Friday the 13th

November 13, 2026

Friday the 13th

I've always said I 'save up' all my bad luck across many Friday the 13ths for one dramatic incident. It was a Friday the 13th that I was trampled by a horse, which left a horseshoe-shaped scar on my right lower leg for two years before it faded away. Over the years, I think I've had one or two more really bad days on Friday the 13th--but obviously not so bad that I can even remember them now.

The association of Friday the 13th with bad luck may have originated in the 1300s. It was in the early hours of Friday, October 13, 1307, that King Philip IV of France ordered the raids across France to seize the men and knights of the Templars. Hundreds were arrested and tortured into false confessions. Philip was then free to seize their lands and wealth. Convenient.

Christian tradition ties Friday to a dark day, because it was the crucifixion of Jesus.

Historically, Sam Patch died on Friday the 13th attempting to jump the Genessee Falls in 1829. In 1972 Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 crashed in the Andes, where survivors resorted to cannibalism, and Aeroflot 217 crashed near Moscow, killing 174. Tupac Shakur died on Friday, September 13, 1996. The Dow Jones fell 6.92% on Friday, October 13, 1989.

Modern studies by Scanlon, Luben, Scanlon, & Singleton say risk or hospital admission may be increased as much as 52%. Notice the qualifiers. Other studies contradict this.

Norse myth says twelve gods were dining in Valhalla when the trickster Loki arrived, uninvited, as the thirteenth guest, having Hoor the god of darkness shoot Balder, the god of joy and happiness. Thus, 13 is an unlucky number.

In France, a character in Les Finesses des Griboullies says that all his misfortunes stem from his birth on Friday the 13th, of December 1813. Gioachino Rossini Died on Friday November 13th of 1868 while a comment on his death remarks that "he regarded Friday as an unlucky day and thiriteen as n unlucky number."

In 1907, T. W. Lawson published Friday, the Thirteenth that spread the superstition of Friday the thirteenth being a day of bad luck.

All of these are fun facts historically. But let's face it, lousy things have happened on many other dates in history. I personally have always said that I seem to save up my Friday the 13th bad luck for one bad thing happening every many years. When I was trampled by a horse...that was a Friday the 13th. Honestly, I can hardly remember any bad luck I've had on any other Friday the 13th.

Is it all mere superstition? One study by Scanlon, Luben, Scanlon & Singleton concluded that "the risk of hospital admission as a result of a transport accident may be increased by as much as 52% on the 13th." It's a fun figure...but note that this is only on the thirteenth of the month, not on Friday the thirteenth and the 'numbers of admissions from accidents are too small to allow for meaningful analysis."

In the end, I think some of our 'superstitions' have historical roots. I don't believe Friday the 13th does.

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