A complete timeline of historical events, famous births, notable deaths, and holidays that occurred on December 3 throughout history.
98
Events
10
Births
1
Deaths
Eureka Stockade: In what many claim to be the birth of Australian democracy, more than 20 gold miners at Ballarat, Victoria, are killed by state troopers in an uprising over mining licences
South African surgeon Dr. Christiaan Barnard performs the world's first human-to-human heart transplant, on Louis Washkansky, at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town; he survives for 18 days
Bhopal disaster: A Union Carbide pesticide plant leaks 45 tons of methyl isocyanate and other toxic compounds in Bhopal, India, officially killing 2,259. Other estimates are as high as 16,000 (including later deaths) and over half a million injured.
George Herbert Walker Bush (June 12, 1924 – November 30, 2018) was the 41st president of the United States, serving from 1989 to 1993.
Elvis Presley's Comeback Special airs on NBC, his first live performance in seven years, relaunching his singing career
Edward Elgar's Symphony No. 1 in A is performed by the Hallé Orchestra, conducted by Hans Richter, premiering in Manchester, England
Spotify announces Drake as the most streamed star of the 2010s with 28 billion streams, while Ed Sheeran's "Shape of You" is the most streamed track with 2.4 billion streams
Dutchman Anton Geesink becomes the first non-Japanese judo world champion
Silent film actress Clara Bow (26) weds actor and politician Rex Bell (28) in Las Vegas
French author and future Nobel laureate Albert Camus (27) weds French pianist and mathematician Francine Faure (25) in Lyon, France
Oldest groom - Harry Stevens, 103, weds Thelma Lucas, 83, in Wisconsin
"How Stella Got Her Groove Back" actor Taye Diggs (44) and Broadway actress Idina Menzel (43) file for divorce after 11 years of marriage
Dos Pilas is a Pre-Columbian site of the Maya civilization located in what is now the department of Petén, Guatemala.
St Zachary selected as Catholic Pope to succeed Gregory III [or Dec 5]
Pope Clement VI declares Roman tribunal Cola di Rienzo as heretics
1st Covenant of Scottish protestants form
1st annulment by court decree passes
Battle of Lund (Scanian War): Swedish army of 8,000 defeats much larger joint Danish/Dutch force of 13,000
Charles II bars Jews from settling in Stockholm, Sweden
The first recorded successful separation of conjoined twins Elisabet and Catherina Meijerin is carried out by Swiss surgeon Johannes Fatio in Basel [1]
English parliamentary election set for every 3 years
Baron Jacob Hop appointed treasurer-general of the Hague
According to tradition, the first flag of the United States, the Continental Union Flag (also known as "Continental Colours"), was raised by General George Washington at Prospect Hill in Somerville,...
Illinois is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash and Ohio rivers to its south.
Oberlin College in Ohio, the first truly coeducational college, opens
First US dental society organized (NY)
First US mutual fire insurance company issues first policy (Rhode Island)
RC Society Apostole of Prayer forms
Irishman James Kelly (24) and British soldier Jack Smith (34) fight longest bareknuckle boxing bout - 6 hours and 15 minutes, at Fiery Creek, Victoria, Australia [1] [2]
Jonesboro () is a city in and the county seat of Clayton County, Georgia, United States. The population was 4,235 in 2020. The city's name was originally spelled Jonesborough.
English Assyriologist George Smith reads his translation of The Great Flood from the "Epic of Gilgamesh" to the Society of Biblical Archaeology, with striking similarities to the later flood of Noah in "Genesis"
Settlers arrive at Petach Tikvah, Israel
48th US Congress (1883-85) convenes
At the MLB meeting, the Milwaukee Brewers franchise is officially dropped from the American League and replaced by the St. Louis Browns
The Sultanate of Aceh's Panglima Polim surrenders to Dutch Army Captain Hendrikus Colijn at Atjeh
George M. Cohan's musical "Talk of the Town" premieres in NYC
Neon lights are first publicly displayed at the Paris Auto Show
The Battle of Elli or the Battle of the Dardanelles took place near the mouth of the Dardanelles on 16 December [O.S.
Dutch army opens fire on interned Belgian soldiers: 8 killed
Joseph Jacques Césaire Joffre LH was a French general who served as Commander-in-Chief of French forces on the Western Front from the start of World War I until the end of 1916.
After nearly 20 years of planning and construction, the Quebec Bridge finally opens to traffic after two prior collapses
The Treaty of Alexandropol was a peace treaty between the First Republic of Armenia and the Grand National Assembly of Turkey.
First Congressional open session broadcast via radio (Washington, D.C.)
Airborn chemicals combine with fog to kill 60 (Meuse Valley, Belgium)
Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg (2 October 1847 – 2 August 1934) was a German military officer and statesman who led the Imperial German Army during World War I and later...
As part of a famous MLB fire sale of players, Philadelphia A's owner Connie Mack sells catcher Mickey Cochrane to Detroit for $100,000; Cochrane is immediately named Tigers manager
Libya (Italian: Libia; Arabic: ليبيا الايطالية, romanized: Lībyā al-Īṭālīya) was a colony of Kingdom of Italy (Fascist Italy) located in North Africa, in what is now modern Libya, between 1934 and...
AAUs decides to continue linear measuring system over metric
Adolf Hitler views occupied Poltava in Ukraine
9th Heisman Trophy Award: Angelo Bertelli, Notre Dame (QB)
Britain's Home Guard ('Dad's Army') is officially stood down at a special farewell parade in Hyde Park, London.
The Army Black Knights football team, historically known as the Army Cadets, represents the United States Military Academy in college football.
"Pumpkin Papers" come to light (claimed to be from Alger Hiss)
KRLD (now KDFW) TV channel 4 in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas (CBS) begins broadcasting
The 1950 NFL Championship Game was the 18th National Football League (NFL) title game, played on Sunday, December 24 at Cleveland Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio. This was the first NFL championship game...
First TV broadcast in Hawaii
Premiere of Dmitri Shostakovich' 5th String Quartet in Leningrad
KTVE TV channel 10 in Monroe-El Dorado, LA (NBC) begins broadcasting
Australian 4 x 200m freestyle relay team of Kevin O'Halloran, John Devitt, Murray Rose & Jon Henricks swim world record 8:23.6 to take the gold medal at the Melbourne Olympics; Rose's 2nd of 3 gold at the Games
23rd Heisman Trophy Award: John Crow, Texas A&M (HB)
Indonesian parliament accepts nationalisation of Dutch businesses
The Cyprus Emergency was a conflict fought in British Cyprus between April 1955 and March 1959. The National Organisation of Cypriot Fighters (EOKA), a Greek Cypriot guerrilla organisation fighting...
George Blanda of Houston Oilers kicks 55-yard field goal
The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles area.
KHQL (now KCAN) TV channel 8 in Albion, NB (ABC) begins broadcasting
Rubber Soul is the sixth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released on 3 December 1965 in the United Kingdom on EMI's Parlophone label, accompanied by the non-album double...
Television pop group "The Monkees" make their live concert debut at the Honolulu International Centre Arena, in Hawaii
Claude Ruel resigns as coach of the NHL Montreal Canadiens; replacement Al MacNeil leads Habs to a Stanley Cup championship 5 months later
India invades West Pakistan claiming hundreds of lives and starting the full scale Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
Convair 990A charter crashes in Tenerife Canary Island, 155 die
Pioneer 10 passes Jupiter (1st fly-by of an outer planet) [Dec 4-GMT]
Laos falls to communist forces; Lao People's Democratic Rep proclaimed
Patrick John Hillery (Irish: Pádraig J. Ó hIrghile; 2 May 1923 – 12 April 2008) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as the president of Ireland from December 1976 to December 1990.
11 members of the audience trampled to death during a stampede to claim unreserved seats for a concert by The Who at The Riverfront Coliseum, Cincinnati, Ohio
Don Sutton, the winningest pitcher in Los Angeles Dodgers history, signs a 4-year contract with Houston; Astros career shortened by a patellar fracture; returns to Dodgers in 1988 after stints with 3 other MLB clubs
US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
After losing his world welterweight boxing titles to Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns wins WBC Super Welterweight crown in a majority points decision over Wilfred Benitez at Superdome, New Orleans
49th Heisman Trophy Award: Mike Rozier, Nebraska (RB)
23rd Shuttle Mission (61-B)-Atlantis 2-lands at Edwards AFB
54th Heisman Trophy Award: Barry Sanders, Oklahoma State (RB)
Muslim Shi'ites in Beirut, Lebanon release US political hostage Alann Steen [1]
The Greek oil tanker Aegean Sea, carrying 80,000 tonnes of crude oil, runs aground in a storm while approaching La Coruña, Spain, and spills much of its cargo
England cricket wicket keeper Jack Russell dismisses Clive Eksteen with his record 11th catch in 2nd Test v South Africa in Johannesburg
"1776" opens at Gershwin Theater NYC
NASA loses radio contact with the Mars Polar Lander moments before the spacecraft enters the Martian atmosphere
US version of the television drama "Queer as Folk", created by Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman, and starring Gale Harold, premieres on Showtime
XCOR Aerospace makes first manned rocket aircraft delivery of US Mail in Mojave, California.
Devastating winter storms cause Chehalis River to flood many cities in Lewis County, Washington, closing 20-mile portion of Interstate 5 for several days, resulting in at least eight deaths and billions of dollars of damage
Patrick Timothy Kane II is an American professional ice hockey player who is a right winger for the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL).
Australian Rugby star David Pocock is arrested after protesting against a coal mine under construction in an Australian national forest
US Defense Secretary Ash Carter announces all combat roles in US armed forced will be opened to women
US army decides it will not allow an oil pipeline to be built in North Dakota, after months of protests by The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe
First pizza party in space is held by astronauts on the International Space Station
World leaders discussing US President Donald Trump in unflattering terms at NATO reception caught on camera and goes viral
AT&T Inc’s Warner Bros studio announces all its 2021 movies will stream online the same day they appear in theatres because of the pandemic
FBI investigate a targeted attack on two electricity substations in North Carolina which closes schools and leaves around 40,000 without power for days [1]
Indonesia's Mount Marapi, on island of Sumatra, erupts 3km into the air, killing 23 people [1]
Ndemupelila Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, nicknamed NNN, is a Namibian politician who has been the fifth and current president of Namibia since 21 March 2025. She is the country's first female president.
John Wallis mathematician, known for english mathematician, was born on 1616-12-03. John Wallis (Latin: Wallisius; 3 December [O.S. 23 November] 1616 – 8 November [O.S.
Rajendra Prasad is born
Andy Williams, American singer, known for american singer, was born on 1927-12-03. Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer.
Jean-Luc Godard, French swiss film director, known for french and swiss film director, was born on 1930-12-03. Jean-Luc Godard was a French and Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic.
Julianne Moore, American actress and author, known for american actress and author, was born on 1961-12-03. Julie Anne Smith, known professionally as Julianne Moore, is an American actress.
Brendan Fraser, American canadian actor, known for american and canadian actor, was born on 1969-12-03. Brendan James Fraser ( FRAY-zər; born December 3, 1968) is an American and Canadian actor.
Amanda Seyfried, American actress, known for american actress, was born on 1986-12-03. Amanda Michelle Seyfried is an American actress.
Lil Baby, American musician, known for american rapper, was born on 1995-12-03. Dominique Armani Jones, known professionally as Lil Baby, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter.
Bobby Allison, American athlete, known for american racing driver, was born on 1937-12-03.
Michael Essien, Danish athlete, known for ghanaian association football player, was born on 1983-12-03.
Dos Pilas is a Pre-Columbian site of the Maya civilization located in what is now the department of Petén, Guatemala.
St Zachary selected as Catholic Pope to succeed Gregory III [or Dec 5]
Pope Clement VI declares Roman tribunal Cola di Rienzo as heretics
1st Covenant of Scottish protestants form
John Wallis mathematician, known for english mathematician, was born on 1616-12-03. John Wallis (Latin: Wallisius; 3 December [O.S. 23 November] 1616 – 8 November [O.S.
1st annulment by court decree passes
Battle of Lund (Scanian War): Swedish army of 8,000 defeats much larger joint Danish/Dutch force of 13,000
Charles II bars Jews from settling in Stockholm, Sweden
The first recorded successful separation of conjoined twins Elisabet and Catherina Meijerin is carried out by Swiss surgeon Johannes Fatio in Basel [1]
English parliamentary election set for every 3 years
Baron Jacob Hop appointed treasurer-general of the Hague
According to tradition, the first flag of the United States, the Continental Union Flag (also known as "Continental Colours"), was raised by General George Washington at Prospect Hill in Somerville,...
Illinois is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash and Ohio rivers to its south.
Oberlin College in Ohio, the first truly coeducational college, opens
First US dental society organized (NY)
First US mutual fire insurance company issues first policy (Rhode Island)
RC Society Apostole of Prayer forms
Eureka Stockade: In what many claim to be the birth of Australian democracy, more than 20 gold miners at Ballarat, Victoria, are killed by state troopers in an uprising over mining licences
Irishman James Kelly (24) and British soldier Jack Smith (34) fight longest bareknuckle boxing bout - 6 hours and 15 minutes, at Fiery Creek, Victoria, Australia [1] [2]
Jonesboro () is a city in and the county seat of Clayton County, Georgia, United States. The population was 4,235 in 2020. The city's name was originally spelled Jonesborough.
English Assyriologist George Smith reads his translation of The Great Flood from the "Epic of Gilgamesh" to the Society of Biblical Archaeology, with striking similarities to the later flood of Noah in "Genesis"
Settlers arrive at Petach Tikvah, Israel
48th US Congress (1883-85) convenes
Rajendra Prasad is born
At the MLB meeting, the Milwaukee Brewers franchise is officially dropped from the American League and replaced by the St. Louis Browns
The Sultanate of Aceh's Panglima Polim surrenders to Dutch Army Captain Hendrikus Colijn at Atjeh
George M. Cohan's musical "Talk of the Town" premieres in NYC
Edward Elgar's Symphony No. 1 in A is performed by the Hallé Orchestra, conducted by Hans Richter, premiering in Manchester, England
Neon lights are first publicly displayed at the Paris Auto Show
The Battle of Elli or the Battle of the Dardanelles took place near the mouth of the Dardanelles on 16 December [O.S.
Dutch army opens fire on interned Belgian soldiers: 8 killed
Joseph Jacques Césaire Joffre LH was a French general who served as Commander-in-Chief of French forces on the Western Front from the start of World War I until the end of 1916.
After nearly 20 years of planning and construction, the Quebec Bridge finally opens to traffic after two prior collapses
The Treaty of Alexandropol was a peace treaty between the First Republic of Armenia and the Grand National Assembly of Turkey.
First Congressional open session broadcast via radio (Washington, D.C.)
Andy Williams, American singer, known for american singer, was born on 1927-12-03. Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer.
Airborn chemicals combine with fog to kill 60 (Meuse Valley, Belgium)
Jean-Luc Godard, French swiss film director, known for french and swiss film director, was born on 1930-12-03. Jean-Luc Godard was a French and Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic.
Silent film actress Clara Bow (26) weds actor and politician Rex Bell (28) in Las Vegas
Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg (2 October 1847 – 2 August 1934) was a German military officer and statesman who led the Imperial German Army during World War I and later...
As part of a famous MLB fire sale of players, Philadelphia A's owner Connie Mack sells catcher Mickey Cochrane to Detroit for $100,000; Cochrane is immediately named Tigers manager
Libya (Italian: Libia; Arabic: ليبيا الايطالية, romanized: Lībyā al-Īṭālīya) was a colony of Kingdom of Italy (Fascist Italy) located in North Africa, in what is now modern Libya, between 1934 and...
Bobby Allison, American athlete, known for american racing driver, was born on 1937-12-03.
AAUs decides to continue linear measuring system over metric
French author and future Nobel laureate Albert Camus (27) weds French pianist and mathematician Francine Faure (25) in Lyon, France
Adolf Hitler views occupied Poltava in Ukraine
9th Heisman Trophy Award: Angelo Bertelli, Notre Dame (QB)
Britain's Home Guard ('Dad's Army') is officially stood down at a special farewell parade in Hyde Park, London.
The Army Black Knights football team, historically known as the Army Cadets, represents the United States Military Academy in college football.
"Pumpkin Papers" come to light (claimed to be from Alger Hiss)
KRLD (now KDFW) TV channel 4 in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas (CBS) begins broadcasting
The 1950 NFL Championship Game was the 18th National Football League (NFL) title game, played on Sunday, December 24 at Cleveland Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio. This was the first NFL championship game...
First TV broadcast in Hawaii
Premiere of Dmitri Shostakovich' 5th String Quartet in Leningrad
KTVE TV channel 10 in Monroe-El Dorado, LA (NBC) begins broadcasting
Australian 4 x 200m freestyle relay team of Kevin O'Halloran, John Devitt, Murray Rose & Jon Henricks swim world record 8:23.6 to take the gold medal at the Melbourne Olympics; Rose's 2nd of 3 gold at the Games
23rd Heisman Trophy Award: John Crow, Texas A&M (HB)
Indonesian parliament accepts nationalisation of Dutch businesses
The Cyprus Emergency was a conflict fought in British Cyprus between April 1955 and March 1959. The National Organisation of Cypriot Fighters (EOKA), a Greek Cypriot guerrilla organisation fighting...
Dutchman Anton Geesink becomes the first non-Japanese judo world champion
George Blanda of Houston Oilers kicks 55-yard field goal
Julianne Moore, American actress and author, known for american actress and author, was born on 1961-12-03. Julie Anne Smith, known professionally as Julianne Moore, is an American actress.
The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles area.
KHQL (now KCAN) TV channel 8 in Albion, NB (ABC) begins broadcasting
Rubber Soul is the sixth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released on 3 December 1965 in the United Kingdom on EMI's Parlophone label, accompanied by the non-album double...
Television pop group "The Monkees" make their live concert debut at the Honolulu International Centre Arena, in Hawaii
South African surgeon Dr. Christiaan Barnard performs the world's first human-to-human heart transplant, on Louis Washkansky, at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town; he survives for 18 days
Elvis Presley's Comeback Special airs on NBC, his first live performance in seven years, relaunching his singing career
Brendan Fraser, American canadian actor, known for american and canadian actor, was born on 1969-12-03. Brendan James Fraser ( FRAY-zər; born December 3, 1968) is an American and Canadian actor.
Claude Ruel resigns as coach of the NHL Montreal Canadiens; replacement Al MacNeil leads Habs to a Stanley Cup championship 5 months later
India invades West Pakistan claiming hundreds of lives and starting the full scale Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
Convair 990A charter crashes in Tenerife Canary Island, 155 die
Pioneer 10 passes Jupiter (1st fly-by of an outer planet) [Dec 4-GMT]
Laos falls to communist forces; Lao People's Democratic Rep proclaimed
Patrick John Hillery (Irish: Pádraig J. Ó hIrghile; 2 May 1923 – 12 April 2008) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as the president of Ireland from December 1976 to December 1990.
11 members of the audience trampled to death during a stampede to claim unreserved seats for a concert by The Who at The Riverfront Coliseum, Cincinnati, Ohio
Don Sutton, the winningest pitcher in Los Angeles Dodgers history, signs a 4-year contract with Houston; Astros career shortened by a patellar fracture; returns to Dodgers in 1988 after stints with 3 other MLB clubs
US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
Walter Knott, American knott's berry farm founder, known for knott's berry farm founder, died on 1981-12-03.
After losing his world welterweight boxing titles to Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns wins WBC Super Welterweight crown in a majority points decision over Wilfred Benitez at Superdome, New Orleans
49th Heisman Trophy Award: Mike Rozier, Nebraska (RB)
Michael Essien, Danish athlete, known for ghanaian association football player, was born on 1983-12-03.
Bhopal disaster: A Union Carbide pesticide plant leaks 45 tons of methyl isocyanate and other toxic compounds in Bhopal, India, officially killing 2,259. Other estimates are as high as 16,000 (including later deaths) and over half a million injured.
Oldest groom - Harry Stevens, 103, weds Thelma Lucas, 83, in Wisconsin
23rd Shuttle Mission (61-B)-Atlantis 2-lands at Edwards AFB
Amanda Seyfried, American actress, known for american actress, was born on 1986-12-03. Amanda Michelle Seyfried is an American actress.
54th Heisman Trophy Award: Barry Sanders, Oklahoma State (RB)
George Herbert Walker Bush (June 12, 1924 – November 30, 2018) was the 41st president of the United States, serving from 1989 to 1993.
Muslim Shi'ites in Beirut, Lebanon release US political hostage Alann Steen [1]
The Greek oil tanker Aegean Sea, carrying 80,000 tonnes of crude oil, runs aground in a storm while approaching La Coruña, Spain, and spills much of its cargo
England cricket wicket keeper Jack Russell dismisses Clive Eksteen with his record 11th catch in 2nd Test v South Africa in Johannesburg
Lil Baby, American musician, known for american rapper, was born on 1995-12-03. Dominique Armani Jones, known professionally as Lil Baby, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter.
"1776" opens at Gershwin Theater NYC
NASA loses radio contact with the Mars Polar Lander moments before the spacecraft enters the Martian atmosphere
US version of the television drama "Queer as Folk", created by Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman, and starring Gale Harold, premieres on Showtime
XCOR Aerospace makes first manned rocket aircraft delivery of US Mail in Mojave, California.
Devastating winter storms cause Chehalis River to flood many cities in Lewis County, Washington, closing 20-mile portion of Interstate 5 for several days, resulting in at least eight deaths and billions of dollars of damage
Patrick Timothy Kane II is an American professional ice hockey player who is a right winger for the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL).
"How Stella Got Her Groove Back" actor Taye Diggs (44) and Broadway actress Idina Menzel (43) file for divorce after 11 years of marriage
Australian Rugby star David Pocock is arrested after protesting against a coal mine under construction in an Australian national forest
US Defense Secretary Ash Carter announces all combat roles in US armed forced will be opened to women
US army decides it will not allow an oil pipeline to be built in North Dakota, after months of protests by The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe
First pizza party in space is held by astronauts on the International Space Station
Spotify announces Drake as the most streamed star of the 2010s with 28 billion streams, while Ed Sheeran's "Shape of You" is the most streamed track with 2.4 billion streams
World leaders discussing US President Donald Trump in unflattering terms at NATO reception caught on camera and goes viral
AT&T Inc’s Warner Bros studio announces all its 2021 movies will stream online the same day they appear in theatres because of the pandemic
FBI investigate a targeted attack on two electricity substations in North Carolina which closes schools and leaves around 40,000 without power for days [1]
Indonesia's Mount Marapi, on island of Sumatra, erupts 3km into the air, killing 23 people [1]
Ndemupelila Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, nicknamed NNN, is a Namibian politician who has been the fifth and current president of Namibia since 21 March 2025. She is the country's first female president.