| 118771 | October 17 | Birth | 1814 – Yakiv Holovatsky, Ukrainian historian, scholar, and poet (d. 1888) |
| 118772 | October 17 | Birth | 1817 – Syed Ahmad Khan, Indian philosopher and scholar (d. 1898) |
| 118773 | October 17 | Birth | 1853 – Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia (d. 1920) |
| 118774 | October 17 | Birth | 1859 – Childe Hassam, American painter and illustrator (d. 1935) |
| 118775 | October 17 | Birth | 1864 – Elinor Glyn, English author, screenwriter, and producer (d. 1943) |
| 118776 | October 17 | Birth | 1865 – James Rudolph Garfield, American lawyer and politician, 23rd United States Secretary of the Interior (d. 1950) |
| 118777 | October 17 | Birth | 1886 – Spring Byington, American actress and singer (d. 1971) |
| 118778 | October 17 | Birth | 1890 – Roy Kilner, English cricketer (d. 1928) |
| 118779 | October 17 | Birth | 1892 – Theodor Eicke, German general (d. 1943) |
| 118780 | October 17 | Birth | 1892 – Herbert Howells, English organist, composer, and educator (d. 1983) |
| 118781 | October 17 | Birth | 1898 – Shinichi Suzuki, Japanese violinist and educator (d. 1998) |
| 118782 | October 17 | Birth | 1898 – Simon Vestdijk, Dutch author and poet (d. 1971) |
| 118783 | October 17 | Birth | 1900 – Jean Arthur, American actress and singer (d. 1991) |
| 118784 | October 17 | Birth | 1902 – Irene Ryan, American actress (d. 1973) |
| 118785 | October 17 | Birth | 1903 – Nathanael West, American author and screenwriter (d. 1940) |
| 118786 | October 17 | Birth | 1906 – Paul Derringer, American baseball player (d. 1987) |
| 118787 | October 17 | Birth | 1908 – Hjördis Petterson, Swedish actress (d. 1988) |
| 118788 | October 17 | Birth | 1908 – Red Rolfe, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1969) |
| 118789 | October 17 | Birth | 1909 – Cozy Cole, American drummer (d. 1981) |
| 118790 | October 17 | Birth | 1910 – Ester Wier, American author (d. 2000) |
| 118791 | October 17 | Birth | 1912 – Pope John Paul I (d. 1978) |
| 118792 | October 17 | Birth | 1912 – Theodore Marier, American composer and educator, founded the Boston Archdiocesan Choir School (d. 2001) |
| 118793 | October 17 | Birth | 1912 – Jack Owens, American singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 1982) |
| 118794 | October 17 | Birth | 1913 – Faik Türün, Turkish general (d. 2003) |
| 118795 | October 17 | Birth | 1914 – Jerry Siegel, American author and illustrator (d. 1996) |
| 118796 | October 17 | Birth | 1915 – Arthur Miller, American playwright and screenwriter (d. 2005) |
| 118797 | October 17 | Birth | 1917 – Adele Stimmel Chase, American painter and sculptor (d. 2000) |
| 118798 | October 17 | Birth | 1917 – Sumner Locke Elliott, Australian-American author and playwright (d. 1991) |
| 118799 | October 17 | Birth | 1917 – Marsha Hunt, American actress and singer |
| 118800 | October 17 | Birth | 1917 – Norman Leyden, American composer and conductor (d. 2014) |