January 17
January 17
English author Anne Brontë is born
On January 17, 1820, Anne Brontë, the youngest of the six Brontë children, is born in Yorkshire, England. Their mother died when Anne was still an infant, and the children were left…
A Year In History: 1820
This Year in History:
1820
Discover what happened in this year with HISTORY’s summaries of major events, anniversaries, famous births and notable deaths.
January 29
January 29
King George III dies
Ten years after mental illness forced him to retire from public life, King George III, the British king who lost the American colonies, dies at the age of 81. In…
February 6
February 6
Formerly enslaved people depart on journey to Africa
The first organized immigration of freed enslaved people to Africa from the United States departs New York harbor on a journey to Freetown, Sierra Leone, in West Africa. The immigration…
February 17
February 17
Senate passes Missouri Compromise
The Senate passes the Missouri Compromise, an attempt to deal with the dangerously divisive issue of extending slavery into the western territories. From colonial days to the Civil War, slavery…
March 3
March 3
Congress passes the Missouri Compromise
After months of bitter debate, Congress passes the Missouri Compromise, a bill that temporarily resolves the first serious political clash between slavery and antislavery interests in U.S. history. In February…
March 6
March 6
President Monroe signs the Missouri Compromise
On March 6, 1820, President James Monroe signs the Missouri Compromise, also known as the Compromise Bill of 1820, into law. The bill attempted to equalize the number of slave‑holding…
March 15
March 15
Maine enters the Union
As part of the Missouri Compromise between the North and the South, Maine is admitted into the Union as the 23rd state. Administered as a province of Massachusetts since 1647,…
March 22
March 22
American naval hero killed in duel
U.S. Navy officer Stephen Decatur, hero of the Barbary Wars, is mortally wounded in a duel with disgraced Navy Commodore James Barron at Bladensburg, Maryland. Although once friends, Decatur sat…
September 26
September 26
The famous frontiersman Daniel Boone dies in Missouri
On September 26, 1820 the pioneering frontiersman Daniel Boone dies quietly in his sleep at his son’s home near present‑day Defiance, Missouri. The indefatigable voyager was 86. Boone was born…
November 20
November 20
American vessel sunk by sperm whale
The American whaler Essex, which hailed from Nantucket, Massachusetts, is attacked by an 80‑ton sperm whale 2,000 miles from the western coast of South America. The 238‑ton Essex was in…
December 26
December 26
Moses Austin asks Spain for Texas colony
Hoping to recover from bankruptcy with a bold scheme of colonization, Moses Austin meets with Spain authorities in San Antonio to ask permission for 300 Anglo‑American families to settle in…
