On this day: December 24
"Silent Night" is first performed, the Library of Congress burns, NORAD begins tracking Santa, and man orbits the Moon for the first time, all on this day.
1906: Reginald A. Fessenden becomes the first person to broadcast a music program over radio. Using a high-frequency alternator-transmitter (pictured here) in Brant Rock, Mass., he plays a record, performs "O Holy Night" on the violin and finishes by reading a passage from the Bible.
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