1. On July 24, 1934, a massive fire broke out at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus in Hartford, Connecticut, killing 168 people and injuring over 700. It remains the deadliest circus fire in American history and led to increased safety regulations for public events.

2. In 1868, the first traffic light in Connecticut was installed on the corner of Main Street and State Street in Hartford. It was manually operated by a police officer and did not use the red-yellow-green system we use today.

3. On July 24, 2007, former Connecticut Governor John G. Rowland was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison on corruption charges. He was the first Connecticut governor in history to be sent to prison.

4. The University of Connecticut was founded on July 24, 1881, as the Storrs Agricultural School with just three faculty members and 12 students. Today, it is one of the top public universities in the country, with over 32,000 students and 8 campuses.

5. On July 24, 1788, Connecticut became the fifth state to ratify the United States Constitution, joining Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Georgia. The Constitution went into effect the following year after a total of nine states had ratified it.