MOMENTS IN TIME
On Dec. 13, 1922, eight years after they began offering their removable top on KisselKar and Kissel automobiles, William Kissel and Friedrich Werner received a U.S. patent for their invention. Their "Convertible Automobile Body" had a removable hard top -- one of the earliest convertibles.
On Dec. 14, 1799, George Washington, the American revolutionary leader and first president of the United States (unanimously elected in 1789), dies of acute laryngitis at his estate in Mount Vernon, Va.
On Dec. 15, 2001, Italy's Leaning Tower of Pisa reopens after a team of experts spent 11 years and $27 million to fortify the tower without eliminating its famous lean. Engineers were able to reduce the lean by between 16 and 17 inches.
On Dec. 16, 1811, in the Mississippi River Valley near New Madrid, Mo., an earthquake of an estimated 8.6 magnitude on the Richter scale slams the region. The quake raised and lowered parts of the Mississippi Valley by as much as 15 feet and changed the course of the Mississippi River.
On Dec. 17, 1963, the U.S. Congress passes the Clean Air Act, a sweeping set of laws designed to protect the environment from air pollution. It was the first legislation to place pollution controls on the automobile industry.
On Dec. 18, 1620, passengers on the British ship Mayflower come ashore at Plymouth, Mass., to begin their new settlement, Plymouth Colony. That winter of 1620-21 was brutal, and by spring, 50 of the original 102 Mayflower passengers were dead.
On Dec. 19, 1998, the House of Representatives approves two articles of impeachment against President Bill Clinton, charging him with lying under oath to a federal grand jury and obstructing justice. After the trial the following February, during which he was acquitted on both counts, Clinton said he was "profoundly sorry."
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