Birthdays
William Daily Clayton
Turns 20 on this date
Jonathan Perry Harrison
Turns 29 on this date
Anthony Kennedy
Turns 48 on this date
Samuel Alexander Mudd
Turns 25 on this date
Robert Barnwell Rhett
Turns 58 on this date
James Sewall Thomas
Turns 27 on this date
William Wright
Turns 70 on this date
Events
| Science/Technology | First day of Winter | 12/21/1858 |
| Slavery/Abolition | John Brown liberates slaves from three Missouri farms |
12/20/1858 to 12/21/1858 |
| Personal | John Brown returns to Kansas with slaves liberated in Missouri | 12/21/1858 |
| Campaigns/Elections | Lincoln-Douglas campaign lasts from mid-June 1858 until January 1859 |
06/16/1858 to 01/05/1859 |
| Foreign | Napoleon II pardons Montalembert for his libel conviction | 12/21/1858 |
| Lawmaking/Litigating | The second session of the 35th Congress is sitting in Washington, DC |
12/06/1858 to 12/22/1858 |