A Brief History
This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on December 18th. For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event.
Digging Deeper
On December 18, 1898, French race car driver Gaston de Chassaloup-Laubat set the first recognized World Record for Land Speed at an unimpressive 63.13 kilometers per hour (39.25 mph).
On December 18, 1912, Charles Dawson announced the discovery of the prehistoric missing link between ape and man!
On December 18, 1932, the first NFL Championship game was played, between the Chicago Bears and the Portsmouth (Ohio) Spartans.
On December 18, 1932, the first National Football League (NFL) championship football game ever was played between the Chicago Bears and the Portsmouth Spartans.
On December 18, 1981, the Soviet Union put into flight the largest combat airplane ever made, the Tupolev Tu-160 Blackjack heavy bomber.
On December 18, 1982, arguably the greatest combat pilot in German military history died of a stroke in Rosenheim, Bavaria, West Germany.
On December 18, 1982, arguably the greatest combat pilot in German military history died of a stroke in Rosenheim, Bavaria, West Germany. (NOTE: The link in the date for this entry leads to a different article than the other mention to this same event above.)
On December 18, 1995, a Lockheed L-188 Electra airliner driven by four large turboprop engines crashed in Angola, leaving 141 of the 144 people aboard dead.
Science fiction dramedy fans had their chance to be among the first in Cleveland to see Downsizing on Monday, December 18, 2017 at 7:00 PM at Cedar Lee Theatre in Cleveland Heights, Ohio!
On December 18, 2019, with winter upon us, it seemed as if it was only getting colder with each passing year!
On December 18, 2019, with the year soon coming to an end and the holidays approaching, many were starting to think about the New Year.
Question for students (and subscribers) to ponder: Which event that occurred on today’s date would you like to learn more about?
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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.