Mississippi was admitted to the Union, making it the 20th American state.
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Cristina Fernandez was sworn in as Argentina's first elected female president.
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain was first published in the UK and Canada.
King Berger of Sweden celebrated Christmas with his brothers before throwing them in his dungeons to die.
Winston Churchill was awarded the Nobel prize in Literature.
The First Nobel Peace Prizes were awarded to the Red Cross founder Jean Henri Dunant and peace activist Frederic Passy.
