December 31st

• 1744

  James Bradley announces discovery of Earth's nutation motion.

• 1879

  Edison demonstrates his incandescent lamp publicly for the first time.

• 1897

  Brooklyn's last day as a city before incorporating into NYC. View Post →

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• 1907

  First ball drop at Times Square to signal the New Year.

• 1935

  Charles Darrow patents Monopoly, becoming the first millionaire game designer.

• 1961

  Marshall Plan expires after distributing more than $12 billion.

• 1961

  The Beach Boys play their debut gig under that name.

• 1967

  Evel Knievel fails to jump the Caesar's Palace Fountain, suffers severe injuries.

• 1968

  First flight of the Russian TU-144, the first supersonic airliner.

• 2005

  Jamie Dimon named CEO of JPMorgan Chase.

• 2009

  Blue Moon and lunar eclipse occur on the same day.

• 1909

  Manhattan Bridge opens to traffic in New York City.

• 1695

  Window tax imposed in Britain, leading to many windows being bricked up.

• 1974

  Private US citizens allowed to buy and own gold for the first time in over 40 years.

• 1999

  Sarah Knauss, world's oldest person, dies at the age of 119.

• 1999

  Panama Canal turned over to Panama.

• 1999

  Vladimir Putin becomes acting president of Russia.