Today in history

1828 William Burke who, with his partner William Hare, dug up the dead and murdered to sell the corpses for dissection, went on trial in Edinburgh.

1851 A fire devastated the Library of Congress in Washington, DC, destroying about 35,000 volumes.

1906 Reginald A. Fessenden became the first person to broadcast a music program over radio, from Brant Rock, MA.

1928 The first broadcast of “The Voice of Firestone” was heard.

1943 U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt appointed Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower supreme commander of Allied forces as part of Operation Overlord.

1944 The Andrews Sisters starred in the debut of “The Andrews Sisters’ Eight-To-The-Bar-Ranch” on ABC Radio.

1948 For the first time ever, a midnight Mass was broadcast on television. It was held at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City.

1948 The first completely solar-heated house became occupied in Dover, MA.

1951 NBC-TV presented, “Amahl and the Night Visitors,” the first opera written for television.

1965 A meteorite landed on Leicestershire. It weighed about 100lbs.

1966 Luna 13 landed on the moon.

1967 Joe Namath (New York Jets) became the first NFL quarterback to pass for 4,000 yards.

1968 Three astronauts, James A. Lovell, William Anders and Frank Borman, reached the moon. They orbited the moon 10 times before coming back to Earth. Seven months later man first landed on the moon.