History for February 24

History for February 24 - On-This-Day.com

John Vernon 1932 - Actor ("The Outlaw Jose Wales", "Dirty Harry")

• 1803 - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled itself to be the final interpreter of all constitutional issues.
• 1839 - Mr. William S. Otis received a patent for the steam shovel.
• 1868 - The U.S. House of Representatives impeached President Andrew Johnson due to his attempt to dismiss Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton. The U.S. Senate later acquitted Johnson.
• 1903 - In Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, an area was leased to the U.S. for a naval base.
• 1938 - The first nylon bristle toothbrush was made. It was the first time that nylon yarn had been used commercially.
• 1989 - Iran’s Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini sentenced Salman Rushdie to death for his novel "The Satanic Verses". A bounty of one to three-million-dollars was also put on Rushidie's head.