| December 3, 1818: <a href="/node/70013">Illinois</a> became the 21st state in the United States. |
| December 3, 1833: Oberlin College in Ohio became the <a href="/node/155690">first coed institution of higher learning in the U.S.</a> |
| December 3, 1919: French painter and sculptor <a href="/encyclopedia/people/arts/european-art-after-1600/renoir-pierre-auguste">Pierre A. Renoir</a> died at age 78. |
| December 3, 1967: <a href="/encyclopedia/medicine/bios/medical/barnard-christiaan-neethling">Dr. Christiaan N. Barnard</a> performed the world's first successful human heart transplant. |
| December 3, 1984: A cloud of <a href="/node/10112">deadly poison gas leaked</a> from the Union Carbide plant in Bhopal, India, killing over 4,000 people. |
| More events from This Day in History: December 3 |