Some of the significant events which took place on August 24 taken from the leaf of History:

79- Mt Vesuvius erupts, buries Roman Pompeii and Herculaneum, 15,000 die.

410 – Rome overrun by Visigoths under Alaric I for the first time in nearly 800 years, seen as the fall of the Western Roman Empire.

1516 – Battle of Marj Dabiq: Ottoman forces decisively beat the Mamluk Sultanate.

1572- St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre of Protestants by Roman Catholics begins in Paris and later spreads to the French provinces.

1662 – Act of Uniformity requires English to accept Book of Common Prayer.

1690 – Job Charnock of the East India Company landed in Kolkota and this day is considered the foundation day of the city.

1814 – British forces capture Washington, D.C. and destroy many landmarks (War of 1812).

1968 – France becomes the world’s fifth thermonuclear power with a detonation on Mururoa Atoll in the South Pacific.

1969 – V. V. Giri became the fourth President of India.

1974 – Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed became the fifth President of India.

1814 – British Burn Down Washington D.C.

1814 : During the War of 1812, In 1814 British Troops led by General Robert Ross entered the US capital of Washington D.C. and and burned many of the public buildings down, including the White House and the US Capitol building.

1925 – An Indian Scholar and Social reformer, R. G. Bhandarkar died.

1927 – Lloyd Bertaud (Pilot) and James Taylor (Navigator) have confirmed they plan to take off for Rome Tomorrow in their Fokker monoplane “Old Glory,” three airplanes and their aviators were due to make this historic flight but only Old Glory is ready. The Italian aviators who were also to make the historic flight are not ready but the Italians have promised to give Old Glory a rousing reception when they arrive. Also two other American Aviators are leaving Bristol in England in an attempt to circle the globe in less than 28 days which is the current record. The current record was set using airplane, steamer and rail and the intrepid flyers are hoping to make the new record in less than 15 days. Captain Leslie Hamilton and Colonel FF Mitchen will leave tomorrow.

1932 – U.S.A. Amelia Earhart: Amelia Earhart became the first woman to make a transcontinental flight when she landed at the Newark Airport in New Jersey after a 19 hour flight from Los Angeles, CA.

1948 – Germany Berlin Airlift: As the number of aircraft needed to supply much needed supplies to Berlin since the Russian blockade increases, the risks of accidents is also increased and Two American C47 transport planes and their crew paid for the increased risk when they crashed at 4.00 AM while returning from a drop in Berlin.

1954 – Getulio Dornelles Vargas: The president of Brazil Getulio Dornelles Vargas committed suicide today after he was forced to step down from his presidency because of a military revolt.

1954 – Communist Party Outlawed: President Eisenhower signed the Communist Control Act theoretically outlawing the Communist Party in the United States.

1968 – France Nuclear Power: France became the world’s fifth nuclear power when it exploded its first hydrogen bomb.

1973 – Eastern Equine Encephalitis: The deadly disease that affects horses Eastern Equine Encephalitis affecting the horses’ brain has struck down 50 horses in Mass and surrounding states, the disease is spread by the Mosquito and helicopters are being used to spray many thousands of acres with Malathion to kill the Mosquitoes. It has been confirmed that a case of the human strain Encephalitis is being treated in a local hospital. The disease is not carried from human to human which is why a mass spraying of mosquito spray is being used.

1981 – U.S.A. Mark David Chapman: Mark David Chapman is sentenced in New York to 20 years to life in prison for the murder of John Lennon on December 8^th, 1980, when he shot John Lennon four times in front of his wife Yoko Ono.

1985 – India Union Carbide Bhopal: A toxic leak at the Union Carbide factory on December 3^rd has been blamed on a chain of human errors and mechanical safeguards failing. The leak allowed a cloud of Toxic Methylene Chloride and 22 other toxic substances to escape, and over 3000 people were affected in the town who have sued Union Carbide.

1992 – U.S.A. Hurricane Andrew: Hurricane Andrew with winds in excess of 150 MPH ravages Southern Florida destroying 85,000 homes and leaving 1/4 million homeless. 38 people are killed and estimated costs are put at over $30 billion dollars.

1993 – U.S.A. Michael Jackson: Police are investigating allegations of child abuse made against singer Michael Jackson by the father of one boy befriended by Mr. Jackson. The allegations against Michael Jackson include that the singer seduced the child and performed sex acts with him at his Neverland ranch in Santa Barbara.

1996 – Mexico Hurricane Dolly: Hurricane Dolly slammed into Mexico for the second time in the shanty town of Tampica causing flooding, luckily the winds had decreased to 80MPH so only 1 woman was killed and most of the shanties survived with only minor damage. The shanty town is 450 miles south of Brownsville Texas.

2006 – Space Pluto: The International Astronomical Union (IAU) defined the term “planet” for the first time and declared that Pluto was no longer the Solar System’s ninth planet, demoting it to the status of a “dwarf planet.” A group of 2,500 scientists at a meeting in Prague voted that Pluto would no longer be considered a planet in the scientific community. The scientists created a strict set of guidelines for classifying planets and Pluto did not meet the guidelines, the planet was reclassified as a dwarf planet. According to the new definition, there are currently eight planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune) and four dwarf planets (Ceres, Pluto, Makemake and Eris) now known in the solar system.

2008 – China Summer Olympics Ends: The 2008 Summer Olympics came to a close in Beijing, China. There were no major incidents or catastrophes during the games. The Chinese won the most gold medals, while the United States won the most medals overall.

2008 – Iraq Suicide Bombing: A suicide bombing in a part of Baghdad, Iraq killed twenty-five people on this day and injured another thirty. The attack was believed to be carried out by Al-Queda against Sunni Awakening groups. 2012 – New Chinese Bridge Collapses: Three people died after the newly built Yangmingtan Bridge collapsed in Harbin City in China, poor construction and over-loading were blamed for the incident.

2013 – Broadway Actress Julie Harris Dies: Broadway actress Julie Harris died at the age of eighty-seven. Harris was one of the holders of the record for most Tony Awards, she was also nominated for and won several Emmy Awards. Harris was also known for her movie and television roles in films like East of Eden and shows like Knot’s Landing.

1949 -The North Atlantic Treaty came into force.

1814- During the War of 1812, British forces invaded Washington, D.C., setting fire to the Capitol (which was still under construction) and the White House, as well as other public buildings.

1912 – Congress passed a measure creating the Alaska Territory. Congress approved legislation establishing Parcel Post delivery by the U.S. Post Office Department, slated to begin on January 1, 1913.

1932 – Amelia Earhart embarked on a 19-hour flight from Los Angeles to Newark, New Jersey, making her the first woman to fly solo, non-stop, from coast to coast.

1954 – President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Communist Control Act, outlawing the Communist Party in the United States.

1959 – three days after Hawaiian statehood, Hiram L. Fong was sworn in as the first Chinese-American U.S. Senator while Daniel K. Inouye (in-OH’-way) was sworn in as the first Japanese-American U.S. Representative.

1968 – France became the world’s fifth thermonuclear power as it exploded a hydrogen bomb in the South Pacific.

1981 – Mark David Chapman was sentenced in New York to 20 years to life in prison for murdering John Lennon. (Chapman remains imprisoned.)

1989 – The Voyager 2 space probe flew by Neptune, sending back striking photographs.

1992 – Hurricane Andrew smashed into Florida, causing $30 billion in damage; 43 U.S. deaths were blamed on the storm.

2006 – The International Astronomical Union declared that Pluto was no longer a full-fledged planet, demoting it to the status of a “dwarf planet.”

2008 – A suicide bomber struck a welcome-home celebration on Baghdad’s outskirts for an Iraqi detainee released from U.S. custody, killing at least 25 people. An Iran-bound passenger jet carrying 90 people crashed in Kyrgyzstan, killing some 70 people. On the final day of the Beijing Games, Kobe Bryant hit two 3-pointers in a big fourth quarter to help the United States defeat Spain 118-107 and win the men’s basketball gold medal for the first time since 2000. Waipahu, Hawaii, defeated Matamoros, Mexico, in the Little League World Series, 12-3.

2013 – Tens of thousands of people marched to the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial and down the National Mall, commemorating the 50th anniversary of King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech (delivered on August 28, 1963). Julie Harris, 87, one of Broadway’s most honored performers, died in West Chatham, Massachusetts.

1917 – Presidential adviser Jared Kushner met with Israeli and Palestinian leaders to try to jumpstart peace talks. Former Carter administration Interior Secretary Cecil Andrus, who engineered the conservation of millions of acres of Alaska land, died at the age of 85.

1917 – Mavis Wanczyk, a hospital worker from the western Massachusetts town of Chicopee, was announced as the winner of the biggest undivided lottery jackpot in U.S. history, a $758.7 million Powerball prize; lottery officials said she chose to take a lump sum payment of $480 million, or $336 million after taxes. Florida put a convicted killer, Mark Asay, to death using an anesthetic that had never before been used in a U.S. lethal injection.