What are the important events that happened on October 20? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
October 20: Facts & Myths About This Day
October 20 is the 293rd day of the year 2025 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 72 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Monday.
Under the Julian calendar, this day is October 7, 2025 – a Monday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?
When this day started, 29,348,640 minutes has elapsed since midnight of January 1, 1970 – the Unix epoch.
Strange as it may, if we name this day after a polygon then it will be called ‘dihectaenneacontatrigon’ day.
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Libra is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Opal is the modern birthstone for this month. Jasper is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.
According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 120 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year.
The ancient Maya civilization believes that the end of the world will happen on December 21, 2012. There are now 4,686 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.
Do people and celebrities interest you? Discover all the October 20 famous birthdays who share your special day. Learn some fun facts about your birthday!
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October 20 Historical Events
- 1781 –Patent of Toleration, providing limited freedom of worship, is approved in Habsburg Monarchy.
- 1883 –Peru and Chile sign the Treaty of Ancón, by which the Tarapacá province is ceded to the latter, bringing an end to Peru’s involvement in the War of the Pacific.
- 1904 –Chile and Bolivia sign the Treaty of Peace and Friendship, delimiting the border between the two countries.
- 1910 –The hull of the RMS Olympic, sister-ship to the ill-fated RMS Titanic, is launched from the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
- 1944 –Liquid natural gas leaks from storage tanks in Cleveland, then explodes; the explosion and resulting fire level 30 blocks and kill 130.
- 1962 –China launches simultaneous offensives in Ladakh and across the McMahon Line, beginning the Sino-Indian War.
- 1968 –Former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy marries Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis.
- 1970 –Siad Barre declares Somalia a socialist state.
- 1982 –During the UEFA Cup match between FC Spartak Moscow and HFC Haarlem, 66 people are crushed to death in the Luzhniki disaster.
- 1991 –The Oakland Hills firestorm kills 25 and destroys 3,469 homes and apartments, causing more than $2 billion in damage.
Who were born on October 20?
- 1711 –Timothy Ruggles, American politician (d. 1795)
- 1719 –Gottfried Achenwall, German statistician (d. 1772)
- 1882 –Bela Lugosi, Hungarian-born American actor (d. 1956)
- 1910 –Bob Sheppard, American sports public address announcer (d. 2010)
- 1913 –J. Michael Hagopian, Turkish-born American documentarian (d. 2010)
- 1919 –Tracy Hall, American inventor (d. 2008)
- 1958 –Dave Krieg, American football player
- 1960 –Lepa Brena, Yugoslav singer
- 1983 –Luis Saritama, Ecuadorian footballer
- 1985 –Jennifer Nicole Freeman, American actress
Who died on October 20?
- 460 –Aelia Eudocia, Byzantine Empress
- 1139 –Henry X, Duke of Bavaria
- 1964 –Herbert Hoover, 31st President of the United States (b. 1874)
- 1983 –Peter Dudley, British actor (b. 1935)
- 1994 –Burt Lancaster, American actor (b. 1913)
- 2003 –Miodrag Petrović, Serbian actor (b. 1924)
- 2004 –Chuck Hiller, American baseball player (b. 1934)
- 2005 –Shirley Horn, American singer (b. 1934)
- 2007 –Paul Raven, British bass-player (Killing Joke, Ministry) (b. 1961)
- 2008 –Gene Hickerson, American football player (b. 1935)
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