TODAY IN HISTORY

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. ALSO ON THIS DATE

1790

Congress moved to Philadelphia from New York.

1865

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

1884

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

1917

Some 2,000 people were killed when an explosivesladen 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.

1923

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

1947

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

1973

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

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.