◆ On this day

December 20

4 sourced moments from December 20 in history: The US took over Louisiana on 20 December 1803; South Carolina seceded from the Union (1860); A reactor in the Idaho desert lit four light bulbs with atomic power (1951), plus 1 more.

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4 things happened on December 20

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1989 History · War & Conflict

The U.S. Invaded Panama to Remove Manuel Noriega

Before dawn on December 20, 1989, nearly 26,000 American troops launched the largest U.S. combat operation since Vietnam.

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1951 Technology · Energy

A reactor in the Idaho desert lit four light bulbs with atomic power

On December 20, 1951, EBR-I in the Idaho desert turned nuclear fission into usable electricity for the first time, lighting four ordinary bulbs.

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1860 History · War & Conflict

South Carolina seceded from the Union

On December 20, 1860, South Carolina became the first state to leave the Union, lighting the fuse toward civil war.

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1803 History · Modern

The US took over Louisiana on 20 December 1803

France owned Louisiana for just 20 days before handing it over in New Orleans — and the famous three-flag ceremony never happened in one afternoon.

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