December 4th, 2008

Today in History

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).

1921:
The Virginia Rappe manslaughter trial against actor and film director Roscoe Arbuckle ends in a hung jury.

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.

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.

1791:
The first issue of The Observer, the world's first Sunday newspaper, is published.