December 04

Friday 04, 1998:

The second module of the International Space Station, Unity, was launched.

Saturday 04, 1993:

A truce is concluded between the government of Angola and UNITA rebels.

Friday 04, 1992:

President George H. W. Bush orders 28,000 US troops to Somalia.

Wednesday 04, 1991:

1991 - US airline Pan Am ends operations.

Saturday 04, 1982:

The People's Republic of China adopts its current constitution.

Friday 04, 1981:

South Africa grants "homeland" Ciskei independence (not recognized outside South Africa).

Monday 04, 1978:

Following the murder of Mayor George Moscone, Dianne Feinstein becomes San Francisco, California's first woman mayor (she served until January 8, 1988).

Sunday 04, 1977:

A Malaysia Airlines Boeing 737 is hijacked and then blown up in mid-air over the Straits of Johore, killing 100.

Thursday 04, 1969:

1969 - Legendary surfer Greg "Da Bull" Noll rode a 65-foot wave on the North Shore of Oahu, still the highest ever recorded.

Monday 04, 1967:

Vietnam War: US and South Vietnamese forces engage Viet Cong troops in the Mekong Delta (235 of the 300-strong Viet Cong battalion were killed).

Thursday 04, 1958:

Dahomey (present-day Benin) becomes a self-governing country within the French Community.

Thursday 04, 1952:

Great Smog of 1952: A "killer fog" descends on London ("Smog" for "smoke" and "fog" becomes a word).

Tuesday 04, 1945:

By a vote of 65 to 7, the United States Senate approves United States participation in the United Nations (the UN was established on October 24, 1945).

Saturday 04, 1943:

Great Depression ends in the United States: With unemployment figures falling fast due to World War II-related employment, US President Franklin D. Roosevelt closes the Works Progress Administration.

Friday 04, 1942:

Holocaust: In Warsaw, two Christian women, Zofia Kossak and Wanda Filipowicz risk their lives by setting up the Council for the Assistance of the Jews.

Sunday 04, 1921:

The Virginia Rappe manslaughter trial against actor and film director Roscoe Arbuckle ends in a hung jury.

Wednesday 04, 1918:

US President Woodrow Wilson sails for Versailles for the World War I peace talks, becoming the first US president to travel to Europe while in office.

Tuesday 04, 1906:

Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc., the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity in the United States established for men of African descent, was founded at Cornell University.

Saturday 04, 1875:

Notorious New York City politician Boss Tweed escapes from prison and flees to Cuba, then Spain.

Wednesday 04, 1872:

The crewless American ship Mary Celeste is found by the British brig Dei Gratia (the ship was abandoned for 9 days but was only slightly damaged).

Wednesday 04, 1867:

Former Minnesota farmer Oliver Hudson Kelley founds the Order of the Patrons of Husbandry (better known today as the Grange Movement).

Sunday 04, 1864:

At Waynesboro, Georgia, forces under Union General Judson Kilpatrick prevent troops led by Confederate General Joseph Wheeler from interfering with Union General William T. Sherman campaign of destroying a wide swath of the South on his march to the Gulf of Mexico (Union forces did suffer more than three times the casualties as the Confederates, however).

Friday 04, 1829:

In the face of fierce opposition, British Lord William Bentinck carries a regulation declaring that all who abetted suttee in India were guilty of culpable homicide.

Sunday 04, 1791:

The first issue of The Observer, the world's first Sunday newspaper, is published.

Thursday 04, 1783:

At Fraunces Tavern in New York City, US General George Washington formally bids his officers farewell.

Friday 04, 1676:

Battle of Lund

Tuesday 04, 1674:

Father Jacques Marquette founds a mission on the shores of Lake Michigan to minister to the Illinois Indians (the mission would later grow into the city of Chicago, Illinois).

Wednesday 04, 1619:

Thirty-eight colonists from Berkeley Parish in England disembark in Virginia and give thanks to God (this is considered to be the first Thanksgiving in the Americas).

Wednesday 04, 1563:

The final session of the Council of Trent is held (it opened on December 13, 1545).

Thursday 04, 1259:

Kings Louis IX of France and Henry III of England agree to the Treaty of Paris, in which Henry renounces his claims to French-controlled territory on continental Europe (including Normandy) in exchange for Louis withdrawing his support for English rebels.

Sunday 04, 1110:

First Crusade: The Crusaders conquer Sidon.

Saturday 04, 771:

Austrasian King Carloman dies, leaving his brother Charlemagne king of the now complete Frank kingdom.

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