TODAY IN HISTORY dec 22 1715 - James Stuart, the Old Pretender, landed at Petershead after his exile in France. 1775 - A Continental naval fleet was organized in the rebellious American colonies under the command of Ezek Hopkins. 1807 - The U.S. Congress passed the Embargo Act, designed to force peace between Britain and France by cutting off all trade with Europe. 1864 - During the American Civil War, Union Gen. William T. Sherman sent a message to U.S. President Lincoln from Georgia. The message read, I beg to present you as a Christmas gift the city of Savannah. 1877 - The American Bicycling Journal went on sale for the first time. 1894 - The United States Golf Association was formed in New York City. 1894 - French army officer Alfred Dreyfus was convicted of treason in a court-martial that triggered worldwide charges of anti-Semitism. Dreyfus was eventually vindicated. 1895 - German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen made the first X-ray, of his wifes hand. 1910 - U.S. Postal savings stamps were issued for the first time. They were discontinued in 1914. 1939 - Gloria Jacobs became the first girl to hold a world pistol record when she shot 299 out of a possible 300 points. She was 17 years old at the time. 1943 - Sporting goods manufacturers received permission to use synthetic rubber for the core of baseballs. 1941 - British Prime Minister Winston Churchill arrived in Washington for a wartime conference with U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt. 1956 - Colo, the first gorilla to be born in captivity, was born at the Columbus, Ohio zoo. 1956 - The last British and French forces evacuated Egypt. 1961 - James Davis became the first U.S. soldier to die in Vietnam, while U.S. involvement was still limited to the provision of military advisers. 1976 - The last show of Let’s Make A Deal was aired. 1984 - New York City resident Bernhard Goetz shot four black youths on a Manhattan subway. Goetz claimed they were about to rob him. 1989 - Romanias hard-line Communist ruler, Nicolae Ceausescu, was overthrown in a popular uprising. 1990 - Lech Walesa was sworn in as Polands first popularly elected president. 1991 - The body of Lt. Col. William R. Higgins, an American hostage murdered by his captors, was found along a highway in Lebanon. 1996 - A car bomb exploded in Belfast, injuring a known IRA supporter. Police suspected that Protestant loyalists were responsible for the attack. 1998 - A unit of RJR Nabsico pled guilty to attempting to smuggle cigarettes into Canada. 2001 - Thirty Afghans, including two women, were sworn in as part of the new interim government in Afghanistan. Hamid Karzai was the head of the post-Taliban government.
Posted on: Mon, 22 Dec 2014 10:31:05 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015