SATURDAY

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1885 - Charles Alderton served up the first Dr. Pepper at the Old Corner Drug Store in Waco , TX

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1942 -  Scientists at the Univ. of Chicago achieved the first self-sustaining chain reaction. It caused the controlled release of nuclear energy and was the beginning of the atomic age

1883 - Oberlin College in Ohio began classes as the first coed institution of higher learning in the US

1812 - The power lawn mower was patented on this date by Peter Gaillard of Lancaster , PA

1933 - Prohibition ended when, after 14 years between legal drinks, Utah became the last of 36 states to ratify the 21st Amendment to the US Constitution (repealing the 18th Amendment, that had prohibited all liquor)

1883 - The first issue of Ladies Home Journal went on sale

1968 - The great grandson of a person who borrowed a book on diseases from the University of Cincinnati Medical Library 145 years earlier, was assessed the largest library fine ever, $22,646! No charges were pressed, but the great grandson was placed on detention for 12 years, 5 months and 23 days

1943 - Jim Morrison, singer, songwriter who was the lead singer of The Doors was born

1793 - The first daily newspaper was published in NYC on this date by Noah Webster. It was called 'The America Minerva'

1830 - Emily Dickinson, one of America 's greatest poets, was born. Only 7 of her poems were published during her lifetime. After her death, her sister discovered over 2,000 poems which were published gradually over 50 years

1904 - Marjorie Buell, cartoonist and creator of the comic strip Little LuLu was born. LuLu outsmarted all the neighborhood boys

1937 - The FCC scolded NBC radio for a skit starring Mae West. The satirical routine, based on the biblical tale of Adam and Eve, got a bit out of hand and NBC banned Mae West from it's airwaves for 15 years

1913 - Leonardo da Vinci's 'La Gioconda,' better known as the 'Mona Lisa,' was returned to the Louvre in Paris after it was stolen 2 year earlier

1503 - Nostradamus, the French physician best remembered for his astrological predictions (written in rhymed quatrains), was born

1832 - Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, the French architect, was born. He designed the Eiffel Tower and the infrastructure of the Statue of Liberty.

1775 - Jane Austen, the famous British novelist who wrote Pride and Prejudice, among others, was born.

1967 - Congress passed the Clean Air Act to protect the nation from air pollution.

1970 - Divorce became legal in Italy .

1871 - Corrugated paper was patented by Albert L. Jones of NYC.

1879 - The first practical incandescent light bulb was demonstrated by Thomas Alva Edison

1913 - The first crossword puzzle was compiled by Arthur Wynne and published in a supplement to the New York World on this date.

1858 - Giacomo Puccini, Italian composer of such operas as Madame Butterfly and La Boheme, was born

1975 - US Congress passed the Metric Conversion Act of 1975 which declared that SI (International System of Units) will be this country's basic system of measurement

1985 - Fidel Castro the Cuban President, announced that he was a nonsmoker

1939 - Montgomery Ward introduced Rudolph, the 9th reindeer

Boxing Day - In Canada and Europe , this day is set aside to thank mail deliverers and couriers. Boxing Day earns its name from the gift boxes typically given to the service people on the first weekday after Christmas. It is an official holiday in Great Britain

1831 - Darwin began his voyage to the Galapagos Islands aboard the HMS Beagle

1732 - The first ad for Poor Richard's Almanack, written by Benjamin Franklin, appeared in The Pennsylvania Gazette for the year 1733. It promised 'many pleasent and witty verses, jests and sayings..new fashions, games for kisses...men and melons...breakfast in bed...'

1852 - Emma Snodgrass was arrested in Boston , MA for wearing pants. We've come a long way, baby

1922 - After the Russian Revolution and subsequent 3 year civil war, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was founded. It was the first state in the world to be based on Marxist communism

1781 - The first modern bank in the US , the Bank of North America, was organized and received a charter on this date.