December 24

Today in History
• 1476 - 400 Burgundian soldiers freeze to death during siege of Nancy
• 1593 - Storm hits Texel: 40 ships hit, 500 killed
• 1777 - Kiritimati, also called Christmas Island, is discovered by James Cook
• 1814 - Treaty of Ghent signed, ending the War of 1812
• 1851 - Fire devastates US Library of Congress in Washington, destroys 35,000 volumes
• 1877 - Thomas Edison files a patents for the phonograph
• 1893 - Henry Ford completes his 1st useful gas motor
• 1906 - Reginald A Fessenden became 1st to broadcast music over radio (Mass)


Holidays - Traditional and Obscure
• Christmas Eve
• Last-Minute Shopper's Day
• Libya Independence Day
• National Chocolate Day
• National Consumer Rights Day
• National Eggnog Day
• National Roots Day
• Yap Constitution Day

Birthdays
• 1166 - King John, King of England (1199-1216) and Lord of Ireland (1177-1216)
• 1491 - Saint Ignatius, Spanish Saint
• 1588 - Constance of Austria, queen of Poland
• 1634 - Mariana of Austria, queen consort and niece of King Philip IV of Spain
• 1745 - Benjamin Rush, physician and politician (signed the Declaration of Independence)
• 1761 - Selim III, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire (1789-1808)
• 1809 - Christopher "Kit" Carson, Kentucky, Union Brigadier-General/indian fighter
• 1867 - Kantaro Suzuki, 42nd Prime Minister of Japan