Today is Wednesday, Dec. 28, the 362nd day of 2005. There are three days left in the year. On this date in 1945, Congress officially recognizes the Pledge of Allegiance.

Today is Wednesday, Dec. 28, the 362nd day of 2005. There are three days left in the year. On this date in 1945, Congress officially recognizes the Pledge of Allegiance.
In 1694, Queen Mary II of England dies after five years of joint rule with her husband, King William III. In 1832, John C. Calhoun becomes the first vice president of the United States to resign, stepping down over differences with President Jackson. In 1846, Iowa becomes the 29th state to be admitted to the Union. In 1856, the 28th president of the United States, Thomas Woodrow Wilson, is born in Staunton, Va. In 1897, the play "Cyrano de Bergerac," by Edmond Rostand, premieres in Paris. In 1917, the New York Evening Mail publishes a facetious -- as well as fictitious -- essay by H.L. Mencken on the history of bathtubs in America. In 1937, composer Maurice Ravel dies in Paris. In 1944, the musical "On the Town" opens on Broadway. In 1945, author Theodore Dreiser dies in Hollywood. In 1973, Alexander Solzhenitsyn publishes "Gulag Archipelago," an expose of the Soviet prison system.
December 28, 1980: Youngstown area motorists are paying about 5 cents more for regular and unleaded gasoline than two months ago, with prices at full-service stations averaging $1.20 for regular, $1.24 for unleaded and $1.30 for premium.
Natural gas drilling in central and eastern Lake Erie could provide Ohio with $4.3 billion in total revenues, according to an environmental impact statement.
Youngstown Municipal Airport may eventually regain an excellent pattern of scheduled airline service with convenient nonstop flights to and from New York, Washington, Detroit and many other cities with which it has a common interest, airport manager Fred DeLuca believes.
December 28, 1965: Mahoning Common Pleas Judge Sidney Rigelhaupt gives the Youngstown Civil Service commission complete discretion on allowing use of efficiency ratings in promotional examinations for Youngstown city firemen. Rigelhaupt said the commission may feel that efficiency ratings given by superiors are politically motivated and if so can choose to disregard them.
The Associated Press "Man of the Year" is "Our Man in Vietnam," a composite of the 175,000 U.S. men fighting in Southeast Asia.
Former Cleveland Browns star Lindell Houston is promoted to assistant manager of Sharon district sales for the Sharon Steel Corp. He will have an office in Canton.
December 28, 1955: Downtown Youngstown looks like a day in the last week before Christmas as thousands of shoppers jam stores to exchange gifts and get in on clearance sales.
Sharon Mayor Myron W. Jones appeals to Westinghouse and the IUE for a truce until adequate protection against violence is established at the Sharon plant. In telegrams to the company and union, he asks that the plant be shut down and picket lines temporarily disbanded.
Television cameras will make their first appearance in City Hall when WFMJ-TV presents the first live telecast of a city council meeting in Youngstown's history.
December 28, 1930: Among the most prized Christmas gifts received by the pope was an apparatus for recording dictation sent by Thomas Edison. The pontiff experimented with the machine and sent a message of appreciation to the inventor.
There will be a lot of new black smoke in the Mahoning Valley's skies, dinner pails will be crammed full and thousands of workers will be back in their jobs in early 1931 as Mahoning Valley industrial leaders are predicting a slow, steady recovery in 1931.
Industrial leaders, former associates and scores of friends of the late Leroy A. Manchester attend the dedication of the Manchester Memorial Room at the Central YMCA. A large oil painting of Manchester is unveiled by Leonard T. Skeggs, secretary of the YMCA.