Today in history
On June 24, 1497, the first recorded sighting of North America by a European took place as explorer John Cabot, on a voyage for England, spotted land, probably in present-day Canada.
In 1647 Margaret Brent, a niece of Lord Baltimore, was ejected from the Maryland Assembly after demanding a place and vote in that governing body.
In 1947 in what is believed to be the first report of “flying saucers,” Kenneth Arnold, of Boise, Idaho, claimed he observed nine “shining, saucerlike objects” over Washington’s Mount Rainier.
In 1948 the Soviet Union began the Berlin blockade by halting road and rail traffic between Berlin and West Germany.
In 1968 “Resurrection City,” a shantytown constructed as part of the Poor People’s March on Washington, was shut down by authorities.
In 1983 the space shuttle Challenger — carrying Sally Ride, America’s first woman in space — landed safely at Edwards Air Force Base in California.
In 1987 comedian-actor Jackie Gleason died in Fort Lauderdale; he was 71.
In 1993 eight Islamic fundamentalists were arrested in New York City and accused of plotting to bomb the United Nations, a federal building and the Holland and Lincoln tunnels.
In 1997 the Air Force released a report on the so-called Roswell Incident, suggesting that the alien bodies witnesses reported seeing in 1947 were life-sized dummies.
In 2003 President Vladimir Putin arrived in London on the first state visit to Britain by a Russian leader since the 19th century.
In 2004 a federal appeals court strikes down a Federal Communications Commission effort to make sweeping changes in media ownership rules.
In 2005 officials said tests confirmed the second case of mad cow disease in the United States.
In 2008 Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe refused to give into pressure from Africa and the West, saying the world can “shout as loud as they like” but he would not cancel an upcoming runoff election even though his opponent had quit the race.
In 2011 the New York state Senate passed and Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed into law legislation allowing same-sex marriages, making New York the sixth and by far the most populous state to legalize gay marriage.
In 2012 Muslim Brotherhood candidate Mohammed Morsi was declared the winner in Egypt’s presidential election, becoming the country’s first Islamist president and its first freely elected civilian leader.