Mrs. Emilie Todd Helm, Mary Lincoln’s half sister.

President Abraham Lincoln announced a grant of amnesty for
Emilie Todd Helm (above), his wife Mary Lincoln’s half sister
and the widow of a Confederate general. The pardon was one
of the first under Lincoln’s Proclamation of Amnesty and
Reconstruction, which he had announced less than a week
before. The plan was Lincoln’s blueprint for the reintegration
of the South into the Union. Part of the plan allowed for former
Confederates to be granted amnesty if they took an oath to the
United States. The option was open to all but the highest
officials of the Confederacy.

Vice President Al Gore (above) conceded defeat to George W. Bush
in his bid for the presidency, following weeks of legal battles over
the recounting of votes in Florida, on December 13, 2000.     

In a televised speech from his ceremonial office next to the White
House, Gore said that while he was deeply disappointed and
sharply disagreed with the Supreme Court verdict that ended
his campaign, ”partisan rancor must now be put aside.”

“I accept the finality of the outcome, which will be ratified next
Monday in the Electoral College” he said. “And tonight, for the
sake of our unity as a people and the strength of our democracy,
I offer my concession.”

Gore had won the national popular vote by more than 500,000
votes, but narrowly lost Florida, giving the Electoral College to
Bush 271 to 266.

George W. Bush (left) shakes hands with Al Gore.

CAMILLE BOHANNON

John Winston Ono Lennon (John Winston Lennon)
(October 9, 1940 – December 8, 1980)

Three days after his assassination in Dallas, Texas, John F.
Kennedy was laid to rest with full military honors at Arlington
National Cemetery in Virginia.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963)

CBS newscaster Walter Cronkite announces the death of President
John F. Kennedy.