The forgotten stories of December 24 in history

In this video, we're going to take a look at some of the forgotten stories of December 24 in history. These stories show us what happened on the day that has become known as Christmas.

December 24 is a busy day with lots of holiday traditions. In this video, we'll take a look at some of the forgotten stories of December 24 and see what happened on this special day in history. From Santa Claus to the Krampus, December 24 is full of happy (and sometimes scary) traditions and events!

1651 Jan van Riebeeck departs for Cape of Good Hope to found 1st permanent European settlement
1777 James Cook is first European to visit Kiritimati, also called Christmas Island
1799 Jacobin plot against Napoleon uncovered
1814 Treaty of Ghent signed, ending the War of 1812 between the United States, the United Kingdom and their allies
1818 Christmas carol "Silent Night" composed by Franz Xaver Gruber is first sung at St Nicholas parish church in Oberndorf, Austria
1832 1st US Negro hospital founded by whites chartered, Savannah, Georgia
1851 Fire devastates US Library of Congress in Washington, destroys 35,000 volumes
1865 Several Confederate veterans form the Kl—n in Pulaski, Tennessee
1877 Thomas Edison files for a patent for the cylinder phonograph
1889 Daniel Stover & William Hance patent bicycle with back pedal brake
1893 Henry Ford completes his first useful petrol / gasoline fueled engine
1901 Private companies allowed to use the word "postcard" in the US. Previously they were labelled "Private Mailing Cards" and known as "souvenir cards”.
1906 Reginald Fessenden becomes 1st to broadcast music over radio (disputed)
1912 Irving Fisher patents archiving system with index cards
1935 National Council of Negro Women forms
1936 1st radioactive isotope medicine administered in Berkeley, California
1941 First ships of admiral Nagumo's Pearl Harbor fleet return to Japan
1942 First powered flight of V-1 'buzz bomb', Peenemunde, Germany
1943 US President FDR appoints General Eisenhower Supreme Commander of the Allied forces
1948 First US completely solar heated house is occupied (Dover, Mass)
1956 "I Love Lucy" Christmas show airs, never put in syndication
1966 Soviet spacecraft Luna 13 lands on Moon
1968 Apollo 8 astronauts read passages from Book of Genesis
1973 District of Columbia Home Rule Act is passed, allowing residents of Washington, D.C. to elect their own local government.
1974 Former US astronaut John Glenn joins the US Senate representing Ohio
1980 Americans remembered Iran hostages by shining lights for 417 seconds
1989 Panama's dictator, Manual Noriega, seeks asylum at Vatican embassy
1992 US President George Bush issues a pardon to former National Security Advisor Robert McFarlane and Caspar Weinberger for their roles in the Iran-Contra Affair
2001 "Time Magazine" names New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani 'Person of the Year', for leadership after 9/11 attacks