December 5th, 2008

Today in History

1979:
Sonia Johnson is formally excommunicated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for her outspoken criticism of the church concerning the proposed Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.

1952:
The Abbott and Costello Show starring comedians Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, debuts.

1945:
Flight 19, a United States Navy training flight was lost in the Bermuda Triangle.

1848:
California gold rush: In a message before the U.S. Congress, US President James K. Polk confirms that large amounts of gold had been discovered in California.

1776:
At the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, the Phi Beta Kappa is founded as the first scholastic fraternity in the United States.