Good morning.

Christmas Eve brings a high of twenty-nine, and a thirty percent chance of snow in the afternoon, to Whitewater.

On this day in 1923, Pres. Coolidge lights the first national Christmas tree:

…President Calvin Coolidge touches a button and lights up the first national Christmas tree to grace the White House grounds.

Not only was this the first White House “community” Christmas tree, but it was the first to be decorated with electric lights–a strand of 2,500 red, white and green bulbs. The balsam fir came from Coolidge’s home state of Vermont and stood 48 feet tall. Several musical groups performed at the tree-lighting ceremony, including the Epiphany Church choir and the U.S. Marine Band. Later that evening, President Coolidge and first lady Grace were treated to carols sung by members of Washington D.C.’s First Congregational Church.

According to the White House Historical Association, President Benjamin Harrison was the first president to set up an indoor Christmas tree for his family and visitors to enjoy in 1889. It was decorated with ornaments and candles. In 1929, first lady Lou Henry Hoover oversaw what would become an annual tradition of decorating the indoor White House tree. Since then, each first lady’s duties have included the trimming of the official White House tree.

Coolidge’s “inauguration” of the first outdoor national Christmas tree initiated a tradition that has been repeated with every administration. In 1981, PresidentRonald Reagan began another custom by authorizing the first official White House ornament, copies of which were made available for purchase.

In Wisconsin history on 12.24.1814,

1814 – War of 1812 Ends
On this date the Treaty of Ghent was signed, ending the the War of 1812 which was fought between the United States and Great Britain from June 1812 to the spring of 1815 (news of the treaty took several months to reach the frontiers of No. America). The treaty provided for the cessation of hostilities, the restoration of conquests, and a commission to settle boundary disputes. John Quincy Adams served as the chief negotiator for the United States. The treaty formalized U.S. possession of land which included present-day Wisconsin. [Source: The Avalon Project at Yale Law School]

Google has out a sports question today, with a metric flavor: “What was the maximum weight (kg) in the men’s middleweight class for the 2012 Olympic Games?”

Good morning.

Sunday in the Whippet City will grow increasingly cloudy, with a high of twenty-five.

On this day in 1986, an aviation milestone:  “On Dec. 23, 1986, the experimental airplane Voyager, piloted by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager, completed the first non-stop, around-the-world flight without refueling as it landed safely at Edwards Air Force Base in California.”

On this day in 1865, Wisconsin soliders return home, their defense of the Union having been successfully accomplished:

1865 – (Civil War) The 13th Wisconsin Infantry returns home
The 13th Wisconsin Infantry returned home to Madison to be discharged. During its service it had moved through Missouri, Kentucky, Alabama, and Tennessee. The regiment lost 193 men during service. Five enlisted men were killed and 188 enlisted men died from disease.

Google-a-Day asks a question of military history and academic performance: “What was the class rank upon graduation from West Point of the man who, until his dispute with the president, was commander of the U.N. troops in Korea?”

Good morning.

It’s a sunny Saturday with a high of twenty-seven for Whitewater. We will have 9h 1m of sunlight and 10h 6m of daylight. Tomorrow’s daylight will be about one minute longer.

On this day in 1864, a Christmas gift for Pres. Lincoln, from Generals Sherman and Scott:

The dispatches of Gen. Sherman and Gen. Foster are as follows:

Savannah, Ga., Dec. 22.

To His Excellency, President Lincoln:

I beg to present you as a Christmas gift, the city of Savannah, with one hundred and fifty heavy guns and plenty of ammunition, and also about twenty-five thousand bales of cotton.

(Signed.) W. T. Sherman, Major-General

Steamer Golden Gate,

Savannah River, 7 P.M., Thursday, Dec. 22.

To Lieutenant-General Grant and Major-General H. W. Halleck:

I have the honor to report that I have just returned from General Sherman’s headquarters in Savannah.

I send Major Gray of my staff as bearer of dispatches from General Sherman to you, and also a message to the President.

The city of Savannah was occupied on the morning of the 21st. Gen. Hardee, anticipating the contemplated assault, escaped with the main body of his infantry and light artillery, on the morning of the 20th, by crossing the river to Union Causeway, opposite the city. The rebel iron- clads were blown up, and the Navy-yard was burned. All the rest of the city is intact, and contains twenty thousand citizens, quiet and well-disposed.

The captures includes eight hundred prisoners, one hundred and fifty guns, thirteen locomotives in good order, one hundred and ninety cars, a large supply of ammunition and materials of war, three steamers and thirty-three thousand bales of cotton safely stowed in warehouses.

All these valuable fruits of an almost bloodless victory have been, like Atlanta, fairly won.

I opened communication with the city with my steamers to-day, taking up what torpedoes we could see, and passing safely over others. Arrangements are made to clear the channel of all obstructions. Yours, & c.,

(Signed.) J. G. Foster, Major-General.

Over at the Washington Post, you’ll find an extraordinary 3.8 billion pixel composite photo of Mount Everest. The paper has a link to a panoramic image with gigapixel navigation. (The small orange flecks you’ll notice on the initial view are, in fact, easily-visible encampments for would-be summiteers when one magnifies the image.)

In Wisconsin history on 12.22.1862, Woof-Woof was born:

1862 – Wisconsin Governor Walter Goodland Born
On this date Governor Goodland was born. Goodland had a long and successful career editing and publishing various newspapers in Michigan and Wisconsin, including the Racine Times. Newspaper reporters dubbed him “Woof-Woof” due to his deep, rumbling voice. Twice widowed, Goodland eventually married his secretary, Madge Roche Risney Goodland (also widowed).

After retiring from the newspaper business, Goodland decided to run for lieutenant governor under Progressive Orland Loomis. Loomis died before inauguration, giving the office to Goodland. Goodland, a Republican, proceeded to win the governorship in 1944 and 1946. He died in the old executive residence on March 12, 1947 at the age of 84, being the oldest governor in office in any state. [Source: First Ladies of Wisconsin, The Governors’ Wives by Nancy G. Williams]

Google offers a daily question of science and industry: “Who founded the company named for the man who invented vulcanized rubber?”

Good morning.

Friday brings a day of blowing snow and a high of twenty-four to Whitewater.

On this day in 1968, America launched the first manned mission to another world:

Apollo 8, the first manned mission to the moon, is successfully launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, with astronauts Frank Borman, James Lovell, Jr., and William Anders aboard.

On Christmas Eve, the astronauts entered into orbit around the moon, the first manned spacecraft ever to do so. During Apollo 8‘s 10 lunar orbits, television images were sent back home, and spectacular photos were taken of Earth and the moon from the spacecraft. In addition to being the first human beings to view firsthand their home world in its entirety, the three astronauts were also the first to see the dark side of the moon.

On Christmas morning, Apollo 8 left its lunar orbit and began its journey back to Earth, landing safely in the Pacific Ocean on December 27. On July 20 of the next year, Neil A. Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, astronauts of the Apollo 11mission, became the first men to walk on the moon.

Orbiting alone was a huge accomplishment. Here’s their Christmas message while in orbit, with the moon visible from the capsule:

Google’s daily puzzle asks about art: “Which of Ivan Albright’s paintings features a panel that can be seen as both an opening and a final closure, accented with a bouquet of flowers?”

Good morning.

It’s rain and snow for Whitewater today, with about two inches of snow accumulating during the day, and another one or two inches overnight. We are a winter state, and a snowfall like this is typical for us.

Judging from snow that’s already on the ground, we have an answer to a recent Friday poll question about when we’d have our first inch of accumulated snow.   It was yesterday, December 19th.  (I was too late with my prediction, of December 23rd.)

On this day in 1989, U.S. troops launched a campaign to topple Pamana’s dictator, Manuel Noriega, from power.

Beginning in 1941, after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites enlisted and served in the SEcond World War:

1941 – Wisconsin Soldiers Enlist, 1941-1945

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, thousands of Wisconsin citizens volunteered to fight. Roughly 320,000 Wisconsin soldiers served in the armed forces during the WWII, including more than 9,000 women. Wisconsin’s National Guard formed a substantial part of the new Red Arrow Division, helping to maintain the respected reputation of its predecessor from World War I by remaining undefeated in the Pacific theater. The majority of Wisconsin soldiers were draftees who served in units comprised of men from around the country. More than 8,000 soldiers died and another 13,000 were wounded in combat. Fifteen Wisconsin men won the Medal of Honor during WWII. [Source: Turning Points in Wisconsin History]

Google-a-Day asks a geography question: “When the krewe that is the “King of Mardi Gras” makes its way along its traditional parade route, onto what street does it turn when it comes to the end of St. Charles?”