Tidbits of History

December 27 is:

On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me . . . three French hens.
For an interpretation of the significance of each day of Christmas, see: crosswalk.com

Make Cut Out Snowflakes Day

National Fruitcake Day
From Foodimentary.com

The Egyptians thought so much of these cakes that they put them in tombs. They thought that fruitcakes would survive the long journey to the afterlife.
Even Crusaders knew that fruitcakes could withstand a long journey. Not only did these cakes withstand long journeys, but they were also full of nutritious items like dried fruit and nuts.
Fruitcakes were the wedding cake of choice in England. Single female wedding guests would take a piece home and place it under their pillow in hopes of dreaming of the man they would marry.
Fruitcake is perfectly edible as long as there is no mold on it.
If your fruitcake dries out, soak it in alcohol or some other liquid and it will become as edible as it ever was.

Birthday of Johannes Kepler (December 27, 1571), German astronomer who formulated three major laws of planetary motion.

1. The orbit of a planet is an ellipse with the Sun at one of the two foci.
2. A line segment joining a planet and the Sun sweeps out equal areas during equal intervals of time.
3. The ratio of the square of an object’s orbital period with the cube of the semi-major of its orbit is the same for all objects orbiting the same primary.

In 1845, Ether anesthetic was used for childbirth for the first time by Dr. Crawford Long in Jefferson, Georgia. He gave it to his wife, and she successfully gave birth to a baby girl, their second child, Fanny.

1845 – Journalist John L. O’Sullivan, writing in his newspaper the New York Morning News, argues that the United States had the right to claim the entire Oregon Country “by the right of our manifest destiny“. Presidential candidate James K. Polk used this popular outcry to his advantage, and the Democrats called for the annexation of “All Oregon” in the 1844 U.S. Presidential election.

1900 – Carrie Nation staged her first raid on a saloon at the Carey Hotel in Wichita, Kansas. She broke each and every one of the liquor bottles that could be seen. Suspicious that President William McKinley was a secret drinker, Nation applauded his 1901 assassination because “drinkers got what they deserved”.

In 1903, in New York City, the barbershop quartet favorite, “Sweet Adeline,” was sung for the first time.

“Show Boat”, considered to be the first true American musical play, opened at the Ziegfeld Theater on Broadway on December 27, 1927. Music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, based on a book by Edna Ferber. The musical contributed such classic songs as “Ol’ Man River”, “Make Believe”, and “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man”. “Show Boat” was made into a movie three times: 1929 with Laura La Plante; 1936 with Irene Dunn; 1951 with Kathryn Grayson.

1929 – Soviet General Secretary Joseph Stalin ordered the “liquidation of the kulaks as a class” in an effort to spread socialism to the countryside. That order results in the deaths of somewhere between five and fifteen million people. According to Wikipedia:

Kulaks … were a category of relatively affluent farmers in the later Russian Empire, Soviet Russia, and early Soviet Union. The word kulak originally referred to independent farmers in the Russian Empire who emerged from the peasantry and became wealthy following the Stolypin reform, which began in 1906. The label of kulak was broadened in 1918 to include any peasant who resisted handing over their grain to detachments from Moscow. During 1929-1933, Stalin’s leadership of the total campaign to collectivize the peasantry meant that “peasants with a couple of cows or five or six acres more than their neighbors” were being labeled “kulaks”.

In 1968, Apollo 8 splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, ending the first orbital manned mission to the Moon.

December 24 is:

Christmas Eve

National Chocolate Day

National Egg Nog Day
From Foodimentary.com

For a serving of eggnog (one cup), you will be consuming approximately 342 calories. Of those calories, 167 are from fat.
The word eggnog comes from a Middle English term meaning a small, wooden, carved mug used to serve alcohol.
Gelatin can be found in some eggnog, though it is typically cream, milk, sugar, eggs, cinnamon and nutmeg.
Eggnog became big in America around the 18th century when it made its way across the Atlantic Ocean, though there is debate exactly when and where it originated.
It is difficult to find eggnog year round. It typically becomes available around Thanksgiving. Sales for eggnog drop tremendously after the New Year’s holiday.

1814 – The Treaty of Ghent was signed in the city of Ghent, United Netherlands (now Belgium), ending the War of 1812. The treaty was approved by the British Parliament and signed into law by the Prince Regent (the future King George IV) on December 30, 1814. It took a month for news of the peace treaty to reach the United States during which American forces under Andrew Jackson won the Battle of New Orleans on January 8, 1815, and the British won the Second Battle of Fort Bowyer on February 12, 1815.
The treaty was not fully in effect until the United States Senate advised and consented to ratification, which occurred unanimously on February 16, 1815.
President James Madison ratified the treaty, and ratifications were exchanged, on February 17, 1815.

Fire devastated the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., destroying about 35,000 volumes in 1851, including most of Thomas Jefferson’s personal library, sold to the institution in 1815. It is believed that the fire began due to a faulty chimney flue. Also destroyed were three paintings of the country’s first three presidents by the artist considered to be the greatest American portraitist, Gilbert Stuart. Congress responded quickly and generously to the disaster, authorizing money to replace what had been lost but not new materials. Within a few years a majority of the lost books were replaced.
The Daily Beast gives an account of the blaze and the delay in controlling it. It has also been reported that President Millard Fillmore was among those who fought the fire.

NORAD’s Santa tracking service began in 1955. The event is now a Christmas tradition where the North American Aerospace Defense Command tracks Santa Claus as he travels around the world delivering presents to children. The event began after a printing error in a Sears catalog asking children to call Santa Claus. The number that was printed was the number of Colorado Springs’ Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) Center in Colorado.

In 1963, New York’s Idlewild Airport was renamed JFK Airport in honor of the murdered President Kennedy.

In 1968, Apollo Program: The American crew of Apollo 8 entered into orbit around the Moon, becoming the first humans to do so. They performed 10 lunar orbits and broadcast live TV pictures that became the famous Christmas Eve Broadcast, one of the most watched programs in history.

District of Columbia Home Rule Act was passed, allowing residents of Washington, D.C. to elect their own local government in 1973.

Americans remembered Iran hostages by shining lights for 417 seconds on December 24, 1980.

In 1990, Saddam Hussein said Israel will be Iraq’s first target.

The first performance of “Silent Night” took place in the church of St. Nikolaus in Oberndorf, Austria in 1818.

Silent Night was written on Christmas Eve in 1818 in Oberndorf, Austria. One common story of this carol was that the organ at St. Nicholas Church was broken. Others claim that there is no evidence for this and that Joseph Mohr, the assistant pastor of the church, requested the instrumentation simply because he loved guitar music. In any event, Mohr had written a poem “Stille Nacht” in 1816. On December 24, 1818 he gave the poem to his friend, the church organist, Franz Gruber. Gruber immediately composed the melody and arranged it for two voices, choir, and guitar. It was finished in time to be performed that night at the Midnight Mass. By 1955, Silent Night had become the most recorded song of all time. (See below)

December 21 is:

National French Fried Shrimp Day
From Fodimentary.com

Every shrimp is born male, then some mature into females.
It takes 2 pounds of wild fish to produce one pound of farmed shrimp.
Shrimp is the favorite seafood of Americans.
The “Pistol Shrimp” can fire water like a bullet from its claw, producing an incredibly loud pop.
The “Ghost Shrimp” is transparent, and therefore practically invisible in the water.

National Hamburger Day
Forefather’s Day
Humbug Day
National Flashlight Day
Look on the Bright Side Day

In the Northern Hemisphere, December 21st is usually the shortest day of the year and is sometimes regarded as the first day of winter. In the Southern Hemisphere, December 21st is usually the longest day of the year.

The winter solstice is celebrated around the world.

• Soyal is a ceremony performed by the Zuni and Hopi peoples to celebrate the beginning of a new year. The ceremony lasts nine days and marks the arrival of the kachinas – benevolent spirit beings that remain with the group until the summer solstice.
• Pancha Ganapati is a 5-day Hindu festival celebrating Lord Ganesha. The festival focuses on mending past mistakes and offers a chance at a new beginning. Each of the five days focuses on creating love and harmony in relationships or bringing forth love and harmony from the world. Each morning, children dress a statue in the home of Lord Genesh in a different color. (Golden Yellow on Dec 21, Royal Blue on the 22nd, Ruby Red on the 23rd, Emerald Green on the 24th, and Brilliant Orange on Dec. 25.) The children are given gifts each day, which they place in front of the statue. On the fifth day, the children are allowed to open the presents.
• Yule was a midwinter festival practiced by Germanic tribes. Many Yule traditions have made their way intact into the modern holiday season. Most people are familiar with the tradition of burning a Yule log, but the tradition of a Christmas ham likely originates from the sacrifice and feast of the Yule boar, and Christmas caroling is likely descended from the Yule festival as well.
• Yalda is a Persian winter celebration that marked the birth of Mithra, a sun god. It has become an occasion for family to reunite and hold a feast, staying up past midnight. Foods served during the feast often have magical implications for those who consume them – for instance, watermelon will ensure health during the coming summer, pomegranate protects against scorpions and garlic soothes joint pain.
• Koleda was a Slavic pagan festival. During Koleda, families would light a fire in their hearth and worship their personal gods. Children would don disguises and go singing door to door in their villages for which they would receive treats and gifts in return.
• Beiwe Festival was celebrated by the Saami-a Finno-Ugric people who originated in what is now Scandinavia. During the winter solstice, the Saami would honor Beiwe – the sun goddess-by sacrificing a white female reindeer and smearing butter (which melts in sunshine) onto their doorposts in order to provide sustenance to the goddess.
• Dongzhi Festival is a Chinese celebration marking the winter solstice and heralding the arrival of winter. Throughout China the festival is a time for family get-togethers, during which Tangyuan-brightly colored balls made from rice flour are served. The origins of this festival can be traced back to the yin and yang philosophy of balance and harmony in the cosmos

1620 – Plymouth Colony: William Bradford and the Mayflower Pilgrims landed on what is now known as Plymouth Rock in Plymouth, Massachusetts.

Publication of Federalist Paper #25: The Powers Necessary to the Common Defense Further Considered written by Alexander Hamilton in 1787. This article continues to examine the issue of raising armies in peace time. Hamilton argues that a federal military is preferable to individual state militias. If an army is not available during peace time, it would need to be raised only if the country were attacked and invaded. Could state militias protect the entire country?

1826 – American settlers in Nacogdoches, Mexican Texas, declared their independence, starting the Fredonian Rebellion. Some historians consider the Fredonian Rebellion to be the beginning of the Texas Revolution.

On Dec. 21, 1879, Joseph Stalin, the Soviet statesman who was leader of the Communist Party and dictator of the Soviet Union for 25 years , was born in Gori, Georgia. By some estimates, he was responsible for the deaths of 20 million people during his brutal rule.

Scientists Pierre and Marie Curie discovered the radioactive element radium in 1898.

Arthur Wynne’s “word-cross”, the first crossword puzzle, is published in the New York World in 1913. An interesting side-note was that Wynne also played violin in the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra

December 21, 1937 – “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”, the world’s first full-length animated feature, premiered at the Carthay Circle Theater, Los Angeles (Hollywood), California. The Dwarfs were named Doc, Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy, Bashful, Sneezy, and Dopey. Among the songs in the film are: Someday My Prince Will Come, I’m Wishing, Whistle While You Work, and Heigh-Ho!

1959 – Tom Landry accepted coaching job with Dallas Cowboys December 21, 1959. He stayed until 1988.

Apollo program: Apollo 8 was launched from the Kennedy Space Center on December 21, 1968, placing its crew on a lunar trajectory for the first visit to another celestial body by humans. Apollo 8 was the first crewed spacecraft to leave low Earth orbit and the first to reach the Moon, orbit it, and return. Its three-astronaut crew — Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders — were the first humans to fly to the Moon, to witness and photograph an Earthrise, and to escape the gravity of a celestial body.

Elvis Presley met with President Richard M. Nixon in the Oval Office to discuss fighting drugs on December 21, 1970.

Eleven of the 12 former Soviet republics proclaimed the birth of the Commonwealth of Independent States in 1991.

December 20 is:

National Sangria Day

Go Caroling Day

A Swedish explorer living in Delaware, Marcus Jacobson, aka Long Finn, managed to convince some townsfolk to rebel against English authority so that the Swedes could rule the province. Of course, he was taken to court and found guilty in the first trial by jury in Delaware. He was sentenced to a severe public whipping, branded on the face and chest with the letter “R” (for “Rogue”) and, finally, sold to a plantation and became a slave in Barbados.

The first successful cotton mill in the United States began operating at Pawtucket, R.I. in 1790.

Louisiana Purchase Day The Treaty was signed in April, announced to the people in July, ratified by the Senate in October, and New Orleans was turned over to the U.S. on December 20, 1803. France got about $15 million; the U.S. got about 828,000 square miles (less than 3 cents per acre).

1820 – The state of Missouri enacted legislation to tax bachelors between the ages of 21-50 for being unmarried. The tax was $1 a year.

New York’s Broadway became known as the “Great White Way” when it was lighted by electricity in 1880.

The film “Flying Down to Rio” was first shown in New York in 1933. It was the first screen pairing of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. It was the only film in which screen veteran Ginger Rogers was billed above famed Broadway dancer Fred Astaire.

The popular Christmas film It’s a Wonderful Life was first released in New York in 1946.

On December 20, 2007, – Elizabeth II became the oldest monarch of the United Kingdom, surpassing Queen Victoria, who lived for 81 years, 7 months and 29 days.

December 19 is:

Look for an Evergreen Day

Oatmeal Muffin Day

1606-The Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and the Discovery departed England carrying settlers who found, at Jamestown, Virginia, the first of the thirteen colonies that became the United States. They made landfall April 26, 1607.

Benjamin Franklin began publishing “Poor Richard’s Almanac” on this date in 1732.

In 1776, Thomas Paine published his first “American Crisis” essay in The Pennsylvania Journal , in which he wrote, “These are the times that try men’s souls”

On December 19, 1777, Gen. George Washington led his army of about 11,000 men to Valley Forge, Pa., to camp for the winter. The army marched away from Valley Forge on June 19, 1778, exactly six months after they had arrived.

Publication of Federalist Paper #24: The Powers Necessary to the Common Defense Further Considered written by Alexander Hamilton in 1787. Hamilton discusses the issue of having a standing army in peacetime. Hamilton reminds the reader that the United States is surrounded by territories subject to the dominion of other countries (England and Spain), and populated by “savage tribes”.

World War II: Adolf Hitler becomes Supreme Commander-in-chief of the German Army in 1941.

Jake Kilrain and Jim Smith fought in a bare knuckles fight in 1887 which lasted 106 rounds and 2 hours and 30 minutes. The fight was ruled a draw and was halted due to darkness.

Robert Ripley began his “Believe It or Not” column in “The New York Globe” in 1918.

First radio broadcast from space in 1958:

( President Eisenhower‘s voice This is the President of the United States speaking. Through the marvels of scientific advance, my voice is coming to you from a satellite circling in outer space. My message
is a simple one. Though this unique means, I convey to you and all mankind, America’s wish for peace on earth and good will to men everywhere.

Nelson Rockefeller was sworn in as Vice President of the United States under President Gerald Ford in 1974 under the provisions of the twenty-fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

1998 – President Bill Clinton was impeached by The United States House of Representatives, becoming the second President of the United States to be impeached. A two-thirds majority, 67 votes, would have been necessary to convict and remove the President from office. The perjury charge was defeated with 45 votes for conviction and 55 against. (Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania voted “not proven,” which was considered by the Chief Justice Rehnquist as a vote of “not guilty.”) The obstruction of justice charge was defeated with 50 for conviction and 50 against.

In 2000, The U.N. Security Council voted to impose broad sanctions on Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers unless they closed terrorist training camps and surrendered U.S. embassy bombing suspect Osama bin Laden.

2011 North Korea’s Supreme Leader, Kim Jong-Il, died; Kim Jong-Un was announced as his father’s successor.