A Day in the Past

On this day: 30 April

148 things happened on 30 April, from AD 65 to 2024. UK stories come first, then the rest of the world.

Printable worksheet Take the quiz

In the UK 5

UK history first: stories from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

1963 63 years ago

UK story

A refusal by the Bristol Omnibus Company and the Transport and General Workers' Union to permit the employment of black bus crews led to a bus boycott in Bristol, England.

Find out more: Bristol Omnibus Company (Wikipedia)

Around the world 35

1925 101 years ago

Automaker Dodge Brothers, Inc, is sold to Dillon, Read & Co. for US$146 million plus $50 million for charity.

Find out more: Dodge (Wikipedia)
1939 87 years ago

NBC inaugurates its regularly scheduled television service in New York City, broadcasting President Franklin D. Roosevelt's N.Y. World's Fair opening day ceremonial address.

Inventions Find out more: NBC (Wikipedia)

Quick quiz

Every answer is somewhere on this page. Have a go, then check!

  1. In which year did this happen: “British physicist J. J. Thomson and his team announce the discovery of the”?

    1. 1973
    2. 1897
    3. 1859
    Show the answer

    B: 1897. 1897 — that’s 129 years ago. Find it on the page

  2. In which year did this happen: “Second World War: The Royal Navy submarine HMS Seraph began Operation”?

    1. 1859
    2. 1943
    3. 1969
    Show the answer

    B: 1943. 1943 — that’s 83 years ago. Find it on the page

  3. Which of these happened first?

    1. Charles Dickens publishes the first edition of his literary magazine, All the
    2. British physicist J. J. Thomson and his team announce the discovery of the
    3. Second World War: The Royal Navy submarine HMS Seraph began Operation
    Show the answer

    A: Charles Dickens publishes the first edition of his literary magazine, All the. 1859: Charles Dickens publishes the first edition of his literary magazine, All the · 1897: British physicist J. J. Thomson and his team announce the discovery of the · 1943: Second World War: The Royal Navy submarine HMS Seraph began Operation Find it on the page

  4. “Charles Dickens publishes the first edition of his literary magazine, All the” happened in 1859. How many years ago was that?

    1. 177 years
    2. 167 years
    3. 157 years
    Show the answer

    B: 167 years. 2026 − 1859 = 167. Find it on the page

Born on this day 36

Famous people whose birthday is 30 April.

Remembering 21

Well-known people who died on 30 April.

Special days 24

Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 30 April somewhere in the world.

For older readers 27 Show stories about war, disasters, crime and other difficult history

Content note: these entries mention things like war, violence, deaths, disasters or crime. They are part of history, but they can be upsetting. Grown-ups and teachers: you may want to read them first. They come straight from Wikipedia and have not been rewritten for children.

Where these facts come from

Stories with a heading have been written for young readers by A Day in the Past, using the linked articles as sources. Other entries show text from Wikipedia’s “April 30” page and its “On this day” feed, written by Wikipedia contributors and shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. Each “Read more” link goes to the article an entry is based on. Photos are credited under each picture. Spotted a mistake? Please tell us.