This Day In History

Famed American conductor Arthur Fiedler was born on December 17, 1894, in Boston, Massachusetts. Best known for his long leadership of the Boston Pops Orchestra, Fiedler transformed classical music from a formal concert hall tradition into an experience enjoyed by millions. Through radio broadcasts, recordings, and outdoor performances, he helped make orchestral music accessible, entertaining, and deeply popular in American culture.

Anthropologist Margaret Mead was born on December 16, 1901, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She would go on to become one of the most influential and recognizable social scientists of the 20th century, known for bringing the study of culture and human behavior to a wide public audience.

On December 15, 1864, Union forces launched the decisive Battle of Nashville, delivering one of the most crushing Union victories of the Civil War. The battle ended the last major Confederate offensive in the West and broke the already-weakened Army of Tennessee beyond repair.

Margaret Madeline Chase Smith was born on December 14, 1897, in Skowhegan, Maine. A trailblazing legislator, she was the first woman to serve in both houses of Congress and was one of the longest-serving female US senators.

On December 1, 1921, the US Post Office Department opened its Philatelic Agency in Washington, DC, to the benefit of stamp collectors. It became a valuable resource for stamp information and fulfilled requests for stamps – and was sometimes the only place to get certain issues!

In the midst of World War I, a major change quietly began in the United States Postal Service: for the first time, women were seriously tested as city letter carriers. On November 23, 1917, First Assistant Postmaster General John C. Koons issued a call to the postmasters of eight of the largest US post offices to run 15-day trials of women serving as letter carriers in the city.  This experiment was described as a potential wartime necessity, because many men were off fighting, and extra postal workers were already needed to handle the heavy Christmas mail in December.

On October 27, 1948, the US Post Office issued a stamp honoring the 50th anniversary of the Theodore Roosevelt’s Rough Riders.

After just eighteen months of daring rides across the American frontier, the Pony Express ceased operations on October 26, 1861. Though short-lived, it became one of the most legendary chapters in the history of the American West.

On December 18, 1787, New Jersey became the third state to ratify the Constitution and join the Union.

On December 18, 1892, Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker premiered in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Despite initial poor reviews, today it’s a holiday staple for millions.

Today, December 18, 2022, marks the first night of Hanukkah.  Hanukkah or the Jewish Festival of Lights, as it is sometimes called, begins on the 25th of the Hebrew month Kislev and lasts for eight days.

Composer Edward Alexander MacDowell was born on December 18, 1860, in New York City. He composed several notable works and was one of the first people inducted into the American Academy of Arts and letters.