1. The first recorded tornado outbreak in Alabama occurred on March 20, 1875. It ravaged large portions of the state, killing at least 18 people and causing significant damage to property.

2. In 1965, civil rights demonstrators crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma on March 20 as part of a historic march from Selma to Montgomery. The march helped raise awareness of the struggle for equal voting rights for African Americans.

3. On March 20, 1865, Union troops under the command of Major General James H. Wilson captured Selma, Alabama, which was an important manufacturing center for the Confederacy during the Civil War. The defeat helped hasten the collapse of the Confederacy.

4. Hiram Revels, the first African American to serve in the U.S. Senate, was sworn in on March 20, 1870. He represented Mississippi, but his election marked a significant milestone in the struggle for equal rights for African Americans who had been denied the right to vote.

5. On March 20, 2009, NASA launched the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft. The mission's goal was to map the surface of the moon and collect data that could be used to prepare for future manned missions to the lunar surface. The spacecraft is still in operation today.