History for December 13

History for December 13 - On-This-Day.com
Dick Van Dyke 1925 - Actor, comedian, Christopher Plummer 1929 - Actor, John Davidson 1941 - Singer, actor, game show host ("That's Incredible," "Hollywood Squares") 


Ted Nugent 1948 - Musician, Steve Buscemi 1957 - Actor, Taylor Swift 1989 - Singer, songwriter 



1577 - Five ships under the command of Sir Francis Drake left Plymouth, England, to embark on Drake's circumnavigation of the globe. The journey took almost three years. 


1636 - The United States National Guard was created when militia regiments were organized by the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. 


1809 - The first abdominal surgical procedure was performed in Danville, KY, on Jane Todd Crawford. The operation was performed without an anesthetic. 


1862 - In America, an estimated 11,000 Northern soldiers were killed or wounded when Union forces were defeated by Confederates under General Robert E. Lee, at the Battle of Fredericksburg. 


1913 - The Federal Reserve System was established. 


1937 - Japanese forces took the Chinese city of Nanking (Nanjing). An estimated 200,000 Chinese were killed over the next six weeks. The event became known as the "Rape of Nanking." 


1978 - The Philadelphia Mint began stamping the Susan B. Anthony U.S. dollar. The coin began circulation the following July. 


1988 - A bankruptcy judge in Columbia, SC, ordered the assets of the troubled PTL television ministry sold to a Toronto real estate developer for $65 million.