1357 Emperor Charles IV assists in laying the foundation stone of Charles Bridge in Prague.
1540 King Henry VIII of England annuls his marriage to his fourth wife, Anne of Cleves.
1706 Pierre Le Moyne d’Iberville (died), Canadian captain and explorer (born 1661)
1737 Gian Gastone de’ Medici (died), Grand Duke of Tuscany (born 1671)
1747 Giovanni Bononcini (died), Italian cellist and composer (born 1670)
1755 French and Indian War: Braddock Expedition – British troops and colonial militiamen are ambushed and suffer a devastating defeat by French and Native American forces.
1764 Ann Radcliffe (born), English author (died 1823)
1776 George Washington orders the Declaration of Independence to be read out loud to members of the Continental Army in New York, New York, for the first time.
1793 The Act Against Slavery is passed in Upper Canada and the importation of slaves into Lower Canada is prohibited.
1797 Edmund Burke (died), Irish-English philosopher and politician (born 1729)
1800 Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle (born), German physician, pathologist, and anatomist (died 1885)
1810 Napoleon annexes the Kingdom of Holland as part of the First French Empire.
1811 Explorer David Thompson posts a sign at the confluence of the Columbia and Snake Rivers (in modern Washington state, US), claiming the land for the United Kingdom.
1816 Argentina declares independence from Spain.
1819 Elias Howe (born), American inventor, invented the sewing machine (died 1867)
1850 U.S. President Zachary Taylor dies and Millard Fillmore succeeds him as 13th President of the United States.
1850 Zachary Taylor (died), American general and politician, 12th President of the United States (born 1784)
1856 Amedeo Avogadro (died), Italian chemist (born 1776)
1858 Franz Boas (born), German-American anthropologist (died 1942)
1863 American Civil War: the Siege of Port Hudson ends.
1867 Georges Lecomte (born), French author and playwright (died 1958)
1868 The 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified guaranteeing African Americans full citizenship and all persons in the United States due process of law.
1877 The inaugural Wimbledon Championships begins.
1879 Carlos Chagas (born), Brazilian physician (died 1934)
1879 Ottorino Respighi, Italian composer and conductor (died 1936)
1880 Paul Broca (died), French physician and anatomist (born 1824)
1896 William Jennings Bryan delivers his Cross of Gold speech advocating bimetallism at the 1896 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
1900 Boxer Rebellion: The Governor of Shanxi province in North China orders the execution of 45 foreign Christian missionaries and local church members, including children.
1900 Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom gives Royal Assent to an Act creating Australia thus uniting separate colonies on the continent under one federal government.
1903 Alphonse Francois Renard (died), Belgian geologist and petrographer (born 1842)
1903 Future Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin is exiled to Siberia for three years.
1907 Eddie Dean (born), American singer-songwriter and actor (died 1999)
1918 Great Train Wreck of 1918: in Nashville, Tennessee, an inbound local train collides with an outbound express killing 101 and injuring 171 people, making it the deadliest rail accident in United States history.
1922 Johnny Weissmuller swims the 100 meters freestyle in 58.6 seconds breaking the world swimming record and the ‘minute barrier’.
1927 Ed Ames (born), American singer and actor (Ames Brothers)
1927 Susan Cabot (born), American actress (died 1986)
1928 Vince Edwards (born), American actor, singer, and director (died 1996)
1929 Jesse McReynolds (born), American singer and mandolin player (Jim & Jesse)
1929 Lee Hazlewood (born), American singer-songwriter and producer (died 2007)
1932 Donald Rumsfeld (born), American captain and politician, 13th and 21st United States Secretary of Defense
1932 King C. Gillette (died), American businessman, founded The Gillette Company (born 1855)
1933 Oliver Sacks, (born) English-American neurologist and author
1934 Michael Graves (born), American architect, designed the Portland Building and the Humana Building
1936 Floyd Abrams (born), American lawyer
1938 Brian Dennehy (born), American actor, director, and producer
1943 World War II: Operation Husky Allied forces perform an amphibious invasion of Sicily.
1944 World War II: Battle of Normandy – British and Canadian forces capture Caen, France.
1944 World War II: Battle of Saipan – American forces take Saipan in the Mariana Islands.
1945 Dean Koontz (born), American author
1946 Bon Scott (born), Scottish-Australian singer-songwriter (AC/DC, Fraternity, The Valentines, and The Spektors) (died 1980)
1947 Mitch Mitchell (born), English drummer (The Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Dirty Mac, and The Riot Squad) (died 2008)
1947 O. J. Simpson (born), American football player and actor
1949 Fritz Hart (died), English-Australian composer and conductor (born 1874)
1952 John Tesh, American pianist, composer, and radio host
1955 Jimmy Smits (born), American actor
1955 Lindsey Graham (born), American colonel, lawyer, and politician
1955 The Russell–Einstein Manifesto is released by Bertrand Russell in London, England, United Kingdom.
1956 Tom Hanks (born), American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1958 Lituya Bay is hit by a megatsunami. The wave is recorded at 524 meters high, the largest in recorded history.
1962 Andy Warhol’s Campbell’s Soup Cans exhibition opens at the Ferus Gallery in Los Angeles.
1962 The Starfish Prime high-altitude nuclear test is conducted by the United States.
1964 Courtney Love (born), American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actress (Hole, Pagan Babies, Sugar Babydoll, and Babes in Toyland)
1965 Frank Bello (born), American bass player (Anthrax and Helmet)
1974 Earl Warren (died), American jurist and politician, 14th Chief Justice of the United States (born 1891)
1975 Jack White (born), American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (The White Stripes, The Raconteurs, The Dead Weather, and The Go)
1979 A car bomb destroys a Renault motor car owned by the famed “Nazi hunters” Serge and Beate Klarsfeld at their home in France. A note purportedly from ODESSA claims responsibility.
1981 Donkey Kong, a video game created by Nintendo, is released. The game marks the debut of Nintendo’s future mascot, Mario.
1985 Jimmy Kinnon (died), Scottish-American founder of Narcotics Anonymous (born 1911)
1986 The Parliament of New Zealand passes the Homosexual Law Reform Act legalizing homosexuality in New Zealand.
1987 Amanda Knox (born), American murderer
1996 Melvin Belli (died), American lawyer and actor (born 1907)
2002 Rod Steiger (died), American actor (born 1925)
2008 Iran conducts the Great Prophet III missile test and war games exercise.
2011 South Sudan gains independence and secedes from Sudan.
EO Smith
Latest posts by EO Smith (see all)
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- Alternative Facts and Science - 24 January, 2017