Wednesday 1

Basketball Created (1891)

James Naismith created an indoor game for the winter months at the YMCA in Springfield, MA.

Thursday 2

Safety Razor Patented (1901)

King Camp Gillette revolutionized shaving with the disposable blade.

Friday 3

Gilbert Stuart (1755)

The American portraitist, most famous for his paiting of George Washington, was born today.

Saturday 4

Dickens on the Strand

Galveston's annual Victorian Christmas celebration takes place today and tomorrow.

Sunday 5

21st Amendment Ratified (1933)

The 18th Amendment which created prohibition was repealed with the ratification of the 21st.

Monday 6

Alfred Eisenstaedt (1898)

The American photojournalist is perhaps best known for his photo, on the cover of Life Magazine, of a sailor kissing a nurse during the celebration of the end of World War II.

Tuesday 7

National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day

December 7, 1941 is "a date that will live in infamy."

Wednesday 8

Chanukah

The eight day Jewish fesitval of lights commemorates the victory of the Maccabees over the Syrians in 165 BC and the rededication of the Temple of Jerusalem.

Thursday 9

Grace Hopper (1906)

A Rear Admiral and computer pioneer, she helped develop the computer language COBOL.

Friday 10

Melvil Dewey (1851)

He developed the Dewey Decimal Classification system which public libraries, including Harris County, use to organize books and materials.

Saturday 11

UNICEF Anniversary (1946)

The United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund was established today.

Sunday 12

Gingerbread House Day

Decorate a tasty house today for the holidays.

Monday 13

Meeting of the Electors

On the second Wednesday in December in a presidential election year, the Electors meet formally in state capitals to cast their ballots for president and vice president.

Tuesday 14

Margaret Chase Smith (1897)

The first woman to be elected to both the US House and Senate.

Wednesday 15

Gone with the Wind (1939)

The movie premiered today and is now considered one of the greatest American films.

Thursday 16

Boston Tea Party (1773)

Patriots boarded a British vessel and dumped nearly 350 chests of tea overboard to protest taxes.

Friday 17

Wright Brothers First Powered Flight (1903)

Oville and Wilbur flew and airplane at Kitty Hawk, thus beginning a revolution in travel.

Saturday 18

Benjamin O. Davis Jr. (1912)

A man of many firsts - the first African American graduate of West Point in the 20th Century, leader of the first all-black air unit (Tuskegee Airmen), the Air Force's first black General.

Sunday 19

Carter G. Woodson (1875)

African-American educator and historian who introduced "black studies."  He also founded Black History Week the precursor to Black History Month.

Monday 20

Virginia Company Expedition to America (1606)

The Susan Constant, Godspeed, and Discovery departed London, England bound for America.  They landed in Jamestown, VA on May 14, 1607 establishing the first colony.

Tuesday 21

First Crossword Puzzle (1913)

Arthur Wynne compiled the first crossword, which was published in the New York World.

Wednesday 22

Giacomo Puccini (1858)

The great Italian operatic composer of La Boheme and Madame Butterfly was born today.

Thursday 23

Metric Conversion Act (1975)

Congress passed the Act which made the International System of Units the basic system of measurement in the US.

Friday 24

James Joule (1818)

English inventor after whom the First Law of Thermodynamics (Joule's Law) is named.  The measurement of the mechanical equivalent of heat is known as the Joule.

Saturday 25

Christmas

Ho, Ho, Ho.

Sunday 26

Kwanzaa

Seven day American black family observance based on African harvest festivals.

Monday 27

Louis Pasteur (1822)

French chemist who discovered the prophylactic inoculation agaist rabies and after whom pasteurization is named.

Tuesday 28

Woodrow Wilson (1856)

The 28th president of the United States.

Monday 29

Texas Admission Day (1845)

Texas became the 28th state.

Tuesday 30

Bert Parks (1914)

Actor who is most famous for emceeing the Miss America pageant from 1955-1980.

Wednesday 31

New Year's Eve

Out with the old, in the with the new.