December 18 Page 2

On December 18th in History Part II

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On December 18th in 1865 - U.S. Secretary of State William Seward issued a statement verifying the ratification of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The amendment abolished slavery with the declaration: "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."

On December 18th in 1867 - Around 49 victims of "Angola Horror" train wreck burn to death (Angola, NY)

On December 18th in 1878 - John Kehoe, the last of the Molly Maguires, is executed in Pennsylvania.

On December 18th in 1888 - Richard Wetherill and his brother in-law discover the ancient Anasazi ruins of Mesa Verde, Colorado

On December 18th in 1898 - A new automobile speed record was set at 39 mph (63 kph).

On December 18th in 1903 - The Panama Canal Zone was acquired 'in perpetuity' by the U.S. for an annual rent.

On December 18th in 1915 - U.S. President Wilson, widowed the year before, married Edith Bolling Galt at her Washington home.

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