On this date
British forces suffered a major defeat in the Battle of Trenton during the Revolutionary War.
former President George Washington was eulogized by Col. Henry Lee as “first in war, first in peace and first in the hearts of his countrymen.”
James H. Nason of Franklin, Mass., received a patent for “an improved coffee percolator.”
Jack Johnson became the first African-American boxer to win the world heavyweight championship as he defeated Canadian Tommy Burns in Sydney, Australia.
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.
“Magical Mystery Tour,” the Beatles’ poorly received TV special, was broadcast (in black and white) on BBC1.
6-year-old beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey was found beaten and strangled in the basement of her family’s home in Boulder, Colorado. (To date, the slaying remains unsolved.)
Six people were found dead at a rural property east of Seattle; the property owners’ daughter and her boyfriend were arrested. (Michele Anderson and Joseph McEnroe were convicted of killing Anderson’s parents, her brother, her sister-in-law and her niece and nephew on Christmas Eve; both received life prison terms.)
Toyota Motor Corp. said it had reached a settlement worth more than $1 billion in a case involving unintended acceleration problems in its vehicles.
Gymnast Simone Biles was voted Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year after her golden run at Rio Olympics.