1663
Politics
Death in Matamba
Queen Nzinga died on 17 December 1663 in Matamba, ending nearly four decades of rule.
View detailsThis Day
17December
14 indexed achievements across recorded history.
1706
Science
Birth in Paris
Born Gabrielle Émilie Le Tonnelier de Breteuil in Paris on 17 December 1706, into an aristocratic family at the heart of Louis XIV’s court.
View details1853
Science
Birth in Ravenna, Ohio
Harriet Taylor was born in Ravenna, Ohio, daughter of judge and future U.S. Representative Ezra B. Taylor.
View details1864
Activism
Death of Myrtilla Miner
Myrtilla Miner died on December 17, 1864, in Washington, D.C., from injuries sustained in a carriage accident, before seeing the end of slavery.
View details1900
Science
Birth of Dame Mary Cartwright
Mary Lucy Cartwright was born on 17 December 1900 in Aynho, Northamptonshire, England.
View details1917
Science
Death in Aldeburgh, Suffolk
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson died in Aldeburgh, Suffolk, aged 81, after a lifetime of pioneering achievements in medicine and public life.
View details1921
Arts
Saturday Evening Post cover: Wrapped in Fur
McMein's 'Wrapped in Fur' cover appeared on December 17, 1921, in the Saturday Evening Post.
View details1940
Science
Death of Alicia Boole Stott
Alicia Boole Stott passed away on December 17, 1940, in England.
View details1943
Politics
Chinese Exclusion Act repeal influenced by Pearl S. Buck’s advocacy
U.S. Congress repeals the Chinese Exclusion Act; Pearl S. Buck’s advocacy and testimony help drive this landmark civil-rights and immigration reform.
View details1968
Science
Birth of Emmanuelle Charpentier
Emmanuelle Marie Charpentier was born on December 17, 1968, in Juvisy-sur-Orge, France.
View details1987
Literature
Died on Mount Desert Island, Maine, United States
Marguerite Yourcenar died at age 84 in Bar Harbor, Maine, at Petite Plaisance, the home she shared with her longtime partner Grace Frick.
View details1993
Science
Named First Woman President of an Ivy League University
Rodin was named the next president of the University of Pennsylvania, becoming the first woman appointed to permanently lead an Ivy League institution.
View details1999
Activism
UN designates November 25 as International Day Against Violence
UN officially designates November 25 for the Elimination of Violence against Women.
View details2013
Science
Death of Janet Davison Rowley
Janet Rowley died at age 88 in Chicago, Illinois, having established cancer as a genetic disease through her discovery of chromosomal translocations.
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