Today in History

Today in History

Today is Thursday, Dec. 6, the 340th day of 2018. There are 25 days left in the year.

Today's Highlights in History:

On Dec. 6, 1907, the worst mining disaster in U.S. history occurred as 362 men and boys died in a coal mine explosion in Monongah, West Virginia.

On this date:

In 1790, Congress moved to Philadelphia from New York.

In 1865, the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, abolishing slavery, was ratified as Georgia became the 27th state to endorse it.

In 1884, Army engineers completed construction of the Washington Monument by setting an aluminum capstone atop the obelisk.

In 1917, some 2,000 people were killed when an explosives-laden French cargo ship, the Mont Blanc, collided with the Norwegian vessel Imo at the harbor in Halifax, Nova Scotia, setting off a blast that devastated the Canadian city. Finland declared its independence from Russia.

In 1923, a presidential address was broadcast on radio for the first time as President Coolidge spoke to a joint session of Congress.

In 1947, Everglades National Park in Florida was dedicated by President Harry S. Truman.

In 1957, America's first attempt at putting a satellite into orbit failed as Vanguard TV3 rose about four feet off a Cape Canaveral launch pad before crashing down and exploding.

In 1973, House minority leader Gerald R. Ford was sworn in as vice president, succeeding Spiro T. Agnew.

In 1982, 11 soldiers and six civilians were killed when an Irish National Liberation Army bomb exploded at a pub in Ballykelly, Northern Ireland.

In 1989, 14 women were shot to death at the University of Montreal's school of engineering by a man who then took his own life.

In 1998, in Venezuela, former Lt. Col. Hugo Chavez, who had staged a bloody coup attempt against the government six years earlier, was elected president.

In 2001, The House of Representatives, by a one-vote margin, gave President George W. Bush more power to negotiate global trade deals. President Bush dedicated the national Christmas tree to those who had died on Sept. 11 and to service members who had died in the line of duty.

Ten years ago: President-elect Barack Obama said in a Saturday radio and Internet address that he'd asked his economic team for a recovery plan that would save or create more than 2 million jobs. Indicted Democratic U.S. Rep. William Jefferson was ousted from his New Orleans area district in a special election won by Republican attorney Anh "Joseph" Cao, who became the first Vietnamese-American in Congress. Heiress Martha "Sunny" von Bulow, who'd spent the last 28 years of her life in a coma, died in New York City at age 76.

Five years ago: A day after Nelson Mandela's death at 95, South Africans of all colors erupted in song, dance and tears in emotional celebrations of the life of the man who had bridged the country's black-white divide and helped avert a race war. The Fender Stratocaster that Bob Dylan played at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival was sold at Christie's for nearly $1 million -- the highest price ever paid for a guitar at auction.

One year ago: President Donald Trump declared Jerusalem to be Israel's capital, defying warnings from the Palestinians and others around the world that he would be destroying hopes for Mideast peace. Time magazine named as its Person of the Year the "Silence Breakers" - those who had shared their stories about sexual assault and harassment. A wildfire erupted in the exclusive Bel-Air section of Los Angeles, the latest neighborhood of Southern California to find itself under siege from an outbreak of wind-driven blazes. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that he would seek re-election, putting him on track to become Russia's longest-serving ruler since Soviet dictator Josef Stalin.

Today's Birthdays: Comedy performer David Ossman is 82. Actor Patrick Bauchau is 80. Country singer Helen Cornelius is 77. Actor James Naughton is 73. Former Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is 73. Rhythm-and-blues singer Frankie Beverly (Maze) is 72. Former Sen. Don Nickles, R-Okla., is 70. Actress JoBeth Williams is 70. Actor Tom Hulce is 65. Actor Wil Shriner is 65. Actor Kin Shriner is 65. Actor Miles Chapin is 64. Rock musician Rick Buckler (The Jam) is 63. Comedian Steven Wright is 63. Country singer Bill Lloyd is 63. Singer Tish Hinojosa is 63. Rock musician Peter Buck (R.E.M.) is 62. Rock musician David Lovering (Pixies) is 57. Actress Janine Turner is 56. Rock musician Ben Watt (Everything But The Girl) is 56. Writer-director Judd Apatow is 51. Rock musician Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg (Ace of Base) is 48. Writer-director Craig Brewer is 47. Actress Colleen Haskell is 42. Actress Lindsay Price is 42. Actress Ashley Madekwe is 37. Actress Nora Kirkpatrick is 34. Christian rock musician Jacob Chesnut (Rush of Fools) is 29. Tennis player CoCo Vandeweghe is 27. Football quarterback Johnny Manziel is 26.

Thought for Today: "Disconnecting from change does not recapture the past. It loses the future." -- Kathleen Norris, American author (1880-1960).