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| Birthday December 17, 1778 Sir Humphry Davy, discovered several chemical elements |
| Birthday December 17, 1797 Joseph Henry, American scientist and inventor |
| Birthday December 17, 1807 John Greenleaf Whittier, poet |
| Birthday December 17, 1853 Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree, English Actor, theater manager |
| Birthday December 17, 1873 Ford Madox Ford is born |
| Birthday December 17, 1874 William Lyon Mackenzie King, (L), 10th Canadian PM (1921-30, 1935-48) |
| Birthday December 17, 1889 Silver Dollar Tabor born in Denver |
| Birthday December 17, 1894 Arthur Fiedler, Boston Pops conductor |
| Birthday December 17, 1903 Erskine Caldwell, author (Tobacco Road, God's Little Acre) |
| Birthday December 17, 1908 Willard Frank Libby, invented carbon-14 "atomic clock" |
| Birthday December 17, 1926 Patrice Wymore |
| Birthday December 17, 1929 William Safire, political columnist |
| Birthday December 17, 1930 Julia Meade |
| Birthday December 17, 1936 Roland Sheldon, Yankee Pitcher |
| Birthday December 17, 1936 Tommy Steele, singer |
| History December 17, 1538 Pope Paul III excommunicated England's King Henry VIII |
| History December 17, 1777 France formally recognizes the United States |
| History December 17, 1777 France recognizes independance of the 13 colonies |
| History December 17, 1790 Aztec calendar stone discovered in Mexico City |
| History December 17, 1791 NYC traffic regulation creates 1st one-way street |
| History December 17, 1792 Opening of 1st legislative assembly of Lower Canada in Quebec city |
| History December 17, 1843 Charles Dickens's classic: A Christmas Carol published |
| History December 17, 1843 A Christmas Carol is published |
| History December 17, 1852 1st Hawaiian cavalry organized |
| History December 17, 1860 Anaheim Township created in LA County |
| History December 17, 1862 Grant expels the Jews from his department |
| History December 17, 1862 Grant expels Jews from Tennessee, Kentucky and Mississippi |
| History December 17, 1875 Violent bread riots at Montreal |
| History December 17, 1903 At 10:35AM 1st sustained motorized aircraft flight by Wright Bros |
| History December 17, 1920 Japan receives League of Nations mandate over Pacific islands |
| History December 17, 1933 1st professional NFL football game: Chicago Bears vs NY Giants |
| History December 17, 1941 Commander at Pearl Harbor canned |
| History December 17, 1944 M-OceanView streetcar resumes service & is extended to Market St |
| History December 17, 1944 U.S. approves end to internment of Japanese Americans |
| History December 17, 1954 1st fully automated railroad freight yard - Gary In |
| History December 17, 1959 1st movie opening simultaneously in major cities - On The Beach |
| History December 17, 1961 Circus catches fire in Brazil |
| History December 17, 1971 Cambodian forces under heavy pressure |
| History December 17, 1975 1st time Islanders shut-out Rangers 3-0 - Billy Smith's 5th |
| History December 17, 1975 Squeaky Fromme sentenced to life |
| History December 17, 1979 Budweiser rocket car reaches 1190 kph (record for wheeled vehicle) |
| History December 17, 1979 Stuntman Stan Barrett breaks the sound barrier |
| History December 17, 1986 Operation Iceman nabs the culprit |
| History December 17, 1990 Aristide wins Haiti's first free election |
| History December 17, 1991 A federal court puts its stamp on hip-hop |
| History December 17, 1991 Yeltsin supporters announce Soviet Union will cease to exist by New Year's Eve |
| History December 17, 1996 Peruvian rebels seize Japanese ambassador's home |
| History December 17, 2000 Terrell Owens makes record-breaking 20 catches |
| History December 17, 2003 Third and final Lord of the Rings movie opens |
| History December 17, 2011 Kim Jong Il, leader of North Korea, dies |