December 9, 1911: The Cross Mountain Mine Explosion in Briceville, Tennessee kills 84.
A trilogy of evil:
December 6 1989 - The École Polytechnique massacre.
December 7 1941 - The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
December 8 1980 - John Lennon is murdered by
December 9, 1946: The “Subsequent Nuremberg trials” begin with the “Doctors’ trial”, prosecuting physicians and officers alleged to be involved in Nazi human experimentation and mass murder under the guise of euthanasia.
**December 10, 1968 **: The 300 Million Yen Robbery, Japan’s largest ever single heist, occurs when a lone robber posing as a policeman convinces guards with a truckload of money that their vehicle has a bomb attached that is going to explode. The guards high tail it from the truck and the fake policeman simply drives off with the loot. The brazen thief is never caught and the cash is never recovered.
December 10, 1868: The first traffic lights are installed, outside the Palace of Westminster in London. Resembling railway signals, they use semaphore arms and are illuminated at night by red and green gas lamps.
December 10, 1936: Edward VIII signs the Instrument of Abdication.
December 12, 1866: The Oaks Colliery Explosion kills 383. This is England’s deadliest mine disaster. Most of the dead were miners killed in the initial explosion, however 27 were rescuers who died there the next day when another explosion occurred.
December 12, 2000: The United States Supreme Court releases its decision in Bush v. Gore.
December 13, 1977: Air Indiana Flight 216 crashes during takeoff from Evansville Regional Airport. All 29 aboard are killed, including almost the entire University of Evansville Aces basketball team and their coaches. Only one player, David Furr, survived because he missed the flight due to a sprained ankle. Furr would be killed just two weeks later in a car accident after being hit by a drunk driver.
December 14, 2008: Muntadhar al-Zaidi throws his shoes at then-U.S. President George W. Bush during a press conference in Baghdad, Iraq.
December 16, 1811: The first New Madrid Earthquake strikes Missouri. The quake is estimated between a 7.5 and 8 on the Richter Scale and is strong enough to be felt in Washington DC. Here is a scary article from The Atlantic about what might happen when the next earthquake occurs here.
December 16, 1770: Ludwig van Beethoven is born in Bonn, Germany.
December 17, 2009: The ship MV Danny F II sinks off the coast of Lebanon, carrying 83 people, 10,224 sheep, and 17,932 cattle. Thirty-nine people were rescued and nine human bodies recovered. The other passengers and animals are presumed to have died.
December 18, 1865: US Secretary of State William Seward proclaims the adoption of the Thirteenth Amendment, prohibiting slavery throughout the USA.
December 19, 1843: A Christmas Carol is published.
December 20, 1951: The EBR-1 in Arco, Idaho becomes the first nuclear power plant to generate electricity. The electricity powered four light bulbs.
December 21, 1937: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the world’s first full-length animated feature, premieres at the Carthay Circle Theatre in Hollywood.
December 22, 1944: The Battle of the Bulge: German troops demand the surrender of United States troops at Bastogne, Belgium, prompting the famous one word reply by General Anthony McAuliffe: "Nuts!"
December 23, 1972: The 16 survivors of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 are rescued after 73 days, having reportedly survived by cannibalism. Faced with starvation and death, those still alive agreed that should they die, the others might consume their bodies in order to live. With no choice, the survivors ate the bodies of their dead friends.
December 24, 1953: The Tangiwai Rail Disaster kills 151 in New Zealand when a railroad bridge collapses sending a locomotive and six cars into the Whangaehu River. This is New Zealand’s deadliest rail accident.