October 24

1537 16 months after Henry VIII of England married his third wife Jane Seymour, she gave birth to the future Edward VI. However, the birth was difficult, and the Queen died on October 24, 1537 from an infection. Jane Seymour was the only one of Henry's wives to receive a queen's funeral, and his only consort to be buried beside him in St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle.

Hans Holbein the Younger - Jane Seymour, Queen of England - Google Art Project

1601 Danish astronomer and alchemist Tycho Brahe contracted a bladder or kidney ailment after attending a banquet in Prague, and died eleven days later, on October 24, 1601. According to Johannes Kepler's firsthand account, Brahe had refused to leave the banquet to relieve himself because it would have been a breach of etiquette.

1632 Dutch scientist Antonie Philips van Leeuwenhoek was born on October 24, 1632. Using his handcrafted microscopes, van Leeuwenhoek was the first to observe and describe microorganisms, which he originally referred to as animalcules (from Latin animalculum = "tiny animal"). Van Leeuwenhoek was also the first to document microscopic observations of muscle fibers, bacteria, spermatozoa, and blood flow in capillaries.

1655 Nuremberg watchmaker Stephan Farffler died on October 24, 1689. Farffler, who was either a paraplegic or an amputee, built in 1655 the world's first self-propelling wheelchair. The three-wheeled device used a system of cranks and cogwheels and is also believed to have been a precursor to the modern-day bicycle and tricycle.

Farffler's carriage of 1655

1662 In his diary for October 24, 1662, Samuel Pepys reports eating, "a most excellent dish of tripes of my own directing, covered with mustard." In tribute to this, the Tripe Marketing Board, has declared October 24th to be World Tripe Day.

1789 The Brabant Revolution, sometimes considered as the first expression of Belgian nationalism, began on October 24, 1789 with the invasion of the Austrian Netherlands by an émigré army from the Dutch Republic. In 1831, the European powers agreed to fix the borders of the new country of Belgium, splitting it from Holland.

Scenes of the popular uprising at Ghent in support of the patriot army in November 1789

1852 American statesman Daniel Webster spent nearly three decades in one federal office or another. As he approached the end of his distinguished career, Webster grew increasingly dependent on alcohol, regularly drinking brandy and water while speaking. By early 1852, Webster had begun to suffer from cirrhosis of the liver, and in September 1852, he returned to his Marshfield estate, where his health continued to decline. Webster died at Marshfield on October 24, 1852. His last words were: "I still live."

1857 Sheffield F.C., the world's first football club that still exists, was founded on October 24, 1857. It was formed by a group of educated professional men (doctors, solicitors, manufacturers and merchants) who wanted to meet regularly and play football against each other. Initially, Sheffield FC games were played among club members themselves and took the format of "Married v Singles" or "Professionals v the Rest".

1861  In 1844, Samuel Morse sent the first ever long distance morse code message down an experimental telegraph line that ran from Washington DC to Baltimore. Samuel Morse's groundbreaking telegraph linked all the major metropolitan centers on the US East Coast by the mid 1850s. The overland telegraph connected the west coast of the continent to the east coast by October 24, 1861, bringing an end to the Pony Express.

1871 The largest mass lynching in United States history took place on October 24, 1871 when around 500 white rioters entered Chinatown in Los Angeles to attack, rob, and murder its residents. The attack took place after a white businessman had inadvertently been killed there in the crossfire of a tong battle within the Chinese community.

1901 Annie Edson Taylor, a former teacher from New York, was the first person to survive going over the 167ft drop at Niagara Falls in a wooden barrel. She went over the edge of the over the Canadian Horseshoe Falls for a stunt on October 24, 1901, her 63rd birthday.

Annie Taylor posing next to her barrel

1911 Orville Wright and his English friend Alec Ogilvie remained in the air nine minutes and 45 seconds in a Wright Glider, at Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina on October 24, 1911. This broke the Wright brothers' previous record of 1 minute 12 seconds set in 1903 with their 1902 glider. The new record stood for ten years until broken in Germany.

1917 On the night of October 24, 1917, Vladimir Lenin, disguised with a wig, rode with a friend in an empty streetcar to where the Bolshevik rebels were gathered. He persuaded them to attack the ministers in the Winter Palace. This kicked off the Bolshevik Red Guards takeover of buildings in Russia, among the first events associated with the October Revolution.

1920 On October 24, 1920, American football player Joe Fitzgerald appeared in the Detroit Heralds' game against the Columbus Panhandles as the team's starting left end. Fitzgerald scored the only points of the game, as he intercepted a pass from Frank Nesser and returned it 85 yards for a touchdown. Fitzgerald's score against Columbus was the first interception return for a touchdown in NFL history.

1929 October 24, 1929, a day known now as "Black Thursday," saw the American stock markets take an 11% tumble that shook investors to their core. Markets dropped by another 13% on "Black Monday" after the weekend and then another 12% on "Black Tuesday." The losses continued and saw the markets crash hard in front of the broader economic crash that would become the Great Depression.

1932 On October 24, 1932 Plennie L.Wingo of Texas finished an 8,000 mile (13,000 km) backward walk from Santa Monica to Istanbul, Turkey. He'd started his  journey on April 15, 1931 and wore periscopic eyeglasses, fastened over his ears like regular spectacles, which enabled him to see where he was walking. Wingo remains the Guinness record holder for "greatest extent of reverse pedestrianism".

1944 Built and launched in 1943, during her short career in the Pacific War, the USS Tang (SS-306)  sank 33 ships  -  more ships than any other American submarine in World War II. It was sank on October 24, 1944 when it was struck by its own torpedo.

USS Tang (SS-306) off Mare Island Navy Yard, December 1943

1945  Norwegian war-time leader Vidkun Quisling served as Minister-President between 1942 and 1945, heading the pro-Nazi puppet government, known as the Quisling regime. He surrendered after the German defeat and was found guilty of high treason against the Norwegian state. Quisling was executed by firing squad at Akershus Fortress, Oslo, on October 24, 1945.

1945 In June 1945 50 nations signed a charter creating the The United Nations Organization — later known as the United Nations. The Charter had to be subjected to parliamentary approval and it was finally ratified and established on October 24, 1945. 

1946 The first photograph of the Earth from outer space was taken abroad The  V-2 No. 13 rocket on October 24, 1946. The famous photograph was taken with an attached DeVry 35 mm black-and-white camera.

The first photo of Earth from space, taken aboard the V-2 No. 1

1949 President Harry S Truman laid the cornerstone at the United Nations headquarters on October 24, 1949.  During the ceremony, he referred to the United Nations as "a workshop of peace," highlighting the organization's role in promoting international cooperation and diplomacy to maintain peace and security in the world. Construction was completed three years later.

1964 Zambia achieved full independence from the United Kingdom when Northern Rhodesia became the Republic of Zambia on October 24, 1964. It became a member of the British Commonwealth, with Kenneth Kaunda as president.

1975 On October 24, 1975 an estimated 90 percent of women of Iceland took part in a "women’s day off" to protest wage discrepancy and unfair employment practices. Participants, led by women’s organizations, did not go to their paid jobs and did not do any housework or child-rearing for the whole day. Fathers had little choice but to bring their children to work or stay home themselves, leading them to call the female strike, "the long Friday."

1999 The record for the fastest ever marathon run while continuously tossing a pancake is 3hr 2min 27sec by  Dominic "Mike" Cuzzacrea at the Casino Niagara International Marathon on October 24, 1999. Cuzzacrea, known as "The Pancake Man," is a professional stuntman and endurance athlete who has broken numerous world records. He is also a philanthropist, and has raised millions of dollars for charity through his athletic feats.

2003 30 years after its first non-stop flight across the Atlantic, The Concorde makes its final commercial passenger flight from New York JFK to London Heathrow on October 24, 2003. The Concorde flew so fast, if you left London (or Paris) in the evening flying west towards New York, to the passengers in the plane, the sun would actually appear to begin rising again shortly after reaching cruising speed. The plane flew faster than the Earth's rotation.

2014 On October 24, 2014, methane was found in polar clouds on Titan. The atmosphere of Saturn's largest moon Titan contains 1.6% methane and thousands of methane lakes have been detected on the surface. Methane showers, probably prompted by changing seasons, have also been observed.