Today’s highlight in history
On Dec. 26, 1941, during World War II, Winston Churchill became the first British prime minister to address a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress.
On this date
In 1776, British forces suffered a major defeat in the Battle of Trenton during the Revolutionary War.
In 1865, James H. Nason of Franklin, Mass., received a patent for “an improved coffee percolator.”
In 1908, Jack Johnson became the first African-American boxer to win the world heavyweight championship as he defeated Canadian Tommy Burns in Sydney, Australia. In 1944, during the World War II Battle of the Bulge, the embattled U.S. 101st Airborne Division in Bastogne, Belgium, was relieved by units of the 4th Armored Division.
In 1966, Kwanzaa was first celebrated. In 1996, 6-year-old beauty queen JonBenét Ramsey was found beaten and strangled in the basement of her family’s home in Boulder, Colo. (To date, the slaying remains unsolved.)
In 2004, more than 230,000 people, mostly in southern Asia, were killed by a 100-foot-high tsunami triggered by a 9.1-magnitude earthquake beneath the Indian Ocean. Ten years ago: Iraq’s highest court rejected Saddam Hussein’s appeal of his conviction and death sentence and said the former president should be hanged within 30 days.
Five years ago: Drew Brees set the NFL record for yards passing in a season, breaking a mark that Dan Marino had held since 1984, as the New Orleans Saints defeated the Atlanta Falcons, 45-16.
One year ago: Chicago police killed 19-year-old Quintonio LeGrier, a college student who an officer said was coming at him with a bat, and 55-year-old Bettie Jones, a neighbor who police said was shot accidentally.