Historical Events on December 4

  • 1864: As Union General William Sherman continues his march to the Atlantic Ocean from Atlanta, Union General Judson Kilpatrick prevents Confederate General Joseph Wheeler from interfering with him during the American Civil War.
  • 1872: The American vessel Mary Celeste is found abandoned by the Canadian brig De Gratia on this day. The Mary Celeste received only slight damage – even though it had been floating without a crew for 9 days.
  • 1881: The very first issue of the Los Angeles Times is published on this day.
  • 1918: President Woodrow Wilson heads to the WWI Peace Talks in Versailles. This makes the the first ever sitting U.S President to head to Europe.
  • 1939: The Royal Navy’s HMS Nelson hits a mine laid by German submarine U-31.
  • 1943: Due to the extremely high levels of wartime employment in the U.S., President Franklin D. Roosevelt officially closes the Works Progress Administration.
  • 1945: The United States decides to participate in the United Nations when the U.S Senate approves the order by a vote of 65 to 7.
  • 1954: The first ever Burger King restaurant is opened in Miami, Florida.
  • 1956: Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash all get together at Sun Studios.
  • 1967: In the Mekong Delta, United States and South Vietnamese forces engage Viet Cong forces.
  • 1991: After sixty-four years, Pan American World Airways decides to end operations.
  • 2015: 17 people are killed in Cairo, Egypt when a firebomb is thrown into a restaurant.

Famous Birthdays on December 4

  • Oglala Sioux chief Crazy Horse was born in 1840.
  • Icelandic poet and politician, Hannes Hafstein was born in 1861.
  • American baseball player Jesse Burkett is born in 1868.
  • American bacteriologist and Nobel Prize laureate, Alfred Hershey is born in 1908.
  • American actor Jeff Bridges is born in 1949.
  • American actress Marisa Tomei is born in 1964.
  • American rapper and producer, Jay Z is born in 1969.
  • American model, actress and producer, Tyra Banks is born in 1973.