Tupolev-144 flies before Concorde (1975), tsunami kills 50,000 in Southeast Asia (2004), Countess Bathory’s crimes discovered (1610), coffee maker patented (1865), Beatles’ first US single released (1963), wood pulp paper introduced (1854), King Lear performed for King James I (1606), Kwanzaa celebrated for first time (1966), personal computer named Time Man of the Year (1982), Columbus establishes La Navidad settlement (1492).
The first supersonic transport aircraft began to fly. (1975) USSR Tupolev-144, predecessor of Concorde, made its maiden flight, delivering mail between Moscow and Alma-Ata. Four days later, it made its first passenger flight, a full two months before Concorde took off.
A huge tsunami has devastated Southeast Asia. (2004) More than 50,000 people have been killed and more than half a million have lost their homes. The waves, which originated in the Indian Ocean, reached as far as South Africa, where two people were killed.
Countess Bathory’s crimes were discovered. (1610) The Countess was one of the most prolific female assassins of all time. She kidnapped her maidservants from the villages surrounding her castle and tortured them for fun. She was most famous for bathing in the blood of her victims, claiming it kept her young and beautiful.
The coffee maker has been patented. (1865) Coffee had really taken off in America after the supply of tea was cut off during the War of 1812. By the 1860s, it had become a much-demanded commodity and only increased in popularity with the invention of the percolator.
The Beatles’ first single was released in the United States. (1963) I Want to Hold Your Hand became the band’s first number one on the Billboard charts and marked the beginning of Beatlemania in the United States.
The wood pulp paper has been exposed. (1854) Before wood pulp paper hit the market, most paper was made from plant fibers such as flax. The introduction of wood pulp paper drastically reduced the price of paper and made it widely available to the public.
King Lear was represented at court. (1606) One of Shakespeare’s most famous plays, King Lear was first performed for King James I on this day. Many considered this bold move on Shakespeare’s part, since the play was thought to be critical of the rule of James I.
Kwanzaa was celebrated for the first time. (1966) The holiday was designed by Dr. Maulana Karenga. The holiday, which features storytelling, drumming, and traditional dancing, has become widely celebrated among African Americans in the United States.
The first non-human Time Man of the Year has been named: the personal computer. (1982) The personal computer had been introduced about a year earlier and models had flown off the shelf. The average PC at that time cost upwards of $600 US Dollars (USD) and ran on an 8-bit system. It could handle basic word processing and not much else.
One of the first Spanish settlements in the Americas was established. (1492) Explorer Christopher Columbus established the settlement of La Navidad in present-day Haiti. It was very modest, and was built mainly with the wreckage of the decommissioned Santa Maria. The settlement lasted less than a year, as the natives killed the Spanish in retaliation for the abuses.
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