Today is Sunday, Dec. 21, the 355th day of 2003. There are 10 days left in the year. On this date in

Today is Sunday, Dec. 21, the 355th day of 2003. There are 10 days left in the year. On this date in 1620, Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower go ashore for the first time at present-day Plymouth, Mass.
In 1898, scientists Pierre and Marie Curie discovers the radioactive element radium. In 1913, the first crossword puzzle is published, in the New York World. In 1945, Gen. George S. Patton dies in Heidelberg, Germany, of injuries from a car accident. In 1948, the state of Eire (formerly the Irish Free State) declares its independence. In 1958, Charles de Gaulle is elected to a seven-year term as the first president of the Fifth Republic of France. In 1968, Apollo Eight is launched on a mission to orbit the moon. In 1971, the U.N. Security Council chooses Kurt Waldheim to succeed U Thant as secretary-general. In 1976, the Liberian-registered tanker Argo Merchant runs aground near Nantucket Island, spilling millions of gallons of oil into the North Atlantic. In 1978, police in Des Plaines, Ill., arrest John W. Gacy Jr. and begin unearthing the remains of 33 men and boys that Gacy is later convicted of murdering. In 1988, 270 people are killed when a terrorist bomb explodes aboard a Pan Am Boeing 747 over Lockerbie, Scotland, sending wreckage crashing to the ground.
December 21, 1978: Youngstown City Council authorizes the board of control to negotiate a lease for the Youngstown Municipal Airport's newest hangar rather than seek a contract by competitive bidding.
The Peoples Republic of China will buy seven oil drilling rigs for $40 million from LTV Corp.'s Continental-Emsco Division, which is expected to substantially benefit Jones & amp; Laughlin Corp.'s remaining Youngstown facilities.
A portrait of the late John Tod, a generous contributor to Youngstown State University, is unveiled during an open house at the newly remodeled administration building , which had formerly been the library in Tod Hall.
Gary DeNiro ends a brief visit with his parents in Youngstown before leaving for New Orleans, where his University of Alabama team takes on Penn State in the Sugar Bowl to decide the national championship. DeNiro, a sophomore, is a starting defensive end for the Crimson Tide.
December 21, 1963: Youngstown Patrolman Frank Cichon, 41, the father of three children and a policeman for 10 years, is killed and three people, including another policeman, are injured when they were struck by a car in the aftermath of an earlier accident at Glenwood Avenue and Cleveland Street. The 38-year-old driver of the car is being held.
Winter is still a day away, but when it comes, Youngstown residents won't notice any change. The area is in the middle of a long frigid spell, which has seen the mercury dip to as low as minus 5 at the Youngstown Municipal Airport.
William G. Lyden, president of the Youngstown Area Development Foundation, says Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties should form a joint effort to take advantage of Gov. James A. Rhodes' stepped-up industrial development program for the state.
Officials in Pennsylvania begin a drive for stricter enforcement of the 5 percent use tax on goods bought in bordering states during the Christmas season and brought home. An educational campaign will remind residents that tax evasion carries a fine of up to $2,000 and up to three years in jail.
December 21, 1953: Youngstown police are investigating the theft of a postal substation safe containing an undetermined amount in money, postal money orders and stamps from the Gray Drug Store at 18007 Belmont Ave.
The Harlem Globetrotters delight 3,200 basketball fans at South Field House in Youngstown, beating the Toledo Mercurys, 80-57. Youngstown's gift to the Globetrotters, 7-foot Walter Dukes, dominates the boards and hits for 18 points.
December 21, 1928: A dispute over $5, part payment of the cost of operating a still, causes an argument that led, police say, to the killing of Thomas Cavallaro, 35, by Domini Phillipone, 34, both of Imperial Street, Youngstown.
Mahoning County juvenile authorities ask the sheriff to provide sanitary quarters for juveniles in detention and that they be segregated from adult prisoners in the county jail.
A five-day search of eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania for two Youngstown girls ends with the finding of the girls, unharmed, in the Warren YWCA. It was feared the girls had been taken by white slavers.
The Rev. Frederick Marsh Bennett, former pastor of the First Unitarian Church of Youngstown and a prominent welfare worker, dies at his home, 14511 Elm St.
Michael McHugh, 79, one of the oldest and best known residents of Sharon, burns to death in his home when fumes from liniment were ignited at a bathroom stove, setting fire to his clothing.