This Day in History – December 8, 2011

1660 – A woman (either Margaret Hughes or Anne Marshall) appears on an English public stage for the first time, in the role of Desdemona in a production of Shakespeare’s play Othello. 1776 – George Washington’s retreating army crosses Delaware River from New Jersey 1792 – 1st cremation in US, Henry Laurens 1863 – Abraham Lincoln announces plan for Reconstruction of South 1874 – Jesse James gang takes train at Muncie KS 1886 – American Federation of Labor (AFL) formed by 26 craft unions; Samuel Gompers elected AFL president 1902 – Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr became Associate Justice on Supreme Court 1927 – The Brookings Institution, one of the United States’ oldest think tanks, is founded through the merger of three organizations that had been created by philanthropist Robert S. Brookings. 1930 – Broadway Theater opens at 1681 Broadway New York NY 1931 – Coaxial cable patented 1940 – 1st NFL championship on national radio; Bears beat Redskins 73-0 1941 – United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt declares December 7 to be “a date which will live in infamy”, after which the U.S. and the Republic of China declare war against Japan. 1946 – Army rocket plane XS-1 makes 1st powered flight 1952 – 1st TV acknowledgement of pregnancy (I Love Lucy) 1953 – United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower delivers his “Atoms for Peace” speech, and the U.S. launches its “Atoms for Peace” program that supplied equipment and information to schools, hospitals, and research institutions around the world. 1963 – 3 fuel tanks explodes when jetliner is struck by lightning crashing near Elkton MD-Only case of lightning caused crash, 81 die 1972 – United Airlines Flight 553 crashes after aborting its landing attempt at Chicago Midway International Airport, killing 45. 1976 – US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site 1977 – 43rd Heisman Trophy Award: Earl Campbell, Texas (RB) 1980 – “Bravo” network premieres on cable TV 1980 – John Lennon, an English musician and peace activist, is murdered by Mark David Chapman, a mentally unstable fan, in front of The Dakota apartment building in New York City. 1982 – Demanding an end to nuclear weapons, Norman Mayer, holds the Washington Monument hostage – After 10 hours, police kill him; he has no explosives 1987 – President Reagan & Soviet General Secretary Gorbachev sign a treaty eliminating medium range nuclear missiles 1992 – Galileo’s nearest approach to Jupiter (303 km) 1993 – The North American Free Trade Agreement is signed into law by US President Bill Clinton. 1994 – Darryl Strawberry indicted on tax evasion charges]]]]> ]]>