Today in History: Thursday, December 31, 2015

AP Highlight in History: On Dec. 31, 1879, Thomas Edison first publicly demonstrated his electric incandescent light in Menlo Park, N.J.
On this date in: 1857 Britain's Queen Victoria decided to make Ottawa the capital of Canada. 1862 President Abraham Lincoln signed an act admitting West Virginia to the Union. 1951 The Marshall Plan expired after distributing more than $12 billion in foreign aid. 1974 Private U.S. citizens were allowed to buy and own gold for the first time in more than 40 years. 1985 Rock singer Rick Nelson, 45, and six other people were killed when fire broke out aboard a DC-3 that was taking the group to a New Year's Eve performance in Dallas. 1993 Entertainer Barbra Streisand performed her first paid concert in 22 years, singing to a sellout crowd at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas. AP Photo/Amy Sancetta 1997 Michael Kennedy, 39-year-old son of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, was killed in a skiing accident on Aspen Mountain in Colorado. 2006 The death toll for Americans killed in the Iraq war reached 3,000.		Video Highlights of This Day in History Today's Birthdays: Actor Ben Kingsley turns 72 years old today. AP Photo/Peter Kramer Name Profession Age Andy Summers Rock musician (The Police) 73 Taylor Hackford Director, producer 71 Diane Von Furstenberg Fashion designer 69 Burton Cummings Rock musician (The Guess Who) 68 Tim Matheson Actor ("Animal House," "The West Wing") 68 Bebe Neuwirth Actress ("Cheers") 57 Val Kilmer Actor 56 Paul Westerberg Rock singer (The Replacements) 56 Actor Anthony Hopkins turns 78 years old today. AP Photo/Dan Steinberg