Portal:United States/Anniversaries/July/July 24
- 1897 – Amelia Earhart (pictured), known both for accomplishments as an aviation pioneer and for her disappearance over the central Pacific Ocean, was born.
- 1943 – Operation Gomorrah, a massive bombing campaign targeting the city of Hamburg, begins. American airplanes bomb the city by day, and British and Canadian airplanes bomb the city by night. By the end of the operation in November, 9,000 tons of explosives will have killed more than 30,000 people and destroyed 280,000 buildings.
- 1950 – Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the military base adjacent to the civilian run Kennedy Space Center, launches its first rocket, a Bumper V-2.
- 1959 – At the opening of the American National Exhibition in Moscow, Vice President Richard Nixon and Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev hold the "Kitchen Debate".
- 1974 – The Supreme Court unanimously rules that President Richard Nixon does not have the authority to withhold subpoenaed White House tapes, and that Nixon must surrender the tapes to the special prosecutor investigating the Watergate scandal.
On this day for the United States
January • February • March • April • May • June • July • August • September • October • November • December
July 24:
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Events
- 1814 – War of 1812: General Phineas Riall advances toward the Niagara River to halt Jacob Brown's American invaders.
- 1832 – Benjamin Bonneville leads the first wagon train across the Rocky Mountains by using Wyoming's South Pass.
- 1847 – After 17 months of travel, Brigham Young leads 148 Mormon pioneers into Salt Lake Valley, resulting in the establishment of Salt Lake City. Celebrations of this event include the Pioneer Day Utah state holiday and the Days of '47 Parade.
- 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Kernstown – Confederate General Jubal Early defeats Union army troops led by General George Crook in an effort to keep them out of the Shenandoah Valley.
- 1866 – Reconstruction: Tennessee becomes the first U.S. state to be readmitted to the Union following the American Civil War.
- 1901 – O. Henry is released from prison in Austin, Texas, after serving three years for embezzlement from a bank.
- 1915 – Passenger ship Eastland capsizes in central Chicago, with the loss of 845 lives.
- 1931 – A fire at a home for aged people in Pittsburgh kills 48 people.
- 1935 – The dust bowl heat wave reaches its peak, sending temperatures to 109°F (44°C) in Chicago and 104°F (40°C) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
- 1937 – Alabama drops rape charges against the so–called "Scottsboro Boys."
- 1943 – World War II: Operation Gomorrah begins: British and Canadian aeroplanes bomb Hamburg by night, those of the Americans by day. By the end of the operation in November, 9,000 tons of explosives will have killed more than 30,000 people and destroyed 280,000 buildings.
- 1950 – A V-2 rocket makes the first launch from Kennedy Space Center
- 1956 – At New York City's Copacabana Club, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis perform their last comedy show together which started on July 25, 1946.
- 1959 – At the opening of the American National Exhibition in Moscow, US vice president Richard Nixon and Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev have a "Kitchen Debate."
- 1965 – Vietnam War: Four F-4C Phantoms escorting a bombing raid at Kang Chi are the targets of antiaircraft missiles in the first such attack against American planes in the war. One is shot down and the other three sustain damage.
- 1966 – Michael Pelkey made the first BASE jump from El Capitan along with Brian Schubert. Both came out with broken bones. BASE jumping is now been banned from El Cap.
- 1969 – Apollo program: Apollo 11 splashes down safely in the Pacific Ocean.
- 1974 – Watergate Scandal: The United States Supreme Court unanimously ruled that President Richard Nixon did not have the authority to withhold subpoenaed White House tapes and they order him to surrender the tapes to the Watergate special prosecutor.
- 1983 – George Brett, batting for the Kansas City Royals against the New York Yankees, has a game–winning home run nullified in the "Pine Tar Incident".
- 1998 – Russell Eugene Weston Jr. bursts into the United States Capitol and opens fire killing two police officers. He is later ruled to be incompetent to stand trial.
- 2002 – James Traficant is expelled from the United States House of Representatives on a vote of 420 to 1.
- 2005 – Lance Armstrong wins his seventh consecutive Tour de France.