The United States Senate approved of US participation in the United Nations. (1945) The United Nations had officially come into being about two months earlier, when its charter was signed by the US, the UK, the USSR, China, and France, among other nations. One of the first major actions of the US in the UN was to urge the UN to send a peacekeeping force to Korea in 1950.
The first Thanksgiving was celebrated in the US. (1619) Although the modern holiday stems from the 1621 Thanksgiving celebration at Plymouth, Massachusetts, a group of settlers in Virginia had including Thanksgiving in their charter. They celebrated the legally mandated day for the first time on December 4. Unfortunately, the settlement lasted for less than three years, which is why the modern holiday is based on the date of Plymouth’s first Thanksgiving.
The first stage of assembly of the International Space Station was completed. (1998) The American-built “Unity” node was connected to the Russian-built “Zarya”, which was already in orbit. With these two pieces attached, other craft could dock at the space station, and the living units could be attached.
Woodrow Wilson set sail for the Paris Peace Conference. (1918) Wilson spent six months in Paris working with other leaders on the Treaty of Versailles, and simultaneously developing the League of Nations. Wilson was the first president to travel abroad while he was in office.
The first psychological report on shell shock was presented. (1917) Psychiatrist W.H. Rivers presented his paper “The Repression of War Experience” to the British Royal School of Medicine. The paper was revolutionary in detailing the symptoms of shell shock, as well as possible causes and treatments for it. It laid the groundwork for the development of treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
The first Sunday newspaper was published. (1791) The Observer, was published in Britain. It was originally a flop, and left the publisher, W.S. Bourne, heavily in debt. New ownership turned it around, and The Observer became a well-known newspaper with a high circulation. Two hundred years later, The Observer was also the first newspaper to offer its information via podcast.
British declare suttee illegal in India. (1829) Suttee, the practice of a widow burning herself on her husband’s pyre, was abolished, and those who helped a woman commit suttee were eligible to be tried for murder.
American hostage Terry Anderson was released from Lebanon. (1991) Anderson, a journalist in Beirut, had been held captive by Hezbollah Shiite Muslims for almost seven years. Hezbollah militants captured Anderson along with a group of other Americans but he was held captive the longest.
The first Burger King opened in Miami, Florida.(1954) Three years later, the signature “Whopper” was added to the menu, and business took off. There are over 11 thousand Burger Kings in more than 60 countries.
The Mary Celeste was discovered. (1872) One of the most famous “ghost ships,” the Mary Celeste was discovered floating empty at sea. The crew had vanished, though all the food supplies and personal belongings were untouched. The mystery remains an archetype for maritime disappearances.