Happenings on December calendar

 

So, it’s here — the last month of what soon will be the old year.  As we slip into that reminiscing mode that comes with the arrival of another new year, here's a quick look back at the December history calendar.
December 1, 1887 — Sherlock Holmes appeared for the first time in print in A Study in Scarlet.
December 1, 1955 — In Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat in the front section of a bus. 
December 2, 1982 — Barney Clark received the world's first artificial heart transplant. 
December 5, 1933 — The 21st U.S. Amendment repealed Prohibition. 
December 6, 1921 — Agnes MacPhail was elected as a federal MP, becoming the first woman in Canadian history to sit as a member in the House of Commons. 
She had taught school in rural Ontario before becoming interested in politics, and joined the United Farmers of Ontario. As the first woman MP in Ottawa, Agnes at first had a tough time because her every move was scrutinized. But she became an accomplished parliamentarian who served as a fine role model for the other Canadian women who followed her.
December 7, 1941 — Pearl Harbour, Hawaii, was bombed in a surprise Japanese attack. It marked the U.S. entry into the Second World War.
December 8, 1980 — John Lennon, singer, guitarist, songwriter and poet for the Beatles, was assassinated in New York City by Mark David Chapman.
December 13, 1871 — Artist Emily Carr was born in Victoria, British Columbia. She became one of the most accomplished painters in Canada and an award-winning writer.
December 13, 1928 — The clip-on tie was created.  Classy.
December 15, 1890 — Sioux Chief Sitting Bull was killed by Indian police.
December 15, 1939 — The blockbuster movie version of the book, Gone with the Wind, premiered in Atlanta, Georgia. 
December 15, 1944 — Band leader Glenn Miller died in a plane crash over the English Channel.
December 16, 1773 — Boston residents protesting British taxation threw tea overboard from a British ship. The Boston Tea Party was the beginning of the American fight for independence.
December 23, 1954 — The first successful human organ transplant. Doctors Joseph Murray and J. H. Harrison transplanted a kidney to a patient from his twin brother.
December 23, 1972 — Pittsburgh Steelers running-back Franco Harris made the “Immaculate Reception” of the football passed “to” him by quarterback Terry Bradshaw near the end of a play-off game.
December 23, 1983 — Jeanne Sauvé was appointed as the Governor General of Canada, marking the first time that a woman had been named to the post. 
Sauvé, who was installed as the 23rd governor general and commander-in-chief of Canada in the spring of 1984, noted that it was “a magnificent breakthrough for women.”
December 24, 1914 — British and German soldiers interrupted fighting during the First World War to celebrate Christmas, beginning the Christmas truce.
December 25, 1066 — William the Conqueror was crowned the king of England. 
December 26, 1865 — James Mason invented the coffee percolator. 
No, not James Mason, the actor. 
December 26, 2004 — An earthquake in the Indian Ocean generated a tsunami that killed upwards of 200,000 people, mostly in Indonesia.
December 27, 1932 — Radio City Music Hall opened in New York City.
December 28, 1869 — William Semple patented chewing gum.  What followed soon after was a huge mess of chewing gum wads under school desk-tops and theatre seats, everywhere.