1980

Today in History 12/12 (Joel Roberts Poinsett)

Joel Roberts Poinsett (Courtesy of Wikipedia)(1851) Politician and diplomat Joel Poinsett dies
Joel Poinsett, who had served in the US House of Representatives and as Minister to Mexico, dies of tuberculosis. Poinsett had seen the Flor de Nochebuena, or Christmas Eve flower, in Mexico and sent samples of the plant back to the US—where it would become known as the poinsettia.
Joel Roberts Poinsett was an American physician and diplomat. He was the first U.S. agent in South America, a member of the South Carolina legislature and the United States House of Representatives, the first United States Minister to Mexico, a Unionist leader in South Carolina during the Nullification Crisis, Secretary of War under Martin Van Buren, and a co-founder of the National Institute for the Promotion of Science and the Useful Arts.
Lived: Mar 02, 1779 – Dec 12, 1851 (age 72)
Party: Democratic Party
Spouse: Mary Izard Pringle
Education: University of Edinburgh · Royal Military Academy, Woolwich
Children: William Allston Pringle (Son) · Edward J. Pringle (Son)
Parents: Dr. Elisha Poinsett (Father) · Katherine Ann Poinsett (Mother)
Highlights
  • 1800: In 1800 Poinsett returned to Charleston hoping to pursue a military career.

  • 1807: In January, 1807, Czar Alexander and Poinsett dined at the Palace.

  • 1816: In July 1816, Poinsett traveled to New York to meet Carrera.

  • 1818: After being re-elected to the South Carolina House in 1818, he became a member of the Committee on Internal Improvements and Waterways.

  • 1828: On 12 January 1828, in Mexico City, Poinsett signed the first treaty between the United States and Mexico, the Treaty of Limits, a treaty that recognized the U.S.-Mexico border established by the 1819 Adams–Onís Treaty between Spain and the U.S.

  • 1851: He died of tuberculosis, hastened by an attack of pneumonia, in Stateburg, South Carolina, in 1851, and is buried at the Church of the Holy Cross Episcopal Cemetery.

Joel Roberts Poinsett, Secretary of War
TITLE: Joel Roberts Poinsett, Secretary of War CALL NUMBER: PGA – Fenderich, no. 182 (B size) [P&P] REPRODUCTION NUMBER: LC-USZ62-23834 (b&w film copy neg.) RIGHTS INFORMATION: No known restrictions on publication. MEDIUM: 1 print. CREATED/PUBLISHED: [no date recorded on shelflist card]
wiki/Joel_Roberts_Poinsett
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(1851) Politician and diplomat Joel Poinsett dies.
Also on this day,

1925 | World’s first motel opens in San Luis Obispo, California
Arthur Heineman opens the Motel Inn in a town midway between Los Angeles and San Francisco. As people began driving longer distances, Heineman sought to offer travelers a spot for the night beyond camping. Now, they could drive up to his “motor hotel” or “motel” and sleep in comfort.
1980 | Armand Hammer buys Da Vinci notebook for $5 million
At an auction in London, the oil tycoon outbids the room for a Leonardo da Vinci notebook, from around 1508, that contains notes and drawings about water and its properties. In 1994, the notebook will be on the block again, but this time it’ll go for $30.8 million.
2003 | Keiko, the orca star of ‘Free Willy,’ dies in Norwegian fjord
After a $20 million project to reintroduce him to the wild, Keiko succumbs to pneumonia off the coast of Norway. In captivity since he was a pup, Keiko never reintegrated with wild orca pods and continued to seek out human contact during his year and a half in the open ocean.

Today in History 12/12/17

This photo from 1942, provided by Boys Town, shows Boys Town founder Father Edward Flanagan, center, being surrounded by his charges (© Boys Town/AP)(1917) Father Edward Flanagan establishes Boys Town near Omaha
The 31-year-old Irish priest opens the doors to a Victorian mansion as a home for troubled boys. He starts out with just six kids, but numbers will quickly grow. Thanks to help from local citizens, Flanagan will move the home to a large facility outside of Omaha to serve more children.
Boys Town, formerly Girls and Boys Town and Father Flanagan's Boys' Home, is a non-profit organization dedicated to caring for its children and families, with national headquarters in the village of Boys Town, Nebraska. The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was designated as a National Historic Landmark on February 4, 1985.
Founder: Edward J. Flanagan
Address: 14100 Crawford Street, Boys Town, NE 68010
Phone: (402) 498-1141
Opened: 1917
Tax ID: 47-0376606
CEO: Steven E. Boes (Since 2005)

Boys Town NFS
Nebraska Family Services building in "Boys Town", Nebraska, just outside Omaha. AKA Father Flanagan's Boys' Home , W. Dodge Rd., Boys Town, Nebraska. This is the general place that the movieBoys Town was based on. A National Registered Historic Place and National Historic Landmark.

wiki/Boys_Town_(organization)
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Today in History 12/08 (World War II)

President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the declaration of war at the White House in Washington, DC, December 8, 1941 (© AP)(1941) US declares war on Japan a day after Pearl Harbor attack
In one of the most stirring speeches of his presidency, Franklin Roosevelt asks Congress to declare war and calls the day of the Pearl Harbor attack, “a date which will live in infamy.” The House soon approves the war declaration, while Japan’s allies, Germany and Italy, will then declare war on the US, bringing the US into WWII.
On December 8, 1941, the United States Congress declared war on the Empire of Japan in response to that country’s surprise attack on Pearl Harbor the prior day. It was formulated an hour after the Infamy Speech of US President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Japan had sent a message to the United States to its embassy in Washington earlier, but because of problems at the embassy in decoding the very long message – the high-security level assigned to the declaration meant that only personnel with very high clearances could decode it, which slowed down the process – it was not delivered to the U.S. Secretary of State until after the Pearl Harbor attack. Following the U.S. declaration, Japan’s allies, Germany and Italy, declared war on the United States, bringing the United States fully into World War II.
United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt signing the declaration of war against Japan, in the wake of the attack on Pearl Harbor
President Roosevelt, wearing a black armband, signs the Declaration of War on Japan on December 8, 1941
wiki/United_States_declaration_of_war_on_Japan
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(1941) US declares war on Japan a day after Pearl Harbor attack.
Also on this day,

1980 | John Lennon is murdered by crazed fan in New York City
Ex-Beatle John Lennon, 40, is shot four times at close range by Mark David Chapman as the singer walks to his apartment with his wife, Yoko Ono. Hundreds of fans will keep vigil for a week at the scene of the shooting, and on what would have been Lennon’s 45th birthday, Ono will dedicate a memorial in the park.
1991 | Bergalis who contracted AIDS from her dentist dies at 23
Kimberly Bergalis is one of six patients who likely contracted AIDS from a Florida dentist and represents the first known case of a person contracting the disease from a health care worker. During her battle with the disease, Bergalis called for mandatory AIDS testing of health care workers, prompting intense public debate.
1993 | President Clinton signs NAFTA into law
The North America Free Trade Agreement between the US, Canada, and Mexico eliminates tariffs and other barriers to trade among these “most favored nations.” NAFTA will be blamed by some Americans for losing US jobs to Mexico, but will be wildly successful in reducing costs on goods.

Today in History 12/08/17

President Clinton discusses the North American Free Trade Agreement ( NAFTA ) November 15, 1993, at the Museum of American History in Washington, DC (© Win McNamee/Reuters)(1993) President Clinton signs NAFTA into law
The North America Free Trade Agreement between the US, Canada, and Mexico eliminates tariffs and other barriers to trade among these "most favored nations." NAFTA will be blamed by some Americans for losing US jobs to Mexico, but will be wildly successful in reducing costs on goods.
The North American Free Trade Agreement is an agreement signed by Canada, Mexico, and the United States, creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The agreement came into force on January 1, 1994. It superseded the Canada–United States Free Trade Agreement between the U.S. and Canada.
Founded: Jan 01, 1994
Founder: George H. W. Bush

NAFTA Initialing Ceremony
Back row, left to right: Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gortari, U.S. President George H. W. Bush, and Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, at the initialing of the draft North American Free Trade Agreement in October 1992. In front are Mexican Secretary of Commerce and Industrial Development Jaime Serra Puche, United States Trade Representative Carla Hills, and Canadian Minister of International Trade Michael Wilson.
wiki/North_American_Free_Trade_Agreement
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