Today in History for Dec. 12, 2017 (Meant for Tuesday!)

Coach Morris Higginbotham, right.

Dec. 12, 1776 - The British captured General Charles Lee in New Jersey. Lee was General George Washington's second-in-command.

Dec. 12, 1787 – Pennsylvania became the second state to ratify the United States Constitution, by a vote of 46 to 23, five days after Delaware became the first. Pennsylvania was the first large state to ratify, as well as the first state to endure a serious Anti-Federalist challenge to ratification.

Dec. 12, 1781 – During the American Revolutionary War, at the Second Battle of Ushant, a British fleet led by HMS Victory defeated a French fleet.

Dec. 12, 1791 - President George Washington submitted to Congress on this day Major General Arthur St. Clair’s report on the defeat of American troops under St. Clair’s command on Nov. 4, 1791. Known as the Battle of the Wabash, the Battle of Wabash River or the Battle of a Thousand Slain, the American Indian confederacy was overwhelmingly victorious. The Warriors were led by Little Turtle of the Miami, Blue Jacket of the Shawnee and Buckongahelas of the Delaware. The war party numbered more than 1,000 warriors, including a large number of Potawatomis. St. Clair’s 918 casualties include 623 soldiers’ dead with 258 wounded. 69 of the 124 commissioned officers were killed or wounded, 24 civilian employees were killed and 13 wounded. Of the 200 camp followers, only three women survive.

Dec. 12, 1792 - In Vienna, 22-year-old Ludwig van Beethoven received one of his first lessons in music composition from Franz Joseph Haydn.

Dec. 12, 1800 - Washington, D.C. was established as the capital of the United States.

Dec. 12, 1806 - Confederate General Stand Watie was born near Rome, Ga. Watie, a Cherokee Indian, survived the tribe's Trail of Tears in the 1830s and became the only Native American to achieve the rank of general during the Civil War.

Dec. 12, 1821 – Gustave Flaubert was born in Rouen, France. He is best known for his first novel, 1856’s “Madame Bovary.”

Dec. 12, 1822 – Five commissioners were appointed to select the site for the county seat of Covington County, Ala. and Montezuma was their choice.

Dec. 12, 1836 - Violating truces, General Jesup decided on this day to try to locate and capture Micanopy and his forces, and/or Osceola and his forces, who he knew were in the area of Tampa Bay. Around this same time, he had a fort built upon the site of Dade's Battlefield and named it Fort Armstrong. The fort was named after the man who designed it, Major Robert Armstrong, commander of the Tennessee volunteers. He also made the decision to reduce the number of necessary forts during the Withlacoochee River campaigns. These forts were kept garrisoned as supply stops: Fort Armstrong, their 'home fort', on the site of Dade's Battlefield; Fort Barnwell, at Volusia and 12 miles south of Lake George; Fort Clinch, located at the mouth of the Withlacoochee River; Fort Dade, along the Withlacoochee River and 29 miles from Fort Foster; Fort Drane, Southwest of modern-day Micanopy; Fort Foster, along the Hillsborough River and 25 miles from modern-day Thonotosassa.

Dec. 12, 1861 – During the Civil War, a skirmish was fought at Gradyville, Ky.

Dec. 12, 1861 – During the Civil War, a skirmish was fought at Charleston, Mo.

Dec. 12, 1861 – During the Civil War, a skirmish was fought along the Greenbriar River, W.Va.

Dec. 12, 1862 - The Union Army of the Potomac occupied Fredericksburg, Va. The Battle of Fredericksburg took placed on Dec. 13.

Dec. 12, 1862 – During the Civil War, the USS Cairo sank on the Yazoo River, becoming the first armored ship to be sunk by an electrically detonated mine.

Dec. 12, 1862 – During the Civil War, skirmishes occurred at Cherokee Station and Little Bear Creek in Alabama.

Dec. 12, 1862 – During the Civil War, Federal naval operations were carried out on the Neuse River in North Carolina.

Dec. 12, 1862 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Dumfries and in Loudoun County in Virginia; and between Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia and Leesburg in Virginia.

Dec. 12, 1862 – During the Civil War, Federal reconnaissance was carried out from North Mountain to Bunker Hill in West Virginia.

Dec. 12, 1862 - The first part of the Battle of Fredericksburg, Va. had started the day before as Federal troops under Gen. Ambrose Burnside had struggled to build pontoon bridges to transport their men across the Rappahannock River while under fire from Confederate sharpshooters. After repeated failures and heavy skirmishing with Barksdale’s 21st Mississippi, the effort had finally succeeded and Union troops moved to establish their beachhead before night fell. When morning came, it was hard to tell - a thick fog had risen from the river overnight and filled the valley, lasting until noon. Troops continued to move in the limited visibility, but slowly, and when the fog finally broke up it was far too late in the day to launch an assault. The major activity on the Union side was to move as many men as possible as far up the hill as possible. Looking down on the action, Lee sent orders to Stonewall Jackson, guarding another ford farther downstream, to rejoin the main force. The Battle of Fredericksburg took place the next day.

Dec. 12, 1863 – Painter and printmaker Edvard Munch was born in Løten, Norway. His most famous painting, “The Scream” (1893), influenced the German Expressionist movement of the early 20th century.

Dec. 12, 1863 – During the Civil War, smoke still rose on this morning from the charred wood that until the day before had been a large salt works in St. Andrew’s Bay, Fla. Acting Master W.R. Browne of the USS Restless, along with two other ships, had found the outpost and launched an attack on it. Artillery fire hit one of the houses of the workers, and wind had spread the flames until nearly the whole compound was incinerated. Brown wrote in his report, “It was in fact a complete village...employing many hands and 16 ox and mule teams constantly to haul salt to Eufaula Sound and from thence conveyed to Montgomery, at which place it is selling at fabulous prices--$40 and $50 per bushel.” The operation included 22 large steam boilers and 300 kettles averaging 200 gallons each, used to evaporate sea water to harvest the salt. The 2000 bushels found were returned to the sea from whence they had come.

Dec. 12, 1863 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at La Fayette, Ga.; at Russellville and at Shoal Creek, near Wayland in Tennessee; at Cheek’s Crossroads and near Strasburg in Virginia; and at Gatewood, Lewisburg and Greenbrier River in West Virginia.

Dec. 12, 1863 – During the Civil War, a two-day Federal expedition from Williamsburg to Charles City Courthouse in Virginia began.

Dec. 12, 1864 – During the Civil War, communications were established between the command of Union General William T. Sherman and the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron. Four Union Army corps under Sherman had marched from Atlanta to the Sea--almost. They were on the outskirts of Savannah, and out in the Atlantic awaited the Navy vessels carrying their new supply source. The only thing standing in the way was an installation called Fort McAllister, and the only way to reach it was over the 1000-foot long King’s Bridge over the Ogeechee River. This, understandably, had been destroyed by the Confederate defenders of McAllister. Sherman had set his engineers to work on the problem, and they reported on this day that the rebuilding work was nearly completed. Preparations were therefore put underway to put it to the test. The assault on Ft. McAllister would take place on the following morning.

Dec. 12, 1864 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought on the Amite River in Louisiana; and at Big Creek, near Rogersville in Tennessee.

Dec. 12, 1864 – During the Civil War, Union Major General George H. Thomas prepared to attack Confederate Lieut. General John B Hood outside Nashville, Tenn., as soon as the ice and sleet melted.

Dec. 12, 1874 – B.M. Burns was commissioned as Monroe County, Ala.’s Sheriff.

Dec. 12, 1877 – John J. Watts was commissioned as Monroe County, Ala.’s Sheriff.

Dec. 12, 1896 - Guglielmo Marconi gave the first public demonstration of radio at Toynbee Hall, London.

Dec. 12, 1901 - The first radio signal to cross the Atlantic was picked up near St. John's Newfoundland, by inventor Guglielmo Marconi. The first signal was the letter "S" [***] in Morse Code.

Dec. 12, 1910 – American socialite Dorothy Arnold, 25, disappeared while walking on Fifth Avenue in New York City.

Dec. 12, 1913 - The "Mona Lisa" painting, missing for two years, turned up under a hotel bed in Florence.

Dec. 12, 1914 - On the first day of trading since the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) reopened in November 1914 after being shut down due to the start of World War I earlier that year, the Dow Jones Industrial Average suffered its worst percentage drop (24.39 percent) since it was first published in 1896.

Dec. 12, 1915 - Dr. A.B. Coxwell, C.W. Jackson and J.D. Rawls traveled to Brewton on this Sunday to attend the Methodist conference.

Dec. 12, 1915 – Frank Sinatra, one of the most successful solo singers in history, was born in Hoboken, N.J.

Dec. 12, 1917 - More than 500 French soldiers were killed when their train derailed in Modane, France. The troops were returning from fighting World War I in Italy.

Dec. 12, 1920 – H.P. Lovecraft completed his short story, “The Picture in the House,” which was originally published in Issue No. 6 (July 1919) of “The National Amateur.”

Dec. 12, 1929 – British playwright John Osborne was born in London, England. He is best known for is 1956 play, “Look Back in Anger.”

Dec. 12, 1935 – The Lebensborn Project, a Nazi reproduction program, was founded by Heinrich Himmler.

Dec. 12, 1937 - Mr. and Mrs. A.C. Lee, Nell and Ed Lee spent this Sunday with Dr. and Mrs. C.F. McKinley in Atmore, Ala.

Dec. 12, 1941 – Adolf Hitler declared the imminent extermination of the Jews at a meeting in the Reich Chancellery.

Dec. 12, 1951 - Thirty Evergreen High School football players, coaches Wendell Hart and Spencer Davis and cheerleaders were honored at the annual Evergreen Quarterback Club Football Banquet on this Wednesday night at the high school lunchroom. Guest speaker for the occasion was Coach Tres Fiestes, line coach at Auburn University, who paid tribute to the team whose spirit and clean, hard play earned for it the Buddy Salter Memorial Trophy for sportsmanship. The team was rated best by the officials of the Central Alabama Officials Association who made the award voted on the basis of over 300 games worked in central and south Alabama this year. Highlighting the banquet was the annual award of the D.T. Stuart Sportsmanship Award given each year to the player best exemplifying the attributes of good sportsmanship, leadership, clean-but-hard play and team spirit. The award went to Gillis Morgan whose play before being lost for the season was great and who’s conduct after this disappointing accident was inspiring to players, coaches and the school. Hart introduced the captains of the 1952 team elected this week by the players. Pace Bozeman, hard running fullback who led the team’s ground gainers and scorers, was named Captain. Shirley Frazier, end and halfback, will serve as alternate captain next year. Hart awarded letters to 19 players and Manager Garvin Langley. Seniors receiving letters were Donahue Edson (4), Gillis Morgan (4), Gwyn Daniels (3), Lurton Chambers and Edward Evers (2); juniors, Pace Bozeman (2), Shirley Frazier, Billy Lewis, Joe Stowers, Sammy Robison, Bill Robinson and Cullen Edson; sophomores, Sam Cope (2), Paul Hanks and Lamar Sheffield; freshmen, Ward Alexander Jr., Jimmy Frazier, Wayne Douglas, Richard Taylor. Players recognized who did not receive letters included Wayne Andrews, Wayne Bell, Danny Golson, Gene Wilkerson, Ronnie Edson, Raphael Ansley, Alvin Reeves, Johnny Fussell and Lavon Shaver. Letters were awarded too to these cheerleaders, Illeana Stallworth, Patricia Alexander, Phyllis Cunningham, Maurice Golson, Barbara DaLee and Elaine Hassel.

Dec. 12, 1952 – Monroe County High School’s boys basketball team beat Beatrice, 37-35, on this Friday night at the Monroeville coliseum. Top Monroeville scorer was forward Vincent Tomlinson with 11 points, while center Vernon Anderson led Beatrice with 13 points.

Dec. 12, 1957 - Conecuh County Training School’s boys basketball team, coached by Coach John Kennedy, won their first game of the season on this Thursday night in Monroeville with a 54-30 win over Union High School.

Dec. 12, 1964 – The annual Christmas parade was scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. in Frisco City, Ala.

Dec. 12, 1965 - The rookie running back Gale Sayers of the Chicago Bears scored six touchdowns during a single game against the San Francisco 49ers at Chicago’s Wrigley Field, tying the National Football League (NFL) record for most touchdowns in a single game.

Dec. 12, 1967 – Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive tackle John Randle was born in Mumford Texas. During his career, he played for Texas A&M-Kingsville, the Minnesota Vikings and the Seattle Seahawks. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2010.

Dec. 12, 1968 – The Evergreen Quarterback Club held its annual football banquet at the Evergreen High School cafeteria. Livingston State University head football coach Morris Higginbotham was the guest speaker, and Livingston sophomore punter (and former EHS standout) Homer “Bubba” Faulkner was also a special guest.

Dec. 12, 1968 – The Monroe Journal reported that plans for the first ever Monroe County Snake Rodeo, which was to be sponsored by the Frisco City Chamber of Commerce Jan. 1-Feb. 15, were well underway.

Dec. 12, 1968 - The Paris Peace talks, which opened on May 10, continued to be plagued by procedural questions that impeded any meaningful progress.

Dec. 12, 1969 - The Philippine Civic Action Group, a 1,350-man contingent from the Army of the Philippines, departed South Vietnam.

Dec. 12, 1970 - In New Orleans, La., The Doors made their last appearance with Jim Morrison.

Dec. 12, 1976 - Joe Namath played his last game with the New York Jets.

Dec. 12, 1976 – Fort Gaines on Dauphin Island was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

Dec. 12, 1981 - Castleberry’s annual Christmas parade was scheduled to be held on this Saturday at 2 p.m.

Dec. 12, 1981 – Auburn and NFL running back Ronnie Brown was born in Rome, Ga. He went on to play for Auburn, the Miami Dolphins, the Philadelphia Eagles, the San Diego Chargers and the Houston Texans.

Dec. 12, 1983 - Car bombs were set off in front of the French and U.S. embassies in Kuwait City. Shiite extremists were responsible for the five deaths and 86 wounded. Total of five bombs went off in different locations.

Dec. 12, 1988 - A television version of Alabama author Helen Norris's story "The Christmas Wife" was broadcast.

Dec. 12, 1989 - Awakened by a throbbing noise, a Jupille, Belgium man found a large metallic UFO hovering between trees on a nearby road. The witness saw a logo on the craft's surface that resembled ellipses and the next day police found a giant circular impression in a nearby meadow. The incident was part of the massive six-month UFO wave over Belgium and France.

Dec. 12, 1990 - Alabama author and librarian William Stanley Hoole died in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Dec. 12, 1991 – SINGLETON: Singleton wrote a tongue-in-cheek column about the trails of getting older, losing his memory.

Dec. 12, 1992 - The Nirvana album "Incesticide" was released.

Dec. 12, 1996 – The Evergreen Courant reported that the bridge on Conecuh County (Ala.) Road 29 over Sandy Creek had been closed during the past week so that the bridge could be replaced over the next few months. Although the project caused inconvenience to residents in this part of the county, the bridge was in dire need of replacement.

Dec. 12, 1996 – The Evergreen Courant reported that the Mount Union Community Church and Center, located 10 miles east of Evergreen, Ala., had been added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage. Dating from the turn of the century, the property contained two structures depicting a vernacular style of architecture common to the period. The c. 1890 church and the remaining portion of a c. 1900 school appear today as gable-front rectangular buildings which face east in a parallel position.

Dec. 12, 2000 - Timothy McVeigh, over the objections of his lawyers, abandoned his final round of appeals and asked that his execution be set within 120 days. McVeigh was convicted of the April 1995 truck bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Fedal Building in Oklahoma City, Okla. that killed 168 and injured 500.

Dec. 12, 2000 - The Texas Rangers signed Alex Rodriguez to a record breaking 10-year, $252 million contract. The contract amount broke all Major League Baseball records and all professional sports records.

Dec. 12, 2000 – Champ Quest Director Dennis Hall told Lohr McKinstry, staff writer for the Plattsburgh, N.Y. Press-Republican that he had personally spotted “Champ” on July 23 “over a four-minute period” as the creature “stuck its neck straight out of the water and remained on the surface.”

Dec. 12, 2001 – Italian geologist and explorer Ardito Desio died in Rome at the age of 104.

Dec. 12, 2001 - Former Dallas Cowboy Nate Newton, and two others, were arrested on charges of carrying at least 175 pounds of marijuana. It was his second arrest in six weeks.

Dec. 12, 2001 – Prime Minister of Vietnam Phan Văn Khải announced the decision on upgrading the Phong Nha–Kẻ Bàng nature reserve to a national park, providing information on projects for the conservation and development of the park and revised maps.

Dec. 12, 2002 - Evergreen Medical Center gave a dinner on this Thursday evening to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the hospital being owned by Gilliard Health Services, which is owned by Bill McKenzie. Gil McKenzie, who took over GHS when his father retired recently, and EMC Administrator Jim Peace presented Mary and Bill McKenzie with keepsakes of the event, which was held at the Old L&N Depot in downtown Evergreen, Ala.

Dec. 12, 2010 - The collapse of the inflatable roof at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Mall of America Stadium caused the cancellation of a game between the New York Giants and the Minnesota Vikings. The teams played the next day at Detroit's Ford Field.

Dec. 12, 2014 – Witnesses reported seeing a UFO around midnight near Gadsden in Etowah County, Ala. The witness in this case offered few details other than to say that he was driving home from work when he first saw what he described as a UFO. “When I first saw it, I was thinking that it was a plane, but it had no sound,” the witness reported.