Here, the goal of our timeline pages is to try to give our readers a frame of reference for the events that have unfolded since late 2019 and early 2020. With news sources constantly bombarding us with information, it may be difficult to try to recall how a certain headline or story made you feel when you first heard about it. This timeline will constantly be growing with this project, and you will see the format change over time. But you will generally find the event or headline, the source, the date in which it occurred and whether it is a local, national or international story. From there, you can utilize the timeline to help reconstruct your thoughts, feelings and experiences of the past 8 months. If you don’t see a event or story that you remember as being important, please feel free to contact us to have us add it to this timeline!
The Excel Document attached serves as our most up to date timeline. We will add it to this website as the project continues. So please feel free to access it and use as a tool to help you remember events that have unfolded over the course of 2020.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1AUQ2Hku-ZFIGHDVcc7CrQXExE6aArqNhDSthQW7nJN4/edit?usp=sharing
DECEMBER 2019
JANUARY 2020
FEBRUARY 2020
13th – Local: First mention of COVID-19 in the Ithaca Journal. “Fall In New Cases Raises Hope in Virus Outbreak.”
MARCH 2020
10th – State: Prior to New York going into lockdown, state and local health officials were making critical plans expecting the amount of COVID cases to rise.
16th – Local: First confirmed case of COVID-19 in Tompkins County and is confirmed to be an Ithaca College student.
20th – State: Gov. Cuomo announces a stay at home order for millions in NYS to “flatten the curve.”
APRIL 2020
1st – National: Leaked documents reveal outbreak aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt. “We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset– our sailors.” – Captain Crozier
15th – National: Protests break out in Michigan over stay at home orders, sparking fears of a spike in cases due to crowds.
MAY 2020
11th – Local: Tompkins County begins to move forward with Phase 1 of reopening. Announcement is met with ‘mixed emotion.’
25th – National: George Floyd dies during arrest by four police officers. Protests break out shortly after in Minneapolis where tear gas was used against protesters.
JUNE 2020
2nd – National: As protests grow across the country over the death of George Floyd, concerns grow over a possible spike in COVID-19 cases due to large crowds and use of tear gas by police that causes victims to cough uncontrollably.
15th – Local: Due to concern over COVID-19 and after postponement, the Ithaca Festival is officially cancelled for 2020.
JULY 2020
AUGUST 2020
Presbyterian Salt 