Today in History - December 9th

1608 - On this day in history, English poet John Milton was born in London.
1793 - Noah Webster established NY's first daily newspaper: American Minerva.
1851 - Today in history, first YMCA: The Young Men's Christian Association in North America (Montreal) was established.
1854 - Alfred Lord Tennyson's poem, "The Charge of the Light Brigade," was published in England.
1861 - On this day in history, in the American Civil War: The Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War was established by the U.S. Congress.
1878 - Joseph Pulitzer bought The Saint Louis Dispatch for $2,500.
1879 - Today in history, Thomas Edison organized the Edison Ore Milling Company.
1892 - In London, "Widowers' Houses," George Bernard Shaw's first play, opened at the Royalty Theater.
1905 - On this day in history, in France, the law separating church and state was passed.
1940 - The Longines Watch Company signed for the first FM radio advertising contract with experimental station W2XOR in New York City.

1958 - Today in history, in Indianapolis, IN, Robert H.W. Welch Jr. and 11 other men met to form the anti-Communist John Birch Societ
1985 - In Argentina, five former military junta members received sentences in prison for their roles in the "dirty war" in which nearly 9,000 people had "disappeared."
1990 - On this day in history, the first American hostages to be released by Iraq began arriving in the US.
1991 - European Community leaders agreed to begin using a single currency in 1999.
1992 - Britain's Prince Charles and Princess Diana announced their separation.
1993 - Today in history, astronauts aboard the space shuttle Endeavor completed repairs to the Hubble Space Telescope.

SCIENCE, INVENTIONS, PATENTS - Today in History, December 9th

1884 - Levant M. Richardson received a patent for the ball-bearing roller skate.
1960 - On this day in history, Sperry Rand Corporation unveiled a new computer, known as "Univac 1107."
1993 - At Princeton University, scientists produced a controlled fusion reaction equivalent to 3 million watts.

1963 - Today in history, the first Supremes album, "Meet the Supremes," was released.
1967 - Jim Morrison was arrested onstage in New Haven, CT, and charged with breach of peace and resisting arrest.
1968 - On this day in history, The Supremes' and the Temptations' "TCB (Takin' Care of Business") special aired on NBC-TV.
1972 - Elton John's "Crocodile Rock" was released.
1974 - Today in history, George Harrison released his first album on his Dark Horse label, entitled "Dark Horse."
1978 - "Soul Man," John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd's version, was released under the name, "The Blues Brothers."
1984 - On this day in history, The Jacksons played their last show together in Los Angeles, CA.
1995 - "Free as a Bird" debuted on a six-hour ABC documentary on the Beatles. It was their first new song in 25 years.

1978 - Today in history, the first game of the Women's Pro Basketball League (WBL) was played between the Chicago Hustle and the Milwaukee Does.