Today in history: Dec. 14
In 2012, a gunman with a semi-automatic rifle killed 20 first-graders and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, and more events that happened on this day in history.
1799: George Washington
In 1799, the first president of the United States, George Washington, died at his Mount Vernon, Virginia, home at age 67.
1961: Greeley, Colorado
In 1961, a school bus was hit by a passenger train at a crossing near Greeley, Colorado, killing 20 students.
1981: Golan Heights
In 1981, Israel annexed the Golan Heights, which it had seized from Syria in 1967.
1985: Roger Maris
In 1985, former New York Yankees outfielder Roger Maris, who’d hit 61 home runs during the 1961 season, died in Houston at age 51.
1986: Voyager
In 1986, the experimental aircraft Voyager, piloted by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager, took off from Edwards Air Force Base in California on the first non-stop, non-refueled flight around the world.
2012: Sandy Hook
In 2012, a gunman with a semi-automatic rifle killed 20 first-graders and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, then took his own life as police arrived; the 20-year-old had also fatally shot his mother at their home before carrying out the attack on the school.
2020: Joe Biden
In 2020, the Electoral College decisively confirmed Joe Biden as the nation’s next president, ratifying his November victory in a state-by-state repudiation of President Donald Trump’s refusal to concede he had lost; electors gave Biden 306 votes to Trump’s 232.
2020: Vaccinations
One year ago: The largest vaccination campaign in U.S. history began with health workers getting shots on the same day the nation’s COVID-19 death toll hit 300,000.
2021: Phillip Adams
In 2021, authorities in South Carolina said an autopsy found unusually severe brain disease in the frontal lobe of Phillip Adams, a former NFL player accused of fatally shooting six people in South Carolina before killing himself in April.
2021: Stephen Curry
In 2021, Stephen Curry set a new NBA career 3-point record; the Golden State Warriors’ guard hit his 2,974th 3-point shot against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
Today's other top stories include Hunter Biden defying a GOP congressional subpoena, a new poll showing Americans' attitudes about a potential Trump vs. Biden rematch, and more. Get caught up.
A Turkish opposition lawmaker and member of parliament from the Islamist Felicity Party died days after collapsing at the lectern following a fiery speech against Israel.
Israel's defense minister said Thursday it will take months to destroy Hamas, predicting a drawn-out war even as his country and its top ally, the United States, face increasing international isolation and alarm over the devastation from the campaign in Gaza.