Today in History: Nov. 26

The George Washington Thanksgiving Proclamation, signed and dated Oct. 3, 1789 by George Washington, as seen in the collection of the Library of Congress Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2004.  Resolutions get passed in Congress like bread around the dinner table, so Americans can be forgiven if they've never heard the story of an 18th century New Jersey congressman and his role in getting Thanksgiving recognized by none other than George Washington. The history lesson usually ends there, but 168 years after the first Thanksgiving dinner, Congressman Elias Boudinot of Burlington, N.J., played a significant role in forming the holiday as it's known today. On Sept. 25, 1789, Boudinot introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives requesting the president to declare a national day of public thanksgiving. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
In 1789, a day of thanksgiving was set aside by President George Washington to observe the adoption of the Constitution of the United States. Pictured here, the George Washington Thanksgiving Proclamation, signed and dated Oct. 3, 1789 by George Washington, as seen in the collection of the Library of Congress. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
Artist Tina Allen, left, and Michigan State Rep. Mark Schauer, D-Battle Creek, help unveil the Sojourner Truth statue Saturday, Sept. 25, 1999, in Battle Creek, Mich.  The new statue, sculpted by Allen, commemorates Truth more than a century after her lifetime.  She was an early activist for equality and truth.  (AP Photo by Ron Leifeld)
In 1883, former slave and abolitionist Sojourner Truth died in Battle Creek, Mich. Artist Tina Allen, left, and Michigan State Rep. Mark Schauer, D-Battle Creek, help unveil the Sojourner Truth statue Saturday, Sept. 25, 1999, in Battle Creek, Mich. The new statue, sculpted by Allen, commemorates Truth more than a century after her lifetime. She was an early activist for equality and truth. (AP Photo by Ron Leifeld)
U.S. navy sailors stand at attention with the backdrop of Japanese national flag as their ship U.S. aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk leaves  Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan, Wednesday, May 28, 2008. The ship left  Japan for the last time for retirement. (AP Photo/Junji Kurokawa)
On Nov. 26, 1941, U.S. Secretary of State Cordell Hull delivered a note to Japan’s ambassador to the United States, Kichisaburo Nomura (kee-chee-sah-boor-oh noh-moo-rah), setting forth U.S. demands for “lasting and extensive peace throughout the Pacific area.” The same day, a Japanese naval task force consisting of six aircraft carriers left the Kuril Islands, headed toward Hawaii. In this May 28, 2008 file photo, U.S. navy sailors stand at attention with the backdrop of Japanese national flag as their ship U.S. aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk leaves Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan. The ship left Japan for the last time for retirement. (AP Photo/Junji Kurokawa)
In 1942, the motion picture “Casablanca,” starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, had its world premiere at the Hollywood Theater in New York. (AP Photo/Junji Kurokawa)
President Richard Nixon's secretary Rose Mary Woods walks with her lawyer Charles Rhyne on the way to a court appearance before U.S. District Judge John Sirica, Nov. 26, 1973 in Washington. Miss Woods has delivered testimony before Judge Sirica dealing with White House tapes. (AP Photo/Bob Daugherty)
In 1973, President Richard Nixon’s personal secretary, Rose Mary Woods, told a federal court that she’d accidentally caused part of the 18-1/2-minute gap in a key Watergate tape. Here, Woods walks with her lawyer Charles Rhyne on the way to a court appearance before U.S. District Judge John Sirica, Nov. 26, 1973 in Washington. (AP Photo/Bob Daugherty)
In this Oct. 18, 2014 photo, the interior of concrete structures called "Quonset huts" crumbles inside the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, Zambales province, northern Philippines. Naval Station Subic Bay used to be one of the largest U.S. military base outside the American mainland. It was partly damaged during the eruption of Mount Pinatubo forcing American troops from the more severely damaged Clark Air Base to relocate at Subic. It was closed in 1992 after the Philippine Senate voted not to extend the lease on the facility. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
In 1991, the Stars and Stripes were lowered for the last time at Clark Air Base in the Philippines as the United States abandoned one of its oldest and largest overseas installations, which was damaged by a volcano. (AP) In this Oct. 18, 2014 photo, the interior of concrete structures called “Quonset huts” crumbles inside the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, Zambales province, northern Philippines. Naval Station Subic Bay used to be one of the largest U.S. military base outside the American mainland. It was partly damaged during the eruption of Mount Pinatubo forcing American troops from the more severely damaged Clark Air Base to relocate at Subic. It was closed in 1992 after the Philippine Senate voted not to extend the lease on the facility. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
In 1992, the British government announced that Queen Elizabeth II had volunteered to start paying taxes on her personal income, and would take her children off the public payroll. In this Saturday, June 17, 2017 file photo, members of Britain’s Royal family from left, Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Charles, Princess Eugenie, Queen Elizabeth II, background Timothy Laurence, Princess Beatrice, Prince Philip, Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, Princess Charlotte, Prince George and Prince William watch a fly past as they appear on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, after attending the annual Trooping the Colour Ceremony in London. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)
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The George Washington Thanksgiving Proclamation, signed and dated Oct. 3, 1789 by George Washington, as seen in the collection of the Library of Congress Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2004.  Resolutions get passed in Congress like bread around the dinner table, so Americans can be forgiven if they've never heard the story of an 18th century New Jersey congressman and his role in getting Thanksgiving recognized by none other than George Washington. The history lesson usually ends there, but 168 years after the first Thanksgiving dinner, Congressman Elias Boudinot of Burlington, N.J., played a significant role in forming the holiday as it's known today. On Sept. 25, 1789, Boudinot introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives requesting the president to declare a national day of public thanksgiving. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
Artist Tina Allen, left, and Michigan State Rep. Mark Schauer, D-Battle Creek, help unveil the Sojourner Truth statue Saturday, Sept. 25, 1999, in Battle Creek, Mich.  The new statue, sculpted by Allen, commemorates Truth more than a century after her lifetime.  She was an early activist for equality and truth.  (AP Photo by Ron Leifeld)
U.S. navy sailors stand at attention with the backdrop of Japanese national flag as their ship U.S. aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk leaves  Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan, Wednesday, May 28, 2008. The ship left  Japan for the last time for retirement. (AP Photo/Junji Kurokawa)
President Richard Nixon's secretary Rose Mary Woods walks with her lawyer Charles Rhyne on the way to a court appearance before U.S. District Judge John Sirica, Nov. 26, 1973 in Washington. Miss Woods has delivered testimony before Judge Sirica dealing with White House tapes. (AP Photo/Bob Daugherty)
In this Oct. 18, 2014 photo, the interior of concrete structures called "Quonset huts" crumbles inside the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, Zambales province, northern Philippines. Naval Station Subic Bay used to be one of the largest U.S. military base outside the American mainland. It was partly damaged during the eruption of Mount Pinatubo forcing American troops from the more severely damaged Clark Air Base to relocate at Subic. It was closed in 1992 after the Philippine Senate voted not to extend the lease on the facility. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

Today is Monday, Nov. 26, the 330th day of 2018. There are 35 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On Nov. 26, 1941, U.S. Secretary of State Cordell Hull delivered a note to Japan’s ambassador to the United States, Kichisaburo Nomura (kee-chee-sah-boor-oh noh-moo-rah), setting forth U.S. demands for “lasting and extensive peace throughout the Pacific area.” The same day, a Japanese naval task force consisting of six aircraft carriers left the Kuril Islands, headed toward Hawaii.

On this date:

In 1789, Americans observed a day of thanksgiving set aside by President George Washington to mark the adoption of the Constitution of the United States.

In 1825, the first college social fraternity, the Kappa Alpha Society, was formed at Union College in Schenectady, N.Y.

In 1883, former slave and abolitionist Sojourner Truth died in Battle Creek, Mich.

In 1917, the National Hockey League was founded in Montreal, succeeding the National Hockey Association.

In 1942, the Warner Bros. motion picture “Casablanca,” starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, had its world premiere at the Hollywood Theater in New York.

In 1943, during World War II, the HMT Rohna, a British transport ship carrying American soldiers, was hit by a German missile off Algeria; 1,138 men were killed.

In 1950, China entered the Korean War, launching a counteroffensive against soldiers from the United Nations, the U.S. and South Korea.

In 1973, President Richard Nixon’s personal secretary, Rose Mary Woods, told a federal court that she’d accidentally caused part of the 18-1/2-minute gap in a key Watergate tape.

In 1986, President Ronald Reagan appointed a commission headed by former Senator John Tower to investigate his National Security Council staff in the wake of the Iran-Contra affair.

In 1991, the Stars and Stripes were lowered for the last time at Clark Air Base in the Philippines as the United States abandoned one of its oldest and largest overseas installations, which was damaged by a volcano.

In 1992, the British government announced that Queen Elizabeth II had volunteered to start paying taxes on her personal income, and would take her children off the public payroll.

In 2000, Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris certified George W. Bush the winner over Al Gore in the state’s presidential balloting by a 537-vote margin.

Ten years ago: Teams of heavily armed gunmen, allegedly from Pakistan, stormed luxury hotels, a popular tourist attraction and a crowded train station in Mumbai, India, leaving at least 166 people dead in a rampage lasting some 60 hours. A Missouri mother on trial in a landmark cyberbullying case was convicted by a federal jury in Los Angeles of three minor offenses for her role in a mean-spirited Internet hoax that apparently drove a 13-year-old girl, Megan Meier, to suicide. (However, Lori Drew’s convictions were later thrown out.)

Five years ago: The U.S. flew two B-52 bombers over the East China Sea, defying Beijing’s move to assert greater military control over the area’s disputed islands. Pope Francis denounced the global financial system that excluded the poor as he issued the mission statement for his papacy. Actress-singer Jane Kean, 90, best known for playing Trixie in a musicalized revival of “The Honeymooners” on “The Jackie Gleason Show,” died in Burbank, California.

One year ago: Congressman John Conyers of Michigan gave up his leadership position as the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, while denying allegations that he had sexually harassed female staff members. Amid allegations that he had groped women in the past, Minnesota Democratic Sen. Al Franken said he felt “embarrassed and ashamed,” but that he looked forward to gradually regaining the trust of voters. (Franken announced less than two weeks later that he was resigning from Congress.) Pixar’s “Coco” achieved the fourth-best Thanksgiving weekend ever at the box office, with an estimated $71.2 million over the five days.

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