January 21
January 21
First confirmed case of COVID‑19 found in U.S.
Following a rapid spread from its origin in Wuhan, China, the first U.S. case of the 2019 novel coronavirus, which causes a disease known as COVID‑19, is confirmed in a…
A Year In History: 2020
This Year in History:
2020
Discover what happened in this year with HISTORY’s summaries of major events, anniversaries, famous births and notable deaths.
January 26
January 26
Basketball star Kobe Bryant dies in helicopter crash
On January 26, 2020, a helicopter carrying former pro basketball player Kobe Bryant, his 13‑year‑old daughter Gianna and seven others crashes in Calabasas, California, roughly 30 miles north of Los…
February 11
February 11
World Health Organization officially names novel coronavirus disease COVID‑19
A few months after the first known case was detected in Wuhan, China, and approximately three weeks after the first U.S. case was reported, on February 11, 2020, the World…
February 23
February 23
Ahmaud Arbery is shot dead while out jogging
Ahmaud Arbery, a 25‑year‑old Black man, is shot dead by a white father and son while out for a jog in a suburb of Brunswick, Georgia on February 23, 2020. …
March 11
March 11
President Trump addresses the nation on COVID‑19; announces travel ban
In a primetime Oval Office address, President Donald Trump announces a 30‑day travel ban on foreign travel to the U.S. from most European countries as COVID‑19 cases surge across the…
March 12
March 12
Broadway goes dark due to COVID‑19 pandemic
On March 12, 2020, after New York state and city leaders placed coronavirus‑related restrictions on gatherings of more than 500 people, the Broadway theater district announces it will go dark…
March 13
March 13
Breonna Taylor is killed by police in botched raid
Shortly after midnight on March 13, 2020, Breonna Taylor, a 26‑year‑old Black emergency medical technician, is shot and killed by police in her Louisville, Kentucky apartment after officers busted through…
May 25
May 25
George Floyd is killed by a police officer, igniting historic protests
On the evening of May 25, 2020, white Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kills George Floyd, a Black man, by kneeling on his neck for almost 10 minutes. The death,…
July 9
July 9
Supreme Court rules in McGirt v. Oklahoma
In a major decision on July 9, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court rules that an 1833 treaty still applies to the Muscogee Nation, also known as the Creek. In McGirt…
July 17
July 17
Congressman and civil rights leader John Lewis dies
On July 17, 2020, in the midst of a pandemic and a time of unparalleled racial tensions in the United States, the nation loses one of the last towering figures…
October 2
October 2
President Trump announces he and the first lady tested positive for COVID‑19
Amid a resurgence of the coronavirus pandemic, President Donald Trump announces that he and First Lady Melania Trump have tested positive for COVID‑19 in an early‑morning tweet on October 2,…
November 13
November 13
Kim Ng named first female MLB general manager
On November 13, 2020, veteran front‑office official Kim Ng breaks several glass ceilings simultaneously when she is named General Manager of the Miami Marlins. Ng is the first woman and…
