DECEMBER 5 - Today in Food History• World Soil Day [UN Food & Agricultural Organization] • National Sacher Torte Day (Sacher Torte Trivia) • Repeal Day: The ‘Noble Experiment’ Ends
(see 1933 below) • [National Handwashing Awareness Week]
(Dec 3-9, 2023) • Cookie Cutter Week: (Dec 1-7 ?)
On this day in:1624 Gaspard Bauhin died. A Swiss botanist, he developed a binomial (2 name) system of plant classification. He published 'Pinax Theatri Botanici', which was a compilation that included over 6,000 species that had appeared in works from Theophrastus, Dioscorides and many later herbals. 1822 Elizabeth Cabot Agassiz was born. An American naturalist, cofounder with her husband (Louis Agassiz), of the Anderson school of Natural History. She was also the first president of Radclife College. 1854 Aaron Allen patented a folding chair. Setting up for banquets becomes a whole lot easier. 1855 Clinton Hart Merriam was born. A biologist, he studied the effects of using birds to control agricultural pests. He also helped found the National Geographic Society. 1870 Alexandre Dumas died. French author ('The Three Musketeers', etc.) was also well known as a gourmet, and author of 'Grande Dictionnaire de la cuisine,' which he finished a just a few weeks before his death in 1870. It was published in 1872. 1876 D.C. Stillson patented the Stillson wrench, the first practical pipe wrench. Fixing that leaky pipe in the kitchen became a lot easier. 1920 Benjamin L. Holt died (born Jan 1, 1849) In 1904 he Invented the first practical track-type or crawler tractor (caterpillar tractor). 1933 Utah became the 36th state to ratify the 21st Amendment, repealing the 18th Amendment and ending prohibition, 'the noble experiment.' The official effective date is December 15, 1933. Cheers! (Prohibition Trivia) 1935 Ernest Brundin and Frank Lyon set up the first commercial scale hydroponic plant culture system. A patent was issued to them on December 1, 1936. 1960 Walter D. Teague died (born Dec 18, 1883). A pioneering industrial designer, he designed Steuben glassware, cameras for Kodak and Polaroid and Texaco gas stations. 1967 'Apple,' the Beatles (Apple Corps) clothing store opened in London. (Closed July 30, 1968). 1974 The BBC broadcast the last episode of 'Monty Python's Flying Circus.' 1985 A bottle of 1787 Chateau Lafite Bordeaux that had belonged to Thomas Jefferson, sold at Christie’s London for 105,000 British Pounds ($158,000). The world's most expensive wine. (Bordeaux Wine Article) 2006 New York became the first U.S. city to ban artificial trans fats in restaurant food when the Board of Health voted to ban them today. NYC restaurants will have until July 1, 2007 to stop using frying oils with artery clogging trans fats, and will have to eliminate trans fats from all foods by July 1, 2008.
(Trans Fats Facts)
| 