24 July History
- 1505 - On their way to India, a group of Portuguese explorers sack the city-state of Kilwa.
- 1567 - Mary, Queen of Scots, is imprisoned and forced to abdicate her throne to her 1-year-old son James VI.
- 1701 - Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac establishes Fort Ponchartrain for France at present-day Detroit, Michigan.
- 1704 - Admiral George Rooke takes Gibraltar from the Spanish.
- 1766 - At Fort Ontario, Canada, Ottawa chief Pontiac and William Johnson sign a peace agreement.
- 1791 - Robespierre expels all Jacobins opposed to the principles of the French Revolution.
- 1847 - The first members of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormons) arrive in Utah, settling in present-day Salt Lake City.
- 1862 - The eighth president of the United States, Martin Van Buren, dies at the age of 79.
- 1897 - African-American soldiers of the 25th Infantry Bicycle Corps arrive in St. Louis, Mo., after completing a 40-day bike ride from Missoula, Montana.
- 1941 - The U.S. government denounces Japanese actions in Indochina.
- 1942 - The Soviet city of Rostov is captured by German troops.
- 1950 - The U.S. Fifth Air Force relocates from Japan to Korea.
- 1974 - The Supreme Court rules that President Richard Nixon must surrender the Watergate tapes.
24 July Birthdays
- 1783 - Simon Bolivar, South American soldier and statesman.
- 1786 - Jean-Louis Nicollet, French explorer.
- 1802 - Alexandre Dumas, French author (The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers).
- 1895 - Robert Graves, poet and novelist (Goodbye to All That).
- 1897 - Amelia Earhart, aviation pioneer.
- 1900 - Zelda Sayre, writer (Save me the Waltz).
- 1916 - John D. MacDonald, author.
- 1920 - Bella Abzug, the first Jewish woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.