It was December 20, 1803 when a flag-raising ceremony was conducted in New Orleans. The US flag was raised to complete the purchase of the Louisiana Territory from France. More specifically, it was purchased from Napoleon. The deal vastly increased the territory of the United States, but there were a few odd things about it. The US had originally started negotiating with France to purchase the city of New Orleans and the surrounding area for about $10 million. The Americans wanted New Orleans because it was already an important port, and because Spain had revoked a treaty allowing American access to it. They were somewhat surprised when the French negotiators made a counter-offer: the whole territory, which stretched as far north as Canada and as far west as Montana (or what would eventually become Montana) for the bargain price of only $15 million. After what must have been some astonished stammering, the US accepted the offer as quickly as they could, before Napoleon changed his mind.
That wasn’t the only odd thing about the deal. The Americans might not have even known that France owned the territory; it had been controlled by Spain until a treaty in 1800 (The Third Treaty of San Ildefonso) ceded it to France. But the thing was, it was a secret treaty. The Spanish kept de-facto control of it, though, until November 30, 1803 — just three weeks before the New Orleans flag raising.
It didn’t belong to any of them in the first place, since it was already inhabited when they arrived.
Not only that, but as a mammoth land-deal involving sovereign nations, the whole thing happened astonishingly quickly. It wasn’t just the incredibly low price (about $18 per square mile, or three cents per acre) — Napoleon wanted the deal to go through at lightning speed to tweak the noses of the Spanish, with whom he was annoyed. There were some questions about whether the territory really was France’s to sell, you see, thanks in part to the secrecy of that treaty. Besides, Napoleon needed the money. He was planning another little military operation at the time: invading England. Anyway, after ownership of the territory had bounced around between Spain, France, and England— and not forgetting that it didn’t belong to any of them in the first place, since it was already inhabited when they arrived — the land became part of the US, which it’s still part of.
One final coincidence about the Louisiana Purchase: the US knew about the territory, and wanted it, largely because of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, which explored it. The expedition was guided by the Native American woman known as Sacagawea. She passed away from illness in 1812 — on December 20.
Maybe changes in ownership are in the air on December 20 every year. After all, it was December 20, 2004 when an armed gang shifted ownership of £26.5 million pounds from the Northern Bank in Belfast, Northern Ireland, to themselves. It was one of the biggest bank robberies in the history of the UK. Then on the third anniversary of that heist, an even bigger robbery took place at the São Paulo Museum of Art in Brazil. An original Picasso worth $50 million and a Portinari worth $5 million were taken in a well-planned, efficient, three-minute-long operation. The paintings, by the way, were recovered. Most of the money from the bank robbery never was.
But the story of December 20 ownership changes goes on further, this time in the South Atlantic. The Falkland Islands (they’ve had other names) have over the years been claimed by France, England, Spain, and Argentina. At least there weren’t any prior claimants to ignore; the islands were uninhabited when they were discovered by Europeans — although if you go back as far as the Ice Age, they may have been easier to get to, and the Yaghan people of Tierra Del Fuego may have at least visited. But in any case, the islands first appeared on European maps in the early 1500s. They seem to have been called the Sanson Islands at the time, and Magellan may have either sighted them or even visited briefly to gather food and water.
The name “Falkland Islands” comes from Lord Falkland of England, who organized the first expedition to explore the place. The French were the first to establish a colony there, and renamed then the Iles Malouines. The Spanish essentially purchased the islands from France in 1766, and changed the name to Islas Malvinas (a straight translation of the French name). Unaware of any of this, the British Captain John Byron established a colony on another part of the islands and called it Port Egmont. At the same time he claimed the islands in the name of Great Britain. The Spanish finally found out about Egmont in 1770 and sent five armed ships to force the British to leave. England and Spain almost started a war, but the crisis seemed to dissipate and the Spanish ships left Egmont, which at that point was deserted. Then in 1776 the British simply sailed back, reestablished the port, and kept using it until 1780, when the Spanish again kicked them out.
The islands were firmly in Spanish control until 1811, when they left, having a war in Europe to tend to. They left a sign, though, explaining that they still owned the place. The British had done exactly the same thing when they left Egmont, though. The thing about leaving a sign claiming you own a deserted island is that it’s so easy for the next crew that comes along to say “sign? What sign? We didn’t see any sign. By the way, have some of this delicious fish; we just finished cooking it over this fire we built…” For some reason, though, it took the British until 1832 to remember Port Egmont, and on December 20 they arrived yet again, reestablished the port yet again, and claimed the islands yet again.
Back in those days travel was a slow process; a single voyage could take months or even years. And even closer to the present day, when steamship and then air travel arrived, it wasn’t available to just anybody, mostly because of the expense. That started to really change fast on December 20, 1957 when the first production Boeing 707 jetliner made its first flight. It was the aircraft that really ushered in the “jet age” that made airline trips possible for millions more travelers. But some people, of course, prefer train travel. The US was once a leader in train travel, and as recently as 1967 — specifically on December 20 — high-speed rail was available. That was the day a Pennsylvania Railroad “Metroliner” hit 155mph on the commuting rails between New York and Washington, D.C. That’s faster than the Acela train goes today.
But still, more people commute by car than by rail. The rise of cars as a viable option depended on innumerable advances, not least the idea of rubber pneumatic tires. One of the most important names in those tires is still “Firestone”. That’s because Harvey Firestone founded the Firestone Tire and Rubber company in 1900, one of the very first tire manufacturers. Why am I mentioning him? Because today is his birthday, of course. His company was hugely successful and along with his friends Henry Ford and Thomas Edison, he was considered one of the top leaders in American industry in the early 20th Century. If you had asked him, he probably would have agreed that it was a wonderful life. You know, like that great holiday movie starring James Stewart. Funny thing about that film. It’s a Wonderful Life opened in 1946. On December 20.