On this day — September 20 in African history

Rose Francine Rogombé, the Gabonese lawyer and politician who later became the country's first female president, was born.

CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

Emperor Bokassa I of the Central African Empire was overthrown in a French-backed coup while abroad, ending his brutal and extravagant reign.

A ferry capsized near Ukara Island on Lake Victoria, Tanzania, killing at least 224 people in one of East Africa's deadliest maritime disasters.

Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons

Sixteen newly independent African nations, including Chad, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Gabon, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and others, were admitted to the United Nations in a single session.

James Meredith was temporarily barred from entering the University of Mississippi by Governor Ross Barnett, defying a federal court order and escalating a crisis over desegregation.

Simon Muzenda, the Zimbabwean liberation movement veteran who served as the country's first vice president for 23 years, died.