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December 15th is the 349th day of the year (350th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 16 days remaining in the year.
1791 • In the U.S., the first ten amendments to the Constitution, known as the Bill of Rights, went into effect following ratification by the state of Virginia. 1854 • In Philadelphia, the first street cleaning machine was put into use. 1877 • Thomas Edison patented the stolen idea for the phonograph. 1890 • American Sioux Indian Chief Sitting Bull and 11 other tribe members were killed in Grand River, SD, during an incident with Indian police working for the U.S. government. 1933 • 21st Amendment to the United States Constitution becomes officially effective, legalizing alcohol. 1941 • The American Federation of Labor adopts a no strike policy in war industries. 1965 • Gemini program: Gemini 6A, crewed by Wally Schirra and Thomas Stafford, is launched from Cape Kennedy, Florida. Four orbits later, it achieves the first space rendezvous, with Gemini 7. 1970 • The Illinois State Constitution is adopted at a special election. 1981 • The U.S. Congress passed $200 million spending bill. At the time it was the largest in U.S. history. 2000 • The third reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant is shut down. 2001 • The Leaning Tower of Pisa reopens after 11 years and $27 million to fortify it, without fixing its famous lean. 2010 • Time magazine announces Mark Zuckerberg (founder of Facebook) Person of the Year. |