthquake shook southeastern Massachusetts –
- Elsie McLean, at 102 years old, became the oldest golfer to make a hole-in-one on a regulation course –
Weather
- This was the last day of a four-day snowstorm in the northern Rockies and the Black Hills, with the town of Lead, South Dakota, receiving 52 inches –
- A blizzard left 27.2 inches of snow in St. John’s, Newfoundland –
- 26.9 inches of snow fell in St. John’s, Newfoundland –