What happened on April 24? There are more than 248 events that were made this day in history. Here are the important historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
Interesting Facts & Myths About April 24
April 24 is the 115th day of the year 2024. There are 251 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Wednesday. This day falls under the 17th week of the year 2024.
On this day in Fort Smith, Arkansas 72918 sunrise will occur at 06:31 AM and sunset will occur at 07:58 PM (local time).
The zodiac sign of a person born on this day is Taurus. The modern birthstone for this month is Diamond while the mystical birthstone is Opal.
According to the Chinese calendar, there are 280 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year (January 29, 2025).
Is your birthday coming up in two days? Are you not curious to find out who is sharing your special day? Discover all the April 21 famous birthdays. There are fun facts about that day that you must know. (Sponsored link)
Historical Events For April 24
- 1479 BCThutmose III ascends to the throne of Egypt, although power effectively shifts to Hatshepsut (according to the Low Chronology of the 18th Dynasty).
- 1558Mary, Queen of Scots, marries the Dauphin of France, François, at Notre Dame de Paris.
- 1704The first regular newspaper in the United States, the News-Letter, is published in Boston, Massachusetts.
- 1800The United States Library of Congress is established when President John Adams signs legislation to appropriate $5,000 USD to purchase “such books as may be necessary for the use of Congress”.
- 1862American Civil War: A flotilla commanded by Union Admiral David Farragut passes two Confederate forts on the Mississippi River on its way to capture New Orleans, Louisiana.
- 1877Russo-Turkish War: Russian Empire declares war on Ottoman Empire.
- 1898The Spanish-American War: The United States declares war on Spain.
- 1904The Lithuanian press ban is lifted after almost 40 years.
- 1907Al Ahly was founded.
- 1907Hersheypark, founded by Milton S. Hershey for the exclusive use of his employees, is opened.
- 1913The Woolworth Building skyscraper in New York City is opened.
- 1915The arrest of 250 Armenian intellectuals and community leaders in Istanbul marks the beginning of the Armenian Genocide.
- 1916Easter Rising: The Irish Republican Brotherhood led by nationalists Patrick Pearse, James Connolly, and Joseph Plunkett starts a rebellion in Ireland.
- 1916Ernest Shackleton and five men of the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition launch a lifeboat from uninhabited Elephant Island in the Southern Ocean to organise a rescue for the ice-trapped ship ship .
- 1918First tank-to-tank combat, at Villers-Bretonneux, France, when three British Mark IVs met three German A7Vs.
- 1922The first segment of the Imperial Wireless Chain providing wireless telegraphy between Leafield in Oxfordshire, England, and Cairo, Egypt, comes into operation.
- 1926The Treaty of Berlin is signed. Germany and the Soviet Union each pledge neutrality in the event of an attack on the other by a third party for the next five years.
- 1932Benny Rothman leads the mass trespass of Kinder Scout, leading to substantial legal reforms in the United Kingdom.
- 1953Winston Churchill is knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.
- 1955The Bandung Conference ends: 29 non-aligned nations of Asia and Africa finish a meeting that condemns colonialism, racism, and the Cold War.
- 1957Suez Crisis: The Suez Canal is reopened following the introduction of UNEF peacekeepers to the region.
- 1963Marriage of HRH Princess Alexandra of Kent to the Hon Angus Ogilvy at Westminster Abbey in London.
- 1965Civil war breaks out in the Dominican Republic when Colonel Francisco Caamaño, overthrows the triumvirate that had been in power since the coup d'état against Juan Bosch.
- 1967Cosmonaut Vladimir Komarov dies in Soyuz 1 when its parachute fails to open. He is the first human to die during a space mission.
- 1967Vietnam War: American General William Westmoreland says in a news conference that the enemy had “gained support in the United States that gives him hope that he can win politically that which he cannot win militarily.”
- 1968Mauritius becomes a member state of the United Nations.
- 1970The Gambia becomes a republic within the Commonwealth of Nations, with Dawda Jawara as the first President.
- 1970The first Chinese satellite, Dong Fang Hong I, is launched.
- 1971Soyuz 10 docks with Salyut 1.
- 1980Eight U.S. servicemen die in Operation Eagle Claw as they attempt to end the Iran hostage crisis.
- 1990Gruinard Island, Scotland, is officially declared free of the anthrax disease after 48 years of quarantine.
- 1990STS-31: The Hubble Space Telescope is launched from the Space Shuttle Discovery.
- 1993An IRA bomb devastates the Bishopsgate area of London.
- 1996In the United States, the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 is introduced.
- 2004The United States lifts economic sanctions imposed on Libya 18 years previously, as a reward for its cooperation in eliminating weapons of mass destruction.
- 2005Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger is inaugurated as the 265th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church taking the name Pope Benedict XVI.
- 2005Snuppy, the world’s first cloned dog, is born in South Korea.
- 2006King Gyanendra of Nepal gives into the demands of protesters and restores the parliament that he dissolved in 2002.
- 2007Iceland announces that Norway will shoulder the defense of Iceland during peacetime.
Who Were Born On April 24?
- 1533William I of Orange (d. 1584)
- 1581Vincent de Paul, French saint (d. 1660)
- 1620John Graunt, English statistician and founder of the science of demography (d. 1674)
- 1706Giovanni Battista Martini, Italian musician (d. 1780)
- 1718Nathaniel Hone, Irish-born painter (d. 1784)
- 1743Edmund Cartwright, British inventor (d. 1823)
- 1784Peter Vivian Daniel, Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (d. 1860)
- 1815Anthony Trollope, English novelist (d. 1882)
- 1845Carl Spitteler, Nobel laureate (d. 1924)
- 1856Henri Philippe Pétain, French soldier and statesman (d. 1951)
- 1872Susanna Bokoyni, Hungarian centenarian and Circus performer
- 1876Erich Raeder, German naval commander (d. 1960)
- 1876Ioannis Georgiadis, Greek fencer (d. 1960)
- 1878Jean Crotti, Swiss artist (d. 1958)
- 1879Susanna Bokoyni, Hungarian centenarian and Circus performer d. 1984
- 1882Sir Hugh Dowding, commander of RAF Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain (d. 1970)
- 1887Denys Finch Hatton, English big-game hunter (d. 1931)
- 1889Lyubov Popova, Russian painter (d. 1924)
- 1889Stafford Cripps, British politician (d. 1952)
- 1897Benjamin Lee Whorf, American linguist (d. 1941)
- 1897Manuel Ávila Camacho, President of Mexico (d. 1955)
- 1899Oscar Zariski, Russian-born mathematician (d. 1986)
- 1900Elizabeth Goudge, English writer (d. 1984)
- 1903José Antonio Primo de Rivera, founder of the Falange (d. 1936)
- 1904Willem de Kooning, Dutch painter (d. 1997)
- 1905Robert Penn Warren, American poet (d. 1989)
- 1906Mimi Smith, maternal aunt and guardian of John Lennon (d. 1991)
- 1906William Joyce, Irish fascist (d. 1946)
- 1907William Sargant, British psychiatrist (d. 1988)
- 1908Józef Gosławski, Polish sculptor and medallic artist (d. 1963)
- 1908Marceline Day, American actor (d. 2000)
- 1914Justin Wilson, American Cajun chef and humorist (d. 2001)
- 1914William Castle, American film director and producer (d. 1977)
- 1916Lou Thesz, American professional wrestler (d. 2002)
- 1919Glafcos Clerides, President of Cyprus
- 1922J. D. Cannon, American actor (d. 2005)
- 1923Doris Burn, American children’s books author and illustrator (d. 2011)
- 1924Ruth Kobart, American actor and singer (d. 2002)
- 1924Sir Clement Freud, British writer, radio personality, and politician (d. 2009)
- 1926Thorbjörn Fälldin, Prime Minister of Sweden
- 1929Rajkumar, Kannada actor (d. 2006)
- 1930Jerome Callet, American musician
- 1930José Sarney, President of Brazil
- 1930Richard Donner, American film director and producer
- 1933Alan Eagleson, Canadian ice hockey agent and promoter
- 1933Claire Davenport, British actress (d. 2002)
- 1933Freddie Scott, American singer (d. 2007)
- 1933Helmuth Lohner, Austrian actor
- 1933Patricia Bosworth, American actress, journalist, writer and biographer
- 1934Shirley MacLaine, American actor and author
- 1935Tucker Smith, American actor, dancer, and singer (d. 1988)
- 1936Glen Hobbie, American baseball player
- 1936Jill Ireland, British actress (d. 1990)
- 1937Joe Henderson, American jazz saxophonist (d. 2001)
- 1940Sue Grafton, American author
- 1941John Williams, Australian guitarist
- 1941Richard Holbrooke, American diplomat (d. 2010)
- 1942Barbra Streisand, American singer and actor
- 1942Richard M. Daley, American politician
- 1943Richard Sterban, American singer
- 1944Tony Visconti, American record producer
- 1945Dick Rivers, French singer and actor
- 1945Doug Clifford, American drummer
- 1945Doug Riley, Canadian musician (d. 2007)
- 1945Robert Knight, American singer
- 1947Claude Dubois, Canadian singer-songwriter
- 1947Josep Borrell, Spanish politician
- 1947Roger D. Kornberg, American chemist and Nobel Prize laureate
- 1948Paul Cellucci, 69th Governor of Massachusetts and former United States Ambassador to Canada
- 1949Véronique Sanson, French singer-songwriter
- 1951Enda Kenny, Taoiseach of Ireland
- 1952Jean-Paul Gaultier, French fashion designer
- 1953Eric Bogosian, American actor and writer
- 1954Captain Sensible, British guitarist (The Damned)
- 1954Jack Blades, American musician, bassist for Night Ranger, Rubicon (1970s band) and others
- 1954Mumia Abu-Jamal, American Civil Rights activist, journalist of The Black Panthers
- 1955Eamon Gilmore, Tánaiste of Ireland
- 1955John de Mol, Dutch media businessman
- 1955Marion Caspers-Merk, German politician
- 1955Michael O'Keefe, American actor
- 1957Boris Williams, British musician (The Cure)
- 1957David J, British musician
- 1958Brian Paddick, British former deputy assistant commissioner and most senior openly gay police officer
- 1958Valery Lantratov, Russian ballet dancer
- 1959Dave Ridgway, Canadian football player
- 1959Glenn Morshower, American actor
- 1959Malcolm Oastler, Australian engineer
- 1959Paula Yates, British television presenter (d. 2000)
- 1962Clemens Binninger, German politician
- 1962Steve Roach, Australian rugby league footballer
- 1962Stuart Pearce, English footballer and manager
- 1963Billy Gould, American musician (Faith No More)
- 1963Mano Solo, French singer
- 1963Paula Frazer, American singer-songwriter
- 1963Tõnu Trubetsky, Estonian musician
- 1964Cedric the Entertainer, American comedian and actor
- 1964Djimon Hounsou, Beninese actor
- 1964Witold Smorawiński, Polish musician
- 1965Son Chang Min, South Korean actor
- 1966Alessandro Costacurta, Italian footballer
- 1966Pierre Brassard, Canadian humorist and actor
- 1967Omar Vizquel, Venezuelan baseball player
- 1968Aidan Gillen, Irish actor
- 1968Hashim Thaci, Kosovan politician
- 1968Mark Vanderloo, Dutch model
- 1968Stacy Haiduk, American actress
- 1968Todd Jones, American baseball player
- 1968Yuji Nagata, Japanese professional wrestler
- 1969Elias Atmatsidis, Greek footballer
- 1969Melinda Clarke, American actress
- 1969Viveca Paulin, Swedish actress
- 1970Damien Fleming, Australian cricketer
- 1971Alejandro Fernández, Mexican singer
- 1971Mauro Pawlowski, Belgian guitarist and singer
- 1972Chipper Jones, American baseball player
- 1972Jure Košir, Slovenian skier
- 1972Nicolas Gill, Canadian judoka
- 1972Rab Douglas, Scottish footballer
- 1973Damon Lindelof, American television writer
- 1973Eric Snow, American basketball player
- 1973Gabby Logan, British television presenter
- 1973Lee Westwood, British golfer
- 1973Sachin Tendulkar, Indian cricketer
- 1974Dave Vitty, British radio personality
- 1974Derek Luke, American actor
- 1974Eric Kripke, American television writer, director and producer
- 1974Stephen Wiltshire, British artist, autistic savant
- 1975Sam Doumit, American actress
- 1975Thad Luckinbill, American actor
- 1976Steve Finnan, Irish footballer
- 1977Carlos Beltrán, Puerto Rican baseball player
- 1977Siarhey Balakhonau, Belarusian writer
- 1978Eric Balfour, American actor
- 1978Kim Hyun-ju, Korean actress
- 1978Stella Damasus Aboderin, Nigerian actress
- 1979Laurentia Tan, Singaporean Paralympic equestrienne
- 1980Austin Nichols, American actor
- 1980Danny Gokey, American singer
- 1980Fernando Arce, Mexican footballer
- 1980Karen Asrian, Armenian chess Grandmaster (d. 2008)
- 1981Dusty Anderson, American pro wrestler
- 1981Taylor Dent, American tennis player
- 1981Yuko Nakanishi, Japanese swimmer
- 1982Kelly Clarkson, American singer
- 1982Laura Hamilton, Dancing On Ice 2011 Runner-Up
- 1983Princess Iman bint Al Hussein of Jordan
- 1984Tyson Ritter, American musician
- 1986Aaron Cunningham, American baseball player
- 1987Jan Vertonghen, Belgian footballer
- 1987Kristopher Letang, Canadian hockey player
- 1989David Boudia, American diver
- 1992Doc Shaw, American child actor
- 1994Austin Rogers, American actor
- 1998Ryan Newman, American actress
Who Died On April 24?
- 624Mellitus, Archbishop of Canterbury
- 709Wilfrid, English archbishop and saint
- 1185Emperor Antoku of Japan (b. 1178)
- 1338Theodore I of Montferrat (b. 1291)
- 1342Pope Benedict XII (b. 1285)
- 1622Fidelis of Sigmaringen, Swiss friar and saint (b. 1577)
- 1656Thomas Fincke, Danish mathematician and physicist (b. 1561)
- 1731Daniel Defoe, English writer (b. 1660)
- 1736Prince Eugene of Savoy, French-born Austrian general (b. 1663)
- 1779Eleazar Wheelock, American founder of Dartmouth College (b. 1711)
- 1794Axel von Fersen the Elder, Swedish statesman and soldier; father of Axel von Fersen the Younger (b. 1719)
- 1852Vasily Zhukovsky, Russian poet (b. 1783)
- 1891Helmuth von Moltke the Elder, Prussian field marshal (b. 1800)
- 1924G. Stanley Hall, American psychologist (b. 1844)
- 1931David Kldiashvili, Georgian writer (b. 1862)
- 1938George Grey Barnard, American sculptor (b. 1863)
- 1939Louis Trousselier, French cyclist (b. 1881)
- 1942Karin Boye, Swedish author (b. 1900)
- 1942Lucy Maud Montgomery, Canadian author (b. 1874)
- 1944Charles Jordan, American magician (b. 1888)
- 1944William Stephens, American politician (b. 1859)
- 1945Ernst-Robert Grawitz, German physician (b. 1899)
- 1947Hans Biebow, German WWII figure (b. 1902)
- 1947Willa Cather, American writer (b. 1873)
- 1957Harry McClintock, American country singer and hobo (b. 1882)
- 1960Max von Laue, German physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1879)
- 1962Milt Franklyn, American musician (b. 1897)
- 1964Gerhard Domagk, German bacteriologist (b. 1895)
- 1965Louise Dresser, American actress (b. 1878)
- 1966Simon Chikovani, Georgian poet (b. 1902)
- 1967Vladimir Komarov, Soviet cosmonaut (b. 1927)
- 1970Otis Spann, American blues pianist (b. 1930)
- 1974Bud Abbott, American actor and comedian (b. 1895)
- 1975Pete Ham, Welsh musician (Badfinger) (b. 1947)
- 1980Alejo Carpentier, Cuban writer (b. 1904)
- 1982Ville Ritola, Finnish athlete (b. 1896)
- 1983Rolf Stommelen, German race car driver (b. 1943)
- 1986Wallis Simpson, wife of Edward, Duke of Windsor (b. 1896)
- 1993Oliver Tambo, South African politician (b. 1917)
- 1993Tran Duc Thao, Vietnamese philosopher (b. 1917)
- 1997Eugene Stoner, American engineer and weapons designer (b. 1922)
- 1997Pat Paulsen, American comedian and politician (b. 1927)
- 2000William Moore, English actor (b. 1916)
- 2001Al Hibbler, American singer (b. 1915)
- 2001Leon Sullivan, African-American civil rights leader and pastor (b. 1922)
- 2002Lucien Wercollier, Luxembourgian sculptor (b. 1908)
- 2004Estée Lauder, American cosmetics entrepreneur (b. 1906)
- 2005Ezer Weizman, Israeli politician (b. 1924)
- 2005Fei Xiaotong, Chinese sociologist (b. 1910)
- 2006Brian Labone, English footballer (b. 1940)
- 2006Moshe Teitelbaum, Hassidic rabbi (b. 1914)
- 2006Steve Stavro, Canadian businessman and sports team owner (b. 1927)
- 2007Roy Jenson, American actor (b. 1927)
- 2009John Michell, British writer (b. 1933)
- 2011Marie-France Pisier, French actress (b. 1944)
- 2011Sathya Sai Baba, Indian guru, spiritual figure (b. 1926)
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