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On This Day · The 144th day of the year

May 24

A look at May 24 through the almanac — historic events, famous birthdays including Bob Dylan and Joseph Brodsky, and the day's notable deaths and observances.

♊ZodiacGemini ◈BirthstoneEmerald ❀Birth flowerLily of the Valley
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Events

10 notable moments
  1. 2026

    2026 Quetta train bombing

    A suicide bombing targeting a shuttle train in Quetta, Balochistan, killed at least 48 people and injured 98 others.

    Train bombing in Quetta,
  2. 2022

    Uvalde school shooting

    A mass shooting occurs at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, United States, resulting in the deaths of 21 people, including 19 children.

    2022 mass shooting in
  3. 1988

    Section 28

    Section 28 of the United Kingdom's Local Government Act 1988, a controversial amendment stating that a local authority cannot intentionally promote homosexuality, is enacted.

    Former British anti-homosexuality law
  4. 1962

    Project Mercury

    Project Mercury: American astronaut Scott Carpenter orbits the Earth three times in the Aurora 7 space capsule.

    Initial American crewed spaceflight
  5. 1948

    1948 Arab–Israeli War

    Arab–Israeli War: Egypt captures the Israeli kibbutz of Yad Mordechai, but the five-day effort gives Israeli forces time to prepare enough to stop the Egyptian advance a week later.

    Second and final stage
  6. 1941

    World War II

    World War II: Battle of the Atlantic: In the Battle of the Denmark Strait, the German battleship Bismarck sinks the pride of the Royal Navy, HMS Hood, killing all but three crewmen.

    1939–1945 global conflict
  7. 1930

    Amy Johnson

    Amy Johnson lands in Darwin, Northern Territory, becoming the first woman to fly solo from England to Australia (she left on May 5 for the 11,000 mile flight).

    British aviator (1903–1941)
  8. 1883

    Brooklyn Bridge

    The Brooklyn Bridge in New York City is opened to traffic after 14 years of construction.

    Bridge in New York
  9. 1798

    Irish Rebellion of 1798

    The Irish Rebellion of 1798 led by the United Irishmen against British rule begins.

    Part of the French
  10. 1567

    Erik XIV

    Erik XIV of Sweden and his guards murder five incarcerated Swedish nobles.

    King of Sweden from
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Famous birthday twins

Born on May 24

Bob Dylan

b. 1941

American singer-songwriter, guitarist, artist, writer, and producer; Nobel Prize laureate

Joseph Brodsky

b. 1940

Russian-American poet and essayist, Nobel Prize laureate

Queen Victoria

b. 1819

of the United Kingdom

Terry Callier

b. 1945

American soul, folk and jazz guitarist and singer-songwriter

Patti LaBelle

b. 1944

American singer-songwriter and actress

Lillian Moller Gilbreth

b. 1878

American psychologist and engineer

Mikhail Sholokhov

b. 1905

Russian novelist and short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate

George Nakashima

b. 1905

American woodworker and architect

Deaths

  • 2010Anneliese Rothenberger, German soprano and actress
  • 2005Carl Amery, German activist and author
  • 1974Duke Ellington, American pianist and composer
  • 1848Annette von Droste-Hülshoff, German author and composer
  • 1734Georg Ernst Stahl, German physician and chemist
  • 1543Nicolaus Copernicus, Polish mathematician and astronomer

Holidays & observances

  • —Aldersgate Day/Wesley Day (Methodism)
  • —Battle of Pichincha Day (Ecuador)
  • —Bermuda Day (Bermuda), celebrated on the nearest weekday if May 24 falls on the weekend.
  • —Christian feast day: Anna Pak Agi (one of The Korean Martyrs)
  • —Christian feast day: Donatian and Rogatian
  • —Christian feast day: Jackson Kemper (Episcopal Church)
  • —Christian feast day: Joanna
  • —Christian feast day: Juan de Prado

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