Day In History: December 2

1763 – Dedication of the Touro Synagogue, in Newport, Rhode Island, the first synagogue in what will become the United States.1804 – At Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, Napoleon Bonaparte crowns himself Emperor of the French, the first French Emperor in a thousand years.1823 – Monroe Doctrine: In a State of the Union message, U.S. President James Monroe proclaims American neutrality in future European conflicts, and warns European powers not to interfere in the Americas.

1845 – Manifest Destiny: In a State of the Union message, U.S. President James K. Polk proposes that the United States should aggressively expand into the West.

1859 – Militant abolitionist leader John Brown is hanged for his October 16th raid on Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.

1930 – Great Depression: In a State of the Union message, U.S. President Herbert Hoover proposes a US$150 million public works program to help generate jobs and stimulate the economy.

1939 – New York City’s La Guardia Airport opens.

1942 – World War II: During the Manhattan Project, a team led by Enrico Fermi initiates the first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction.

1947 – Jerusalem Riots of 1947: Riots break out in Jerusalem in response to the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine.

1954 – Cold War: The United States Senate votes 65 to 22 to censure Joseph McCarthy for “conduct that tends to bring the Senate into dishonor and disrepute”.

1956 – The Granma reaches the shores of Cuba’s Oriente province. Fidel Castro, Che Guevara and 80 other members of the 26th of July Movement disembark to initiate the Cuban Revolution.

1961 – In a nationally broadcast speech, Cuban leader Fidel Castro declares that he is a Marxist-Leninist and that Cuba is going to adopt Communism.

1969 – Black Women Inventors: Marie V. Brittan Brown designed a “Home Security System with Television Surveillance” for the homeowner to view the visitor on a television screen and the visitor also able to view a screen. The homeowner could open the door via a manual lock mechanism. Patent No. 3,482,037 December 2, 1969

1970 – The United States Environmental Protection Agency begins operations.1971 – Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Fujairah, Sharjah, Dubai, and Umm Al Quwain form the United Arab Emirates.1975 – The Pathet Lao seizes the Laotian capital of Vientiane, forces the abdication of King Sisavang Vatthana, and proclaims the Lao People’s Democratic Republic.

1976 – Fidel Castro becomes President of Cuba, replacing Osvaldo Dorticós Torrado.

1980 – Salvadoran Civil War: Four U.S. nuns and churchwomen, Ita Ford, Maura Clarke, Jean Donovan, and Dorothy Kazel, are murdered by a military death squad.

1982 – At the University of Utah, Barney Clark becomes the first person to receive a permanent artificial heart.

1988 – Benazir Bhutto is sworn in as Prime Minister of Pakistan, becoming the first woman to head the government of an Islam-dominated state.

1992 – Maya Angelou is asked to compose a poem for the inauguration of President Bill Clinton

1993 – Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar is shot and killed in Medellín.

1999 – The United Kingdom devolves political power in Northern Ireland to the Northern Ireland Executive.

2001 – Enron files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

2009 – Court documents filed in Boston say Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has agreed to pay $40 million to 87,500 Massachusetts employees who claimed the retailer denied them rest and meal breaks, manipulated time cards and refused to pay overtime

Births1825 – Charles Wesley, historian, educator, and administrator, was born on this day. His published works included, Neglected History, Collapse of the Confederacy, Negro Labor in the United States, and 1850-1925: A Study of American Economic History.1859 – Georges Seurat, French painter (d. 1891)

1891 – Otto Dix, German painter and illustrator (d. 1969)

1923 – Maria Callas, Greek soprano (d. 1977)

1924 – Alexander Haig, American general and diplomat, 59th United States Secretary of State (d. 2010)

1931 – Wynton Kelly, Jamaican-American pianist (d. 1971)

1946 – Gianni Versace, Italian fashion designer, founded Versace (d. 1997)

1950 – Paul Watson, Canadian activist, founder of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society

1968 – Lucy Liu, American actress and producer

1978 – Nelly Furtado, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer

1981 – Britney Spears, American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress