1. The Battle of Nashville took place on December 16, 1864 during the American Civil War. Union forces under General George H. Thomas defeated Confederate forces commanded by General John Bell Hood.

2. The Memphis Belle, a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bomber, completed its 25th mission on December 16, 1942, becoming the first United States Army Air Forces heavy bomber to complete the feat.

3. On December 16, 1856, James Samuel Thomas Strathern became the first person to be hanged in Tennessee after the state changed its method of execution from hanging to electrocution.

4. The Tennessee State Museum was established on December 16, 1937, with the help of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), a federal program designed to provide employment during the Great Depression.

5. The Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration, an annual horse show and festival held in Shelbyville, Tennessee, was first held on December 16, 1939. The event celebrates the Tennessee Walking Horse breed and attracts thousands of visitors from around the world.