The following events occurred in September 1956:
September 1, 1956 (Saturday) Steam locomotive operations take place for the last time on the Bessemer and Lake Erie Railroad.
September 2, 1956 (Sunday) Stirling Moss of the UK wins the 1956 Italian Grand Prix at Monza, Italy, after championship leader Juan Manuel Fangio suffers a mechanical failure. Fangio's Ferrari teammate Peter Collins gives up his car to Fangio, who finishes second and wins the drivers' championship.
September 3, 1956 (Monday) U.S. Presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson marches with 75,000 citizens in Detroit's annual Labor Day parade and addresses the crowd, outlining his "New America" plan for education and health. Suez Crisis: US President Dwight D. Eisenhower writes to UK Prime Minister Anthony Eden, mentioning the possibility of a threat of armed response. Two days later the contents of the letter are leaked, possibly by Walter Monckton, resulting in Eisenhower calling a press conference.
September 4, 1956 (Tuesday) Sweden's television service officially begins with transmissions by Radiotjänst TV.
September 5, 1956 (Wednesday) The USS Suffolk County (LST-1173), built for the US Navy, is launched at the Boston Naval Shipyard, by Mrs Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr.
September 6, 1956 (Thursday) US poet Richard Eberhart, reporting for The New York Times from San Francisco, publishes an article in the New York Times Book Review identifying Allen Ginsberg's Howl as "the most remarkable poem of the young group" of poets becoming known as the leaders of the Beat Generation. Died: Michael Ventris, 34, English philologist who first deciphered the Linear B script, killed in a car accident
September 7, 1956 (Friday) Iven C. Kincheloe flies the Bell X-2 to a peak altitude of 126,200 ft (38,466 m), the first time a pilot has exceeded 100,000 ft (30,500 m). Liberian cargo ship Seagate runs aground on the Sonora Reef, off the coast of Washington, United States, and the vessel breaks in two. Born: Michael Feinstein, American singer and pianist, in Columbus, Ohio
September 8, 1956 (Saturday)
September 9, 1956 (Sunday) Elvis Presley appears for the first time on The Ed Sullivan Show, watched by a record audience of approximately 60 million viewers. The 26th season of Spain's premier football competition La Liga opens.
September 10, 1956 (Monday) On a visit to the UK at the height of the Suez crisis, France's Prime Minister Guy Mollet proposes a merger of France and the United Kingdom. Britain's Prime Minister Anthony Eden rejects the idea. Sir Ivone Kirkpatrick, Permanent Under-Secretary at the UK's Foreign Office, writes to the British Ambassador in Egypt, warning that allowing President Gamal Abdel Nasser to consolidate his position will cause the flow of Middle Eastern oil to the UK to dry up, ruining the British economy. The gubernatorial election for the US state of Maine is won by the incumbent, Democrat Edmund Muskie, with a majority of 55,859 votes.
September 11, 1956 (Tuesday) Typhoon Emma dissipates, after causing extensive damage and loss of life in Japanese and South Korean territory. The number of deaths was estimated at 77, and estimated damage over $8 million. In the United States, a blanket primary for the election of Washington's state governor, Albert D. Rosellini (Democrat) and Emmett T. Anderson (Republican) are selected to advance to the general election. Died: Billy Bishop, 62, Canadian World War I flying ace; Lucien Febvre, 78, French historian
September 12, 1956 (Wednesday) The Men's and Women's World Volleyball Championships conclude in Paris, France. The Men's championship is won by Czechoslovakia and the Women's by the Soviet Union. Born: Leslie Cheung, Hong Kong actor, in Kowloon (died 2003)
September 13, 1956 (Thursday) First hard disk drive, IBM 350, part of IBM 305 RAMAC, is shipped. It was invented by an IBM team led by Reynold B. Johnson.
September 14, 1956 (Friday) British playwright Harold Pinter marries actress Vivien Merchant in a civil ceremony at Bournemouth, UK. Born: Kostas Karamanlis, Greek politician (Prime Minister 2004–2009), in Athens