Lorenzo de' Medici was born on this day in 1449. / On this day in 1818, Mary Shelley's debut novel, "Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus," was first published.

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The ship carrying Theodosia Burr Alston disappeared on this day in 1812. / On this day in 1953, Democrat, Tammany Hall operative, and civil rights advocate Hulan Jack was sworn in as the borough president of Manhattan.

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The Iroquois Theater in Chicago burned on this day in 1903. / On this day in 1924, Edwin Hubble published his observations on the existence of other galaxies for review at an upcoming meeting of the American Astronomical Society.

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A group of Lakota Sioux were surrounded and a tragic firefight erupted on this day in 1890. / On this day in 1996, the Guatemalan Civil War ended when the Guatemalan president and the Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity signed peace accords.

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Auguste and Louis Lumière charged 1 franc admission to see several of their films on this day in 1895. / On this day in 1903, jazz musician Earl Hines, considered by many to be the father of modern jazz piano, was born.

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Carry Nation destroyed the Carey Hotel's bar as a Temperance protest on this day in 1900. / On this day in 1512, the Laws of Burgos, a set of laws regulating the relationship between Spaniards and indigenous people in the Americas, were promulgated in Burgos, Crown of Castile.

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The pan-African holiday Kwanzaa, created by Maulana Karenga, was celebrated for the first time beginning this day in 1966. / On this day in 1867, Scottish mathematician and scientist Mary Somerville was born.

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The comet that Edmond Halley had calculated to return appeared as in the night sky as predicted on this day in 1758. / On this day in 1831, the Baptist War, also known as the Christmas Rebellion, began in Jamaica.

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Joseph Mohr and Franz Gruber performed "Stille Nacht" for the first time at a Christmas Eve mass in Austria on this day in 1818. / On this day in 1826, rowdy cadets at West Point incited a drunken riot known as the Eggnog Riot.

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Richard Herrick received a kidney from his twin brother on this day in 1954. / On this day in 1972, survivors who were stranded in the Andes Mountains after their flight crashed were rescued.

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