A Brief History
This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on December 17th. For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event.
Digging Deeper
On December 17, 497 BC, the Romans celebrated their Pagan holiday, Saturnalia, a celebration honoring their god of agriculture (and a bunch of other things) with partying and sacrifice.
On December 17, 1862, the stormy history of civil rights in United States was once again shamefully marred when Major General Ulysses S. Grant, future President of the United States, issued his infamous General Order No. 11 which expelled all Jews from Tennessee, Kentucky and Mississippi, the states in the military district he commanded.
On December 17, 1947, the Boeing B-47 Stratojet made its first flight.
On December 17, 1969, the U.S. Air Force shut down Project Blue Book, its investigation of UFOs.
On December 17, 1989, The Simpsons premiered on American television with their first episode, “Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire.”
On December 17, 2003, the 100th anniversary of the first powered flight of a human piloted aircraft flown by Orville Wright was marked by another aviation first, that being the first supersonic flight by a human piloted aircraft that was built by a private company when SpaceShipOne, piloted by Brian Binnie achieved Mach 1.2 in a rocket powered test flight to a lofty altitude of 20.67 kilometers (almost 68,000 feet).
On December 17, 2009, a large but largely rusted tub of a ship, the MV Danny F II, sunk off the coast of Lebanon taking with her 44 humans (accounts vary with numbers of people from 39 to 47 rescued) and (as far as we can determine) a record amount of domestic animals.
On December 17, 2014, in a surprise move that most people (except perhaps the most hard-core haters of Castro) see as long overdue, President Obama announced that a deal had been brokered by the Vatican between the U.S. and Cuba to begin the process of normalizing relations.
On December 17, 2017, Orthodox Christians celebrated the Feast of Daniel, a recognized prophet in Christianity, a recognized nabi in Islam (saintly or righteous man), and although Judaism does not consider Daniel a prophet, it does accord him status as a legendary example of a pious and good man.
On December 17, 2021, former police officer Kimberly Potter took the witness stand in her own defense at her trial for first-degree manslaughter (among other charges) for shooting Daunte Wright during an attempt to arrest him.
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Andrews, John and Matt Baker. Timeline of World History. Thunder Bay Press, 2020.
You can also watch video versions of this article on YouTube.