SANDY KOZEL

On this day in 1776, Gen. George Washington and his troops crossed
the Delaware River for a surprise attack against Hessian forces at
Trenton, NJ.

At The Battle of Trenton, after a brief struggle, nearly the entire
Hessian force was captured, with negligible losses to American
forces.

The above historical marker is near the very spot the Continental
Army soldiers under George Washington’s command would have disembarked from their boats to begin their march to Trenton.

"Silent Night" was performed for the first time, at the Church of St. Nikolaus (above) in Oberndorff, Austria on this day in 1818.

Shown above is the only surviving autograph of the song by Joseph Mohr (below).

Josephus Franciscus Mohr
(December 11, 1792 – December 4, 1848)

Josephus Mohr was an Austrian Roman Catholic
priest and lyricist.  He wrote the lyrics of the
Christmas carol (English: ‘Silent Night’).

SANDY KOZEL

Apollo 8 astronauts, James A. Lovell, William Anders and Frank 
Borman, reached the moon on this day in 1968. They orbited the 
moon 10 times before coming back to Earth. Seven months later 
man first landed on the moon.

Apollo 8 crew members (from left) James A. Lovell Jr., William A.
Anders and Frank Borman.

Ad appeared in the “Ladies’ Home  Journal,” December, 1956.

The Cracker Jack name was registered in 1896. A slogan, "The More You Eat
The More You Want", was also registered that year. Some food historians
consider it the first junk food.

   
Sailor Jack and Bingo.

    
Don’t forget the Surprise Inside.

ROSS SIMPSON

The poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas" by Clement C. Moore (" ‘Twas
the night before Christmas…") was published on this day in 1823.

The Ives Manufacturing Corporation made toy trains from 1868 to
1932.  For decades, Ives made clockwork trains, but created its
first electric train in 1910.