History Oct. 20: Lynard Skynard

 Oct. 20 in history

In 1774, the First Continental Congress creates the Continental Association, which calls for a complete ban on all trade between America and Great Britain of all goods, wares or merchandise. 

In 1803, U.S. Senate ratifies the Louisiana Purchase.

In 1942, dozens of Black leaders from the South convened in Durham, N.C., to address the problem of increasing racial tension. While Black soldiers fought on the battlefields of World War II, the leaders recalled the mistreatment of Black soldiers returning from World War I, “a sweeping surge of bitterness and rebuff that … constitutes one of the ugliest scars on the fair face of our nation.” What emerged was the “Durham Manifesto,” calling for the end of segregation, the poll tax, the “white” primary and racial discrimination. 1942: Black leaders address increasing racial tension - Mississippi Today 

In 1943, Gen. McArthur returns to the Philippines.

In 1947, the notorious Red Scare kicks into high gear in Washington, as a Congressional committee begins investigating Communist influence in one of the world’s richest and most glamorous communities: Hollywood. 

In 1962, President John Kennedy secretly plans blockade of Cuba.

In 1973, solicitor General Robert Bork dismisses Watergate special prosecutor Archibald Cox. Attorney General Richardson and Deputy Attorney General Ruckelshaus resigns in protest. Cox had conducted a detailed investigation of the Watergate break-in. 

In 1977, a Convair 240 aircraft crashed in Mississippi while carrying the Lynyrd Skynyrd rock band. During a flight from Greenville, South Carolina, to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the plane crashed in a heavily wooded area of southwestern Mississippi during a failed emergency landing. Three band members Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines and Cassie Gaines, an assistant road manager and both pilot and co-pilot were killed. Twenty others survived.

In 2011, Libyan dictator Muammar al-Qaddafi, the longest-serving leader in Africa and the Arab world, is captured and killed by rebel forces near his hometown of Sirte. (History.com 10/20/23)