December 23
Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh, suffering from severe depression, cuts off the lower part of his left ear. During his lifetime, he was a poster boy for tortured, starving, artists, and sold only one painting. – 1888.
In Tokyo, Japan, Hideki Tojo, former Japanese premier and chief of the Kwantung Army, is executed along with six other top Japanese leaders for their war crimes during World War II. Seven of the defendants were found guilty of committing crimes against humanity, especially in regard to their systematic genocide of the Chinese people. – 1948.
Walmart Stores, Inc., the Nation’s largest employer, with 1.4 million so-called associates, agrees to settle 63 wage and hour suits across the U.S., for a grand total of between $352 million and $640 million. It was accused of failure to pay overtime, requiring off-the-clock work, and failure to provide required meal and rest breaks. – 2008.
December 24
The Treaty of Peace and Amity between His Britannic Majesty and the United States of America is signed by British and American representatives at Ghent, Belgium to end the War of 1812. By terms of the treaty, all conquered territory was to be returned, and commissions were planned to settle the boundary of the United States and Canada. – 1814.
Seventy-two copper miners’ children die in panic caused by company stooge in Calumet, Mich.. The stooge shouted fire up the stairs into a crowded hall where the children had gathered. They were crushed against closed doors when they tried to flee. – 1913.
December 25
During the American Revolution, patriot General George Washington crosses the Delaware River with 5,400 troops, to surprise a Hessian force that is celebrating Christmas at their Winter quarters in Trenton, N.J.. The crossing led to the first major victory for the new Americans. – 1776.
Just after midnight on Christmas morning, the majority of German troops engaged in World War I, cease firing their guns and artillery and commence to sing Christmas carols. At certain points along the fronts, the soldiers of Russia, France, and Britain even heard brass bands joining the Germans in their joyous singing. – 1914.
December 26
The first day of the first Kwanzaa is celebrated in Los Angeles under the direction of Maulana Karenga, the chair of Black Studies at California State University in Long Beach. The seven-day holiday, which has strong African roots, was designed by Dr. Karenga as a celebration of African American family, community, and culture. – 1966.
A powerful earthquake off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia, on this day in 2004 sets off a tsunami that wreaks death and devastation across the Indian Ocean coastline. The quake was the second strongest recorded and the estimated 230,000 dead made this disaster one of the 10 worst of all time. – 2004.
December 27
U.S. president Franklin Roosevelt seizes the railroads to avert a nationwide strike. His decision to temporarily place the railroads under the supervision of the War Department prompts the five railroad brotherhoods to agree to his offer to arbitrate the wage dispute. – 1943.
In an attempt to stabilize the turbulent political situation in Afghanistan, the Soviet Union sends 75,000 troops to enforce the installation of Babrak Karmal as the new leader of the nation. The new government and the imposing Soviet presence, however, had little success in putting down anti-government rebels. Thus began nearly 10 years of an agonizing, destructive, and ultimately fruitless Soviet military intervention in Afghanistan. – 1979.
December 28
The world’s first commercial movie screening takes place at the Grand Cafe in Paris. The film was made by Louis and Auguste Lumiere, two French brothers who developed a camera-projector called the Cinematographe. The Lumiere brothers unveiled their invention to the public in March 1895 with a brief film showing workers leaving the Lumiere factory. The entrepreneurial siblings screened a series of short scenes from every-day French life and charged admission for the first time. – 1895.
An earthquake in Sicily kills more than 100,000 persons and destroys several towns. The 7.5-magnitude tremor off the coast of the large island was responsible for deaths on the Italian mainland. – 1908.
December 29
In the final chapter of America’s long Indian wars, the U.S. Cavalry kills 146 Sioux at Wounded Knee on the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota. – 1890.
After years of intensive lobbying by the labor movement, a comprehensive National safety law is enacted when president Richard Nixon signs the Occupational Safety & Health Act of 1970, to create the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA). – 1970.
More than 15,000 United Steel Workers members at 16 Goodyear Tire & Rubber plants end an 86-day strike and ratify a three-year contract. – 2006.