This Day In History

On November 20, 1943, US troops launched the Battle of Tarawa, the first American offensive in the central Pacific region of World War II. A turning point in the Pacific War, it saw effective use of the America’s newly developed island-hopping strategy and provided important lessons for future invasions.

The last of the “log cabin presidents,” James A. Garfield was born November 19, 1831, near Cleveland, Ohio, to impoverished farmers. Rising from those humble beginnings, he forged a remarkable path as a scholar, Civil War general, and eventually the country’s 20th president.

On November 18, 1865, Mark Twain published an early version of “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” in The New York Saturday Press, bringing him his first real taste of national fame. Although he would later become one of America’s most important writers, this humorous frontier tale was the piece that launched his career and revealed his talent for storytelling, satire, and capturing the voices of everyday people.

On November 17, 1820, American sealer Nathaniel Brown Palmer and his small crew made history when they became the first Americans to see the icy continent of Antarctica. Their sighting marked an important moment in early American exploration and opened a new chapter in the world’s understanding of the far southern regions of the globe.

On November 16, 1907, Indian Territory and Oklahoma Territory were merged to create the state of Oklahoma. The new state emerged at a moment of rapid change, blending Native nations, frontier settlements, and booming oil discoveries into one of the most diverse and dynamic regions in early 20th-century America.

On November 11, 1889, Washington was admitted to the Union. Ever since, it has stood at the forefront of exploration, commerce, and progress in the American West.

On November 2, 1889, South Dakota became the 40th state in the Union. Its admission marked the culmination of decades of westward expansion, frontier settlement, and shifting territorial boundaries that shaped the northern Great Plains into a permanent part of the United States.

On August 21, 1959, America became the 50-state country we know today with the addition of Hawaii. Hawaii’s path to becoming the 50th state was long, complicated, and sometimes controversial.

On November 21, 1848, the first American Turners gymnastic union was established in Cincinnati, Ohio. Still in existence today, the Turners were honored with a stamp marking their 100th anniversary in 1948.

Jazz musician Coleman Randolph “Hawk” Hawkins was born on November 21, 1904, in Saint Joseph, Missouri. Hawkins is credited with establishing the tenor saxophone as a prominent jazz instrument.

On November 21, 1905, Einstein published a paper that presented one of the world’s most famous formulas — E=mc2.

On November 21, 1964, the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge first opened to traffic.  It was the longest suspension bridge in the world at the time, and remains the longest bridge in America today.