World History 1800

1800
January 1
* Dutch East Indies Company dissolves. [1]

* Louis J M Daubenton France, zoologist, dies at age 83. [1]
January 2
* Free black community of Philadelphia Pennsylvania petitionsUS

Congress to abolish slavery. [1]
January 5
* First Swedenborgian temple in US holds first service, Baltimore

Maryland. [1]
January 6
* William Jones composer, dies at age 73. [1]
January 8
* Austrians defeat French in second battle of Novi. [1]

* Wild Boy of Aveyron discovered in southern France. [1]
January 10
* Johan Wikmanson composer, dies at age 46. [1]
January 20
* Napoleon I's sister Carolina marries King Joachim Murat of Naples.

[1]
January 23
* Edward Rutledge US attorney (signed Declaration of

Independence), dies at age 50. [1]
January 30
* US population: 5,308,483; Black population 1,002,037 (18.9%). [1]
March 2
1
* Christian Friedrich Schale composer, dies at age 86. [1]
March 3
* Johann Baptist Christoph Toeschi composer, dies at age 64. [1]
March 9
* Dominique Della-Maria composer, dies at age 30. [1]
March 14
* Luigi Chiaramonti crowned Pope Pius VII. [1]
March 17
* English warship Queen Charlotte catches fire; 700 die. [1]
March 20
* French army defeats Turks at Helipolis Turkey, and advance to

Cairo. [1]
April 2
* First performance of Ludwig von Beethoven's first Symphony in C.

[1]
April 15
* James Ross discovers North Magnetic pole. [1]
April 18
* John Evangelist Schreiber composer, dies at age 84. [1]

* Pieter Fouquet art merchant (Atlas of Fouquet), dies. [1]
April 24
* Library of Congress is established with $5,000 allocation. [1]
April 25
* William Cowper English lawyer/poet (Olney Hymns), dies at age 68.

[1]
2
April 30
* John H Midderigh Rotterdam patriot, dies at age 46. [1]
May 7
* Indiana Territory organized. [1]

* Laurens P van Spiegel regent/pension advisor (1787-95), dies at
age 64. [1]
* Niccolò Piccinni Italian composer (Roland), dies at age 72. [1]
May 14
* Friedrich von Schiller's "Macbeth" premieres in Weimar. [1]
May 15
* King George III survives a second assassination attempt. [1]

* Pope Pius VII calls on French bishops to return to Gospel principles.
[1]
May 19
* French Bosbeeck veterinarian/robber, hanged. [1]
July 9
* Mt Vernon Gardens becomes site of first summer theatre in US. [1]
September 7
* Zion AME Church dedicated (New York City). [1]
October 1
* Spain cedes Louisiana to France in a secret treaty. [1]
November 1
* First President to live in the white house (John Adams). [1]
November 17
* US Congress meets for the first time in Washington, D.C. [1] [129]
December 12
3
* Washington DC established as capital of US. [1]
December 19
* Georg Peter Weimar composer, dies at age 66. [1]
1801
January 1
* Ireland and Great Britain (England and Scotland) form United

Kingdom. [1]
January 2
* Johann C Lavater Swiss vicar/philosopher, dies at age 59. [1]
January 11
* Domenico Cimarosa Italian composer (Matrimonio segreto), dies at

age 51. [1]
January 20
* John Marshall appointed US chief justice. [1]
February 8
* Johann Chrysostomus Drexel composer, dies at age 43. [1]
February 9
* France and Austrian sign Peace of Lunéville. [1]
February 17
* House breaks electoral college tie, chooses Jefferson President

over Burr. [1]
February 27
* Washington DC placed underUS Congressional jurisdiction. [1]
March 3
4
* First US Jewish Governor, David Emanuel, takes office in Georgia.
[1]
March 4
* First President inaugurated in Washington DC (Thomas Jefferson).

[1]
March 7
* Massachusetts enacts first state voter registration law. [1]
March 8
* British drive French forces from Abukir, Egypt. [1]
March 14
* Christian Friedrich Penzel composer, dies at age 63. [1]
March 17
* Juan de Sesse y Balaguer composer, dies at age 64. [1]
March 21
* Andrea Lucchesi composer, dies at age 59. [1]
March 23
* Murder attempt on Czar Paul I. [1]

* Paul I tsar of Russia (1796-1801), strangled at age 46. [1]
March 24
* Aleksandr P Romanov becomes emperor of Russia. [1]
March 25
* Anthony Ziesenis architect/sculptor (Camper), dies at age 69. [1]

* Novalis writer, dies at age 28. [1]
March 28
* Ralph Abercromby English army commander (North Holland), dies

at age 66. [1]
5
April 8
* Soldiers riot in Bucharest, kill 128 Jews. [1]
April 11
* Johann von Schiller's "Die Jungfrau von Orleans", premieres in

Leipzig. [1]
April 24
* First performance of Joseph Haydn's oratorio "Die Jahreszeiten". [1]
May 5
* Philippe-Lambert-Joseph Spruyt Flemish painter/engraver, dies at

age 74. [1]
May 14
* Johann Ernst Altenburg composer, dies at age 66. [1]
May 15
* Louis C count Barbiano de Belgioioso Austrian diplomat, dies at

age 73. [1]
May 19
* Herman H Vitringa politician (National Meetings), dies. [1]
May 22
* Heinrich Gottfried Reichard composer, dies at age 58. [1]
June 10
* Tripoli declares war on US for refusing tribute. [1]
June 14
* Benedict Arnold Revolutionary War general, dies in London. [1]
November 10
6
* Kentucky outlaws dueling. [1]
1802
January 14
* Marie Allard French ballerina, dies at age 59. [1]
January 25
* Napoleon elected President of the Italian (Cisalpine) Republic. [1]
January 26
* US Congress passes an act calling for a US Capitol library. [1]
January 27
* Johann Rudolf Zumsteeg composer, dies at age 42. [1]
January 29
* John Beckley of Virginia appointed first Librarian of Congress. [1]
February 2
* First leopard exhibited in US, Boston (admission 25 cents). [1]
February 8
* Simon Willard patents banjo clock. [1]
March 7
* Johann Georg Witthauer composer, dies at age 50. [1]
March 16
* Law signed to establish US Military Academy (West Point New

York). [1]
* US army Corps of Engineers established (second time). [1]
March 25
* France, Netherlands, Spain and England signs Peace of Amiens. [1]
7
March 27
* Treaty of Amiens-French Revolutionary War ends. [1]
March 28
* Heinrich Wilhelm Matthäus Olbers discovers 2 Pallas, the second

asteroid known to man. [5]
March 29
* Frederic Thieme composer, dies at age 51. [1]
April 8
* French Protestant church becomes state-supported and -controlled.

[1]
May 3
* Washington DC incorporates as a city. [1]
May 19
* French Order of Légion d'Honneur forms. [1]
July 4
* US Military Academy officially opens (West Point, New York). [1]
July 22
* Marie-François-Xavier Bichat a founder of histology, dies. [1]
October 10
* First non indian settlement in Oklahoma. [1]
December 2
* English sell Suriname to Dutch. [1]
December 31
* Francis Lewis Welsh/US merchant/signer (Declaration of

8
* Hugo Franz Karl Alexander von Kerpen composer, dies at age 53.
[1]
1803
January 2
* Ignaz Franz von Beecke composer, dies at age 69. [1]
January 11
* Monroe and Livingston sail for Paris to buy New Orleans; they buy
Louisiana. [1]
January 26
* Georg von Pasterwiz composer, dies at age 72. [1]
February 3
* Pedro R de Campomanes Spanish economist/lawyer/literary, dies

at age 79. [1]
February 4
* William Dunlap, adapts French melodrama "Voice of Nature". [1]
February 14
* Apple parer patented by Moses Coats, Downington Pennsylvania.

[1]
February 16
* Jan V clav Stich Bohemian composer, dies at age 56. [1]
February 17
* Louis R E prince de Rohan-Guémené archbishop of Straatsburg,

dies at age 68. [1]
February 18
* J W L Gleim writer, dies. [1]
February 19
9
* US Congress accepts Ohio's constitution, statehood not ratified till
1953. [1]
February 21
* Edward Despard last person drawn and quartered in England. [1]
February 24
* US Supreme Court first rules a law unconstitutional (Marbury

versus Madison). [1]
February 25
* 1,800 sovereign German states unite into 60 states. [1]
February 27
* Great fire in Bombay, India. [1]
March 1
* Ohio becomes 17th state. [1]
March 3
* First impeachment trial of a federal judge, John Pickering, begins.

[1]
March 14
* Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock German poet, dies at age 78. [1]
March 17
* Candido Jose Ruano composer, dies at age 42. [1]
March 19
* Johann von Schillers "Die Braut von Messina" premieres in Weimar.

[1]
April 1
* French law rules the use of intention. [1]
10
April 2
* Hieronymus van Alphen Dutch attorney/poet (church hymns), dies

at age 56. [1]
April 5
* First performance of Beethoven's second Symphony in D. [1]
April 7
* [François Dominique] Toussaint L'Ouverture Haitian revolutionary,

dies. [1]
April 26
* Meteorites fall in L'Aigle, France. [1]
April 30
* US doubles in size through the Louisiana Purchase ($15 million).

[1]
May 16
* Peace of Amiens ends. [1]
May 17
* John Hawkins and Richard French patent the Reaping Machine. [1]
May 18
* Britain declares war on France after General Napoleon Bonaparte

continues interfering in Italy and Switzerland. [1]
May 22
* First public library opens (Connecticut). [1]
July 23
* Robert Emmett's insurrected in Dublin. [1]
August 9
11
* First horses arrive in Hawaii. [1]
September 13
* John Barry first American commodore, dies. [1]
September 23
* Battle of Assaye-British-Indian forces beat Maratha Army. [1]
October 20
* US Senate ratifies the Louisiana Purchase. [1]
November 18
* Battle of Vertieres, in which Haitians defeat French. [1]
November 30
* Spain cedes her claims to Louisiana Territory to France. [1]
December 18
* Johann G von Herder German philosopher/theologist/poet, dies at

age 59. [1]
December 20
* Louisiana Purchase formally transferred from France to US for $27

million. [1]
1804
January 1
* Jean Jacques Dessalines proclaims independence of Haiti from

France. [1]
January 4
* Charlotte Lennox English novelist (The Female Quixote), dies. [1]
January 5
12
* Ohio legislature passes first laws restricting free blacks movement.
[1]
January 30
* Mungo Park leaves England seeking source of Niger River. [1]
January 31
* British Vice-Admiral William Bligh's fleet reaches Curaçao. [1]
February 2
* Caesar Rodney US judge (signed Declaration of Independence),

dies at age 62. [1]
February 6
* Joseph Priestley England/US theologist/philosopher/chemist, dies at

age 70. [1]
February 12
* Immanuel Kant German philosopher (Zum ewigen Frieden), dies in

Königsberg, Prussia at age 79. [1]
February 15
* New Jersey becomes last northern state to abolish slavery. [1]
February 16
* Lieutenant Stephen Decatur raids Tripoli Harbor and burns Navy

frigate "Philadelphia" after pirates seized it. [1]
February 17
* Christian Ernst Graf composer, dies at age 80. [1]
February 18
* First US land-grant college, Ohio University, Athens Ohio,

chartered. [1]
February 21
13
* First locomotive, Richard Trevithick's, runs for first time, in Wales.
[1]
February 23
* Conspirators against Napoleon, for restoration of Louis XVIII. [1]
February 25
* Jefferson nominated for President at Democratic-Republican

caucus. [1]
February 26
* Vice-Admiral William Bligh ends siege of Fort Amsterdam,

Willemstad. [1]
March 1
* Wolfgang Nicolaus Haueisen composer, dies at age 63. [1]
March 4
* Karl Leopold Rollig composer, dies. [1]
March 7
* John Wedgwood founder (Royal Horticulture Society), dies. [1]
March 16
* Francisco marquis Albergati Capacelli Italian playwright, dies at

age 75. [1]
March 17
* Johann von Schiller's "Wilhelm Tell" premieres. [1]
March 20
* Ignaz Malzat composer, dies at age 47. [1]
March 21
* French civil Code of Napoleon adopted. [1]
14
March 26
* US Congress orders removal of Indians east of Mississippi to

Louisiana. [1]
* Territory of Orleans organized in Louisiana Purchase. [1]
March 28
* Ohio passed law restricting movement of Blacks, 1804. [1]
March 29
* Thousands of Whites massacred in Haiti. [1]
April 9
* Jacques Necker financier/statesman, dies. [1]
April 22
* Gioacchino Rossini (12) performs in Imola. [1]
April 28
* 31 English ship sail Suriname river demand transition colony. [1]

* Hans Gram composer, dies at age 49. [1]
April 30
* Hague's Theater opens. [1]
May 6
* Suriname sold to English (until February 1816). [1]
May 14
* The Meriwether Lewis and William Clark expedition of about 45

men leaves Saint Louis, Missouri, on a mission to explore the
Northwest from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean. [1] [129]
May 16
* Senate and Tribune declare Napolean leader of France. [1]
May 17
15
* Lewis and Clark begin exploration of the Louisiana Purchase. [1]
May 18
* Napoleon Bonaparte proclaimed Emperor of France. [1]
May 21
* Lewis and Clark Expedition begins. [1]
May 24
* Simon Style Fries medical/writer, dies at age 73. [1]
June 15
* 12th amendment ratified; deals with manner of choosing

president. [1]
July 11
* Vice President Aaron Burr kills Alex Hamilton in a pistol duel near
Weehawken. [1]
August 20
* Charles Floyd only fatality of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. [1]
September 25
* 12th amendment to the US constitution, regulating judicial power.

[1]
November 30
* Impeachment trial of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase begins.

[1]
December 1
* Emperor Napoleon marries Joséphine of Martinique. [1]
December 2
16
* Napoleon Bonaparte crowned first emperor of France in Paris by
Pope Pius VII. [1]
December 5
* Thomas Jefferson re-elected US President,George Clinton Vice-

President. [1]
December 19
* Mary Bright British Prime Minister Rockingham, dies. [1]
17
1805
January 11
* Michigan Territory is organized. [1]
January 17
* Abraham-Hyacinthe Anquetil du Perron French interpreter, dies at

age 73. [1]
January 19
* Johann Gottlieb Karl Spazier composer, dies at age 43. [1]
January 23
* Vaclav Pichl composer, dies at age 63. [1]
January 24
* Giacomo Conti composer, dies at age 50. [1]
January 28
* Mihály Csokonai Vitéz Hungarian (stage)poet (Dorottya), dies at

age 31. [1]
February 27
* Stefan Paluselli composer, dies at age 57. [1]
March 3
* Louisiana-Missouri Territory forms. [1]
March 4
* Jean-Baptiste Greuze French painter, dies at age 79. [1]
April 6
* Lorenz Justinian Ott composer, dies at age 56. [1]
April 7
18
* Premiere of Beethoven's "Eroica" (conducted by himself). [1]
April 26
* Jean BG d'ansse the Villoison classic (Anecdota Graeca), dies at

age 55. [1]
April 27
* US Marines attack shores of Tripoli. [1]
May 4
* Henry C Overing buys 80 acres of Throggs Neck in the Bronx New

York. [1]
May 9
* Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller poet/playwright, dies at age

45. [1]
May 16
* Christian Brunings hydraulic engineer, dies at age 68. [1]
May 26
* Lewis and Clark first see Rocky Mountains. [1]

* Napoleon is crowned king of Italy. [1]
May 28
* Ridolfo Luigi Boccherini Italian composer/cellist (Minuet), dies at

age 62. [1]
June 4
* Tripoli forced to conclude peace with US after war over tribute. [1]
June 5
* First recorded tornado in "Tornado Alley" (Southern Illinois). [1]
June 21
* Great Stoneface Mount found in New Hampshire. [1]
19
July 8
* American Bill Richmond knocks out Jack Holmes, Kilburn Wells,

England. [1]
October 21
* Battle of Trafalgar, Admiral Horatio Nelson defeats French and

Spanish fleet and dies. [1] [5]
October 23
* Sailing ship "Aeneus" sinks off Newfoundland killing 340. [1]
November 7
* Lewis and Clark first sight Pacific Ocean. [1]
November 8
* The Lewis and Clark expedition arrives at the Pacific Ocean, the
first European explorers to do so by an overland route from the east.
[129]
November 18
* 30 women meet at Mrs Silas Lee's home in Wiscasset, Maine,

organizes Female Charitable Society, the first woman's club in America.
[1]
November 20
* The opera "Fidelio" is produced (Vienna). [1]
November 25
* The opera "Thaïs" first American performance. [1]
December 2
* Napoleon defeats Russians and Austrians at Austerlitz. [1]
December 9
20
* Comet 3D/1805 V1 (Biela) approaches within 0.0366 astronomical
units (AUs) of Earth. [1]
December 10
* Friedrich Franz Hurka composer, dies at age 43. [1]
December 26
* France and Austria sign Peace of Pressburg. [1]

* Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts established, Philadelphia. [1]
December 27
* Belle van Zuylen Netherlands/Swiss writer (Trois Femmes), dies at

age 65. [1]
December 31
* End of French Republican calendar; France returns to Gregorianism.

[1]
1806
January 8
* Cape colony becomes English colony. [1]

* Lewis and Clark find skeleton of 105' blue whale in Oregon. [1]
January 10
* Dutch in Cape Town, South African surrender to the British. [1]
January 12
* French evacuate Vienna. [1]
January 19
* Britain occupies the Cape of Good Hope. [1]
January 23
* William Pitt the Younger, Prime Minister Great Britain (1783-1806),

dies at age 46. [1]
21
January 30
* Prussia takes possession of Hanover. [1]
February 11
* Vicente Martin y Soler composer, dies at age 51. [1]
February 23
* John Alcock composer, dies at age 90. [1]
February 24
* John Nieuwenhuijzen theologist (Society for General Use), dies at

age 81. [1]
March 16
* Giuseppe Colla composer, dies at age 74. [1]
March 17
* David Dale industrialist and philanthropist, dies. [1]
March 23
* George Frederic Pinto composer, dies at age 20. [1]

* Lewis and Clark reach Pacific coast. [1]
April 4
* Friedrich Gottlob Fleischer composer, dies at age 84. [1]
April 5
* Isaac Quintard patents apple cider. [1]
April 9
* Willem V Batavus prince of Orange-Nassau, dies at age 58. [1]
April 13
* Jean-Jacques Bachelier French painter, dies at about age 82. [1]
22
April 27
* Amalia Fürstin Gallitzin Prussian daughter of Golitsyn, dies at age

57. [1]
May 31
* Michaël FB baron von Melas Austrian general, dies at age 77. [1]
June 5
* First trotter to break 3 minute mile (Yankee). [1]

* Batavian Republic becomes the Kingdom of Holland. [1]
June 27
* Buenos Aires captured by British. [1]
July 3
* Michael Keens exhibits first cultivated strawberry. [1]
August 6
* Holy Roman Empire ends; it was neither holy, Roman, nor an

empire. [1]
September 2
* A side of Rossberg Peak collapses into Goldau Valley Switz, kills

500. [1]
September 23
* Lewis and Clark return to Saint Louis from the Pacific Northwest.
[1] [129]
October 7
* Patent granted in London, England for "apparatus for producing

duplicates of writings", paper saturated with ink then dried (carbon
paper). [5] [55.33]
October 9
* Benjamin Banneker astronomer/mathematician, dies at age 74. [1]
23
October 14
* Battle of Auerstadt-French beat Prussians. [1]
October 17
* Jean Jacques Dessalines Emperor of Haiti, dies. [1]
November 15
* First US college magazine, Yale Literary Cabinet, publishes first

issue. [1]
* Explorer Zebulon Pike sights Pikes Peak. [1]
1807
January 1
* Curaçao is taken by English (until March, 1816). [1]
January 5
* Michel Adanson French biologist (Plant classes), dies at age 79. [1]
January 12
* Adriaan Kluit Dutch historian, dies at age 71. [1]

* Gunpowder-ship explodes in Leiden Netherlands, 150 die. [1]
* Joan Lucaz Dutch scholar/journalist/patriot, dies at age 60. [1]
January 20
* Napoleon convenes the great Sanhedrin, Paris. [1]
January 28
* London's Pall Mall is first street lit by gaslight. [1]
February 5
* Pasquale Paoli Corsican freedom fighter, dies at age 80. [1]
February 6
* John Reid composer, dies at age 85. [1]
24
February 8
* Napoleon defeats Russians in battle of Eylau. [1]
February 9
* French Sanhedrin convened by Napoleon. [1]
February 10
* US Coast Survey authorized by Congress. [1]
February 18
* August G Meissner German estheticus/literary, dies at age 53. [1]

* S von Laroche writer, dies at age 75. [1]
February 19
* British squadron under Admiral Duckworth forces passage of

Dardanelles. [1]
* Vice President Aaron Burr arrested in Alabama for treason; later
found innocent. [1]
February 23
* François Guichard composer, dies at age 61. [1]
February 24
* Seventeen die and 15 wounded in a crush to witness execution of

Holloway, Heggerty and Elizabeth Godfrey in England. [1]
March 2
* US Congress bans slave trade effective January 1, 1808. [1]
March 5
* First performance of Ludwig von Beethoven's 4th Symphony in B.

[1]
March 11
* Anton Eberl composer, dies at age 41. [1]
25
March 25
* First railway passenger service began in England. [1]

* British Parliament abolishes slave trade. [1]
* George Canning becomes British minister of Foreign affairs. [1]
April 1
* Louis François Chambray composer, dies at age 69. [1]

* Miklós Révai Hungarian linguistic/poet, dies at age 57. [1]
* Vaclav Josef Bartolomej Praupner composer, dies at age 61. [1]
April 4
* Joseph Jérôme Le Francais de Lalande French astronomer, dies. [1]
April 9
* John Opie England, painter/illustrator; Shakespeare gallery, dies at

age 45. [1]
April 10
* Anna Amalia van Brumswijk-Wolfenbüttel duchess of Saxon-

Weimar, dies. [1]
April 18
* Erasmus Darwin physician/writer (Influence), dies. [1]
May 22
* Former Vice President Aaron Burr is tried for treason in Richmond

Virginia (acquitted). [1]
* Townsend Speakman first sells fruit-flavored carbonated drinks
(Philadelphia). [1]
June 22
* British board USS Chesapeake, a provocation leading to War of

1812. [1]
August 17
26
* Robert Fulton's American steamboat Clermont leaves New York
City, inaugurating the world's first commercial steamboat service. [1]
[5] [245.4]
September 1
* Aaron Burr acquitted of charges of plotting to set up an empire. [1]
September 14
* Aaron Burr acquitted of a misdemeanor charge. [1]
October 1
* John Mühlenberg Lutheran pastor, dies on his 61st birthday. [1]
December 3
* Clara Reeve English author (old English baron), dies. [1]
December 4
* Prince Hall activist/Masonic leader, dies in Boston. [1]
December 22
* US Congress passes Embargo Act, to force peace between Britain

and France. [1]
1808
January 1
* African Benevolent Society (education) forms. [1]

* US Congress prohibits importation of slaves. [1]
* Sierra Leone becomes a British colony. [1]
January 8
* Messenger horse that sired many great trotters, dies. [1]
January 10
* Herman Daendels succeeds A Wiese as Governor-General of

Netherlands Indies. [1]
27
January 19
* Louis Napoleon signs first Dutch aviation law. [1]
February 11
* Anthracite coal first burned as fuel, experimentally, Wilkes-Barre

Pennsylvania. [1]
February 21
* Russia attacks Finland, declaring intentions to annex it. [7]
March 6
* First college orchestra in US founded, at Harvard. [1]
March 7
* Portugal's regent Dom Juan IV arrives in Rio De Janeiro. [1]
March 23
* Napoleon's brother Joseph takes the throne of Spain. [1]
March 27
* Joseph Haydns oratorio "Die Schöpfung" premieres in Vienna. [1]
March 31
* French created Kingdom of Westphalia orders Jews to adopt family

names. [1]
April 9
* Mayor Wolters offers French king Louis Napoleon townhall as a

palace. [1]
April 13
* William Henry Lane ("Juda") perfects the tap dance. [1]
April 17
28
* Bayonne Decree by Napoleon I of France orders seizure of US
ships. [1]
April 25
* Alois Luigi Tomasini composer, dies at age 66. [1]
April 30
* First practical typewriter finished by Italian Pellegrini Turri. [1]
May 2
* Uprising against French occupation begins in Madrid. [1]
May 3
* Goya's "Executions of the third of May". [1]
May 18
* Jacob Albright [Albrecht] German/US preacher, dies at age 49. [1]
May 30
* Napoleon annexes Tuscany and gave it seats in French Senate. [1]
June 1
* First US land-grant university founded-Ohio Univ, Athens, Ohio. [1]
June 22
* Zebulon Pike reaches his peak. [1]
July 2
* Simon Fraser completes his trip down Fraser R, British Columbia,

Canada, lands at Musqueam. [1]
July 5
* Battle of Buenos Aires. [1]
November 10
29
* Osage Treaty signed. [1]
December 1
* Anton Fischer composer, dies at age 30. [1]
December 7
* James Madison elected US President,George Clinton Vice-President.

[1]
1809
January 1
* Holland Brigade under Brigadier General Chassé reaches Madrid.

[1]
January 4
* Bartolomeo Giacometti composer, dies at age 67. [1]
January 5
* Treaty of Dardanelles concluded between Britain and France. [1]
January 12
* British take Cayenne (French Guiana) from the French (until 1814).
[1]
January 20
* First US geology book published by William Maclure. [1]
February 1
* Dutch King Louis Napoleon accepts metric system. [1]
February 3
* Territory of Illinois organizes (including present-day Wisconsin). [1]
February 8
* Franz I of Austria declares war on France. [1]
30
February 11
* Robert Fulton patents the steamboat. [1]
February 13
* French take Saragossa, Spain after a long siege. [1]
February 20
* Johann Joseph Emmert composer, dies at age 76. [1]

* US Supreme Court rules federal government power greater than
any state. [1]
March 1
* Embargo Act of 1807 repealed and Non-Intercourse Act signed. [1]
March 4
* Madison becomes first President inaugurated in American-made

clothes. [1]
March 7
* Johann Georg Albrechtsberger Austrian composer, dies at age 73.

[1]
March 13
* In Sweden, army officers arrest King Gustav IV Adolf in his castle.

The king is forced to abdicate, deposed together with his heirs, and
expelled from the country. [7]
March 23
* Ferdinand-Philippe-Joseph Staes composer, dies at age 60. [1]
March 26
* Gabriele Mario Piozzi composer, dies at age 68. [1]
March 27
* Joseph M Vien French (court)painter/etcher, dies at age 92. [1]
31
March 31
* Franz Joseph Haydn composer, dies on 77th birthday. [1]
April 14
* Napoleon defeated Austria in the Battle of Abensberg, Bavaria. [1]
April 18
* First run of 2,000 guineas horse race at Newmarket England. [1]
April 20
* Napoleon I defeats Austria at Battle of Abensberg, Bavaria. [1]
April 22
* Battle at Eckmühl - Napoleon beats Austria arch duke Karl. [1]
May 5
* Citizenship is denied to Jews of Canton of Aargau Switzerland. [1]

* Mary Kies is first woman issued a US patent (weaving straw). [1]
May 8
* Augustin Pajou French sculptor (Bachante), dies at age 78. [1]
May 17
* Leopold Auenbrugger von Auenbrugg physician, dies. [1]

* Papal States annexed by France. [1]
May 21
* Battle at Aspern-Essling: Austrian arch duke Karl beats Napoleon.

[1]
May 24
* Dartmoor Prison opens to house French prisoners of war. [1]
May 30
32
* Johan B Scheffer portrait painter, dies at about age 43. [1]
May 31
* Ferdinand von Schill Prussian officer/rebel, dies in battle at age 33.

[1]
* Franz Josef Haydn Austrian composer (Jahreszeiten), dies in Wien
(Vienna) Austria at age 77. [1]
June 8
* Thomas Paine writer (Age of Reason, Common Sense), dies at age

72. [1]
June 10
* First US steamboat to a make an ocean voyage leaves New York for

Philadelphia. [1]
July 31
* First practical US railroad track (wooden, for horse-drawn cars),

Philadelphia. [1]
August 10
* Ecuador declares independence from Spain (National Day). [1]
September 17
* Sweden is forced to make peace with Russia, ceding all of Finland,

the Åland islands, and a north-eastern strip of Sweden. In total,
Sweden loses one-third of its territory. [7]
October 11
* Meriwether Lewis capt of Lewis and Clark Expedition, dies at age

35. [1]
November 22
* Peregrine Williamson of Baltimore patents a steel pen. [1]
December 10
* Sweden signs a peace treaty with Denmark. [7]
33
December 16
* Napoleon Bonaparte divorces Empress Josephine by the French

Senate. [1]
December 26
* English invasionary troop leaves Vlissingen. [1]
December 30
* Wearing masks at balls forbidden in Boston. [1]
December 31
* Franz Ignaz Beck composer, dies at age 75. [1]
1810
January 7
* Joseph Lipavsky composer, dies at age 37. [1]
January 10
* Sweden signs peace with France, regaining Pomerania, at a cost of

breaking all trade with England except for salt imports. [7]
* French church annuls marriage of Napoleon I and Joséphine. [1]
January 19
* Overnight temp at Portsmouth New Hampshire drops 50 degrees F

(10 degrees C). [1]
January 28
* Andrew Hofer Tyrolian rebel against French and Bavarians, shot

dead. [1]
February 1
* First insurance company managed by blacks (American Insurance

Company of Philadelphia). [1]
* Seville, Spain surrenders to the French. [1]
* US Population - 7,239,881; Black population - 1,377,808 (19%). [1]
34
February 11
* Napoleon marries Marie-Louise of Austria. [1]
February 20
* Andreas Hofer military leader (fought Napoleon's France), executed

at age 42. [1]
* Johann Friedrich Kranz composer, dies at age 57. [1]
February 24
* Henry Cavendish physicist/chemist, dies. [1]
February 26
* Johann Ernst Rembt composer, dies at age 60. [1]
February 28
* First US fire insurance joint-stock company organized, Philadelphia.

[1]
March 6
* Illinois passes first state vaccination legislation in US. [1]
March 7
* Albertus H Wiese Governor-General of Netherland Indies, dies at

about age 48. [1]
March 11
* Emperor Napoleon married by proxy to Archduchess Marie Louise.

[1]
March 18
* "Converse", first US opera, premieres in New York. [1]
March 21
* Philippe-Joseph van den Berghe graaf Limmighe Brabants ships,

dies. [1]
35
April 7
* Pieter L van de Kasteele Dutch politician/patriot, dies at age 61. [1]
April 10
* Konrad Back composer, dies at age 60. [1]
April 11
* Jakob Zupan composer, dies at age 75. [1]
May 3
* Lord Byron swims the Hellespont. [1]
May 21
* Charles Chevalier d'Eon de Beaumont French spy, dies at age 81.

[1]
May 25
* Argentina declares independence from Napoleonic Spain (National

Day). [1]
May 28
* In Skåne, Sweden, Prince Karl August has a stroke, falls from a

horse while attending a military review, and dies within a half hour. [7]
June 3
* In Dublin, Ireland, Robert Mallet is born; engineer, inventor of the

word seismology, considered the "first" seismologist. [53]
June 23
* John Jacob Astor organizes Pacific Fur Company (Astoria, Oregon).

[1]
July 20
* Colombia declared independence from Spain. [1]
36
August 21
* In Örebro, Sweden, the Riksdag elects Jean Baptiste Bernadotte of

France crown prince of Sweden. [7]
September 16
* Hidalgo begins Mexican revolt against Spain (National Day). [1]
September 18
* Chile declares independence from Spain (National Day). [1]
October 20
* Jean Baptiste Bernadotte arrives in Sweden, converts to the

Lutheran faith, and is given the name Prince Karl Johan. [7]
October 27
* US annexes West Florida from Spain. [1]
December 15
* First Irish magazine in US, The Shamrock, is published. [1]
December 19
* Johann Heinrich Egli composer, dies at age 68. [1]
December 22
* British frigate Minotaur sinks killing 480. [1]
1811
January 2
* US Senator Thomas Pickering is first senator censured (revealed

confidential documents communicated by the President of the US). [1]
January 8
* Death of Friedrich Nicolai in Berlin, Germany; leader of

enlightenment movement in Germany, book dealer and writer. [1] [37]
* Louisiana slave revolt by Charles Deslondes at German Coast. [1]
37
* Samuel Story Dutch rear admiral (Battle of Kamperduin), dies at
age 58. [1]
January 10
* Louisiana slaves rebel in two parishes. [1]

* Marie-Joseph de Chénier French poet (Chant du Départ), dies at
age 46. [1]
February 2
* Russian settlers establish Fort Ross trading post, north of San

Francisco. [1]
February 9
* Nevill Maskelyne 5th Astronomer Royal of England (1765-1811),

dies. [1]
February 11
* President Madison prohibits trade with Britain for third time in four
years. [1]
February 20
* Austria declares bankruptcy. [1]
March 1
* Egyptian king Muhammad Ali Pasha oversees ceremonial murder of

500. [1]
* French Civil Code of Criminal law accepted by Netherlands
Mamelukes in Cairo's Citadel. [1]
March 14
* August Henry Fitzroy English premier (1768-70), dies at age 75. [1]
March 19
* Frantisek Adam Mica composer, dies at age 65. [1]
April 3
* Pieter-Jozef Verhaghen Flemish (court)painter, dies at age 83. [1]
38
April 5
* Robert Raikes founder of Sunday Schools, dies. [1]
April 12
* First US colonists on Pacific coast arrive at Cape Disappointment

Washington. [1]
April 15
* Ernest Louis Muller composer, dies at age 70. [1]
May 12
* Louis-Charles-Joseph Rey composer, dies at age 52. [1]
May 14
* Paraguay gains independence from Spain (National Day). [1]
May 16
* Peninsular War-Allies defeat French at Albuera. [1]
July 5
* Venezuela, first South American country to gain independence

from Spain. [1]
July 11
* Italian scientist Amedeo Avogadro publishes his memoir about

molecular content of gases. [5]
July 31
* Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla Mexican hero priest, executed by Spanish.

[1]
October 11
* The Juliana, the first steam-powered ferryboat, begins operation.

[1]
39
October 29
* First Ohio River steamboat leaves Pittsburgh for New Orleans. [1]
November 5
* El Salvador's first battle against Spain for independence. [1]
November 7
* Battle of Tippecanoe, gave Harrison a presidential slogan. [1]
November 11
* Cartagena Colombia declares independence from Spain. [1]
December 7
* Ignaz Spangler composer, dies at age 54. [1]
December 16
* In New Madrid, Missouri, a magnitude 7.2 - 8.1 earthquake occurs,

the most violent and prolonged earthquake in the US Midwest region.
[1] [53] [1]
December 17
* John Antes composer, dies at age 71. [1]

* Louis-Abet Deffroy de Reigny composer, dies at age 54. [1]
1812
January 9
* Swedish Pomerania (Germany) seized by Napoleon. [1]
January 12
* First cargo arrives in New Orleans by steam, from Natchez. [1]
January 15
* Johannes Herbst composer, dies at age 76. [1]
January 23
40
* In New Madrid Area, Missouri, a magnitude 7.0 - 7.8 earthquake
occurs, one of the largest earthquakes in the United States. [1] [53]
January 24
* Eligio Celestino composer, dies at age 72. [1]
February 5
* Franz Schneider composer, dies at age 74. [1]
February 7
* In New Madrid, Missouri, a magnitude 7.4 - 8.2 earthquake occurs,

the largest historical earthquake in Missouri. The town of New Madrid is
destroyed. [1] [53]
* Lord Byron makes his maiden speech in House of Lords. [1]
February 9
* Franz Anton Hoffmeister composer, dies at age 57. [1]
February 11
* Massachusetts Governor Gerry signs a redistricting bill-the first

"gerrymander. [1]
February 24
* Hugo Kollataj Polish teacher/minister, dies at age 61. [1]
March 3
* US Congress passes first foreign aid bill (aids Venezuela

earthquake vicitims). [1]
March 11
* Citizenship granted to Prussian Jews. [1]
March 14
* US Congress authorizes war bonds to finance War of 1812. [1]
March 15
41
* First Russian settlement in California, Russian River. [1]
March 20
* Jan Ladislav Dussek Bohemian pianist/composer, dies at age 52.

[1]
March 26
* In Venezuela, a magnitude 7.7 earthquake occurs, destroying 90

percent of the city of Caracas. 26,000 killed. [1] [53]
April 5
* British storm Badajoz fortress, held by French and Spanish. [1]
April 11
* Gottlieb Schick German painter (Opfer Noachs), dies at age 35. [1]
April 20
* George Clinton fourth US Vice President, dies at age 73 first Vice

President to die in office. [1]
April 23
* Franz Sebastian Haindl composer, dies at age 85. [1]
April 30
* (Eastern) Louisiana admitted as 18th US state. [1]
May 11
* Waltz introduced into English ballrooms - Most observers consider

it disgusting and immoral. No wonder it caught on!. [1]
May 13
* Johann Matthias Sperger composer, dies at age 62. [1]
May 21
* Joseph Wolfl composer, dies at age 38. [1]
42
May 25
* Earthquake destroys Caracas Venezuela. [1]
June 4
* Louisiana Territory officially renamed "Missouri Territory". [1]
June 12
* Napoleon's invasion of Russia begins. [1]
June 18
* War of 1812 begins as US declares war against Britain. [1]
July 11
* US invades Canada (Detroit frontier). [1]
July 12
* US forces led by General Hull invade Canada (War of 1812). [1]
July 22
* Duke of Wellington defeats French at Battle of Salamanca, Spain.

[1]
August 1
* A rare tornado hits Westchester County, New York. [1]
August 16
* General Hull surrenders Detroit and Michigan territory to England.

[1]
August 19
* US warship Constitution defeats British warship Guerriere. [1]
September 14
* Napoleon occupies Moscow. [1]
43
September 16
* Fire of Moscow. [1]
October 13
* Battle of Queenston Heights. [1]
October 19
* Napoleon begins his retreat from Moscow. [1]
October 25
* US frigate United States captures British vessel Macedonian. [1]
November 29
* Napoleon's Grand Army crosses Berezina River in retreat from

Russia. [1]
December 2
* James Madison re-elected President of US, Elbridge Gerry Vice-

President. [1]
December 4
* Peter Gaillard of Lancaster Pennsylvania patents a horse-drawn

mower. [1]
December 8
* In Southern California, a magnitude 6.9 earthquake occurs,

destroying the San Juan Capistrano Church and damaging several
mission buildings. Forty people attending church services killed. [53]
December 11
* First newspaper on Curaçao (Curaçao Gazette and Commercial

Advertiser). [1]
December 12
* John Malchair composer, dies at age 82. [1]
44
December 13
* Marianne von Martinez composer, dies at age 68. [1]
December 20
* Sacagawea Shoshone interpreter for Lewis and Clark, dies. [1]
December 21
* In Santa Barbara Channel, California, a magnitude 7.1 earthquake

occurs. [53]
December 23
* Michel Delalande composer, dies at age 73. [1]
1813
January 11
* First pineapples planted in Hawaii. [1]
January 14
* Gideon Hawley becomes first state school superintendent in US

(New York). [1]
January 20
* C M Wieland writer, dies at age 79. [1]
January 22
* Americans capture Frenchtown, Canada. [1]
January 23
* George Clymer US merchant (signed Declaration of Independence),

dies at age 73. [1]
January 28
* Jan Joseph Rosler composer, dies at age 41. [1]
45
February 23
* First US raw cotton-to-cloth mill founded in Waltham

Massachusetts. [1]
February 26
* Robert R Livingston US diplomat (Declaration of Independence),

dies at age 66. [1]
February 27
* First federal vaccination legislation enacted. [1]

* US Congress authorizes use of steamboats to transport mail. [1]
March 3
* Office of Surgeon General of the US army is established. [1]

* Prince Karl Johan of Sween concludes an alliance with England.
England cedes Guadeloupe island in West Indies to Sweden, and
agrees to Sweden's demands on Norway. [7]
March 8
* First concerto of Royal Philharmonic. [1]
March 18
* David Melville, Newport Rhode Island, patents apparatus for

making coal gas. [1]
March 25
* First US flag flown in battle on the Pacific, frigate Essex. [1]
April 14
* Joachim Nicolas Eggert composer, dies at age 34. [1]
April 19
* Benjamin Rush physician/abolotionist (signed Declaration of

April 25
46
* Louis-Sébastien Mercier French poet (Le Déserteur), dies at age 73.
[1]
April 27
* Americans under General Pike capture Toronto; Pike is killed. [1]

* Zebulon M Pike US explorer (Pike's Peak), dies in battle at age 34.
[1]
April 29
* Christian Danner composer, dies at age 55. [1]

* Rubber is patented. [1]
May 27
* Americans capture Fort George, Canada. [1]
June 6
* US invasion of Canada halted at Stoney Creek (Ont). [1]
June 24
* Battle of Beaver Dam-British and Indian forces defeat US forces. [1]
July 9
* At Trachenberg palace in Silesia, over four days, a meeting is held

including Prince Karl Johan, King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia, tsar
Alexander of Russia, and diplomats from Austria and England. They
make plans for action against Napoleon in the autumn. The
Trachenberg Plan is created, in which the three main armies would
form a semi-circle to converge on Napoleon. Prince Karl Johan is given
command of the Northern Army of 160,000 men with 30,000 Swedish
soldiers. [7]
July 31
* British invade Plattsburgh, New York. [1]
August 14
* British warship Pelican attacks and captures US war brigantine

Argus. [1]
47
September 10
* Comm Oliver H Perry defeats the British in the Battle of Lake Erie.
[1]
October 5
* Battle of the Thames in Canada; Americans defeat British. [1]
October 16
* At Leipzig, over four days, allied forces converge on Napoleon's

position, defeating him. Total forces number 320,000 Allies vs. 160,000
French. About 94,000 are killed or wounded. [7]
October 20
* German Kingdom of Westphalia abolished. [1]
November 6
* Chilpancingo congress declares Mexico independent of Spain. [1]
December 1
* Ferdinando Bertoni composer, dies at age 88. [1]
December 2
* Prince Willem Frederik accepts constitutional monarchy. [1]
December 5
* Lübeck surrenders to allied armies. [1]
December 8
* Ludwig von Beethoven's 7th Symphony in A, premieres. [1]
December 18
* British take Fort Niagara in the War of 1812. [1]
December 26
* Zamose, Modlin, Torgau surrender to allied armies. [1]
48
December 29
* British burn Buffalo New York during the War of 1812. [1]
December 30
* Danzig surrenders to allied armies. [1]
1814
January 1
* Field marshal Blücher's troops cross the Rhine at Kaub. [1]
January 2
* Lord Byron completes "The Corsair". [1]
January 5
* Johann Gottfried Krebs composer, dies at age 72. [1]
January 14
* By the Treaty of Kiel, peace between Sweden and Denmark is

concluded. Danish King Frederik cedes to the king of Sweden and his
successors the kingdom of Norway. Denmark is to receive one million
riksdaler and the province of Pomerania. Sweden is to pay Norway's
per-capita share of Denmark's national debt. Iceland, Greenland, and
the Faroe islands are retained by Denmark. [1] [7]
January 22
* First Knights Templar grand encampment in US held, New York City,

New York. [1]
January 23
* Georg Friedrich Theodor Wolf composer, dies at age 52. [1]
January 27
* Johann Gottlieb Fichte philosopher, dies. [1]

* Philip Astley theatre manager, dies. [1]
49
January 28
* Stendahl's first book is published. [1]
January 29
* Johann G Fichte German philosopher (Wissenschaftslehre), dies at

age 51. [1]
February 1
* Lord Byron's "The Corsair" sells 10,000 copies on the day of

publication. [1]
* Volcano Mayon on Luzon Philippines erupts killing 1,200. [1]
February 3
* Johann Antonin Kozeluch composer, dies at age 75. [1]
February 11
* Norway's independence proclaimed. [1]
February 13
* Augustin Holler composer, dies at age 69. [1]
February 27
* Ludwig von Beethovens 8th Symphony in F, premieres. [1]
March 20
* Prince Willem Frederik becomes monarch of Netherlands. [1]
March 25
* Netherlands Bank established. [1]
March 27
* Battle at Horseshoe Bend: General Andrew Jackson beats Creek-

Indians. [1]
March 29
50
* Battle at Horseshoe Bend Alabama: Andrew Jackson beats Creek-
Indians. [1]
March 30
* Britain and allies march into Paris after defeating Napoleon. [1]
March 31
* Forces allied against Napoleon capture Paris France. [1]
April 1
* Jozef de Ferraris French/Austrian General/cartographer, dies at age

87. [1]
April 5
* Netherlands Bank issues its first banknotes. [1]
April 9
* Elias Canneman (Liberal) resigns as minister of Finance. [1]
April 11
* First abdication of France by Napoleon; he is exiled to Elba. [1]
April 14
* Napoleon abdicated and is banished to Elba. [1]
April 26
* King Louis XVIII lands on Calais, from England. [1]
May 4
* Bourbon reign restored in France. [1]
May 5
* British attack Fort Ontario, Oswego New York. [1]
May 6
51
* George Joseph Vogler composer, dies at age 64. [1]
May 7
* Franz Volrath Buttstett composer, dies at age 79. [1]
May 11
* Americans defeat British at Battle of Plattsburgh. [1]
May 12
* Robert Treat Paine US judge (signed Declaration of Independence),

dies at age 83. [1]
May 17
* Denmark cedes Norway to Sweden (National Day). [1]

* Norwegian constitution passed by constituent assembly at Eidsvoll.
[1]
May 29
* Joséphine empress of France (1804-14), dies. [1]
May 30
* In Paris, France, the Treaty of Paris is signed, bringing peace

between Great Britain and her allies and France. France recognizes the
Union of Norway and Sweden. The King of Sweden and Norway
restores Guadeloupe to France, with England paying 24 million francs
to Sweden as compensation. [1] [7]
July 3
* Americans capture Fort Erie, Canada. [1]
July 5
* Americans defeat British and Canadians at Chippewa, Ontario. [1]
July 18
* British capture Prairie du Chien (Wisc). [1]
July 25
52
* Battle of Niagara Falls (Lundy's Lane); Americans defeat British. [1]
August 8
* Peace negotiations begin in Ghent, Belgium. [1]
August 24
* Battle of Bladensburg; British beat Americans, march on

Washington, DC, White House burned. [1] [118.28]
* Death of British commander Sir Edward Pakenham, at Battle of
Bladensburg. [118.33]
September 11
* Battle of Lake Champlain, NY; Americans defeat British. [1]
September 12
* Battle of North Point fought near Baltimore during War of 1812. [1]
September 14
* Francis Scott Key inspired to write "The Star-Spangled Banner". [1]
November 23
* Death of Elbridge Thomas Gerry, American statesman and

diplomat, Governor of Massachusetts (1810-11), Vice President (1813-
14), at age 70. [1] [130]
November 28
* The Times in London is printed by automatic, steam powered

presses for the first time. [5]
December 2
* Marquis de Sade writer, dies at age 74. [1]
December 9
* Jose Angel Lamas composer, dies at age 39. [1]
December 13
53
* Charles Joseph Prince of Ligne Belgian fieldmarshal/author, dies at
age 79. [1]
December 24
* Treaty of Ghent (end of the War of 1812) signed and sealed in

Belgium. [1] [118.32]
1815
January 8
* US 7th Infantry Regiment plus others (total 4500) defeat a British

force of 8000 in the Battle of New Orleans under Major General Andrew
Jackson. The battle was fought on the grounds of Chalmette Plantation,
downriver from New Orleans. British killed/wounded/captured: 2055;
American: 101. [1] [118.26]
* Edward Pakenham English General (Battle of New Orleans), dies in
battle. [1]
January 21
* M Claudius writer, dies at age 74. [1]
January 30
* Burned Library of Congress reestablished with Jefferson's 6500

volumes. [1]
February 3
* World's first commercial cheese factory established, in Switzerland.

[1]
February 4
* Geert Reinders Dutch cattle breeder/inoculation proponent, dies at

age 77. [1]
* Jacob van Strij Dutch cartoonist/graphic artist, dies at age 58. [1]
February 6
* New Jersey issues first US railroad charter (John Stevens). [1]
February 15
54
* Treaty of Ghent fully ratified, ending War of 1812. [118.32]
February 17
* Franz Gotz composer, dies at age 59. [1]
February 18
* Treaty of peace with Great Britain proclaimed. [1]
February 19
* Leonhard von Call composer, dies at age 47. [1]
February 24
* Robert Fulton steamboat pioneer, dies. [1]
February 26
* Napoleon and 1,200 leave Elba to start 100-day re-conquest of

France. [1]
March 1
* Sunday observance in Netherlands regulated by law. [1]
March 3
* US declares war on Algiers for taking US prisoners and demanding

tribute. [1]
March 16
* Willem I proclaimed king of the Netherlands, including Belgium. [1]
March 20
* Napoleon enters Paris after escape from Elba, begins 100-day rule.
[1]
April 5
* Eruption of Tambora volcano (Sumbawa Java). [1]
55
April 6
* English militia shoots prisoners, 100's killed. [1]
April 10
* Austria declares war on realm of Naples. [1]
May 3
* Battle at Tolentino: Austria beats king Joachim of Naples. [1]
May 21
* Roman Hoffstetter composer, dies at age 73. [1]
May 24
* George Evans discovers Lachlan River, Australia. [1]
May 29
* Cornelis de Gijselaar politician/patriot, dies at age 64. [1]
June 8
* 39 German states unite under the Act of Confederation. [1]
June 18
* Battle of Waterloo: Napoléon defeated by Wellington and Blücher.

[1] [118.9]
June 22
* Second abdication of Napoleon (after Waterloo). [1]
July 15
* Napoleon Bonaparte captured. [1]
August 6
* US flotilla ends piracy by Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli. [1]
August 8
56
* Napoleon Bonaparte set sail for exile on Saint Helena. [1]
September 24
* John Sevier indian fighter, dies at age 70. [1]
October 31
* Sir Humphrey Davy of London patents miner's safety lamp. [1]
November 27
* Cracow (Poland) declared a free republic. [1]
December 7
* Michel Ney French marshal (Waterloo), murdered at age 46. [1]
December 15
* Rossini gets assignment for Il barbiere di Siviglia. [1]
December 19
* Michel Woldemar composer, dies at age 65. [1]

* Robert Hudson composer, dies at age 83. [1]
December 20
* Giovanni Meli Sicilian poet (Buccolica), dies at age 75. [1]
December 22
* José Maria Morelos, Mexican revolutionary priest, executed by

Spaniards. [1]
December 29
* Saartjie Baartman the Hottentot Venus, dies in Paris. [1]
1816
January 1
* François Alexander Sallantin composer, dies at age 60. [1]
57
January 12
* France decrees Bonaparte family excluded from the country

forever. [1]
January 15
* Henry Harington composer, dies at age 88. [1]
January 22
* Lord Byron completes "Parisina" and "The Siege of Corinth". [1]
January 27
* Samuel Hood first Viscount Hood/admiral, dies. [1]
January 30
* Reinier Vinkeles Dutch engraver/cartoonist/art collector, dies at

age 74. [1]
February 4
* Meingosus Gaelle composer, dies at age 63. [1]
February 5
* Rossini's Opera "Barber of Seville" premieres in Rome. [1]
February 10
* Johann Paul Aegidius Martini composer, dies at age 74. [1]
February 13
* Teatro San Carlo in Naples destroyed by fire. [1]
February 20
* Rossini's opera "The Barber of Seville" premieres in Rome. [1]
February 22
* Adam Ferguson Scottish sociologist/historian, dies at age 92. [1]
58
February 27
* Dutch regain Suriname. [1]
February 29
* Dutch (King) Willem II marries Russian grand-duchess Anna

Paulowna. [1]
March 6
* Jews are expelled from Free city of Lubeck Germany. [1]
March 18
* Johann Paul Schulthesius composer, dies at age 67. [1]
March 20
* US Supreme Court affirms its right to review state court decisions.

[1]
March 23
* Ignaz Vitzthumb composer, dies at age 95. [1]
April 9
* African Methodist Episcopal Church organizes (Philadelphia PA). [1]
April 10
* Second Bank of US chartered. [1]
May 5
* American Bible Society organized (New York). [1]
May 10
* English steamship "Defiance" arrives at Rotterdam harbor. [1]
May 11
* American Bible Society forms (New York). [1]
59
May 29
* Madame L'Ouverture widow of Haiti's leader Toussaint L'O, dies. [1]
June 6
* 10" snowfall in New England, the "year without a summer"

(Krakatoa). [1]
July 1
* Fr frigate Medusa wrecked; basis of Géricault's "Raft of the

Medusa". [1]
July 3
* French frigate "Medusa" runs aground off Cap Blanc. Gross. [1]
July 8
* Frost in Waltham, Massachusetts. [1]
July 9
* Argentina declares independence from Spain. [1]
July 19
* Survivors of French frigate Medusa rescued off Senegal after 17

days. [1]
July 27
* Fort Blount on Apalachicola Bay Florida, attacked by US Troops. [1]
October 7
* First double decked steamboat, the Washington, arrived in New

Orleans. [1]
December 2
* First savings bank in US opens (Philadelphia Savings Fund Society).

[1]
60
December 4
* James Monroe (Virginia), elected 5th President, defeating Federalist

Rufus King. [1]
December 10
* Dutch regain Sumatra. [1]
December 11
* Citizens of Geneva thwarted Savoyard invaders. [1]

* Indiana becomes the 19th U.S. state. [1] [5]
December 13
* Patent for a dry dock issued to John Adamson, Boston. [1]
December 15
* Joseph Franz Maximilian Lobkowitz composer, dies at age 44. [1]
December 16
* Vincenzo Galeotti [Tomazelli] Italian dancer/choreographer, dies at

age 73. [1]
December 28
* American Colonization Society organizes. [1]
1817
January 1
* Martin H Klaproth German chemist (uranium), dies at age 73. [1]
January 7
* Second Bank of the United States opens. [1]
January 14
* Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny composer, dies at age 87. [1]
January 16
61
* Antonin Josef Alois Volanek composer, dies at age 55. [1]
January 18
* San Martin leads a revolutionary army over Andes. [1]
January 22
* English freighter Diana sinks off Malaysia. [1]
January 25
* Rossini's opera "La Cenerentola" premieres in Rome. [1]
January 28
* Friedrich Ludwig Emilius Kunzen composer, dies at age 55. [1]
January 31
* Franz Grillparzer's "Die Ahnfrau" premieres in Vienna. [1]
February 5
* First US gas company incorporated, Baltimore (coal gas for street

lights). [1]
February 9
* Franz Wilhelm Tausch composer, dies at age 54. [1]
February 17
* First US city lit by gas (Baltimore). [1]
February 18
* Giacomo Quarenghi master builder (Hermitage Theater), dies at

age 72. [1]
February 20
* Martin de Ron composer, dies at age 27. [1]
March 1
62
* Luigi Gatti composer, dies at age 77. [1]
March 2
* First Evangelical church building dedicated, New Berlin

Pennsylvania. [1]
March 3
* Mississippi Territory is divided into Alabama Territory and

Mississippi. [1]
March 13
* Matej Sojka composer, dies at age 77. [1]
March 18
* Johann Jakob Walder composer, dies at age 67. [1]
March 25
* Tsar Alexander I recommends formation of Society of Israeli

Christians. [1]
April 4
* André Masséna Duc de Rivoli soldier, dies. [1]

* Prince d'Essing dies. [1]
April 6
* Bonaventura Furlanetto composer, dies at age 78. [1]
April 12
* Charles Messier "comet ferret" and catalogs famous "M objects",

dies. [1]
April 15
* First American school for the deaf opens (Hartford Connecticut). [1]
April 17
63
* First US school for the deaf founded by Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet
and Laurent Clerc (American School for the Deaf-Hartford Connecticut).
[1]
April 22
* Curaçao prohibits use of white paint due to fierce sunlight. [1]
May 15
* Ambonese uprising against Dutch authority, under T Matulesia. [1]
May 16
* Mississippi River steamboat service begins. [1]
May 21
* Johann Friedrich Christmann composer, dies at age 64. [1]
May 24
* Juan Meléndez Valdés Spanish lawyer/poet, dies at age 63. [1]
June 24
* First coffee planted in Hawaii on Kona coast. [1]
July 4
* Construction on Erie Canal begins. [1]
July 12
* First flower show held (Dannybrook, County Cork, Ireland). [1]
August 18
* Gloucester, Massachusetts, newspapers tells of wild sea serpent

seen offshore. [1]
September 9
* Paul Cuffe entrepreneur/ civil rights activist, dies at age 58. [1]
September 22
64
* John Quincy Adams becomes secretary of State. [1]
October 20
* First Mississippi showboat leaves Nashville on maiden voyage. [1]
November 21
* Richard B Garnett killed during Pickett's Charge, Brigadier General.

[1]
November 25
* First sword swallower in US performs (New York City). [1]
November 27
* US soldiers attack Florida Indian village, beginning Seminole War.

[1]
December 1
* Justin Heinrich Knechtl composer, dies at age 65. [1]
December 7
* William Bligh British naval officer of "Bounty" fame dies in London

at age 63. [1]
December 10
* Mississippi admitted as 20th state. [1]
December 11
* Max von Schenkendorf German poet, dies at age 34. [1]
December 15
* Maria Walewska [Leszczinska] lover of emperor Napoleon I, dies.

[1]
December 16
* Leaders of Molukkas uprising hanged in Ambon. [1]
65
December 30
* First coffee planted in Hawaii (Kona). [1]
1818
January 1
* Fedele Fenaroli composer, dies at age 87. [1]

* Official reopening of the White House. [1]
January 2
* Lord Byron completes "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage" (4th canto). [1]
January 21
* Keats writes his poem "On a Lock of Milton's Hair". [1]
January 30
* Keats composes his sonnet, "When I Have Fears". [1]
February 1
* Giuseppi Gazzaniga composer, dies at age 74. [1]
February 7
* First successful US educational magazine "Academician" begins

(New York City, New York). [1]
February 12
* Chile gains independence from Spain. [1]
February 13
* George Rogers Clark frontier military leader in Revolutionary War,

dies. [1]
February 14
* John C Hespe Dutch journalist/politician, dies at age 61. [1]
66
February 15
* Charles XIII King of Sweden (1809-18)/Norway (1814-18), dies at

age 69. [1]
February 17
* Baron Karl von Drais de Sauerbrun patents "draisine" (early

bicycle). [1]
February 28
* Adriaan Loosjes Pzn Dutch publisher/writer (Moral Stories), dies at

age 56. [1]
March 18
* US Congress approves first pensions for government service. [1]
March 23
* Nicolas Isouard composer, dies at age 42. [1]
March 28
* Giuseppe Antonio Capuzzi composer, dies at age 62. [1]
April 4
* US Congress decided US flag is 13 red and white stripes and 20

stars. [1]
April 7
* General Andrew Jackson conquers Saint Marks Florida from

Seminole Indians. [1]
April 14
* US Medical Corp forms. [1]
April 16
* US Senate ratifies Rush-Bagot amendment (unarmed US-Canada

border). [1]
67
April 18
* Pieter Ondaatje Ceylon/Dutch lawyer, dies at age 59. [1]
April 21
* Franz Grillparzer's "Sappho", premieres in Vienna. [1]
April 28
* Monroe proclaims naval disarmament on Great Lakes and Lake

Champlain. [1]
May 2
* Herman W Daendels Governor-General of Guinea (1815-18), dies

at age 55. [1]
May 4
* Netherlands and England sign treaty against illegal slave handling.

[1]
May 7
* Leopold Jan Antonin Kozeluh composer, dies at age 70. [1]
May 8
* Franz Ignaz Kaa composer, dies at age 78. [1]
May 10
* Paul Revere American patriot, dies. [1]
May 24
* General Andrew Jackson captures Pensacola Florida. [1]
May 26
* Michael A Barclay de Tolly Russian fieldmarshal/War Minister, dies.

[1]
May 28
68
* First steam-vessel to sail Great Lakes launched. [1]
July 11
* Keats writes "In the Cottage Where Burns Was Born," "Lines
Written. [1]
August 22
* Warren Hastings first governor-general of India (1773-84), dies at

age 85. [1]
August 28
* Jean Baptiste Pointe du Sable trader, founder of Chicago, dies. [1]
October 19
* US and Chicasaw Indians sign a treaty. [1]
October 20
* 49th parallel established as the border between US and Canada.

[1]
* US and Britain agree to joint control of Oregon country. [1]
November 21
* Russia's Czar Alexander I petitions for a Jewish state in Palestine.

[1]
December 3
* Illinois admitted as 21st US state. [1]
December 5
* Bruno Daalberg/Anonymus Belga Secretary of High Council Adel,

dies at age 60. [1]
December 24
* "Silent Night" composed by Franz Joseph Gruber; sung for first time
the next day. [1]
December 25
69
* First US performance of Händel's Messiah, Boston. [1]
* First known Christmas carol ("Silent Night, Holy Night" by Franz
Joseph Gruber and Joseph Mohr) sung (Austria). [1]
December 31
* Jean-Pierre Duport composer, dies at age 77. [1]
1819
January 8
* Christian Gottlob Saupe composer, dies at age 55. [1]
January 16
* Godert baron van der de Capellen becomes Governor of Dutch-

Indies. [1]
January 20
* Carlos IV King of Spain (1788-1808), dies at age 70. [1]
January 28
* Sir Stamford Raffles first lands in Singapore. [1]
February 6
* Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles founds freeport harbor Singapore. [1]
February 19
* British explorer William Smith discovers the South Shetland

Islands. [5]
February 22
* Spain renounces claims to Oregon Country, Florida (Adams-Onís

Treaty). [1]
February 25
* Filinto Elísio [do Nascimento], Portuguese poet, dies at age 84. [1]
70
February 28
* First public performance of a Schubert song, "Schäfers Klageleid".

[1]
March 2
* Territory of Arkansas organized. [1]

* US passed its first immigration law. [1]
March 9
* Janos Fusz composer, dies at age 41. [1]
March 10
* Friedrich Heinrich Jacobi writer, dies. [1]
March 16
* Nicolas Sejan composer, dies at age 73. [1]
March 23
* August v Kotzebue writer, dies. [1]
April 2
* First successful agricultural journal ("The American Farmer")

begins. [1]
April 26
* Odd Fellows Lodge is established. [1]
May 11
* Caspar Furstenau composer, dies at age 47. [1]
May 16
* Alexander van Bylandt military, dies at age 75. [1]
May 21
* First bicycles (swift walkers) in US introduced in New York City. [1]
71
May 22
* First steam propelled vessel to cross Atlantic (leaves Savannah

Georgia). [1]
* John H van Kinsbergen Lieutenant-Admiral/founder (Corps
Marines), dies at age 84. [1]
June 16
* In Kachchh (Rann of Kutch), Gujarat, India, a magnitude 8.3

earthquake occurs. 1,500 - 2,000 killed. [53]
June 20
* Savannah becomes first steamship to cross any ocean (Atlantic).

The ship uses its steam engine for 90 hours to power a removable
paddlewheel, emplying sails for most of the journey. [1] [260.9]
June 26
* The bicycle is patented. [5]
July 4
* William Herschel makes last telescopic observation of 1819 comet.

[1]
August 2
* First parachute jump in US. [1]
August 7
* Battle of Boyacá; Bolívar defeats Spanish in Colombia. [1]
August 16
* Manchester Massacre; English police charge unemployed

demonstrators. [1]
August 23
* Oliver Hazard Perry naval hero, dies on 34th birthday. [1]
September 17
72
* First whaling ship arrives in Hawaii. [1]
December 9
* Ann C Coleman fiancee of President Buchanan, commits suicide.

[1]
December 14
* Alabama admitted to the Union as the 22nd state. [1]
December 17
* Congress of Angostura establishes Colombia's independence from

Spain. [1]
December 20
* Louis-Luc Loiseau de Persuis composer, dies at age 50. [1]
1820
January 12
* Royal Astronomical Society founded in England. [1]
January 17
* Daniel W Wyttenbach Dutch classicist/historian, dies at age 73. [1]
January 25
* Joseph F Weigl German/Austria violin cellist, dies at age 79. [1]
January 29
* George III king of Great Britain (1760-1820), dies at age 81. [1]
January 30
* Edward Bransfield aboard Williams discovers Antarctica (United

Kingdom claim). [1]
February 6
73
* 86 free black colonists sail from New York City, New York to Sierra
Leone, Africa. [1]
* US population announced at 9,638,453 (1,771,656 blacks (18.4%)).
[1]
February 7
* Samuel Adams Holyoke composer, dies at age 57. [1]
February 12
* Guillaume Albert Teniers composer, dies at age 71. [1]
February 14
* Charles F Duke of Berry, murdered at age 42. [1]
February 15
* Pierre-Joseph Cambon member of Committee the Salut Public, dies

at age 63. [1]
* William Ellery US attorney (signed Declaration of Independence),
dies at age 92. [1]
February 23
* Cato Street conspiracy uncovered. [1]
February 28
* Birth of John Tenniel England, cartoonist/illustrator (Alice in

Wonderland). [1]
March 3
* Missouri Compromise passes, allowing slavery in Missouri. [1]
March 5
* Dutch city of Leeuwarden forbids Jews to go to synagogues on

Sundays. [1]
March 9
* James Monroe's daughter Maria marries in the White House. [1]

* Philippines chases out foreigners; about 125 die. [1]
74
March 11
* Benjamin West British painter (Death of General Wolfe), dies at age

81. [1]
March 15
* Maine admitted as 23rd state. [1]
March 22
* Stephen Decatur killed in a duel with Com James Barron, at age 41.
[1]
March 25
* Greece freedom revolt against anti Ottoman attack. [1]
March 26
* Jean-Etienne Despreaux composer, dies at age 71. [1]
April 5
* Henrik C Cras lawyer (Laudatio Hugonis Grotii), dies at age 81. [1]
April 8
* The Venus de Milo is discovered on the Aegean island of Melos. [5]
April 20
* Arthur Young author (Annals of Agriculture), dies. [1]
May 10
* Matthaus Stegmayer composer, dies at age 49. [1]
May 13
* The opera "Die Jäearsbraut" is completed. [1]
May 14
* Paul Friedrich Struck composer, dies at age 43. [1]
75
June 28
* Tomato is proven nonpoisonous. [1]
August 1
* London's Regent's Canal opens. [5]
August 7
* First potatoes planted in Hawaii. [1]
September 26
* Daniel Boone, frontiersman, dies in Missouri at age 85. [1] [5]
October 9
* Guayaquil, Ecuador declares its freedom from Ecuador. [1]
November 3
* Cuenca, Ecuador declares independence. [1]
November 18
* US Navy Captain Nathaniel B Palmer discovers Antarctica. [1]
December 6
* US President James Monroe re-elected, Daniel D Tompkins Vice-

President. [1]
December 15
* First general pharmacopoeia in US published, Boston. [1]
December 20
* Missouri imposes a $1 bachelor tax on unmarried men between 21

and 50. [1]
December 21
* Charles-François Dumonchau composer, dies at age 45. [1]
76
1821
January 4
* Elizabeth Ann Seton first native-born American saint, dies in

Maryland. [1]
January 17
* México permits Moses Austin and 300 US families to settle in

Texas. [1]
January 21
* Paramaribo Suriname catches fire, four die. [1]
January 25
* Johan Valckenier Dutch politician/patriot, dies at age 62. [1]
January 28
* Bellingshausen discovers Alexander Island off Antarctica. [1]
February 8
* Paul Anton Wineberger composer, dies at age 62. [1]
February 12
* Mercantile Library of the City of New York opens. [1]
February 22
* Spain sells (east) Florida to United States for $5 million. [1]
February 23
* College of Apothecaries organized in Philadelphia; first US

pharmacy college. [1]
* John Keats Romantic poet, dies of tuberculosis at age 25 in Rome.
[1]
* Marie-Anne Collot French sculptor, dies. [1]
February 24
77
* Mexico gains independence from Spain. [1]
March 5
* Monroe is first President inaugurated on March 5th, because 4th

was Sunday. [1]
March 14
* African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church founded (New York). [1]
March 23
* Bernhard Anselm Weber pianist/conductor/composer, dies at age

56. [1]
March 25
* Greece gains independence from Turkey (National Day). [1]
March 26
* Franz Grillparzer's "Das Goldene Vliess" premieres in Vienna. [1]
April 9
* Felix Maximo Lopez composer, dies at age 78. [1]
April 20
* Franz K Achard German physicist/chemist, dies at age 67. [1]
April 22
* John Crome [Old Crome] English landscape painter/etcher, dies at

age 52. [1]
May 5
* Napoleon I Bonaparte emperor France (1799-1815), dies in Saint

Helena. [1]
May 15
* John Wall Calcott composer, dies at age 54. [1]
78
May 30
* James Boyd patents Rubber Fire Hose. [1]
May 31
* Cathedral of Assumption of Blessed Virgin Mary, first US Catholic

cathedral, is dedicated in Baltimore. [1]
June 18
* The opera "Der Freischütz" is produced (Berlin). [1]
June 21
* African Methodist Episcopal Zion (AMEZ) Church organizes (New

York City). [1]
June 24
* Battle of Carabobo; Bolívar defeats royalists outside of Caracas. [1]
July 28
* Peru declares independence from Spain (National Day). [1]
August 10
* Missouri admitted as 24th US state. [1]
September 15
* Costa Rica El Salvador Guatemala Honduras and Nicaragua gain

independ. [1]
September 27
* Mexican Empire declares its independence. [1]

* Revolutionary forces occupy Mexico City as Spanish withdraw. [1]
November 9
* First US pharmacy college holds first classes, Philadelphia. [1]
December 1
79
* Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic) proclaims independence
from Spain. [1]
December 16
* Claire countess the Rémusat/Vergennes/author (Salon), dies at age

41. [1]
December 17
* Kentucky abolishes debtors prisons. [1]
December 20
* Gian Francesco Fortunati composer, dies at age 75. [1]
December 28
* Naples: Gioacchini Rossini moves to Bologna. [1]
December 29
* Jean-Baptiste Dumonceau de Bergendael South Netherlands

general, dies at age 61. [1]
December 30
* Angelo Maria Benincori composer, dies at age 42. [1]
1822
January 5
* Central America proclaims annexation to Mexican Empire. [1]
January 7
* First printing in Hawaii. [1]

* Liberia colonized by Americans. [1]
January 14
* Franz Innocenz Joseph Kobell German landscape painter, dies at

age 72. [1]
80
February 2
* Jean-Baptiste Davaux composer, dies at age 79. [1]
February 4
* Free American Blacks settle Liberia, West Africa. [1]
February 5
* Ali Pasha of Janina (Napoleon, Lord Byron), dies at about age 77.
[1]
February 9
* American Indian Society organizes. [1]
February 10
* Albert-Kasimir duke of Saxon-Teschen/Governor of Hungary, dies at

age 83. [1]
February 19
* Jeronymo Francisco de Lima composer, dies at age 78. [1]
February 22
* Johann Ignaz Walter composer, dies at age 66. [1]
February 23
* Boston is incorporated as a city. [1]
March 2
* Christian Friedrich Hermann Uber composer, dies at age 40. [1]
March 3
* Franz Adam Veichtner composer, dies at age 81. [1]
March 9
* Charles M Graham of New York patents artificial teeth. [1]
81
March 16
* Composer Gioacchino Rossini marries Spanish soprano. [1]
March 19
* Boston Massachusetts incorporated as a city. [1]
March 22
* Gioacchino Rossini marries Isabella Colbran in Bologna. [1]

* New York Horticultural Society founded. [1]
March 30
* US Congress combined East and West Florida into Florida Territory.

[1]
April 3
* Friedrich Bertuch writer, dies. [1]
April 6
* Franz Xaver Partsch composer, dies at age 62. [1]
April 13
* Gaetano Valeri composer, dies at age 61. [1]
April 25
* Frederick "William" Herschel German/British astronomer, dies at

age 83. [1]
May 1
* John Phillips becomes first mayor of Boston. [1]
May 3
* Society for the Propagation of the Faith starts (Lyon, France). [1]
May 9
* Charles Duquesnoy composer, dies at age 62. [1]
82
May 15
* Christian Ludwig Dieter composer, dies at age 64. [1]
May 24
* At Battle of Pichincha, Bolívar secures independence of Quito from

Spain. [1]
May 30
* House slave betrays Denmark Vesey conspiracy (37 blacks

hanged). [1]
June 9
* Charles Graham receives first patent for false teeth. [1]
June 18
* Part of US-Canadian boundary determined. [1]
July 2
* Denmark Vesey and five aides hanged at Blake's Landing,

Charleston, South Carolina. [1]
July 25
* General Agustín de Iturbide crowned Agustín I, first emperor of

México. [1]
July 30
* James Varick becomes first bishop of Afr Meth Episcopal Zion

Church. [1]
August 25
* William Herschel discovered Uranus, dies at age 85. [1]
September 7
* Brazil declares independence from Portugal (National Day). [1]
83
October 8
* First eruption of Galunggung (Java) sends boiling sludge into valley.

[1]
October 12
* Second eruption of Galunggung (Java) destroys summit of

mountain. [1]
December 1
* Dom Pedro crowned emperor of Brazil. [1]

* Franz Liszts (11) debut as pianist Isabella Colbran. [1]
December 2
* In San Salvador, a congress proposes incorporation into US. [1]
December 6
* Veterinary school in Utrecht opens. [1]
December 12
* México officially recognized as an independent nation by US. [1]
December 15
* Ferenc Verseghy composer, dies at age 65. [1]
December 29
* Albert Christoph Dies composer, dies at age 67. [1]
1823
January 17
* Zacharius Werner German playwright, dies at age 36. [1]
January 27
* President Monroe appoints first US ambassadors to South America.

[1]
84
February 2
* Rossini's opera "Semiramide" premieres in Venice. [1]
February 3
* The opera "Semiramide" is produced (Venice). [1]
February 7
* Ann Radcliffe (Ward) English poet/author of horror novels, dies at

age 58. [1]
February 16
* Johann Gottfried Schict composer, dies at age 69. [1]
February 20
* English Captain James Weddell reaches 74 degrees 15' S, 1520 km

from South Pole. [1]
February 26
* John P Kemble English actor/director (Covent Garden), dies at age

66. [1]
March 11
* First normal school in US opens, Concord Academy, Concord

Vermont. [1]
March 18
* Jean-Baptiste Sebastien Breval composer, dies at age 69. [1]
March 24
* Cornelis van Foreest Dutch mayor (Alkmaar), dies at age 66. [1]
March 25
* Coelestin Jungbauer composer, dies at age 75. [1]
April 22
85
* Baltic Club (Exchange) forms in London. [1]
April 24
* Eugène Scribes "Le Menteur Véridique", premieres in Paris France.

[1]
May 8
* "Home Sweet Home" first sung (London). [1]
May 10
* First steamboat to navigate the Mississippi River arrives at Fort

Snelling. [1]
May 15
* Antonio Frantisek Becvarovsky composer, dies at age 69. [1]
June 1
* Louis Nicholas Davout French field marshall, dies at age 53. [1]
July 1
* United Provinces of Central America gain independence from

Mexico. [1]
September 10
* Simon Bolivar named president of Peru. [1]
September 21
* Moroni first appears to Joseph Smith, according to Smith. [1]
October 12
* Charles Macintosh of Scotland begins selling raincoats (Macs). [1]

[5]
December 2
* President James Monroe declares his "Monroe Doctrine". [1]
86
December 3
* Joseph Pouteau composer, dies at age 84. [1]
December 7
* Johann Gottlieb Schwencke composer, dies at age 79. [1]
December 13
* Gioacchino Rossini arrives in London. [1]
December 14
* Vincenzo Cuoco Italian historian (Naple revolution 1799), dies at

age 53. [1]
December 19
* Georgia passes first US state birth registration law. [1]

* Nicolas-Joseph Hullmandel composer, dies at age 67. [1]
December 20
* Franz Schuberts "Ballet-Musik aus Rosamunde" premieres in

Vienna. [1]
December 23
* "Visit from Saint Nicholas" by C Moore published in Troy (New York)

Sentinel. [1]
December 24
* Philipp Christoph Kayser composer, dies at age 68. [1]
1824
January 10
* Victor Emanuel I king of Sardinia (1802-21), dies at age 64. [1]
January 21
* Ashantees defeat British at Accra, West Africa. [1]
87
January 26
* Edward Jenner discoverer (vaccination), dies. [1]

* Théodore Géricault French painter (Grand Derby d'Epsom), dies.
[1]
January 28
* William Kneass becomes third US chief engraver (1824-40). [1]
January 29
* Louise MC countess of Albany Henegouws salon owner, dies at age

71. [1]
February 1
* Maria Theresia von Paradis composer, dies at age 64. [1]
February 4
* J W Goodrich introduces rubber galoshes to the public. [1]
February 8
* Rhijnvis Feith Dutch mayor/writer (Zwolle, Julia), dies at age 71. [1]
February 9
* Anna K Emmerick/Emmerich German poet, dies at age 49. [1]
February 10
* Simon Bolívar named dictator by the Congress of Perú. [1]
February 16
* Athenaeum founded. [1]
February 22
* John Davy composer, dies at age 60. [1]
March 2
* Interstate commerce comes under federal control. [1]
88
March 3
* Giovanni Battista Viotti Italian violist/composer, dies at age 70. [1]
March 7
* Meyerbeers opera "Il Crociati in Egitto" premieres in Venice. [1]
March 9
* Jacobus J Cramer priest of Holland/Zealand/Friesland, dies at age

79. [1]
March 11
* US War Department creates the Bureau of Indian Affairs. [1]
March 12
* Heinrich Carl Ebell composer, dies at age 48. [1]
March 17
* England and Netherlands sign a trade agreement. [1]
March 21
* Fire at Cairo ammunitions dump kills 4,000 horses. [1]
March 22
* Johann Melchior Dreyer composer, dies at age 76. [1]
March 26
* First performance of Beethoven's "Missa Solemnis". [1]
April 15
* Theodorus F van Capellen Vice-Admiral (Algiers), dies at age 61.

[1]
April 17
89
* Russia abandons all North American claims south of 54 degrees 40'
N. [1]
April 18
* Edward Jones composer, dies at age 72. [1]
April 19
* [George Gorden Noel] "Lord" Byron poet, dies at age 36. [1]
April 24
* Herman Muntinghe theologist (History of Mankind), dies at age 71.

[1]
May 2
* Goethe visits Ettersberg (Buchenwald). [1]
May 7
* Beethoven's 9th (Chorale) Symphony, premieres in Vienna. [1]
May 15
* Alexander Campbell composer, dies at age 60. [1]
May 24
* Pope Leo XII proclaims a universal jubilee. [1]
May 26
* Brazil is recognized by US. [1]
June 8
* Washing machine patented by Noah Cushing of Quebec. [1]
July 24
* Harrisburg Pennsylvanian newspaper publishes results of first

public. [1]
September 26
90
* Kapiolani defies Pele (Hawaiian volcano goddess) and lives. [1]
October 4
* Mexico becomes a republic. [1]
November 2
* Popular presidential vote first recorded; Jackson beats J.Q. Adams.

[1]
November 15
* Series of fires kills 10 (Edinburgh Scotland). [1]
November 21
* First Jewish Reform congregation established, Charleston, South

Carolina. [1]
December 1
* House of Representatives begins to end election deadlock between

John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, William Harris Crawford and
Henry Clay - Adams eventually declared president. [1]
December 9
* Battle of Ayacucho (Candorcangui), Peru defeats Spain. [1]
December 16
* Great North Holland Canal opens. [1]
December 25
* Barbara Krudener mystic visionary who renounced nobility, dies at

age 60. [1]
1825
January 3
* Scottish factory owner Robert Owen buys 30,000 acres in Indiana

as site for New Harmony utopian community. [1]
91
January 4
* Ferdinand I King of Sicily/Naples (Ferdinand IV), dies at age 73. [1]
January 5
* Alexandre Dumas pare fights his first duel; his pants fall down. [1]
January 8
* Inventor Eli Whitney dies. [5]
January 19
* Ezra Daggett and nephew Thomas Kensett patent food storage in

tin cans. [1]
January 25
* First US engineering college opens, Rensselaer Polytechnic, Troy

New York. [1]
February 3
* Dutch North Sea coast floods. [1]
February 5
* Hannah Lord Montague of New York creates first detachable shirt

collar. [1]
* Pierre Gaveaux composer, dies at age 64. [1]
February 9
* House of Representatives elects John Quincy Adams 6th US

President. [1]
February 10
* Paul van Hemert Dutch theologist/philosopher (Kant), dies at age

68. [1]
February 12
92
* Creek Indian treaty signed; Tribal chiefs agree to turn over all their
land in Georgia to the government and migrate west by Sept 1, 1826.
[1]
February 16
* George Gerson composer, dies at age 34. [1]
February 19
* Franz Grillparzer's "König Ottokars Glück" premieres in Vienna. [1]
February 22
* Russia and Britain establish Alaska-Canada boundary. [1]
February 24
* Thomas Bowdler self-appointed Shakespearean censor, dies. [1]
March 2
* First grand opera in US sung in English, New York City, New York.
[1]
March 4
* John Quincy Adams inaugrated as 6th President. [1]
March 24
* Giovanni Domenico Perotti composer, dies at age 64. [1]
March 25
* Rutger Jan Schimmelpenninck Dutch patriot/earl, dies at age 63.

[1]
April 10
* First hotel in Hawaii opens. [1]

* Nicaraguan constituent assembly meets at León. [1]
* Paul-Louis Courier (Méré), French writer/interpreter, dies at age 53.
[1]
April 13
93
* Josef Gelinek composer, dies at age 66. [1]
April 16
* John Henry Fuseli painter/art writer (Tracks in the Snow), dies at

age 84. [1]
April 19
* 33 patriotic exiles return to Uruguay. [1]
May 7
* Antonio Salieri Italian composer, dies in Vienna at age 74. [1]
May 12
* Elias Mann composer, dies at age 75. [1]

* Stanislao Mattei composer, dies at age 75. [1]
May 20
* Charles X becomes King of France. [1]
May 21
* Prince Willem FK marries Louise AWA of Prussia. [1]
May 22
* Domenico Corri composer, dies at age 80. [1]
May 25
* American Unitarian Association founded. [1]
June 4
* Unseasonable hurricane hits New York City. [1]
August 6
* Bolivia gains independence from Peru (National Day). [1]
August 25
94
* Uruguay declares independence from Brazil (National Day). [1]
October 26
* The Erie Canal opens passage from Albany, New York, on the
Hudson River, to Lake Erie. [1] [5]
November 22
* Ann Bailey pioneer, dies. [1]
November 26
* First college fraternity founded (Kappa Alpha (Union College, New

York)). [1]
November 29
* First Italian opera, Barber of Seville, produced in US (New York

City). [1]
December 1
* Aleksandr I P Romanov czar of Russia (1801-25), dies at age 47. [1]
December 6
* President John Adams suggests establishment of a US observatory.

[1]
December 14
* Decembrist uprising in Russia against Tsar Nicholas I begins. [1]
December 26
* Erie Canal opens. [1]
December 27
* First public railroad using steam locomotive completed in England.

[1]
December 29
95
* Giuseppe Maria Gioacchino Cambini composer, dies. [1]
* Jacques-Louis David French painter (Death of Marat), dies at age
77. [1]
December 30
* Peter Gronland composer, dies at age 64. [1]
1826
January 1
* Baron Van der Capellen resigns as Governor of Dutch-Indies. [1]
January 17
* Juan Crisóstomo Arriaga y Balzola Spanish composer, dies at age

19. [1]
February 11
* London University founded. [1]
February 13
* American Temperance Society, forms in Boston. [1]
February 25
* Piotr A von der Pahlen military governor of Saint Petersburg, dies

at age 60. [1]
February 28
* M Biela, an Austrian officer, discovers Biela's Comet. [1]
March 1
* J J Friedrich Weinbrenner German architect/archaeologist, dies at

age 59. [1]
March 4
* First US railroad chartered, Granite Railway in Quincy

Massachusetts. [1]
96
March 10
* Johan VI M L J King of Portugal (1816-26), dies at age 56. [1]
March 11
* Gervais-François Couperin composer, dies at age 66. [1]
March 14
* General Congress of South American States assembles at Panamá.

[1]
March 21
* Beethoven's Quartet #13 in B flat major (Op 130) premieres in

Vienna. [1]
March 27
* Jakob Haibel composer, dies at age 63. [1]
March 29
* J H Voß writer, dies at age 75. [1]
April 1
* Samuel Morey patents internal combustion engine. [1] [5]
April 3
* Reginald Heber bishop and hymn writer, dies. [1]
April 12
* Weber's opera "Oberon", premieres in London. [1]
April 13
* Franz Danzi composer, dies at age 62. [1]
April 23
* Missolonghi captured by Turks. [1]
97
May 10
* Giuseppe Sigismondo composer, dies at age 86. [1]
May 24
* Friedrich Fesca composer, dies at age 37. [1]
May 25
* Christian Friedrich Ruppe composer, dies at age 72. [1]
July 4
* John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, second and third US presidents,

die. [1] [248.43] [255.43]
July 18
* The last lottery takes place in London, as the British government

bans them. [40.12] [187.150]
July 22
* Giuseppe Piazzi discoverer of first asteroid, dies. [1]
August 19
* Canada Company chartered to colonize Upper Canada (Ontario).

[1]
September 3
* USS Vincennes leaves New York to become first warship to

circumnavigate globe. [1]
October 7
* Granite Railway (first chartered railway in US) begins operations.

[1]
December 7
* John Flaxman English sculptor (tombs at Saint Paul's Cathedral),

dies at age 71. [1]
98
December 10
* Benedikt Emanuel Schack composer, dies at age 68. [1]
December 15
* William Browser revolting slave, executed in New York City, New

York. [1]
1827
January 1
* Dutch Trade Company NHM gets opium monopoly on Java. [1]
January 5
* Frederick of York English duke/bishop/General , dies at age 63. [1]
January 17
* Duke of Wellington appointed British supreme commander. [1]
January 21
* Freedom Journal, first Black paper, begins publishing. [1]
January 30
* Johann Philipp Christian Schulz composer, dies at age 53. [1]
February 2
* Johann Nepomuk Kalcher composer, dies at age 62. [1]
February 7
* Ballet (Deserter) introduced to US at Bowery Theater (New York

City, New York). [1]
* Franz Anton Dimmler composer, dies at age 73. [1]
February 17
* Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi Swiss educator, dies at age 81. [1]
February 26
99
* David Moritz Michael composer, dies at age 75. [1]
February 27
* First Mardi Gras celebration in New Orleans Louisiana. [1]
February 28
* First commercial railroad in US, Baltimore and Ohio (B&O)

chartered. [1]
March 5
* Alessandro Volta Italian physicist (made first battery), dies at age

82. [1]
March 9
* Franz Xaver Gerl composer, dies at age 62. [1]
March 15
* Freedom's Journal, first Black newspaper, publishes. [1]

* University of Toronto is chartered. [1]
March 16
* First US black newspaper, "Freedom's Journal" (New York City, New

York), begins publishing. [1]
March 26
* Ludwig van Beethoven German composer (Appassionata), dies in

Wien (Vienna) at age 56. [1]
March 29
* 20,000 attend Ludwig von Beethovens burial in Vienna. [1]
April 2
* Joseph Dixon begins manufacturing lead pencils. [1]
April 7
100
* English chemist John Walker invents wooden matches. [1]
April 22
* Thomas Rowlandson caricaturist, dies. [1]
April 23
* Johanna C Wattier-Ziesenis actress (Phaedra/Lady MacBeth), dies

at age 65. [1]
April 24
* Pierre Joseph Candielle composer, dies at age 82. [1]
April 26
* Bernardo Ottani composer, dies at age 90. [1]
May 5
* Frederik Augustus I Justified, King of Saxon (1806-27), dies at age

76. [1]
July 4
* Slavery abolished in New York. [1]
July 23
* First US swim school opens (Boston Mass). [1]
August 10
* Race riots in Cincinnati (1,000 blacks leave for Canada). [1]
November 28
* Dov Baer Schneersohn Lubavitch leader/author (Imirei Binah), dies.

[1]
December 9
* François Leonard Rouwyzer composer, dies at age 90. [1]
December 26
101
* Jan David Holland composer, dies at age 81. [1]
1828
January 5
* First edition of Amsterdam General Trade Journal (Algemeen

Handelsblad). [1]
January 9
* Pieter Hoen Dutch journalist/patriot (Neder-Rhijn), dies at age 83.

[1]
January 13
* Alexandre-Auguste Robineau composer, dies at age 80. [1]
January 31
* Alexandros Ypsilanti Greek resistance fighter, dies at age 35. [1]
February 2
* Frederik Sigismund Earl of Bylandt Vice-Admiral, dies at age 78. [1]
February 18
* More than 100 vessels destroyed in a storm, Gibraltar. [1]
February 21
* First American Indian newspaper in US, Cherokee Phoenix (weekly),

Georgia. [1]
February 22
* Russia and Persia sign Peace of Turkmantsjai. [1]
February 23
* Mihály Fazekar Hungarian botanist/literary (Book of Spices), dies.

[1]
February 25
102
* John Quincy Adam's son John marries in the White House. [1]
February 28
* Franz Grillparzer's "Ein Treuer Diener" premieres in Vienna. [1]
March 8
* Johann Anton Sulzer composer, dies at age 75. [1]
March 24
* Philadelphia and Columbia Railway (first state owned) authorized.

[1]
April 4
* Casparus van Wooden patents chocolate milk powder

(Amsterdam). [1]
April 12
* Jean Henri Appelius Dutch lawyer/minister of Finance, dies at age

60. [1]
April 14
* 18-gun sloop "Acorn" sinks off Halifax with 115 men aboard. [1]
April 16
* Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes dies in Bordeaux, France at age

82; artist of 700 paintings, 900 drawings, 300 prints. [1] [248.27]
April 21
* Noah Webster publishes first American dictionary. [1]
April 25
* John Goldberg Dutch patriot/statesman, dies at age 64. [1]
April 26
103
* Russia declares war on Turkey to support Greece's independence.
[1]
April 27
* Zoological Gardens at Regent's Park London, opens. [1]
April 30
* Shaka the great Zulu king, killed. [1]
May 13
* US passes Tariff of Abominations. [1]
May 18
* Battle of Las Piedras, ends conflict between Uruguay and Brazil. [1]
June 14
* Charles Duke of Prussia, dies at age 70. [1]
July 4
* Construction begins on Band O (Baltimore-Ohio) first US passenger

railroad. [1]
August 1
* The Bolton and Leigh Railway opens to freight traffic in Britain. [5]
November 19
* Franz Schubert Austrian composer, died. [1]
December 2
* Simon Paap Dutch 56 cm long dwarf/cabaret artist, dies at age 39.

[1]
December 3
* Andrew Jackson elected 7th President of US, John C Calhoun Vice-

President. [1]
104
December 19
* South Carolina declares the right of states to nullify federal laws.

[1]
December 22
* Rachel Jackson wife of 7th US President Andrew Jackson, dies. [1]
December 28
* 6.8 earthquake strikes Echigo Japan, 30,000 killed. [1]
December 30
* Waldemar Thrane composer, dies at age 38. [1]
1829
January 3
* Robert Archibald Smith composer, dies at age 48. [1]
January 12
* Death of Friedrich von Schlegel in Hannover, Germany; literary

critic, cultural philosopher, poet. [1] [37]
* Michael Gottard Fischer composer, dies at age 55. [1]
January 19
* Johann von Goethe's "Faust, Part 1" premieres. [1]
January 25
* William Shield composer, dies at age 80. [1]
January 28
* William Burke murderer/body snatcher, executed in Edinburgh. [1]
February 2
* Madman Jonathan Martin sets York Cathedral afire, does £60,000

damage. [1]
105
February 10
* Leo XII [Annibale Sermattei], Italian Pope (1823-29), dies at age

68. [1]
February 16
* François-Joseph Gossec Belgian/French composer (Messe of Morts),

dies at age 95. [1]
February 18
* Jan Krtitel Kuchar composer, dies at age 77. [1]
February 22
* Adam A earl von Neipperg Austrian General, dies at age 53. [1]
February 24
* Auguste Chouteau Saint Louis co-founder, dies. [1]
March 2
* New England Asylum for the Blind, first in US, incorporated,

Boston. [1]
March 4
* Andrew Jackson inaugurated as 7th President. [1]

* Unruly crowd mobs White House during President Jackson
inaugural ball. [1]
March 16
* Ohio authorizes high school night classes. [1]
April 6
* Niels H Able Norwegian mathematician (infinite series), dies at age

26. [1]
April 9
* Danzig (Gdansk) dike break flood kills 1,200. [1]
106
April 13
* English Emancipation Act grants freedom of religion to Catholics.

[1]
April 28
* Dutch parliament accepts new press laws. [1]
April 30
* George Washington Adams son of John Q Adams, dies on City

Island New York City, New York. [1]
May 8
* Mauro Giuseppe Sergio Pantaleo Giuliani composer, dies at age 47.

[1]
May 10
* Thomas Young physicist/decipherer of Egyptian hierogolyphics,

dies. [1]
May 15
* Joseph Smith ordained by John the Baptist according to Joseph

Smith. [1]
May 16
* William Congreve English officer, dies at age 56. [1]
May 18
* Bernardo Bittoni composer, dies at age 72. [1]
May 24
* Pope Pius VIII issues his program for the pontificate. [1]
May 29
* Humphry Davy scientist/inventor (Miner's safety lamp), dies at age

84. [1]
107
June 27
* James Smithson dies, his will established Smithsonian Institute. [1]
July 4
* Cornerstone laid for first US mint (Chestnut and Juniper Street,

Philadelphia). [1]
July 23
* William Austin Burt patents "typographer" (typewriter). [1]
August 9
* "Stourbridge Lion" locomotive goes into service. [1]
August 16
* Siamese twins Chang and Eng Bunker arrive in Boston to be

exhibited. [1]
August 31
* The opera "Guillaume Tell" is produced (Paris). [1]
September 24
* Russia and Ottoman Empire sign Peace Treaty of Adrianople. [1]
September 28
* Walker's Appeal, racial antislavery pamphlet, published in Boston.

[1]
September 29
* London's Metropolitan Police Force goes on duty. [1]

* Scotland Yard formed in London. [1]
October 15
* Birth of Asaph Hall discovered satellites of Mars, Phobos and

Deimos. [1]
October 16
108
* Tremont Hotel, first US modern hotel opens (Boston). [1]
October 17
* Delaware River and Chesapeake Bay Canal formally opened. [1]
November 13
* Sam Patch loses his life in a 125' dive into Genesse Falls. [1]
November 20
* Jews are expelled from Russia's Nikolayev and Sevastopol. [1]
December 4
* Britain abolished "suttee" in India (widow burning herself to death

on her husband's funeral pyre. [1]
December 7
* Johann Christoph Kienlen composer, dies at age 45. [1]
December 14
* Luigi Marchesi composer, dies at age 74. [1]
December 17
* Bernard Jumentier composer, dies at age 80. [1]
December 18
* Jean-Baptiste de Lamarck French nature investigator, dies at about

age 85. [1]
December 21
* First stone arch railroad bridge in US dedicated, Baltimore. [1]

1830
January 7
* Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company begins carrying revenue

traffic - first US Railroad Station (Baltimore Maryland). [1]
109
* Charlotte J T infant of Portugal's ex, dies at age 53. [1]
January 8
* Dutch King Willem I fires him displeasing parliament members. [1]
January 13
* Great fire in New Orleans thought to be set by rebel slaves. [1]
January 14
* Johann G Repsold German instrument maker, dies at age 59. [1]
January 17
* W Waiblinger writer, dies. [1]
January 19
* Wenzel Thomas Matiegka composer, dies at age 56. [1]
January 20
* Michal Bogdanowicz composer, dies at age 50. [1]
January 21
* Portsmouth (Ohio) blacks forcibly deported. [1]
January 28
* The opera "Fra Diavolo" is produced (Paris). [1]
February 7
* Marcus Antonio da Fonseca Portugal Portuguese composer, dies at

age 67. [1]
February 18
* Charles G G Earl of Merode, mayor (Brussels), dies at age 67. [1]
February 25
* Victor Hugo's "Hernani" premieres in Paris. [1]
110
March 4
* V Bellini's opera "I Capuleti e i Montecchi" premieres in Venice. [1]
March 16
* London's re-organised police force (Scotland Yard) forms. [1]

* New York Stock Exchange slowest day ever (31 shares traded). [1]
April 1
* Carl Borromaus Neuner composer, dies at age 51. [1]
April 6
* Joseph Smith and five others organize Mormon church in Seneca

County, New York. [1]
April 11
* Robert Schumann attends piano concerto by Paganini. [1]
April 18
* Jose Mauricio Nunes Garcia composer, dies at age 62. [1]
April 22
* Knud L Rahbek Danish literary/historian, dies at age 69. [1]
May 3
* First regular steam train passenger service starts. [1]
May 13
* Republic of Ecuador is founded, with Juan Jose Flores as president.

[1]
May 16
* Jean Baptiste Joseph Fourier mathematician, dies. [1]
May 18
111
* Edwin Budding of England signs an agreement for manufacture of
his invention, the lawn mower - Saturdays are destroyed forever. [1]
May 20
* First railroad timetable published in newspaper (Baltimore

American). [1]
May 24
* "Mary Had A Little Lamb" is written. [1]

* First passenger rail service in US (Baltimore and Elliots Mill,
Maryland). [1]
May 28
* US Congress authorizes Indian removal from all states to western

prairie. [1]
July 5
* France invades Algeria, begins a 40 year conquest. [1]
July 28
* Revolution in France replaces Charles X with Louis Philippe. [1]
August 4
* Plans for the city of Chicago laid out. [1]
August 25
* Belgium revolts against Netherlands. [1]
September 9
* Charles Durant, first US aeronaut, flies a balloon from Castle

Garden, New York City to Perth Amboy, New Jersey. [1]
September 15
* First to be run-over by a railroad train (William Huskisson,

England). [1]
September 18
112
* A horse beats the first US-made locomotive in a race near
Baltimore, Maryland. [1] [5]
September 20
* First National Black convention meets (Philadelphia). [1]
October 4
* Provisional government declares secession of Belgium from

Netherlands. [1]
November 13
* Oliver Wendell Holmes publishes "Old Ironsides". [1]
December 5
* Hector Berlioz' "Symphonique fantastique" premieres in Paris. [1]
December 8
* H Benjamin Constant French politician/writer, dies at age 63. [1]
December 17
* Death of Simón Bolívar, President of Colombia, liberator of

Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Colombia, Bolivia, at age 47 in Colombia. [1]
[246.42]
December 20
* England, France, Prussia, Austria and Russia recognize Belgium. [1]
December 25
* Hector Berlioz's "Symphony Fantastic" premieres. [1]
December 26
* Gaetano Donizetti's opera "Anna Bolena" premieres in Milan. [1]
December 28
* Adrien-Joseph van Helmont composer, dies at age 83. [1]
113
1831
January 1
* William Lloyd Garrison publishes first issue of abolitionist journal.

[1]
January 2
* Liberator, abolitionist newspaper, begins publishing in Boston. [1]
January 3
* First US building and loan association organized, Frankford

Pennsylvania. [1]
January 4
* Nikola P Neofit Rilski Bulgaria abbot/poet, dies at age 37. [1]
January 6
* Rodolphe Kreutzer French composer/violinist (Kreutzersonate), dies

at age 64. [1]
January 8
* Franz Vinzenz Krommer composer, dies at age 71. [1]
January 15
* First US-built locomotive to pull a passenger train makes first run;

Mr and Mrs Pierson of Charleston South Carolina make first US railroad
honeymoon trip. [1]
January 21
* Achim versus Arnim writer, dies at age 49. [1]
January 22
* Charles Darwin takes his Bachelor of Arts exam. [1]
February 5
114
* Jan van Speijk blows up his gunboat in Antwerp, killing about 30.
[1]
* John CJ van Speijk commits suicide at age 29. [1]
February 7
* Belgium adopts its Constitution. [1]
February 14
* Vincente Guerrero Mexican revolutionary hero, dies. [1]
February 15
* Henry Maudslay inventor (metal lathe), dies. [1]
February 19
* First practical US coal-burning locomotive makes first trial run,

Pennsylvania. [1]
February 20
* Polish revolutionaries defeat Russians in battle of Growchow. [1]
March 2
* John Frazee becomes first US sculptor to receive a federal

commission. [1]
March 4
* Georg Michael Telemann composer, dies at age 82. [1]
March 6
* Edgar Allen Poe removed from West Point military academy. [1]
* Vincenzo Bellini's opera "La Sonnambula" premieres in Milan. [1]
March 9
* Friedrich M Klinger German (stage)author (Plimplamplasko), dies at

age 79. [1]
March 12
115
* Johann Franz Volkert composer, dies at age 64. [1]
March 19
* First US bank robbery (City Bank, New York/$245,000). [1]
March 26
* Richard Allen AME Church Bishop, dies at age 71. [1]
March 31
* Mainzer Rijnvaart Convention ends. [1]

* Québec and Montréal incorporated. [1]
April 2
* Charles Felix blind King of Sardina (1821-31), dies at age 74. [1]
April 7
* Dom Pedro abdicates to son, Dom Pedro II crowned emperor of

Brazil. [1]
April 9
* Robert Jenkins loses an ear, starts war between Britain and Spain.
[1]
April 13
* Ferdinand Kauer composer, dies at age 80. [1]
May 1
* Antonius van Alphen apostle vicar of De Bosch, dies at age 82. [1]
May 5
* Friedrich Ludwig Seidel composer, dies at age 65. [1]
May 13
* Christian G Körner German lawyer, dies at age 74. [1]
May 24
116
* Benjamin Carr composer, dies at age 62. [1]
May 26
* Georg Hermes German philosopher/theologist (Hermenianen), dies.

[1]
June 6
* Second national black convention (Philadelphia). [1]
July 4
* James Monroe, 5th US president, dies. [1] [248.43]
July 21
* Belgium gains independence from Netherland, Leopold I made

king. [1]
August 1
* A new London Bridge opens in England. [1] [5]
August 9
* First US steam engine train run (Albany to Schenectady, New York).

[1]
August 10
* Former slave Nat Turner led violent insurrection against slavery. [1]
August 13
* Nat Turner leads uprising of slaves in Virginia. [1]
August 21
* Nat Turner slave revolt kills 55 (Southampton County, Virginia). [1]
August 24
* Charles Darwin is asked to travel on the HMS Beagle. [5]
117
October 21
* Nat Turner 19 associates, hung. [1]
November 11
* Nat Turner former slave, led a violent insurrection, hanged in

Virginia. [1]
November 22
* The opera "Robert Le Diable" is produced (Paris). [1]
December 1
* Erie Canal closes for entire month due to cold weather. [1]
December 2
* Traugott Maximilian Eberwein composer, dies at age 56. [1]
December 5
* Former President John Quincy Adams takes his seat as member of

House of Representatives. [1]
December 8
* James Hoban architect who designed the White House, dies. [1]
December 10
* "Spirit of the Times" begins publishing (weekly horse racing sheet).

[1]
December 11
* John George Schetky composer, dies at age 55. [1]
December 15
* Paul R Cantzlaar Governor of Saba/Curaçao/Dutch-West Indies, dies

at age 60. [1]
December 18
118
* Willem Bilderdijk Dutch poet/literary (My Relief), dies at age 75. [1]
December 25
* Louisiana and Arkansas are first states to observe Christmas as

holiday. [1]
December 26
* Vincenzo Bellini's opera "Norma" premieres in Milan. [1]
December 27
* Darwin begins his voyage to South America on board the HMS

Beagle. [1]
1832
January 4
* Insurrection of Trinidad negroes. [1]
January 6
* New England Anti-Slavery Society organizes (Boston). [1]
January 16
* Charles Darwin lands at San Tiago, Cape Verde. [1]
January 17
* Johannes van den Bosch appointed Governor-General of Dutch-

Indies. [1]
February 1
* Ecco Epkema Dutch classic linguist (Frisian/Old Frisian), dies at age

71. [1]
February 3
* George Crabbe English vicar/poet (Borough), dies at age 77. [1]
February 6
119
* First appearance of cholera at Edinburgh, Scotland. [1]
* US ship destroys Sumatran village in retaliation for piracy. [1]
February 10
* Antonio Benedetto Maria Puccini composer, dies at age 84. [1]
February 12
* Ecuador annexes Galápagos Islands. [1]
February 13
* First appearance of cholera at London. [1]
February 15
* Hardenack Otto Conrad Zinck composer, dies at age 85. [1]
February 16
* HMS Beagle/Charles Darwin reaches St-Pauls (1 degrees N, 29

degrees W). [1]
February 20
* Charles Darwin visits Fernando Noronha in Atlantic Ocean. [1]
February 22
* Johann Wolfgang von Goethe poet, Weimar, Germany. [1]
February 26
* Polish constitution abolished/replaced by Czar Nicholas I. [1]
February 29
* Charles Darwin visits jungle near Bahia Brazil. [1]
March 10
* Muzio Clementi Italian composer, dies at age 79. [1]
March 12
120
* Daniel Friedrich Kuhlau German/Danish opera composer, dies at
age 45. [1]
March 22
* J W Goethe writer, dies at age 82. [1]
March 23
* British Parliament passes reform bill. [1]

* Vaclav Vilem Wurfel composer, dies at age 41. [1]
March 24
* Mormon Joseph Smith beaten, tarred and feathered in Ohio. [1]
April 1
* Robert the Hermit US ex-slave/hermit in Massachusetts, dies. [1]
April 4
* Charles Darwin aboard HMS Beagle reaches Rio de Janeiro. [1]
April 8
* Charles Darwin begins trip through Rio de Janeiro. [1]
May 4
* Jan van Speyck Dutch Admiral, buried in New Church. [1]
May 7
* Greece becomes independent republic. [1]

* Otto of Bavaria is chosen king of Greece. [1]
May 12
* Gaetano Donizetti's opera "L'Elisir D'amore" premieres in Milan. [1]
May 13
* Georges Cuvier French zoologist (La Règne Animal), dies at age 62.
[1]
121
May 14
* Felix Mendelssohn's "Hebrides" premieres. [1]

* John van Speijk Dutch heroic sailor, buried. [1]
May 15
* Carl Friedrich Zelter composer, dies at age 73. [1]
May 18
* Bonafacio Asioli composer, dies at age 62. [1]
May 21
* First Democratic National Convention (Baltimore). [1]
May 26
* François-Louis Perne composer, dies at age 59. [1]
May 30
* Evariste Galois give his theory on free assembly (dies in duel May
31). [1]
May 31
* Évariste Galois French revolutionary/mathematician, dies at age

20. [1]
June 4
* Third national black convention meets (Philadelphia). [1]
June 16
* Battle of Kellogg's Grove, Illinois. [1]
July 4
* "America" first sung publicly. [1]
July 10
122
* President Jackson vetoed legislation to re-charter second Bank of
US. [1]
July 13
* Henry Rowe Schoolcraft discovers the source of the Mississippi

River. [1] [5]
July 25
* First railroad accident in US, Granite Railway, Quincy, Mass-1 dies.

[1]
August 2
* 1,300 Illinois militia defeat Sac and Fox indians, end Black Hawk
War. [1]
* Black Hawk defeated (Iowa). [1]
* Whites decimate Indians in Battle of Bad Axe River, Wisc. [1]
August 15
* Gregory XVI encyclical On liberalism and religious indifferentism.

[1]
November 14
* First streetcar (horse-drawn) (John Mason) debuts in New York City;

fare 12c rode on 4th Avenue between Prince and 14th Sts. [1]
November 23
* French take Antwerp in liberation of Belgium. [1]
November 24
* South Carolina passes Ordinance of Nullification. [1]
November 26
* First streetcar railway in America starts operating (New York City)

(12-cent fare). [1]
December 4
* French army begins bombing citadel of Antwerp. [1]
123
December 5
* Andrew Jackson re-elected President of US, Martin Van Buren Vice-

President. [1]
December 17
* HMS Beagle/Charles Darwin sails in Strait Le Maire. [1]
December 18
* Charles Darwin visits Vurland. [1]
December 22
* HMS Beagle/Charles Darwin reaches Barnevelts Islands. [1]

* Ishmail Spicer composer, dies at age 72. [1]
December 23
* Dutch troops in Antwerp surrender. [1]
December 24
* First US Negro hospital founded by whites chartered, Savannah

Georgia. [1]
* HMS Beagle anchors in Wigwam Bay at Cape Receiver. [1]
December 25
* Charles Darwin celebrates Christmas in Saint Martin at Cape

Receiver. [1]
December 28
* John Calhoun becomes first Vice-President to resign (differences

with President Jackson). [1]
December 30
* Colonel Abijah Hammond owned large portion of Greenwich

Village, dies. [1]
1833
124
January 1
* British government demands Falkland islands. [1]

* Curaçao census 2,602 whites, 6,531 free people and 5,894 slaves.
[1]
January 3
* Britain seizes control of Falkland Islands in South Atlantic. [1]
January 7
* Ramon Felix Cuellar y Altarriba composer, dies at age 55. [1]
January 8
* Boston Academy of Music, first US music school, established. [1]
January 10
* Adrien Marie Legendre dies. [1]

* Antoinio da Silva Leite composer, dies at age 73. [1]
* Felix Mendelssohn's "Die erste Walpurgisnacht" premieres in Berlin.
[1]
January 12
* Marie-Antoine Carème author (Pattissier Royal Parisien), dies at

age 48. [1]
January 15
* HMS Beagle anchors at Goeree Tierra del Fuego. [1]
January 17
* James Ball Antyne Scot founder (Ball Antyne Press), dies at about
age 60. [1]
* William Rush Indian sculptor (Spirit of the Schuylkill), dies. [1]
January 19
* Charles Darwin reaches Straits Ponsonby, Fireland. [1]

* Louis-J-Ferdinand Hérold French composer (Pré aux clercs), dies at
age 41. [1]
125
January 23
* Joseph Pease, a Quaker, admitted to Parliament on his affirmation.

[1]
January 26
* Gaetano Donizetti's opera "Lucrezia Borgia" premieres in Milan. [1]
February 18
* Georg Johann Schinn composer, dies at age 64. [1]

* Ignac Ruzitska composer, dies at age 55. [1]
March 7
* Rahel Varnhagen von Ense-Levin German author, dies at age 61.

[1]
March 11
* Fridolin Weber composer, dies at age 71. [1]
March 16
* Susan Hayhurst becomes first US woman grad of a pharmacy

college. [1]
March 17
* Phoenix Society forms (New York). [1]
March 20
* US and Siam conclude commercial treaty. [1]
April 7
* Antoni Henryk Radziwill Lithuanian/Polish composer, dies at age

57. [1]
April 9
* First tax-supported public library (Peterborough New Hampshire).

[1]
126
April 22
* First scheduled commercial bus service by London & Paddington

Steam Carriage Company, between Paddington and London, England.
[55.29]
* Richard Trevithick inventor (steam locomotive), dies at age 62. [1]
April 24
* Patent granted for first soda fountain to Jacob Evert and George
Dulty. [1]
May 2
* Czar Nicolas bans public sale of serfs. [1]
May 6
* John Deere makes first steel plow. [1]
May 10
* François Andrieux French writer/politician, dies at age 74. [1]
May 11
* "Lady-of-the-Lake" strikes iceberg and sinks in N Atlantic; kills 215.

[1]
May 14
* Johann Wilhelm Cornelius von Konigslow composer, dies at age 88.

[1]
May 15
* Edmund Kean English actor (Shylock), dies at age 46. [1]
May 16
* Antonio López de Santa Anna becomes President of Mexico.

[118.61]
May 28
* Johann Christian Friedrich Haeffner composer, dies at age 74. [1]
127
May 29
* William Marshall composer, dies at age 84. [1]
May 30
* Josef Slavik composer, dies at age 27. [1]
June 3
* 4th national black convention meets (Philadelphia). [1]

* Antonio López de Santa Anna resigns as President of Mexico.
[118.61]
June 5
* Ada Lovelace (future first computer programmer) meets Charles

Babbage. [1]
June 6
* U.S. President Andrew Jackson becomes the first President to ride a

train. [5]
June 18
* Antonio López de Santa Anna becomes President (2nd time) of

Mexico. [118.61]
June 27
* Prudence Crandall, a white woman, arrested for conducting an

academy. [1]
July 5
* Antonio López de Santa Anna resigns (2nd time) as President of

Mexico. [118.61]
August 10
* Chicago incorporates as a village of about 200. [1]
August 23
128
* Britain abolishes slavery in colonies; 700,000 slaves freed. [1]
September 3
* New York Sun begins publishing (first daily newspaper). [1]
September 4
* First newsboy hired (Barney Flaherty-New York Sun). [1]
September 28
* Lemuel Haynes Revolutionary War veteran, dies at age 88. [1]
October 2
* New York Anti-Slavery Society organized. [1]
October 27
* Antonio López de Santa Anna becomes President (3rd time) of

Mexico. [118.61]
October 29
* First US college fraternity to have a fraternity house founded. [1]
December 3
* Oberlin College in Ohio, first truly coeducational college opens. [1]
December 4
* American Anti-Slavery Society formed by Arthur Tappan in

Philadelphia. [1]
December 6
* HMS Beagle/Charles Darwin departs Rio de la Plata. [1]
December 10
* Dieudonne-Pascal Pieltain composer, dies at age 79. [1]
December 13
129
* HMS Beagle/Charles Darwin arrives in Port Deseado, Patagonie. [1]
December 15
* Antonio López de Santa Anna resigns (3rd time) as President of

Mexico. [118.61]
December 16
* Friedrich August Kanne composer, dies at age 55. [1]
December 17
* Kaspar Hauser German son of grand duke Karel of Bathe, murdered

at age 21. [1]
December 25
* Charles Darwin celebrates Christmas in Port Desire, Patagonia. [1]
1834
January 1
* German Customs Union comes into force. [1] [37]
January 5
* Kiowa Indians record this as the night the stars fell. [1]
January 9
* HMS Beagle/Charles Darwin arrives in Port San Julian, Patagonia.

[1]
January 29
* President Jackson orders first use of US troops to suppress a labor

dispute. [1]
February 4
* Amelie Julia Candielle composer, dies at age 66. [1]
February 12
130
* Friedrich Schleiermacher German theologist/philosopher, dies at
age 65. [1]
February 16
* Lionel Lukin life boat pioneer, dies. [1]
February 18
* First US labor newspaper, "The Man", published, New York City,

New York. [1]
February 26
* First US interstate crime compact (New York-New Jersey) ratified.

[1]
March 6
* Toronto incorporated with William Lyon Mackenzie as its first

mayor. [1]
March 12
* Karl W Feuerbach mathematician (circle of Feuerbach), dies at age

33. [1]
March 16
* HMS Beagle anchors at Berkeley Sound, Falkland Islands. [1]
March 18
* First railroad tunnel in US completed, in Pennsylvania (275 metre

long). [1]
March 28
* US Senate censure President Jackson for taking federal deposits

from Bank of US. [1]
April 13
* HMS Beagle anchors at river mouth of Rio Santa Cruz, Patagonia.

[1]
131
April 18
* Charles Darwin sails to Rio Santa Cruz up Patagonia. [1]
April 24
* Antonio López de Santa Anna becomes President (4th time) of

Mexico. [118.61]
April 29
* Charles Darwin's expedition sees top of Andes from Patagonia. [1]
May 1
* British colonies abolish slavery. [241.9]

* Belgian parliament accept railway laws. [1]
May 4
* Charles Darwin's expedition reaches 200 km from Atlantic Ocean.

[1]
May 5
* Charles Darwin's expedition begins at Rio Santa Cruz. [1]
May 8
* Charles Darwin's expedition returns to the Beagle. [1]

* Prussia, Austria and Russia sign classified accord about Belgium.
[1]
May 20
* Marie-Joseph-Paul-Yves-Roch-Gilbert de Motier nobleman, dies. [1]

* Marquis de Lafayette French general, dies. [1]
May 23
* Charles Wesley composer, dies at age 76. [1]
May 26
* Portuguese Civil war ends, Dom Miguel capitulates. [1]
132
June 2
* 5th national black convention meet (New York City). [1]
June 14
* Hardhat diving suit patented by Leonard Norcross, Dixfield, Maine.

[1]
* Sandpaper patented by Isaac Fischer Jr, Springfield, Vermont. [1]
June 21
* Cyrus Hall McCormick patents reaping machine. [1]
June 30
* US Congress creates Indian Territory (now Oklahoma). [1]
July 5
* Provisional government established in Oregon Country. [1]
August 1
* Slavery abolished in British empire. [1]
August 18
* Mt Vesuvius erupts. [1]
November 1
* First published reference to poker (as Mississippi riverboat game).

[1]
November 14
* William Thomson enters Glasgow University at age 10 years 4

months. [1]
November 25
* Delmonico's, one of New York's finest restaurants, provides a meal

of soup, steak, coffee and half a pie for 12 cents. [1]
December 3
133
* First US dental society organized (New York). [1]
December 6
* Jonas Daniel Meyer Dutch lawyer, dies at age 54. [1]
December 7
* Ludwig Schuncke composer, dies at age 23. [1]
December 23
* Joseph Hansom of London receives patent for Hansom cabs. [1]
December 25
* Charles Darwin celebrates Christmas on Beagle at Tres Montes,

Chile. [1]
1835
January 3
* Willem F Röell Dutch baron/minister of Internal Affairs, dies at age

67. [1]
January 7
* HMS Beagle anchors off Chonos Archipelago. [1]
January 25
* Vincenzo Bellini's opera "I Puritani" premieres in Paris. [1]
January 27
* Antonio López de Santa Anna resigns (4th time) as President of

Mexico. [118.61]
January 30
* Richard Lawrence misfires at President Andrew Jackson in

Washington DC. [1]
February 15
134
* Henry Hunt British politician, dies. [1]
February 20
* In Chile, a magnitude 8.5 earthquake occurs. Extreme damage to

Concepción. [1] [53]
February 22
* HMS Beagle/Charles Darwin leave Valdivia Chile. [1]
February 24
* Siwinowe Kesibwi (Shawnee Sun) is first Indian language monthly

magazine. [1]
February 28
* Dr Elias Lönnrot publishes Finnish poem "Kalevala". [1]
March 3
* US Congress authorizes a US mint at New Orleans Louisiana. [1]
March 4
* HMS Beagle moves into Bay of Concepción. [1]
March 7
* HMS Beagle returns from Concepción to Valparaiso. [1]
March 11
* HMS Beagle anchors off Valparaiso, Chile. [1]
March 13
* Charles Darwin departs Valparaiso for Andes crossing. [1]
March 18
* Charles Darwin departs Santiago Chile on his way to Portillo Pass.

[1]
135
March 21
* Charles Darwin and Mariano Gonzales meet at Portillo Pass. [1]
March 23
* Charles Darwin reaches Los Arenales, in the Andes. [1]
March 25
* Friederike Blum writer, dies. [1]
April 10
* Charles Darwin returns to Santiago, Chile. [1]
April 17
* William Henry Ireland forger (Shakespearean manuscripts), dies.

[1]
April 18
* William Lamb Lord Melbourne forms British government. [1]
April 26
* Frédéric Chopins "Grand Polonaise Brillante", premieres in Paris

France. [1]
May 5
* King Leopold opens Brussels-Mechelen railway. [1]
May 6
* First edition of New York Herald (price 1 cent). [1]
May 12
* Charles Darwin visits copper mines in North Chile. [1]
May 13
* First foreign embassy in Hawaii is established. [1]

* John Nash British town planner/architect (Regent's Park), dies. [1]
136
May 14
* Charles Darwin reaches Coquimbo in Northern Chile. [1]
May 16
* Felicia Dorothea Hemans poet/hymn writer, dies. [1]
June 1
* 6th national black convention (Philadelphia). [1]
June 2
* P.T. Barnum and his circus begin first tour of US. [1]
June 19
* New Orleans gives US government Jackson Square to be used as a

mint. [1]
June 25
* First building constructed at Yerba Buena (now SF). [1]
July 6
* In Vicksburg, Mississippi, local militia hangs five gamblers following

months of trouble, culminating in the murder of a doctor and armed
resistance to the law. [187.252]
July 8
* Liberty Bell cracks (again). [1]
July 25
* In Dundee, Scotland, scientist James Bowman Lindsay successfully

creates a practical electric lamp in a sealed glass jar. [55.54]
July 26
* First sugar cane plantation started in Hawaii. [1]
July 29
137
* First sugar plantation in Hawaii begins. [1]
August 10
* Mob of whites and oxen pulled black school to a swamp out of

Canaan New Hampshire. [1]
August 11
* George B Airy begins 46-year reign as England's Astronomer Royal.

[1]
August 18
* Last Pottawatomie Indians leave Chicago. [1]
August 25
* Ann Rutledge said to be Lincoln's true love, dies in Illinois at age

22. [1]
* New York Sun publishes Moon hoax story about John Herschel. [1]
September 26
* The opera "Lucia di Lammermoor" is produced (Naples). [1]
November 2
* Second Seminole War begins in Osceola. [1]
November 23
* Henry Burden patents Horseshoe manufacturing machine, Troy,

New York. [1]
December 1
* Hans Christian Andersen published his first book of fairy tales. [1]
December 3
* First US mutual fire insurance company issues first policy (Rhode

Island). [1]
December 5
138
* August von Platen writer, dies at age 39. [1]
December 7
* German railway Neurenberg-Fürth opens. [1]
December 16
* Fire consumes over 600 buildings in New York City, New York. [1]
December 18
* Johann Georg Anton Mederitsch-Gallus composer, dies at age 82.

[1]
December 19
* HMS Beagle/Charles Darwin approaches New Zealand. [1]
December 21
* HMS Beagle sails into Bay of Islands (New Zealand). [1]
December 25
* Charles Darwin company celebrates Christmas in Pahia, New

Zealand. [1]
December 29
* Charles-Joseph Tolbecque composer, dies at age 29. [1]
December 30
* After gold discovery in Georgia, Cherokees are forced to move

across Mississippi River. [1]
* HMS Beagle/Charles Darwin sails from New Zealand to Sydney. [1]
1836
January 3
* Friedrich Witt composer, dies at age 65. [1]
January 5
139
* Davy Crockett arrives in Texas, just in time for the Alamo. [1]
January 12
* Battle of Wetumka Florida. [1]

* HMS Beagle/Charles Darwin reach Sydney Australia. [1]
February 3
* Whig Party holds its first national convention (Albany New York).
[1]
February 6
* HMS Beagle/Charles Darwin reach Diemen's Land (Tasmania). [1]
February 7
* "Sketches by Boz" (essays) published by Charles Dickens. [1]
February 17
* HMS Beagle/Charles Darwin leaves Tasmania. [1]
February 22
* Dutch garrison evacuates fort Du Bus New Guinea. [1]

* John Clarke-Whitfeld composer, dies at age 65. [1]
February 23
* Alamo besieged by Santa Anna; entire garrison eventually killed.

[1]
February 24
* 3,000 Mexicans attack 182 Texans at the Alamo, lasts 13 days. [1]
* Dániel Berzsenyi Hungarian poet, dies at age 59. [1]
February 25
* Samuel Colt patents first revolving barrel multishot firearm. [1]
February 29
140
* Giacomo Meyerbeer's (Jakob Liebmann Beer) opera "Les
Huguenots" premieres in Paris (Théâtre de l'Opéra, Paris). [1]
March 2
* Republic of Texas declares independence from Mexico. [1]
March 5
* Mexico attacks Alamo. [1]

* Samuel Colt manufactures first pistol, 34-caliber "Texas" model. [1]
March 6
* 3,000 Mexicans beat 182 Texans at the Alamo, after 13 day fight.
[1]
* Davy Crockett US pioneer (Alamo), killed in battle at age 49. [1]
* HMS Beagle/Darwin reaches King George's Sound, Australia. [1]
March 14
* HMS Beagle/Charles Darwin leaves Australia. [1]
March 16
* Texas approves a constitution. [1]
March 17
* Texas abolishes slavery. [1]
March 23
* Coin Press invented by Franklin Beale. [1]
March 27
* First Mormon temple dedicated (Kirtland Ohio). [1]
April 1
* Charles Darwin aboard HMS Beagle reaches Cocos Islands. [1]
April 14
* US Congress forms Territory of Wisconsin. [1]
141
April 19
* Nikolai Gogol's "Revisor", premieres in Saint Petersburg. [1]
April 20
* Johan I Jozef monarch of Liechtenstein/fieldmarshal, dies at age 75.

[1]
* Territory of Wisconsin created. [1]
April 21
* Battle of San Jacinto, in which Texas wins independence from

México. [1]
May 6
* Christian Ignatius Latrobe composer, dies at age 78. [1]
May 7
* Norbert Burgmuller composer, dies at age 26. [1]
May 9
* HMS Beagle with Charles Darwin departs Port Louis, Mauritius. [1]
May 15
* Francis Baily observes "Baily's Beads" during annular solar eclipse.

[1]
May 22
* Felix Mendelssohn's oratorium "St Paul" premieres in Düsseldorf.

[1]
May 28
* Anton Reicha composer, dies at age 66. [1]
May 31
* HMS Beagle anchors in Simons Bay, Cape of Good Hope. [1]
142
June 15
* Arkansas becomes 25th state. [1]
June 17
* Government of France resolves to close gambling clubs December

31, 1837. [187.192]
June 28
* James Madison fourth US pres, dies in Montpelier, Virginia. [1]
July 4
* Wisconsin Territory formed. [1]
July 13
* US patent #1 (after 9,957 unnumbered patents), for locomotive

wheels. [1]
July 21
* First Canadian railroad opens, between Laprairie and Saint John,

Québec. [1]
July 27
* Adelaide, South Australia founded. [1]
July 30
* First English newspaper published in Hawaii. [1]
September 1
* Reconstruction begins on Synagogue of Rabbi Judah Hasid in

Jerusalem. [1]
September 5
* Sam Houston elected president of the Republic of Texas. [1]
September 14
143
* US Vice President Aaron Burr dies. [1] [5]
October 2
* Darwin returns to England aboard HMS Beagle. [1]
October 22
* Sam Houston inaugurated as first elected president of Republic of

Texas. [1]
October 24
* The match is patented. [1]
November 10
* Louis Napoleon banished to America. [1]
December 4
* Daniel Read composer, dies at age 79. [1]

* Whig party holds its first national convention, Harrisburg
Pennsylvania. [1]
December 7
* Martin Van Buren elected 8th President. [1]
December 12
* Giuseppe Farinelli composer, dies at age 67. [1]
December 15
* Patent Office burns in Washington DC. [1]
December 26
* Hans Georg Nageli composer, dies at age 63. [1]
December 27
* Stephen Fuller Austin founder of state of Texas, dies at age 43. [1]
* Worst English avalanche kills eight of 15 buried (Lewes Sussex). [1]
144
December 28
* Spain recognizes independence of México. [1]
December 29
* Johann Baptist Schenk composer, dies at age 83. [1]
December 30
* Lehman-theater in Saint Petersburg catches fire; 100s die. [1]
1837
January 11
* François Gérard French baron/painter, dies at age 66. [1]

* John Field Irish pianist/composer (Nocturnes), dies at age 54. [1]
January 20
* John Soane English architect (Book of Designs), dies at age 84. [1]
January 22
* Earthquake in southern Syria kills thousands. [1]
January 23
* John Field composer, dies at age 54. [1]
January 26
* Michigan admitted as 26th US state. [1]
January 29
* Aleksandr Pushkin poet/novelist/dramatist (Golden Cockeral), killed

in a duel. [1]
February 8
* First Vice President chosen by the Senate, Richard Johnson (Van

Buren administration). [1]
February 10
145
* Alexander S Pushkin writer, dies at age 37. [1]
February 11
* American Physiological Society organizes in Boston. [1]
February 12
* Ludwig Börne writer, dies at age 50. [1]
February 13
* Riot in New York over high price of flour. [1]
February 19
* Georg Büchner German playwright (Leonce und Lena), dies at age

23. [1]
February 25
* First US electric motor-powered printing press patented by Thomas

Davenport of Rutlant, Vermont. [1] [55.55]
March 3
* US Congress increases Supreme Court membership from 7 to 9. [1]

* US President Andrew Jackson and Congress recognizes Republic of
Texas. [1]
March 4
* City of Chicago incorporates. [1]

* Martin Van Buren inaugrated as 8th President. [1]
* Weekly Advocate changes its name to the Colored American. [1]
March 13
* Nikita P Panin Russian diplomat/minister of Foreign affairs, dies at

age 66. [1]
March 24
* Canada gives blacks the right to vote. [1]
146
March 26
* Joseph Lincke composer, dies at age 53. [1]
March 28
* Felix Mendelssohn marries Cécile Jeanrenaud. [1]
March 29
* Maria Fitzherbert morganatic wife of King George IV, dies. [1]
March 31
* John Constable English painter/water colors painter, dies at age 60.

[1]
April 17
* Edouard viscount de Walckiers very wealthy slave trader, dies. [1]
April 19
* Cheyney University forms as the Institute for Colored Youth. [1]
May 5
* Niccolo Antonio Zingarelli Italian composer/bandmaster, dies at

age 85. [1]
May 9
* "Sherrod" burns in Mississippi River below Natchez Mississippi; 175

dies. [1]
May 17
* Royal Decides installs the Weapon of Belgium firm(ly). [1]
May 31
* Astor Hotel (most elaborate in US) opens in New York City, it later
becomes the Waldorf-Astoria. [1]
* Joseph Grimaldi greatest clown (king of pantomime), dies at age
57. [1]
147
June 13
* First Mormon missionaries to the British Isles leave Kirtland, Ohio.

[1]
June 17
* Charles Goodyear obtains his first rubber patent. [1]
June 20
* England issues its first stamp, 1P Queen Victoria. [1]

* King William IV of England, dies. [1]
* Queen Victoria at age 18 ascends British throne following death of.
[1]
July 4
* Grand Junction Railway - the world's first long-distance railway -

opens between Birmingham and Liverpool, England. [5]
July 25
* Between Euston and Camden Town in London, William Cooke and

Charles Wheatstone successfully demonstrate the first commercial use
of an electric telegraph. [5]
July 27
* US Mint opens in Charlotte, North Carolina. [1]
August 5
* First ascent of Mount Marcy (5,344 feet) highest in Adirondack,

New York. [1]
October 1
* "Racer's" Hurricane (Gulf of Mexico). [1]

* Treaty with Winnebago Indians. [1]
October 9
* Steamboat "Home" sinks off Okracoke North Carolina killing 100.

[1]
148
November 7
* Abolitionist Elijah Lovejoy murdered by mob at Alton, Illinois. [1]
November 8
* Mount Holyoke Seminary in Massachusetts-first US college founded

for women. [1]
November 21
* Thomas Morris of Australia skips rope 22,806 times. [1]
December 5
* Hector Berlioz' "Requiem" premieres. [1]

* Uprising under William Lyon Mackenzie in Canada. [1]
December 25
* Battle of Okeechobee-US forces defeat Seminole Indians. [1]
December 26
* Martinus van Marum chemist/physicist (giant salamander), dies at

age 87. [1]
December 29
* Canadian militia destroy Caroline, a US steamboat docked at

Buffalo. [1]
* Steam-powered threshing machine patented, Winthrop Maine. [1]
December 31
* The Chamber of Deputies of France bans all games of chance. All

gambling clubs in the country close. [187.91,105,185,192]
1838
January 1
* First official horse race in South Australia-Adelaide. [1]
January 6
149
* Samuel Morse made first public demonstration of telegraph. [1]
January 8
* In New Jersey, Alfred Vail demonstrates a telegraph using dots and

dashes (a forerunner of Morse code). [1] [5]
* Rebellion at Amherstburg, Ontario breaks out. [1]
January 13
* Ferdinand Reis composer, dies at age 53. [1]
January 16
* Aleksandr I Polezjajev Russian poet (Sasjka), dies at age 33. [1]
January 20
* Pierre-Louis Hus-Desforges composer, dies at age 64. [1]
January 23
* Arnold A Buyskes Dutch Vice-Admiral/colonial director, dies at age

67. [1]
January 26
* Tennessee becomes first state to prohibit alcohol. [1]
January 28
* Aleksandr I Polezjajev Russian poet (Sasjka), dies at age 33. [1]
January 30
* Osceola chief of Seminole Indians, dies in jail. [1]
February 1
* Abraham de Veer Dutch Governor-General of Suriname (1822-28),

dies at age 71. [1]
February 5
* Philippe Libon composer, dies at age 62. [1]
150
February 16
* Kentucky passes law permitting women to attend school under

conditions. [1]
February 22
* Friedrich Johann Eck composer, dies at age 70. [1]
February 25
* London pedestrian walks 20 miles backward then forward in 8

hours. [1]
March 3
* Rebellion at Pelee Island, Ontario Canada. [1]
March 6
* Franz Grillparzer's "Weh dem, der Lügt" premieres in Vienna. [1]
March 8
* US mint in New Orleans begins operation (producing dimes). [1]
March 16
* Nathaniel Bowditch astronomer and navigation expert, dies at age

64. [1]
March 22
* Hendrik Fagel Dutch/English baron, dies at age 73. [1]
March 24
* Thomas Attwood composer, dies at age 72. [1]
April 3
* Francesco Antommarchi Napoleon's physician on Saint Helena,

dies at age 57. [1]
April 6
151
* José B de Andrada e Silva premier of Brazil (1822-23), dies at age
74. [1]
April 8
* Steamship "Great Western" maiden voyage (Bristol England to New

York City, New York). [1]
April 9
* National Galley opens in London. [1]
April 11
* Pieter L Uys South African pioneer (Great Pull), murdered at age

40. [1]
April 17
* J Schopenhauer writer, dies at age 71. [1]
April 18
* Wilkes' expedition to South Pole sails. [1]
April 22
* English steamship "Sirius" docks in New York City after Atlantic

crossing. [1]
April 23
* English steamship "Great Western" crossing Atlantic docks in New

York City, New York. [1]
* John W Janssens Governor-General of Cape Colony/Dutch-Indies,
dies at age 75. [1]
April 27
* Fire destroys half of Charleston. [1]
April 30
* Nicaragua declares independence from Central American

federation. [1]
152
May 17
* Charles-Maurice duke of Talleyrand-Périgord French bishop, dies at

age 84. [1]
May 23
* John W Janssens Governor-General (Cape Colony), dies at age 75.

[1]
May 28
* Thomas Busby composer, dies. [1]
June 12
* Hopkins Observatory, dedicated in Williamstown, Massachusetts

[1]
* Territory of Iowa organized. [1]
June 28
* Britain's Queen Victoria crowned in Westminster Abbey. [1]
July 7
* Central American federation is dissolved. [1]
August 1
* Emancipation of British slaves on Bahamas. [1]
August 18
* First US marine expedition. [1]
August 23
* Mt Holyoke Female Seminary (South Hadley, Mass) first graduating

class. [1]
September 1
* William Clark second lt of Lewis and Clark Expedition, dies at age

68. [1]
153
September 24
* Anti-Corn-Law League forms to repeal English Corn Law. [1]
November 5
* Honduras declares independence of Central American Federation.

[1]
November 27
* French Admiral Baudin with fleet off Veracruz, Mexico, open fire on
fort of San Juan de Ulúa, killing 64, wounding 147. Mexican generals
surrender the fort and Veracruz. French install 3000-man occupation
force. [118.58]
December 5
* 1500 French marines row ashore to Veracruz, Mexico, seize fort's

bastions, pack fortress with gunpowder, and blow it up, retreating back
to ships. Antonio López de Santa Anna is shot in the leg. Both sides
lose about 8 dead and 60 wounded. [118.60]
December 16
* Boers beat Zulu chieftain Dingaan in South Africa. [1]
1839
January 2
* First photo of the Moon (French photographer Louis Daguerre). [1]
January 6
* Two-day storm off Irish and English coast immortalized as "The Big
Wind". [1]
January 9
* Daguerrotype photo process announced at French Academy of

Science. [1]
* Thomas Henderson measures first stellar parallax (Alpha Centauri).
[1]
154
January 10
* Tea from India first arrives in United Kingdom. [1]
January 11
* Earthquake at Martinique destroys half of Port Royal-700 die. [1]
January 12
* Anthracite coal first used to smelt iron, Mauch Chunk Pennsylvania.

[1]
* Joseph A Koch Austrian painter/cartoonist/etcher/illustrator, dies at
age 70. [1]
January 19
* Aden conquered by British East India Company. [1]

* Death of Ludwig, military governor of Hess-Homburg, in Grand
Duchy of Luxembourg. [187.206]
* Georg Abraham Schneider composer, dies at age 38. [1]
January 24
* Charles Darwin elected member of Royal Society. [1]
January 29
* Charles Darwin marries Emma Wedgwood. [1]
February 1
* Giuseppe Valadier Italian architect/archaeologist, dies at age 76.

[1]
February 7
* Henry Clay declares in Senate "I had rather be right than

president". [1]
February 12
* Boundary dispute between Maine and New Brunswick leads to

Aroostook. [1]
February 18
155
* Detroit Boat Club forms (still exists today). [1]
February 20
* US Congress prohibits dueling in District of Columbia. [1]
February 24
* Steam shovel patented by William Otis, Philadelphia. [1]
February 25
* Seminoles and black allies shipped from Tampa Bay Florida, to the
West. [1]
February 26
* Jem Mason on Lottery wins first Grand National Steeplechase

(Britain). [1]
March 4
* Ignace Antoine Ladurner pianist/composer, dies at age 72. [1]
March 9
* Prussian government limits work week for children to 51 hours. [1]
March 13
* Robert Gallenberg composer, dies at age 55. [1]
March 20

Mexico. [118.61]
March 23
* First recorded use of "OK" [oll korrect] (Boston's Morning Post). [1]
March 26
* First Henley Royal Regatta. [1]
156
March 29
* Bernardus JC Dibbets Dutch baron/General-Major (Maastricht), dies

at age 56. [1]
April 11
* John Galt Scottish writer (Last of the Lairds), dies at age 59. [1]
April 17
* Guatemala forms republic. [1]
April 18
* Henry Kendall, New South Wales Australia, poet (Bell Birds). [1]
April 19
* Treaty of London constitutes Belgium an independent kingdom and

Luxembourg a Grand Duchy. [1]
April 20
* Giuseppe Rossini father of Italian composer Gioacchino Rossini,

dies. [1]
May 3
* Ferdinando Paer composer, dies at age 67. [1]
May 4
* The Cunard Steamship Company Ltd forms San Bonifacio. [1]
May 13
* Israel Ashkenazi of Shklov found Ashkenazic community (1815),

dies. [1]
* Joseph Fesch French cardinal/war commission/earl/senator, dies.
[1]
May 18
* Carolina [Maria A] Bonaparte (countess Lipona) dies at age 57. [1]
157
June 7
* Hawaiian Declaration of Rights is signed. [1]
June 10
* Nathaniel Pryor sgt of Lewis and Clark Expedition, dies. [1]
July 3
* First state normal school in US opens, Lexington, Massachusetts,

with three students. [1]
July 10

Mexico. [118.61]
July 30
* Slave rebels, take over slaver Amistad. [1]
August 19
* Jacque Daguerre's new photographic process is presented to the

French Academy of Sciences. [5]
September 6
* Great fire in New York. [1]
September 9
* John Herschel takes the first glass plate photograph. [1]
September 11
* First Canadian track and field meet held (Caer Howell Grounds). [1]
November 3
* First opium war-2 British frigates engage several Chinese junks. [1]
November 6
158
* Rabbi Hayim Rapoport of Ostrowiec author (Maxim Chayyim), dies.
[1]
November 13
* First US anti-slavery party, Liberty Party, convenes in New York. [1]
November 27
* In Boston, Massachusetts, USA, the American Statistical

Association is founded. [1] [5]
December 3
* Frederik VI king of Denmark (1808-39)/Norway (1803-14), dies at

age 71. [1]
December 7
* Jan Matyas Nepomuk August Vitasek composer, dies at age 69. [1]
December 15
* Matthijs I van Bree Flemish court-painter, dies at age 66. [1]
December 18
* First celestial photograph (the moon) made in US, John Draper,

New York City, New York. [1]
* Charles-Henri Plantade composer, dies at age 75. [1]
1840
January 3
* First deep sea sounding. [1]
January 5
* Records show 95,820 licensed public houses in England on this

date. [1]
January 10
* Penny Post mail system started. [1]
159
January 18
* Electro-Magnetic Intelligencer, first US electrical journal, appears.

[1]
January 19
* Antarctica discovered, Charles Wilkes expedition (US claim). [1]
January 20
* Dumont D'Urville discovers Adélie Land, Antarctica. [1]

* Dutch King Willem II crowned. [1]
February 1
* Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, first in US, incorporated. [1]
February 6
* Waitangi Day; treaty signed between Britain and Maoris of New

Zealand. [1]
February 10
* British queen Victoria marries her cousin Albert von Saksen-

Coburg. [1]
February 11
* Gaetano Donizetti's Opera "La Fille du Regiment" premieres in

Paris. [1]
February 12
* Housatonic Railroad opens. [1]
February 16
* American Charles Wilkes discovers Shackleton Ice Shelf,

Antarctica. [1]
March 2
* Heinrich Olbers German astronomer (discoverer of comets and

asteroids), dies at age 81. [1]
160
March 14
* José Zorilla's "El Zapatero y el Rey" premieres in Madrid. [1]
March 23
* Draper takes first successful photo of the Moon (daguerrotype). [1]
March 28
* Simon-Antoine-Jean Lhuillier Swiss mathematician, dies at age 89.

[1]
March 30
* George (Beau) Brummell Dandy, dies. [1]
April 25
* Siméon-Denis Poisson French mathematician (Poisson verdeling),

dies. [1]
May 1
* First adhesive postage stamps ("Penny Blacks" from England)

issued. [1]
May 5
* Gottlob Benedikt Bierey composer, dies at age 67. [1]

* Matthaus Fischer composer, dies at age 76. [1]
May 6
* First postage stamps (Penny Black) issued (Great Britain). [1]
May 7
* Tornado strikes Natchez Mississippi, kills 317. [1]
May 8
* Alexander Wolcott patents Photographic Process. [1]
May 17
161
* Niccolo Paganini composer, dies at age 57. [1]
May 21
* New Zealand became a British colony. [1]
May 27
* Niccolò Paganini composer/violinist, dies at age 57. [1]
May 30
* Dominique J de Eerens Governor-General of Dutch-Indies, dies at

age 59. [1]
July 4
* Cunard Line 700-ton wooden paddlewheeler Britannia first sets out

from Liverpool, England, bound for Halifax, Nova Scotia on the first
transatlantic crossing with a scheduled end. [5] [89.35] [150.35]
August 27
* William Kneass third US chief engraver (1824-40), dies in office. [1]
September 5
* Giuseppe Verdi's Un giorno di regno premieres at La Scala of Milan.

[5]
September 27
* Birth of Thomas Nast political cartoonist of late 1800s America. [1]
October 8
* First Hawaiian constitution proclaimed. [1]
December 2
* Gaetano Donizetti's opera "La Favorita" premieres in Paris. [1]

* William H Harrison elected President of US, John Tyler Vice-
President. [1]
1841
162
January 3
* Wilhelmus Kist writer/director of Dutch (Official) Gazette, dies at

age 82. [1]
January 5
* James Clark Ross (United Kingdom) is first to enter pack ice near
Ross Ice Shelf. [1]
January 20
* China cedes Hong Kong to the British. [1]
January 26
* Hong Kong proclaimed a sovereign territory of Britain. [1]
February 11
* J H Ferdinand Olivier German painter, dies at age 55. [1]
February 13
* Thomas Ainsworth English/Dutch industrialist, dies at age 45. [1]
February 14
* Antun Sorkocevic composer, dies at age 65. [1]
February 15
* Sibrand Acker Stratingh Dutch doctor/chemist (electrical car), dies

at age 53. [1]
February 17
* Dutch ex-king Willem I marries Henriette d'Oultremont de

Wégimont. [1]
* Ferdinando Carulli composer, dies at age 70. [1]
February 18
* First continuous filibuster in US Senate began, lasting until March

11. [1]
163
March 4
* Dion Boucicault's "London Assurance" premieres in London. [1]

* Longest inauguration speech (8,443 words), William Henry
Harrison. [1]
March 9
* US Supreme Court rules Negroes are free (Amistad Incident). [1]
March 16
* Félix Savart French surgeon/physicist, dies at age 49. [1]
March 22
* Cornstarch patented (Orlando Jones). [1]
March 27
* First US steam fire engine tested, New York City, New York. [1]
March 31
* First performance of Robert Schumann's first Symphony in B. [1]
April 4
* William Henry Harrison becomes first US President to die in office,

at age 68. [1]
April 6
* Cornerstone laid for second Mormon temple, Nauvoo Illinois. [1]
April 10
* New York "Tribune" begins publishing under editor Horace Greeley.

[1]
April 14
* Edgar Allen Poe's "Murders in the Rue Morgue", published. [1]
April 26
164
* "Bombay Gazette" begins publishing on silk. [1]
April 27
* Imakita Kosen, first Zen teacher of D T Suzuki, found the

awakening. [1]
April 29
* A Bertrand writer, dies. [1]
May 1
* First emigrant wagon train leaves Independence Missouri for

California. [1]
May 3
* Cornelis T Elout Dutch minister of Finance/Navy/Colonies, dies at

age 74. [1]
May 6
* John Thomson composer, dies at age 35. [1]
May 20
* Joseph Blanco White theological writert, dies. [1]
May 23
* Franz Xaver von Baader German philosopher/theologist, dies at

age 76. [1]
June 14
* First Canadian parliament opens in Kingston, Ontario. [1]
June 24
* Fordham University (then Saint John's College), opens in the Bronx.

[1]
July 3
165
* John Couch Adams decides to determine the position of an
unknown. [1]
July 5
* Thomas Cook opens first travel agency. [1]
July 17
* British humor magazine "Punch" first published. [1]
August 21
* John Hampson first patents the Venetian blind in the United States.
[1] [5]
September 9
* Great Lakes steamer "Erie" sinks off Silver Creek New York, kills
300. [1]
September 24
* Sarawak obtained by Britain from Sultan of Brunei. [1]
October 10

Mexico. [118.61]
October 16
* Queens University in Kingston is chartered. [1]
November 2
* Akbar Khan successfully revolts against Shah Shuja in Afghanistan.

[1]
November 13
* James Braid first sees a demonstration that leads to his study of

the subject he eventually calls hypnosis. [5]
November 16
166
* N.E. Guerin of New York patents cork-filled life preserver. [1]
November 25
* 35 Amistad survivors return to Africa. [1]
November 26
* First date in James Clavell's novel Tai-Pan. [1]
December 6
* Robert Schumann's 4th Symphony in D, premieres. [1]
December 7
* Johann Daniel Ferstenberg composer, dies at age 83. [1]
December 18
* Felice Blangini composer, dies at age 60. [1]
December 29
* King/grand duke Willem II installs Order of Eikenkroon. [1]
December 31
* Alabama becomes first state to license dental surgeons. [1]
1842
January 1
* First illustrated weekly magazine in US publishes first issue, New

January 2
* First US wire suspension bridge for general traffic opens in

Pennsylvania. [1]
January 6
* 4,500 British and Indian troops leave Kabul, massacred before

India. [1]
167
January 7
* Gioacchino Rossini's opera "Stabat Mater" premieres in Paris. [1]
January 8
* Dutch King Willem II charters Technical College Delft. [1]

* Pierre Earl the Cambronne, French General (Waterloo, Elba), dies at
age 71. [1]
January 12
* Franciscan nuns begin missionary work on Netherlands Antilles. [1]
January 16
* Thomas Freanby Norwegian landscape painter, dies. [1]
January 31
* John Tyler's daughter Elizabeth marries in the White House. [1]
February 15
* First adhesive postage stamps in US (private delivery company),

New York City, New York. [1]
February 21
* First known sewing machine patented in US, John Greenough,

Washington DC. [1]
* Wojciech Zywny composer, dies at age 85. [1]
March 3
* First US child labor law regulating working hours passed

(Massachusetts). [1]
* First performance of Felix Mendelssohn's third "Scottish"
Symphony. [1]
March 7
* Christian Theodor Weinlig composer, dies at age 61. [1]
March 9
168
* Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Nabucco" premieres in Milan. [1]
March 15
* Maria Luigi C Z S Cherubini Italian composer (Dies Irae), dies at

age 81. [1]
March 17
* Indians land in Ohio, a 12 square-mile area in Upper Sandusky. [1]
March 23
* Stendhal [Marie-Henri Beyle], French author (Lamiel), dies at age

59. [1]
March 24
* Stendhal [Marie-H Beyle] French writer (The Love), buried at age

59. [1]
March 30
* First surgical operation using ether as anaesthetic (to remove a

neck cyst), performed by Dr. Crawford Long on James Venable, in
Jefferson, Georgia, USA. [1] [55.18]
April 7
* Henrik A Bjerregaard Norwegian writer/poet (Fjeldeventyret), dies

at age 50. [1]
April 11
* John England bishop of Charleston Carolina, dies. [1]
April 13
* Lord Rosse successfully casts 72" (183-cm) mirror for a telescope.

[1]
May 5
* City-wide fire burns for over 100 hours (Hamburg Germany). [1]
169
May 8
* Versailles to Paris train catches fire; 50 die. [1]
May 14
* First edition of London Illustrated News. [1]
May 15
* Emanuel Count de las Cases French historian (Napoleon), dies at

age 76. [1]
May 23
* José de Espronceda y Delgado Spanish revolutionary/poet, dies at

age 34. [1]
May 30
* John Francis attempts to assassinate Queen Victoria. [1]
August 9
* US-Canada border defined by Webster-Ashburton Treaty. [1]
August 14
* Seminole War ends; Indians removed from Florida to Oklahoma. [1]
August 31
* US Naval Observatory authorized by an act of Congress. [1]
September 4
* Work on Köln cathedral recommences after 284-year hiatus. [1]
September 10
* Letitia Tyler President Tyler's wife, dies at age 51. [1]
October 26

Mexico. [118.61]
170
November 4
* Abraham Lincoln marries Mary Todd in Springfield, Illinois. [1]
November 17
* Fugitive slave George Latimer, captured in Boston. [1]

* The opera "Linda di Chamounix" is produced (London). [1]
November 22
* Mount Saint Helens in Washington, erupts. [1]
December 1
* Philip Spencer first US naval officer condemned for mutiny,

hanged. [1]
December 5
* MJ Auguste Vestrius French ballet dancers, dies at age 82. [1]
December 7
* New York Philharmonic's first concert. [1]
December 9
* Saint M Glinka's opera "Russlan Ludmilla" premieres in Petersburg.

[1]
December 19
* US recognizes independence of Hawaii. [1]
December 25
* Bedrich Divis Weber composer, dies at age 76. [1]
1843
January 2
* Richard Wagner's opera "Der Fliegende Holländer" premieres,

Dresden. [1] [37]
171
January 4
* Gaetano Donizetti's opera "Don Pasquale" premieres in Paris. [1]

* Petronella Moens Frisian author/poetess, dies at age 80. [1]
* Royal Academy (Technical Hague court) Delft opens. [1]
January 5
* In Marked Tree, Arkansas, a magnitude 6.3 earthquake occurs.

Strongest to occur in the region since the 1811-12 sequence. Damage
was severe at Memphis, Tennessee; the earth sank in places near New
Madrid, Missouri. [53]
January 7
* Franz Schoberlechner composer, dies at age 45. [1]
January 9
* Caroline Herschel "first lady of astronomy", dies at age 98 in

Germany. [1]
January 11
* Francis Scott Key composer (Star Spangled Banner), dies at age

63. [1]
February 2
* US and British settlers in Oregon Country choose governmental

committee. [1]
February 11
* Giuseppe Verdi's Opera "I Lombardi" premieres in Milan. [1]
March 3
* US Congress appropriates $30,000 "to test the practicability of

establishing a system of electro-magnetic telegraphs" by the US. [1]
March 4

Mexico. [118.61]
172
March 7
* First Catholic Governor in US, Edward Kavanagh of Maine, takes

office. [1]
March 14
* Boston conducts its first town meeting (Faneuil Hall). [1]
March 16
* Anton R Falck Dutch minister of Education/Colonies, dies at age 65.

[1]
March 21
* Preacher William Miller of Massachusetts predicts the world will

end today. [1]
April 14
* Joseph Franz Karl Lanner Austria, composer/violist, dies at age 42.

[1]
April 28
* William Wallace Scottish mathematician (rights of Wallace), dies.

[1]
May 4
* Great Britain annexes Natal. [1]
May 12
* Johann Georg Lickl composer, dies at age 74. [1]
May 18
* United Free Church of Scotland forms. [1]
May 22
* A massive wagon train of 1,000 settlers and 1,000 head of cattle

sets off down the Oregon Trail from Independence, Missouri. The Great
173
Emigration finally arrives in October, completing the 2,000-mile
journey in five months. [1] [129]
May 28
* Noah Webster lexicographer (Webster's Dictionary), dies at age 84.

[1]
June 1
* It snows in Buffalo and Rochester New York and Cleveland Ohio. [1]
* Sojourner Truth leaves New York to begin her career as antislavery
activist. [1]
July 2
* An alligator falls from the sky during a Charleston South Carolina

thunderstorm. [1]
July 5
* Committee of 9 appointed to establish civil government in Oregon

Country. [1]
August 8
* Natal (in South Africa) is made a British colony. [1]
August 15
* National black convention meets (Buffalo New York). [1]
August 16
* Opening of Kursaal casino in Homburg. Operators François and

Louis Blanc run roulette with one zero instead of two, and also with
improved players' odds at trente-et-quarante. [187.208]
October 4

Mexico. [118.61]
October 13
* B'nai B'rith founded in New York. [1]
174
October 14
* British arrest Irish nationalist Daniel O'Connell for conspiracy. [1]
November 13
* Mt Rainier in Washington State erupts. [1]
November 27
* The opera "The Bohemian Girl" is produced (London). [1]
December 1
* First chartered mutual life insurance company opens. [1]
December 4
* Manila paper (made from sails, canvas and rope) patented,

Massachusetts. [1]
* Robert Schumann's "Das Paradies und die Peri" premieres in
Leipzig. [1]
December 6
* Amsterdam-Utrecht railway opens. [1]
December 12
* Willem I Frederik King of Netherlands (1814-40), dies at age 71. [1]
December 13
* "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens published, 6,000 copies

sold. [1]
December 19
* Charles Dickens publishes "A Christmas Carol" in England. [1]
December 25
* First theatre matinee (Olympic Theatre, New York City, New York).
[1]
175
1844
January 1
* First edition of New Rotterdam's Daily (3x per week). [1]
January 15
* Joseph Mazzinghi composer, dies at age 78. [1]

* University of Notre Dame receives its charter in Indiana. [1]
January 25
* Recontre between Representatives Weller and Shriver, US House of

Representatives. [1]
February 3
* Hector Berlioz' "Carnaval Romain" premieres in Paris. [1]
February 4
* Willem de Clerq Dutch merchant/literary, dies at age 49. [1]
February 15
* Henry Addington Lord Sidmouth British premier (1801-04), dies at

age 86. [1]
February 27
* Dominican Republic gains independence from Haiti (National Day).

[1]
* Nicholas Biddle US lawyer/diplomat/statesman/financier, dies at
age 85. [1]
February 28
* 12-inch gun aboard USS Princeton explodes. [1]

* Abel P Upshur Secretary of State, dies in explosion on USS
Princeton. [1]
* Thommas W Gilmer Navy Secretary, dies in explosion on USS
Princeton. [1]
February 29
176
* Thaddaus Weigl composer, dies at age 67. [1]
March 9
* Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Hernani" premieres in Venice. [1]
March 21
* Leopold F J J J van Sassen Ysselt Dutch politician, dies at age 65.

[1]
* Origin of Bahá'í Era-Bahá'í calendar starts here (Bahá 1, 1). [1]
March 28
* José Zorilla's "Don Juan Tenorio" premieres in Madrid. [1]
April 4
* Charles Bulfinch first US pro architect (Massachusetts State

House), dies at age 80. [1]
April 8
* Ignaz Franz von Mosel composer, dies at age 72. [1]
April 12
* Texas became a US territory. [1]
April 22
* Henri-Montan Berton composer, dies at age 76. [1]
May 1
* Samuel Morse sends first telegraphic message. [1]

* Whig convention nominates Henry Clay as presidential candidate.
[1]
May 6
* Johan Thorbecke argue general right to vote. [1]
May 8
177
* Charles XIV Johan [Jean B Bernadotte] King of Sweden/Norway,
dies. [1]
May 21
* Guiseppi Baini composer, dies at age 68. [1]
May 23
* Declaration of the Báb (Bahá'í festival) ('Azamat 7, 1). [1]
May 24
* Samual FB Morse taps out "What hath God wrought" (first

telegraph message). [1]
May 25
* First telegraphed news dispatch is published in Baltimore Patriot.

[1]
May 27
* Samuel F.B. Morse completes first telegraph line. [1]
May 29
* William Crockford, clubman/gambler, dies, leaving a fortune worth

US$5 million. [80.298] (May 24 [1])
June 4

Mexico. [118.61]
June 6
* The Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) is founded in

London, England. [1] [5]
June 15
* Goodyear patents vulcanization of rubber. [1]
June 27
178
* Joseph and Hyrum Smith Mormon leaders killed by a mob in
Carthage Illinois. [1]
July 23
* Christian Gobrecht fourth US chief engraver (1840-44), dies in

office. [1]
July 27
* Fire destroys the US mint at Charlotte, North Carolina. [1]
July 29
* New York Yacht Club forms. [1]
July 30
* First US yacht club organized, New York Yacht Club. [1]
August 8
* Brigham Young chosen Mormon Church head following Joseph

Smith death. [1]
September 12

Mexico. [118.61]
November 6
* Spain grants Dominican Republic independence. [1]
December 3
* Roman Catholic Society Apostole of Prayer forms. [1]
December 4
* James K Polk elected 11th President of US, George M Dallas Vice

President. [1]
December 11
* First dental use of nitrous oxide, Hartford Connecticut. [1]
179
December 30
* The opera "Stradella" is produced (Hamburg) after being rewritten.

[1]
1845
January 10
* Poets Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browning begin corresponding.

[1]
January 23
* Francesco Ruggi composer, dies at age 77. [1]

* Uniform US election day for President and Vice President
authorized. [1]
January 29
* Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven" first published (New York City New
York). [1]
February 15
* William Parsons, Earl of Rosse, first uses 72" (183 cm) reflector. [1]
February 20
* Pavel Ivanovich Dulgorukov composer, dies at age 57. [1]
March 1
* President Tyler signs a resolution annexing the Republic of Texas.

[1]
March 3
* First US law overriding a Presidential veto (John Tyler's). [1]

* US Congress authorizes ocean mail contracts for foreign mail
delivery. [1]
* Florida becomes 27th state. [1]
March 4
180
* James K Polk inaugrated as 11th President of the United States. In
his inaugural address, Polk states that the US claim to "the country of
the Oregon" is "clear and unquestionable". [1] [66.19]
March 5
* US Congress appropriates $30,000 to ship camels to western US.

[1]
March 11
* Agronomist John Chapman [Johnny Appleseed] dies in Allen

County, Indiana, USA. [1] (1847 [5])
* British citizen Henry Jones invents self-raising flour. [5] (March 17
[1])
March 14
* -5.3 degrees F (-20.7 degrees C) in Groningen. [1]
March 17
* Rubber band patented by Stephen Perry of London, England. [1]

[55.53]
March 19
* George Augustus Kollmann composer, dies at age 56. [1]
March 22
* Franz Joseph Volkert composer, dies at age 67. [1]
March 26
* Joseph Francis, New York City, New York, patents a corrugated

sheet-iron lifeboat. [1]
* Patent awarded for adhesive medicated plaster, precusor of
bandaid. [1]
March 28
* Mexico drops diplomatic relations with US. [1]
April 2
181
* H L Fizeau and J Leon Foucault take first photo of Sun. [1]
April 10
* More than 1,000 buildings damaged by fire in Pittsburgh

Pennsylvania. [1]
April 12
* Henry M baron the Kock officer/politician, dies at age 65. [1]
April 18
* Nicholas T the Saussure Swiss chemist/botany, dies at age 77. [1]
April 25
* Thomas Duncan painter, dies. [1]
May 2
* August Pauly German writer (Real Encyclopedia), dies at age 48.

[1]
* Domingo Sarmiento publishes "Civilización y Barbarie". [1]
May 3
* Fire kills 1,600 in popular theater in Canton China. [1]
May 11
* Karoly Filtsch composer, dies at age 14. [1]
May 12
* August Wilhelm Schlegel German poet/interpreter/critic, dies at

age 77. [1]
May 14
* Utrecht-Arnhem Railway opens. [1]
May 15
* Samuel I Wiselius Dutch lawyer/businessman/writer, dies at age

76. [1]
182
May 17
* Rubber band patents. [1]
May 19
* Maria EJ Versfelt mistress of General Moreau/marshal Ney, dies at

age 68. [1]
May 20
* First legislative assembly convenes in Hawaii. [1]
May 28
* Fire in Québec Canada, 1,500 houses destroyed. [1]
June 1
* Homing pigeon completes 11,000 km trip (Namibia-London) in 55

days. [1]
June 12
* George Abernethy becomes first governor of Oregon Country. [1]
July 4
* Texas Congress votes for annexation to US. [1]

* Thoreau moves into his shack on Walden Pond. [1]
July 14
* First postmasters' provisional stamps issued, New York City. [1]
July 16
* New York Yacht Club holds its first regatta. [1]
August 28
* Scientific American magazine publishes its first issue. [5]
October 10
183
* The Naval School (now called US Naval Academy) opens at
Annapolis. [1]
October 13
* Texas ratifies a state constitution. [1]
October 19
* Wagner's opera Tannhäuser performed for first time. [1]
October 20
* The opera "Tannhäuser" is produced (Dresden). [1]
November 4
* First nationally observed uniform election day in US. [1]
November 15
* The opera "Maritana" is produced (London). [1]
December 2
* Johannes Simon Mayr composer, dies at age 82. [1]
December 27
* Ether first used in childbirth in US, Jefferson Georgia. [1]
December 29
* Texas admitted as the 28th state. [1]
1846
January 1
* Yucatan declares independence from México. [1]
January 10
* Etienne P de Senancour French writer (De l'Amour), dies at age 75.

[1]
184
January 21
* First edition of Charles Dickens' "Daily News". [1]
January 28
* Battle of Allwal, Brits beat Sikhs in Punjab (India). [1]
February 3
* Joseph Weigl Austria composer/conductor (Waisenhaus), dies at

age 79. [1]
February 4
* Mormons leave Nauvoo Missouri for settlement in the west. [1]
February 5
* "Oregon Spectator" is first newspaper to be published on the West

Coast. [1]
February 9
* Henry Gally Knight architect/writer, dies. [1]
February 10
* Beginning of Mormon march to west US. [1]

* British defeat Sikhs in battle of Sobraon, India. [1]
February 14
* Cornelis F van Maanen Dutch supreme court justice, dies at age

76. [1]
February 16
* Battle of Sobraon ends first Sikh War in India. [1]
February 18
* Giovanni Liverati composer, dies at age 73. [1]
February 19
185
* Texas state government formally installed in Austin. [1]
February 20
* British occupy Sikh citadel of Lahore. [1]
February 21
* First US woman telegrapher, Sarah G Bagley, Lowell

Massachusetts. [1]
February 22
* Carolus Antonius Fodor composer, dies at age 77. [1]

* Nikoli A Poveloi Russian writer/publisher, dies at age 49. [1]
February 23
* Polish revolutionaries march on Cracow, but are defeated. [1]
March 6
* Nikoli A Poveloi Russian writer/publisher, dies at age 49. [1]
March 13
* Friedrich Hebbel's "Maria Magdalena" premieres in Königsberg. [1]
March 17
* Friedrich W Bessel German astronomer (Bessel Functions), dies at

age 61. [1]
April 16
* Domenico Dragonetti composer, dies at age 83. [1]
May 1
* Ida Pfeiffer (48) begins trip around world. [1]
May 3
* Mexican army surrounds fort in Texas. [1]
May 4
186
* US state of Michigan ends death penalty. [1]
May 8
* First major battle of Mexican War fought at Palo Alto Texas. [1]
* Giacomo Cordella composer, dies at age 59. [1]
May 9
* Battle of Resaca de la Palma-US sends México back to Rio Grande.

[1]
May 13
* US declares war on México, two months after fighting begins. [1]
May 17
* Saxophone is patents by Antoine Joseph Sax. [1]
May 18
* US troops attack Rio Grande occupying Matamoros. [1]
May 21
* First steamship arrives in Hawaii. [1]
May 24
* General Zachary Taylor captures Monterrey in Mexican War. [1]
June 10
* Robert Thomson obtains an English patent on a rubber tire. [1]
June 14
* California (Bear Flag) Republic proclaimed in Sonoma. [1]
June 15
* Oregon Treaty signed, setting US-British boundary at 49 degrees N.

[1]
187
July 7
* US annexs California. [1]
July 9
* Captain Montgomery claims Yerba Buena (San Francisco) for US.

[1]
July 21
* Mormons found first English settlement in California (San Joaquin

Valley). [1]
August 5
* Oregon country divided between US and Britain at 49th parallel.

[1]
August 10
* US Congress charters the "nation's attic," the Smithsonian

Institution. [1]
August 14
* Henry David Thoreau jailed for tax resistance. [1]
August 17
* US takes Los Angeles. [1]
August 18
* General Stephen W Kearney's US forces captures Santa Fe, New

Mexico, USA. [1]
August 22
* US annexes New Mexico. [1]
August 26
* W A Bartlett appointed first US mayor of Yerba Buena (San

Francisco). [1]
188
September 10
* Elias Howe patents the sewing machine. [1]
September 19
* Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browning elopes. [1]
September 23
* Johann Gottfried Galle and Heinrich d'Arrest find Neptune. [1]
September 30
* Anesthetic ether used for first time (Dr Wm Morton extracts a

tooth). [1]
October 10
* Neptune's moon Triton discovered by William Lassell. [1]
October 15
* Dr William Thomas Green Morton first public use of ether. [1]
October 16
* Dentist William T Morton demonstrated the effectiveness of ether.

[1]
December 5
* C F Schoenbein obtains patent for cellulose nitrate explosive. [1]
December 6
* The opera "La Damnation de Faust" is produced (Paris). [1]
December 8
* Hector Berlioz's "La Damnation de Faust" premieres. [1]
December 28
* Iowa becomes 29th state. [1]
189
1847
January 1
* Michigan is first state to abolish capital punishment. [1]

* Netherlands Haarlem's Current newspaper starts publishing. [1]
January 3
* California town of Yerba Buena renamed San Francisco. [1]
January 9
* First San Francisco newspaper published (California Star). [1]
January 11
* Caroline von Wolzogen [von Lengefeld] German author, dies at age

83. [1]
January 14
* Conspiracy in New Mexico against US. [1]

* Governor Bent five others in US occupation, killed by revolt in New
Mexico. [1]
January 15
* First Swedish magazine in US, Skandinavia, published in New York

City, New York. [1]
January 22
* Georges-Julien Sieber composer, dies at age 71. [1]
January 24
* 1,500 New Mexican Indians and Mexicans defeated by US Colonel

Price. [1]
January 30
* Yerba Buena renamed San Francisco. [1]
February 4
190
* First US telegraph company established in Maryland. [1]
February 17
* William Collins landscape painter, dies. [1]
February 23
* Battle of Buena Vista, México; Zachary Taylor defeats Mexican

army. [1]
February 25
* State University of Iowa is approved. [1]
February 28
* US defeats México in battle of Sacramento. [1]
March 1
* Michigan becomes first English-speaking jurisdiction to abolish the

death penalty (except for treason against the state). [1]
March 3
* Post Office Department authorized to issue postage stamps. [1]
March 7
* US General Scott occupies Vera Cruz Mexico. [1]
March 10
* First money minted in Hawaii. [1]
March 17
* Dmitri Shostakovich's opera "Macbeth" is produced (Florence). [1]
March 18
* First Dutch public telegram. [1]
March 21
191
Mexico. [118.61]
March 25
* Pope Pius IX encyclical "On aid for Ireland". [1]
March 28
* Mariano Rodriguiz de Ledesma composer, dies at age 67. [1]
March 29
* 12,000 US troops capture Vera Cruz, Mexico. [1]

* Auguste De Polignac premier France, dies at age 66. [1]
April 2

Mexico. [118.61]
April 14
* Persia and Osmaanse sign second Treaty of Erzurum. [1]
April 23
* Erik Gustaf Geijer composer, dies at age 64. [1]
April 30
* Charles archduke of Austria/Governor-General (Austria-

Netherlands), dies. [1]
May 2
* Sabbath famine. [1]
May 4
* New York State creates a Board of Commissioners of Emigration.

[1]
May 5
* American Medical Association organized (Philadelphia). [1]
192
May 7
* American Medical Association organizes (Philadelphia). [1]
May 8
* Robert Thompson patents rubber tire. [1]
May 14
* Fanny Cacilia Mendelssohn Hensel composer, dies at age 41. [1]
May 16
* Kaspar Ett German organist/composer, dies at age 59. [1]
May 20

Mexico. [118.61]
* Mary Lamb writer, dies. [1]
May 31
* Rotterdam-Hague Railway opens. [1]
June 1
* The first Communist political party, the Communist League

convenes in London, England. [55.43]
June 14
* Bunson invents a gas burner. Lab teachers celebrate worldwide. [1]
June 22
* Doughnut created. [1]
July 1
* First US postage stamps go on sale, 5-cent Franklin and 10-cent

Washington, New York City. [1]
* Amateur astronomer M Hencke discovers second asteroid Hebe.
[1]
193
* K L Hencke discovers asteroid #6 Hebe. [1]
July 2
* Envelope bearing the first US 10-cent stamps, still exists today. [1]
July 10
* Urbain J.J. Leverrier and John Couch Adams, codiscoverers of

Neptune. [1]
July 24
* Rotary-type printing press patented by Richard March Hoe, New

York City. [1]
July 26
* Liberia declares independence from American Colonization Society.

[1]
September 10
* First theater opens in Hawaii. [1]
September 14
* US troops under General Scott enter Mexico City. [1]
September 15

Mexico. [118.61]
October 1
* Maria Mitchell discovers a non-naked-eye comet. [1]
October 20
* Little William Nelman poisons his grandpa. [1]
November 21
* Steamer "Phoenix" is lost on Lake Michigan, kills 200. [1]
194
November 25
* The opera "Marta" is produced (Vienna). [1]
November 29
* Indians kill Marcus and Narcissa Whitman, 11 settle in Walla Walla

Ore. [1]
December 3
* Frederick Douglass publishes first issue of his newspaper "North

Star". [1]
December 11
* Moritz Grave von Strachwitz German poet, dies at age 25. [1]
December 29
* William Crotch composer, dies at age 72. [1]
1848
January 1
* Britain takes Mosquito Coast from Nicaragua. [1]
January 5
* Ferdinando Orlandi composer, dies at age 73. [1]
January 8
* Austrian soldiers kill 10 students, Pavia. [1]
January 9
* Death of Caroline Lucretia Herschel in Hannover, Germany;

discovered three nebulae and eight comets, given a gold medal by the
British Astronomical Society. [37]
* First commercial bank in San Francisco established. [1]
* People's uprising in Palermo Sicily. [1]
January 24
195
* James Marshall finds gold in Sutter's Mill in Coloma California. [1]
January 28
* King of Naples grants his subjects a constitution. [1]
January 29
* Sicily accepts new Constitution (choose parliament/freedom of

press). [1]
February 2
* First shipload of Chinese arrive in San Francisco. [1]

* Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ends Mexican War; US acquires Texas,
California, New Mexico and Arizona for $15 million. [1]
February 12
* Ballet "Faust" premieres, Milan. [1]
February 14
* James K Polk became first President photographed in office

(Matthew Brady). [1]
February 15
* Sarah Roberts barred from white school in Boston. [1]
February
* The Communist Party Manifesto, written by Karl Marx, is published

in London, England, in German. This becomes the blueprint for world
revolutionary Communism. [55.43]
February 17
* Toscane gets liberal Constitution. [1]
February 20
* [Willem] Alexander prince of Netherlands/General-Major, dies at

age 29. [1]
February 23
196
* John Quincy Adams 6th US President (1825-1829), dies of a stroke
at age 80. [1]
February 24
* Frans van Campenhout Belgian singer/composer (Brabançonne),

dies at age 69. [1]
* King Louis-Philippe abdicates, second French republic declared. [1]
February 26
* Second French Republic forms. [1]

* Marx and Engels publish "The Communist Manifesto". [1]
February 29
* Neufchatel declares independence of Switzerland. [1]
March 3
* Heinrich Olivier German painter, dies. [1]
March 4
* Sardinia-Piemonte gets new Constitution. [1]
March 7
* In Hawaii, Great Mahele (division of lands) signed. [1]
March 12
* Second republic established in France. [1]
March 20
* Abraham des Amorie van der Hoeven Dutch theologist/poet, dies

at age 27. [1]
* King Louis I of Bayern abdicates to marry dancer Lola Montez. [1]
March 24
* State of siege proclaimed in Amsterdam. [1]
March 27
197
* John Parker Paynard originates medicated adhesive plaster. [1]
March 29
* John Jacob Astor chartered American Fur Company, dies at age 84.
[1]
* Niagara Falls stops flowing for 30 hours due to an ice jam. [1]
April 3
* Thomas Douglas becomes first San Francisco public teacher. [1]
April 6
* Jews of Prussia granted equality. [1]
April 8
* First battle at Gioto: Sardinia-Piemonte beats Austrians. [1]

* Battle at Xaquixaguana, Peru: Pedro de la Gasca beats Gonzalo
Pizarro. [1]
* Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti Italian composer, dies at age
50. [1]
April 10
* Godert AGP baron van Capellen Governor-General of Dutch-Indies,

dies at age 69. [1]
April 11
* Hungary becomes constitutional monarchy under king Ferdinand of

Austria. [1]
April 24
* François van Campenhout Belgian composer (Brabançonne), dies

at age 69. [1]
April 28
* Free last slaves in French colonies. [1]
April 30
198
* Friedrich Freiherr Gagern German/Dutch army commandant, dies
at age 53. [1]
May 6
* Otto Tank ends slavery in Suriname colony. [1]
May 7
* Prussians stop insurrection in Varsovia. [1]
May 17
* Premier Earl Schimmelpenninck resigns. [1]
May 18
* William A Leidesdorf black, dies at age 38 in San Francisco. [1]
May 19
* México gives Texas to US, ending the war. [1]
May 23
* Otto Lilienthal, pioneer aviator. [1]
May 24
* A V Droste-Hülshoff writer, dies at age 51. [1]
May 29
* Battle at Curtazone: Austrians beat Sardinia-Piemonte. [1]

* Wisconsin becomes 30th state. [1]
May 30
* Second battle at Gioto: Sardinia-Piemonte beats Austrians. [1]

* México ratifies treaty giving US New Mexico, California and parts of
Nevada, Utah, Arizona and Colorado in return for $15 million. [1]
* William G Young patents ice cream freezer. [1]
June 10
* First telegraph link between New York City and Chicago. [1]
199
June 22
* Barnburners (anti-slavery) party nominates Martin Van Buren for

President. [1]
June 23
* Bloody insurrection of workers in Paris. [1]
July 4
* In Washington, D.C., construction begins on a 24,500-pound block

of white marble monument to president George Washington. [129]
* Francois Rene de Chateaubriand French novelist/politician, dies. [1]
July 19
* First women's rights convention (Seneca Falls, New York). [1]
July 26
* First Woman's Rights Convention (Senecca Falls New York). [1]
August 9
* Barnburners (anti-slavery) party merges with the Free Soil Party

nominating Martin Van Buren for president. [1]
August 14
* Oregon Territory created. [1]
August 19
* The New York Herald breaks the news to the East Coast of the
United States of the gold rush in California (although it had started in
January). [5]
September 6
* National Black Convention meets (Cleveland). [1]
September 14
* Alexander Stewart opens the first US dept store. [1]
200
September 19
* Bond (US) and Lassell (England) independently discover Hyperion,

moon of Saturn. [1]
October 16
* First US homeopathic medical college opens in Pennsylvania. [1]
November 1
* First US women's medical school opens (Boston). [1]
November 9
* Post office at Clay and Pike opens. [1]
November 21
* Cincinnati Turngemeinde founded. [1]
November 23
* Female Medical Educational Society founded in Boston. [1]
December 2
* Franz Josef I becomes emperor of Austria and King of Hungary. [1]
December 5
* President Polk triggers Gold Rush of '49, confirms California gold

discovery. [1]
December 19
* Adam van Duyn governor of South Holland, dies at age 77. [1]
December 25
* Johann Erik Nordblom composer, dies at age 60. [1]

* New Haven Railroad opens. [1]
December 26
201
* First gold seekers arrive in Panamá en route to San Francisco. [1]
* William and Ellen Craft escape from slavery in Georgia. [1]
December 29
* Gas lights first installed at White House (Polk's administration). [1]
December 31
* Oliver Shaw composer, dies at age 69. [1]
1849
January 9
* Jan Kops Dutch agriculturist/vicar, dies at age 83. [1]
January 13
* Vancouver Island granted to Hudson's Bay Co. [1]
January 16
* Wilhelm M L de Wette German theologist, dies at age 69. [1]
January 23
* Mrs Elizabeth Blackwell becomes first woman physician in US. [1]

* Patent granted for an envelope-making machine. [1]
January 26
* Thomas Lovell Beddoes English poet (Death's Jest-Book), suicide at

age 45. [1]
January 31
* Corn Laws abolished in Britain. [1]
February 4
* University of Wisconsin begins in one room with 20 students. [1]
February 8
* France Preseren Slovenian poet (Sonetni Venec), dies at age 48. [1]
202
* François-Antoine Habeneck composer, dies at age 68. [1]
February 9
* Corneille Vander Planken composer, dies at age 76. [1]

* Roman Republic declared. [1]
February 13
* Christian Rummel composer, dies at age 61. [1]
February 15
* Pierre F Verhulst Belgian mathematician (logistic curve), dies at

age 44. [1]
February 18
* First regular steamboat service to San Francisco California starts:

gold rush prospectors from east coast. [1]
February 22
* Alexander Ernst Fesca composer, dies at age 28. [1]
March 3
* US Gold Coinage Act authorizes $20 Double Eagle gold coin. [1]
* Territory of Minnesota is organized. [1]
* US Department of the Interior established by Congress. [1]
March 4
* US had no President, Polk's term ends on a Sunday, Taylor couldn't

be sworn-in, Senator David Atchison (pres pro tem) term ended March
third. [1]
March 5
* Zachary Taylor sworn in as 12th President. [1]
March 9
* Carl Nikolais opera "Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor" premieres.

[1]
203
March 10
* Abraham Lincoln applies for a patent; only US President to do so.

[1]
March 12
* First gold seekers arrive in Nicaragua en route to California. [1]
March 17
* Willem II Frederik GL King of Netherlands (1840-49), dies at age 56.

[1]
March 23
* Battle of Novara (King Charles Albert versus Italian republic). [1]
March 27
* Joseph Couch patents steam-powered percussion rock drill. [1]
March 28
* Dutch princess Marianne and Prince Albert of Prussia separate. [1]

* Stephan L Endlicher Austrian priest/botany, dies at age 44. [1]
March 29
* Britain formally annexs Punjab after defeat of Sikhs in India. [1]
March 31
* Colonel John W Geary arrives as first postmaster of San Francisco.

[1]
April 3
* Juliusz Slowacki Pol poet (Father of the Plague-Patient), dies at age

39. [1]
April 6
* Giacomo Meyerbeer's opera "Le Prophète", premieres in Paris

France. [1]
204
April 10
* Safety pin patented by Walter Hunt (New York City, New York); sold
rights for $100. [1]
April 13
* Hungarian Republic proclaimed. [1]
April 16
* The opera "Il Profeta" premieres (Paris France). [1]
May 2
* David H Chassé Baron/General (fought Napoleon at Waterloo), dies

at age 84. [1]
May 10
* Katsushika Hokusai Japanese painter, dies at age 89. [1]

* Pack destroys Astor Place opera house in New York City (22 killed).
[1]
May 11
* Carl Otto Ehrenfried Nicolai composer/conductor, dies at age 38.

[1]
May 12
* Willem Alexander PFL crowned king Willem III in Amsterdam. [1]
May 15
* Philadelphia Turngemeinde founded. [1]
May 17
* Fire destroy Centrum in Saint Louis Missouri. [1]
May 22
* Abraham Lincoln patents a buoying device. [1]
May 25
205
* Andreas Michiels Dutch Military Governor of West Sumatra, dies in
battle at age 52. [1]
May 28
* Anne Bronté novelist, dies. [1]

* Princess WFLC Marianne and Albrecht of Prussia separate. [1]
May 29
* Lincoln says "You can fool some of the people all of the time, and
of people some of time, but you can't fool all of the people all of time".
[1]
* Patent for lifting vessels granted to Abraham Lincoln. [1]
May 31
* Last edition of Orange sheet "Journal de La Haye". [1]

* Léonard du Bus de Gisignies Governor-General of Netherlands-
Indies, dies at age 69. [1]
June 5
* Danish National Day-Denmark becomes a constitutional monarchy.

[1]
June 12
* Gas mask patented by Lewis Haslett, Louisville, Ky. [1]
June 15
* James Knox Polk the 11th US Pres, dies in Nashville, Tennessee,

USA. [1]
June 22
* Stephen C Massett opens courthouse using only piano in California.

[1]
July 8
* Saint Paul's Place in the Bronx named. [1]
July 28
206
* Memmon is first clipper to reach SF, 120 days out of New York. [1]
August 9
* Hungarian Republic crushed by Austria and Russia. [1]
August 22
* Austria launches the first air raid in history: Pilotless balloons

against the Italian city of Venice. [5]
September 1
* California Constitutional Convention held in Monterey. [1]
September 3
* California State Constitutional Convention convenes in Monterey.

[1]
September 13
* First US prize fight fatality (Tom McCoy). [1]
September 19
* First commercial laundry established, in Oakland, California. [1]
September 29
* First passenger train service to Peekskill New York (New Haven

Railroad). [1]
October 3
* Edgar Allan Poe is found unconscious in Baltimore, Maryland. He

may hve been a victim of "cooping", forced to vote repeatedly.
[255.43]
October 7
* Edgar Allen Poe, American poet, dies in Baltimore, Maryland, at

age 40. [1] [255.43]
October 16
207
* Avery College establishes in Allegheny, Pennsylvania. [1]
* British seize Tigre Island in Gulf of Fonseca from Honduras. [1]
* George Washington Williams Penns, first major black historian. [1]
October 19
* Elizabeth Blackwell became first woman in US to receive medical

degree. [1]
November 13
* Peter Burnett elected first governor of California. [1]
November 15
* First US poultry show opens in Boston. [1]
December 6
* Harriet Tubman escapes from slavery in Maryland. [1]
December 8
* Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Luisa Miller" premieres in Naples. [1]
December 14
* First chamber music group in US gives their first concert (Boston).

[1]
* Conradin Kreutzer composer, dies at age 69. [1]
December 18
* William Bond obtains first photograph of Moon through a

telescope. [1]
December 28
* M Jolly-Bellin discovers dry-cleaning, he accidentally upset lamp

containing turpentine and oil on his clothing and sees cleaning effect.
[1]
1850
January 1
208
* Raphael G Kiesewetter Austria musicologist, dies at age 76. [1]
January 5
* California Exchange opens. [1]
January 14
* Anthony van Hoboken Rotterdam merchant/ship owner, dies at age

93. [1]
January 18
* British blockade Piræus, Greece to enforce mercantile claims. [1]
January 20
* Investigator, first ship to effect northwest passage, leaves England.

[1]
January 22
* Alta California becomes a daily paper, first such in California. [1]

* Vincenzo Pallotti Italian saint, dies at age 54. [1]
January 26
* First German-language daily newspaper in US published, New York

City, New York. [1]
* Francis Jeffrey Baron Jeffrey, judge/literary critic, dies. [1]
January 27
* J Gottfried Schadow German sculptor/cartoonist/writer, dies at age

85. [1]
* Philipp Roth composer, dies at age 70. [1]
January 29
* Henry Clay introduces a comprise bill on slavery to US Senate. [1]
February 5
* Adding machine employing depressible keys patented, New Paltz

New York. [1]
209
February 12
* Original Washington's Farewell Address manuscript sells for

$2,300. [1]
February 18
* California Legislature creates 9 Bay Area counties. [1]
March 7
* Daniel Webster endorses Compromise of 1850. [1]
March 11
* Women's Medical College of Pennsylvania (first female medical

school). [1]
March 12
* First US $20 gold piece issued. [1]
March 16
* Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Scarlet Letter" published. [1]
March 18
* Henry Wells and William Fargo form American Express in Buffalo,

New York. [1] [5]
March 19
* Adalbert Gyrowetz composer, dies at age 87. [1]
March 27
* Wilhelm Bear German banker/astronomer (Moon Map), dies at age

53. [1]
March 29
* Ireland's SS Royal Adelaide sinks in storm; 200 die. [1]
March 31
210
* John Calhoun dies at age 68. [1]
* US population hits 23,191,876 (Black population: 3,638,808
(15.7%)). [1]
April 1
* San Francisco County government established. [1]
April 3
* Vaclav Jan Krtitel Tomasek organist/pianist/composer, dies at age

75. [1]
April 4
* City of Los Angeles incorporated. [1]
April 7
* William Lisle Bowles English poet (14 Sonnets), dies at age 87. [1]
April 9
* William Prout physician/chemist, dies. [1]
April 15
* City of San Francisco incorporated. [1]
April 16
* Marie [Gresholtz] Tussaud maker of wax figures, dies. [1]
April 23
* William Wordsworth poet, dies at age 80. [1]
April 24
* Louis Alexandre Piccinni composer, dies at age 70. [1]
April 25
* Paul Julius Reuter, use 40 pigeons to carry stock market prices. [1]
211
May 1
* John Geary becomes first San Francisco mayor. [1]
May 9
* Louis-Joseph Gay-Lussac chemist/physicist, dies. [1]
May 11
* Work starts on first brick building in San Francisco. [1]
May 21
* In Milan, Italy, Giuseppe Mercalli is born; volcanologist and

seismologist, Inventor of the Mercalli Intensity Scale (1902). [53]
May 24
* Jane Porter novelist (Scottish Chiefs), dies at age 74. [1]
May 27
* Mormon Temple in Nauvoo Illinois destroyed by tornado. [1]
June 4
* Empire Engine Company No 1 organized. [1]
June 14
* Fire destroys part of San Francisco. [1]
June 17
* Paddle-wheeler "G P Griffith" burns off Mentor Ohio (206 die). [1]
July 1
* At least 626 ships lie at anchor around San Francisco Bay. [1]
July 9
* Báb [Bahá'í prophet] executed in Tabriz, Iran; Rahmat 16, 7. [1]

* Zachary Taylor 12th president of US, dies in White House served 16
mo. [1]
212
July 14
* First public demonstration of ice made by refrigeration. [1]
July 17
* Harvard Observatory takes first photograph of a star (Vega). [1]
August 17
* José Francisco de San Martin South American revolutionary hero,

dies. [1]
August 28
* The opera "Lohengrin" is produced (Weimar). [1]
August 30
* Honolulu, Hawaii becomes a city. [1]
August 31
* California pioneers organized at Montgomery and Clay Streets. [1]
September 9
* California becomes 31st state. [1]

* Territories of New Mexico and Utah created. [1]
September 11
* "Swedish Nightingale" Jenny Lind gives first US concert. [1]
September 20
* Slave trade abolished in DC, but slavery allowed to continue. [1]
September 28
* Flogging in US Navy and on merchant vessels abolished. [1]
October 17
* Knickerbocker Engine Company Number 5 organized. [1]
213
November 6
* First Hawaiian fire engine. [1]

* Yerba Buena and Angel Islands (San Francisco Bay) reserved for
military use. [1]
December 20
* Hawaiian post office established. [1]
December 27
* Hawaiian Fire Department established. [1]
December 28
* Rangoon Burma destroyed by fire. [1]
December 30
* In Liverpool, England, John Milne born; organized a seismic survey

of Japan, recognized the importance of improving the seismogram.
hypothesized that it should be possible to detect seismic waves from a
large earthquake occurring anywhere on Earth, designed several types
of seismometers. [53]
1851
January 1
* City of Glasgow steamer inaugurates Philadelphia-Liverpool line.

[1]
January 12
* Johan Herman Koekkoek painter, dies at age 72. [1]
January 15
* General Arista replaces Mexican President Herrera. [1]
January 21
* Gustav Albert Lortzing composer, dies at age 49. [1]
214
January 24
* Gaspare Luigi Pacifico Spontini Italian composer, dies at age 76. [1]
January 25
* Sojourner Truth addresses first Black Women's Rights Convention

(Akron). [1]
January 27
* John James Audubon conservationist (Audubon Society), dies at

age 65. [1]
* Karl Moser composer, dies at age 77. [1]
January 28
* Northwestern University (Chicago) chartered. [1]
January 31
* Gail Borden announces invention of evaporated milk. [1]

* San Francisco Orphan's Asylum, first in California founded. [1]
February 1
* Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley novelist (Frankenstein), dies at age 53.

[1]
February 6
* Robert Schumann's third Symphony "Rhenisch" premieres in

Düsseldorf. [1]
February 15
* Black abolitionists invade Boston courtroom rescuing a fugitive

slave. [1]
February 16
* Anne Nagell van Ampsen Dutch politician, dies at age 95. [1]
February 20
* Josef Alois Ladurner composer, dies at age 81. [1]
215
February 25
* Ferdinand Simon Gassner composer, dies at age 53. [1]
March 3
* US Congress authorizes smallest US silver coin (3-cent piece). [1]
March 4
* Michael Henkel composer, dies at age 70. [1]
March 6
* Alexander Aliabiev composer, dies at age 63. [1]

* Dion Boucicault's "Love in a Maze" premieres in London. [1]
March 7
* Poll tax levied on Russo-Polish Jews entering Austrian Galicia ends.

[1]
March 11
* Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Rigoletto" premieres in Venice. [1]
March 21
* Yosemite Valley discovered in California. [1]
April 8
* John Parry composer, dies at age 75. [1]
April 9
* Antoine-Charles Glachant composer, dies at age 80. [1]
April 15
* Earl G Andrássy sentenced to death in Hungary. [1]
April 23
* Canada issues its first postage stamps. [1]
216
May 1
* Great Exhibition opens in London's Hyde Park, at Crystal Palace. [1]
May 3
* Most of San Francisco destroyed by fire; 30 die. [1]
May 4
* First major San Francisco fire. [1]
May 6
* Dr John Gorrie patents a "refrigeration machine". [1]

* Linus Yale patents Yale-lock. [1]
* New slave regulations go into effect in Suriname. [1]
* San Francisco Chamber of Commerce starts. [1]
May 15
* Rama IV, [Phra Chomklao Chaoyuhua], king of Thai (1851-68),

crowned. [1]
May 17
* Jean E "Adrian" van Bevervoorde journalist (Treason), dies at age

31. [1]
May 18
* Amsterdam-Nieuwediep telegraph connection linked. [1]
May 23
* Lucas Pieter Roodbaard architect, dies at age 69. [1]
May 24
* Stanko Vraz [Jakob Frass] Slavic poet (Grammatica), dies at age 40.
[1]
May 28
* Sojourner Truth attends Women's Rights Convention. [1]
217
June 2
* First US alcohol prohibition law enacted (Maine). [1]
June 9
* San Francisco Committee of Vigilance forms (first time). [1]
June 15
* Jacob Fussell, Baltimore dairyman, sets up first ice-cream factory.

[1]
June 22
* Fire destroys part of San Francisco. [1]
July 28
* Total solar eclipse captured on a daguerreotype photograph. [1]
July 29
* A De Gasparis discovers asteroid #15 Eunomia. [1]
August 12
* Isaac Singer is granted a patent for his sewing machine. [1] [5]
August 22
* Gold fields discovered in Australia. [1]
September 18
* New York Times starts publishing, at 2 cents a copy. [1]
October 1
* First Hawaiian stamps issued. [1]
October 2
* The pasilalinic-sympathetic compass is demonstrated, but proves

to be a fake. [5]
218
October 24
* William Lassell discovers Ariel and Umbriel, satellites of Uranus. [1]
November 14
* Harper & Brothers in New York publishes the book Moby-Dick,

written by Herman Melville. [1] [5]
November 22
* The opera "La Perle Du Brésil" is produced (Paris). [1]
December 4
* President Louis Napolean Boaparte forces crush a coup d'etat in

France. [1]
December 9
* First Young Men's Christian Association in North America

(Montréal). [1]
December 19
* J M William Turner British painter (Rain, Steam and Speed), dies at

age 76. [1]
December 24
* Fire devastates Library of Congress in Washington, destroys 35,000

volumes. [1]
December 29
* First Young Men's Christian Association chapter opened (Boston).

[1]
1852
January 1
* First US public bath opens in New York City, New York. [1]
* Netherlands begins issuing postage stamps. [1]
219
January 3
* First Chinese arrive in Hawaii. [1]
January 17
* British recognize independence of Transvaal (in South Africa). [1]
January 22
* George Rodwell composer, dies at age 51. [1]
February 2
* First British public men's toilet opens (Fleet Steet London). [1]
* Alexandre Dumas Jr's "Le Dame aux Camélias" premieres in Paris.
[1]
* François Liberman French founder (Congr of H Heart), dies at age
49. [1]
February 11
* First British public female toilet opens (Bedford Street London). [1]
February 15
* Great Ormond Steet Hospital for Sick Children, London, admits first
patient. [1]
February 17
* Micha Joseph Levenson Hebrew poet, dies. [1]
February 21
* Nikolai Gogol Russian playwright (Dead Souls), dies. [1]
February 23
* "H M S Birkenhead" sinks off South Africa killing 420 troops. [1]
February 25
* Thomas Moore writer (Odes of Anacreon), dies. [1]
February 26
220
* British frigate Birkenhead sinks off South Africa-458 die. [1]
February 27
* Joseph Drechsler composer, dies at age 69. [1]
February 29
* John Landseer printer/engraver (Royal Academy), dies. [1]
March 4
* Nikolai Gogol writer, dies at age 43. [1]
March 7
* Dutch telegraph traffic regulated by law. [1]
March 12
* Juan Bros y Bertomel composer, dies at age 75. [1]
March 13
* Uncle Sam cartoon figure made its debut in the New York Lantern
weekly. [1]
March 20
* Harriet Beecher Stowe's "Uncle Tom's Cabin" published (Boston).

[1]
March 25
* Alexis Garaude composer, dies at age 73. [1]

* Friedrich Hebbel's "Agnes Bernauer" premieres in Munich. [1]
March 29
* Ohio makes it illegal for children under 18 and women to work

more than 10 hours a day. [1]
April 2
* Theodor Althaus writer, dies. [1]
221
April 9
* John Howard Payne actor/playwright (Fair Warning), dies. [1]
April 19
* California Historical Society forms. [1]

* Vasili A Zjukovski Russian folk poet/translator (Homerus), dies at
age 69. [1]
April 29
* First edition of Peter Roget's Thesaurus published. [1]
April 30
* Anton Rubinsteins opera "Dmitri Donskoi", premieres in Saint

Petersburg. [1]
May 6
* Charles-Louis-Joseph Hanssens composer, dies at age 75. [1]
May 12
* John Richardson Canadian writer (War of 1812), dies. [1]
May 18
* Massachusetts rules all school-age children must attend school. [1]
June 24
* J R Hind discovers asteroid #18 Melpomene. [1]
June 29
* Henry Clay the great compromiser, dies at age 75. [1]
July 3
* US Congress authorizes US's second mint (San Francisco,

California). [1]
July 23
222
* First interment in US National Cemetary at Presidio. [1]
August 3
* First intercollegiate rowing race, Harvard beats Yale by four

lengths. [1]
August 20
* Steamer "Atlantic" collided with fishing boat, sinks with 250

aboard. [1]
September 3
* Anti Jewish riots break out in Stockholm. [1]
September 11
* Olympia Columbian is first newspaper published north of Columbia

R. [1]
September 14
* Arthur Wellesley General/Duke of Wellington, dies at age 83. [1]
September 24
* A new invention, the dirigible, is demonstrated. [1]
November 23
* Just past midnight, a sharp jolt causes Lake Merced to drop 30 feet
(9m). [1]
December 1
* Telegraph company opens throughout Netherlands. [1]
December 2
* Second French empire established; Louis Napoleon becomes

emperor. [1]
December 8
223
* Gustav Freytag's "Die Journalisten" premieres in Breslau. [1]
December 16
* Andries H Potgieter South African/Transvaal explorer, dies at age

59. [1]
* Henri-Jean Rigel composer, dies at age 80. [1]
December 17
* First Hawaiian cavalry organized. [1]
December 23
* First Chinese theater in US, Celestial John, opens in San Francisco.

[1]
December 29
* Emma Snodgrass arrested in Boston for wearing pants. [1]
December 31
* Future President and Mrs Rutherford B Hayes marry. [1]
1853
January 1
* First practical fire engine (horse-drawn) in US enters service. [1]
January 3
* Theodor Uhlig composer, dies at age 30. [1]
January 8
* First US bronze equestrian statue (of Andrew Jackson) unveiled,

Washington. [1]
January 9
* Juan N Gallego Spanish poet/interpreter (El dos de Mayo), dies at

age 75. [1]
January 10
224
* Charles Reade's "Gold" premieres in London. [1]
January 19
* Napoleon III marries Eugénie de Montijo. [1]

* Verdi's opera "Il Trovatore" premieres, in Rome. [1]
January 21
* Envelope-folding machine patented by Russell Hawes, Worcester

Massachusetts. [1]
January 30
* Emperor Napoleon III marries Eugénie Maria de Montijo y de

Guzman. [1]
February 3
* August Kopisch German writer (Mäuseturm), dies at age 53. [1]
February 21
* US authorizes minting of $3 gold pieces. [1]
March 2
* Territory of Washington organized after separating from Oregon

Territory. [1]
March 3
* Transcontinental railroad survey is authorized byUS Congress. [1]

* US Assay Office in New York City, New York authorized. [1]
March 4
* Pope Pius IX recovers Catholic hierarchy in Netherlands. [1]

* William Rufus de Vane King (Democrat) sworn in as 13th US Vice
President. [1]
March 5
* Georg A Kestner German art collector/diplomat, dies at age 75. [1]
225
March 6
* Giuseppe Verdi's Opera "La Traviata" premieres in Venice. [1]
March 17
* Christian Doppler physicist, dies. [1]
April 1
* Cincinnati becomes first US city to pay firefighters a regular salary.

[1]
April 8
* Jan W Pieneman historical painter (Battle at Waterloo), dies at age

73. [1]
April 11
* Louis Emmanuel Eadin composer, dies. [1]
April 14
* Harriet Tubman began her Underground Railroad, helping slaves

escape. [1]
April 15
* Johann Leopold Fuchs composer, dies at age 67. [1]

* Protestant church questions king Willem III Roman Catholic
bishops. [1]
April 17
* Thorbecke government resigns. [1]

* US Marine Hospital at Presidio (San Francisco) established. [1]
April 18
* First train in Asia (Bombay to Tanna, 36 km). [1]

* William King US Vice President, dies a month after his inauguration.
[1]
April 19
226
* Netherlands Van Hall government forms. [1]
April 20

Mexico. [118.61]
* Harriet Tubman starts Underground Railroad. [1]
April 23
* Auguste Laurent chemist, dies. [1]
April 25
* William Beaumont physiologist, dies. [1]
April 26
* Dutch King William III disbands second Chamber. [1]
April 28
* Ludwig Tieck writer, dies at age 79. [1]
April 29
* Comet C/1853 G1 (Schweizer) approaches within 0.0839

astronomical units (AUs) of Earth. [1]
May 1
* Argentina adopts its constitution. [1]
May 2
* Franconi's Hippodrome opens (New York City, New York). [1]
May 6
* First major US rail disaster kills 46 (Norwalk Connecticut). [1]
May 8
* Joannes P Roothaan first Dutch Lieutenant Colonel-General of

Jesuits, dies at age 67. [1]
227
May 9
* Johann Philipp Samuel Schmidt composer, dies at age 73. [1]
May 14
* Gail Borden patents his process for condensed milk. [1]
May 17
* Thorbeckes liberals win second-Parliamentary election. [1]
May 19
* Dutch prince Henry marries princess Amalia of Saxony-Weimar. [1]
May 23
* Buenos Aires gains independence from Argentina (reunited 1859).

[1]
May 31
* Elisha Kane's Arctic expedition leaves New York aboard the

Advance. [1]
July 6
* William Wells Brown publishes "Clotel," first novel by black

American. [1]
July 9
* Adm Perry and US Navy visit Japan. [1]
July 14
* Commodore Perry requests trade relations with Japan. [1]

* President Franklin Pierce opens first industrial exposition (New
York). [1]
July 18
* First train to cross the US-Canada boundary, Portland, Maine.-

Montréal, PQ. [1]
228
* Completion of Grand Trunk Line, Americas first international
railroad. [1]
August 24
* First potato chips prepared by Chef George Crum (Saratoga

Springs, New York, USA). [1] [5]
September 6
* Women's Rights Convention met (New York City). [1]
September 11
* First electric telegraph in use, Merchant's Exchange to Pt Lobos. [1]
September 15
* First US woman ordained a minister, Antoinette Blackwell. [1]
September 24
* First round-the-world trip by yacht (Cornelius Vanderbilt). [1]
September 29
* Emigrant ship "Annie Jane" sinks off Scotland, drowning 348. [1]
October 2
* Austrian law forbids Jews from owning land. [1]
October 19
* First flour mill in Hawaii begins operations. [1]
November 9
* Origin of Carrington rotation numbers for rotation of the Sun. [1]
November 17
* Street signs authorized at San Francisco intersections. [1]
November 28
229
* Olympia established as capital of Washington Territory. [1]
December 5
* Johann Peter Heuschkel composer, dies at age 80. [1]
December 30
* Gadsden Purchase - 45,000 square miles (120,000 km) by Gila

River from México for $10 million; Area is now southern Arizona and
New Mexico. [1]
1854
January 1
* Lincoln University, a black college, chartered (Oxford PA). [1]
January 5
* Steamship San Francisco wrecked-300 die. [1]
January 9
* Astor Library opens in New York City, New York. [1]

* Filippo Traetta [Philip Trajetta], Italian composer, dies at age 77. [1]
January 13
* Anthony Foss patents the accordion. [1]
January 18
* Filibuster William Walker proclaims Republic of Sonora in NW

México. [1]
* Juda Turo American philanthropist, dies. [1]
January 25
* Aleksandr Ostrovsky's "Bednost ne Porok" premieres in Moscow. [1]
January 30
* First election in Washington Territory; 1,682 votes cast. [1]
January 31
230
* Dutch KNMI established (Royal Meteorological Institute). [1]
February 2
* Pope Pius IX encyclical "On the persecution of Armenians". [1]
February 4
* Alvan Bovay proposes the name "Republican Party", Ripon

Wisconsin. [1]
* Carl Ludwig Cornelius Westenholz composer, dies at age 66. [1]
February 6
* Composer Robert Schumann is saved from suicide attempt into the

Rhine. [1]
February 11
* Major streets lit by coal gas for first time. [1]
February 16
* Franz Liszts symphony "Orpheus" premieres. [1]
February 17
* British recognize independence of Orange Free State (South

Africa). [1]
* Hugues F R de Lamennais French priest/writer, dies at age 71. [1]
February 22
* First meeting of the Republican Party, Michigan. [1]
February 23
* Great Britain and Orange Free state sign Convention of

Bloemfontein. [1]
February 28
* Republican Party formally organized at Ripon Wisconsin. [1]
March 1
231
* SS City of Glasgow leaves Liverpool harbor and is never seen
again. [1]
March 6
* Caspar GC Reinwardt German/Dutch biologist, dies at age 80. [1]
March 7
* Charles Miller patents first US sewing machine to stitch

buttonholes. [1]
March 8
* US Commodore Matthew C Perry's second trip to Japan. [1]
March 17
* First park land purchased by a US city, Worcester Massachusetts.

[1]
March 28
* During the Crimean War, Britain and France declare war on Russia.
[1]
March 31
* Treaty of Kanagawa: Commodore Perry forces Japan to opens ports

to foreign trade. [1]
April 6
* William Strickland US architect, dies. [1]
April 11
* Karl Adolph von Basedow German Democratic Republic (Ziekte van

Basedow), dies at age 55. [1]
April 16
* Franz Liszt's "Mazeppa", premieres. [1]

* San Salvador destroyed by earthquake. [1]
* Steamer "Long Beach" sinks off Long Beach New York, 311 die. [1]
232
April 17
* Gottlob Wiedebein composer, dies at age 74. [1]
April 18
* Joseph Antoni Frantiszek Elsner composer, dies at age 84. [1]
April 24
* Austria's Franz Joseph I marries Elisabeth A E "Sissi". [1]
May 1
* Amsterdam begins transferring drinking water out of the dunes. [1]
May 3
* William Beale composer, dies at age 70. [1]
May 5
* English pirate Plumridge robs along pro-English Finnish coast. [1]
May 24
* Anthony Burns, slave, arrested by US Deputy marshals in Boston.

[1]
May 27
* Marine Telegraph from Fort Point to San Francisco completed. [1]
May 30
* Kansas-Nebraska Act repealed Missouri Compromise opens north

slavery. [1]
May 31
* Vatroslav Lisinski composer, dies at age 34. [1]
June 10
* Georg F.B. Reiman proposes that space is curved. [1]
233
June 29
* Gadsden Purchase (parts of Arizona, NM) from Mexico for $10

million. [1]
July 6
* First Republican state convention, Ripon, Wisc. [1]
July 13
* US forces shell and burn San Juan del Norte, Nicaragua. [1]
July 22
* J R Hind discovers asteroid #30 Urania. [1]
August 6
* US Congress passes Confiscation Act. [1]
August 9
* Henry David Thoreau publishes "Walden". [1]
August 16
* Duncan Phyfe furniture maker, dies. [1]
August 24
* National emigration convention meets in Cleveland. [1]
August 29
* Self-governing windmill patented (Daniel Halladay). [1]
August 30
* John Fremont issues proclamation freeing slaves of Missouri rebels.

[1]
September 20
* British and French defeat Russians at Alma, in the Crimea. [1]
234
September 27
* Steamship Arctic sank with 300 people aboard. [1]
October 10
* US Assay Office in New York City, New York opens. [1]
October 25
* The Light Brigade charges (Battle of Balaklava) (Crimean War). [1]
November 2
* Cobblestone paving of Washington Steet between Dupont and

Kearny starts. [1]
November 4
* Lighthouse established on Alcatraz Island. [1]
November 13
* "New Era" sinks off New Jersey coast with loss of 300. [1]
December 5
* Aaron Allen of Boston patents folding theater chair. [1]
December 8
* Pope Pius IX proclaims Immaculate Conception, makes Mary, free

of Original Sin. [1]
December 9
* Lord Tennyson's poem, "Charge of the Light Brigade" published. [1]
December 15
* First street-cleaning machine in US first used in Philadelphia. [1]
December 19
235
* Allen Wilson of Connecticut patents sewing machine to sew curving
seams. [1]
December 26
* Wood-pulp paper first exhibited, Buffalo. [1]
December 30
* Pennsylvania Rock Oil Company, first in US, incorporated in New

1855
January 9
* Clipper Guiding Star disappears in Atlantic, 480 dies. [1]
January 10
* Mary Russell Mitford English playwright/poet (Julian), dies at age

67. [1]
January 23
* In Wellington, New Zealand, a magnitude 8.0 - 8.2 earthquake

occurs. Four people died, one in Wellington and three in Wairarapa.
[53]
January 25
* Dorothy Wordsworth writer, dies at age 83. [1]
January 26
* Gérard de Nerval [Labrunie], French poet/writer, dies at age 46. [1]
January 31
* Western railroads blocked by snow. [1]
February 3
* Wisconsin Supreme Court declares US Fugitive Slave Law

unconstitutional. [1]
236
February 4
* Soldiers shoot Jewish families in Coro, Venezuela. [1]
February 5
* British government of Palmerston forms. [1]
February 20
* Joseph Hume social reformer, dies. [1]
February 23
* Carl Friedrich Gauss mathematician, dies. [1]
February 24
* US Court of Claims established for cases against the government.

[1]
March 2
* Aleksandr Romanov becomes tsar of Russia. [1]

* Nicholas I Pavlovitch tsar of Russia (1825-55), dies at age 58. [1]
March 3
* US Congress approves $30,000 to test camels for military use. [1]

* Registration of letters authorized byUS Congress. [1]
March 6
* Gustave Flaubert writes goodbye to Louise Colet. [1]
March 8
* First train crosses first US railway suspension bridge, Niagara Falls.

[1]
March 15
* Louisiana establishes first health board to regulate quarantine. [1]
March 17
237
* Ramon Carnicer y Batlle composer, dies at age 65. [1]
March 24
* Manhattan Kansas founded as New Boston KS. [1]
March 27
* Abraham Gesner patents kerosene. [1]
March 31
* Charlotte Brontë English author (Jane Eyre), dies at age 38. [1]
April 18
* Jean-Baptiste Isabey painter, dies. [1]
April 24
* Walenty Karol Kratzer composer, dies at age 75. [1]
April 26
* Composer Gioacchino Rossini leaves Italy. [1]
April 28
* First veterinary college in US incorporated in Boston. [1]
April 30
* Henry Rowley Bishop British composer/conductor, dies at age 68.

[1]
May 3
* Antwerp-Rotterdam railway opens. [1]
May 4
* Camille Pleyel Austria piano builder/composer, dies at age 66. [1]
May 5
238
* New York City regains Castle Clinton, to be used for immigration.
[1]
May 15
* Jan Mazereeuw Frisian farmer/sect leader, dies at age 75. [1]
May 27
* Nikolaj A Bestoezjev Russian writer/painter (Account of Holland),

dies. [1]
June 1
* US adventurer Wm Walker conquers Nicaragua, reestablishes

slavery. [1]
June 5
* Anti-foreign anti-Roman Catholic Know-Nothing Party's first

convention. [1]
June 13
* The opera "Les Vêpres Sicilenne" is produced (Paris). [1]
August 9
* Battle of Acapulco during Mexican Liberal uprising. [1]

* Antonio López de Santa Anna resigns (11th and last time) as
President of Mexico. [118.61]
September 3
* Grattan Massacre: American army second lieutenant John L.

Grattan and about 30 men are killed while negotiating with Sioux, after
killing Brule Lakota chief Conquering Bear. [246.47]
October 9
* Joshua Stoddard of Worcester, Mass patents first calliope. [1]
October 17
* Bessemer steelmaking process patented. [1]
239
1856
January 5
* Pierre J David [David d'Angers], French sculptor, dies at age 67. [1]
January 8
* Dr John A Veatch discovers borax, Tuscan Springs California. [1]
January 11
* Nikolai I Nadezjdin Russian archaeologist, dies. [1]
January 12
* L'udovít Stúr Slovaaks author/linguistic (Das Slawentum), dies at

age 40. [1]
January 17
* Thomas Attwood Walmisley composer, dies at age 41. [1]
January 23
* Steamer Pacific lost. [1]
January 25
* Battle of Seattle; skirmish between settlers and Indians. [1]
January 29
* Victoria Cross established to acknowledge bravery. [1]
February 17
* Heinrich Heine German poet, dies at age 58 in Paris. [1]

* John Braham singer/composer, dies at age 81. [1]
February 18
* American (Know-Nothing) Party abolishes secrecy. [1]
February 19
240
* Tin-type camera patented by Hamilton Smith, Gambier Ohio. [1]
February 20
* John Rutledge, Liverpool-New York steamer, hits iceberg; many die.

[1]
February 22
* First national meeting of the Republican Party (Pittsburgh). [1]
February 29
* Hostilities in Russo-Turkish War cease. [1]
March 5
* Covent Garden Opera House destroyed in a fire. [1]

* Georgia becomes first state to regulate railroads. [1]
March 19
* The Electoral Act of the Colony of Victoria (Australia) enacts the

first law requiring parliamentary election by secret ballot vote. [55.22]
March 25
* A E Burnside patents Burnside carbine. [1]
March 28
* Pyotr Ivanovich Turchaninov composer, dies at age 76. [1]
March 30
* Russia signs Peace of Paris, ending the Crimean War. [1]
April 3
* Gunpowder in church explodes killing 4,000 in Rhodos. [1]
April 11
* Battle of Rivas; Costa Rica beats Wm Walker's invading

Nicaraguans. [1]
241
April 18
* Russian Republic Chancellor Earl von Nesselrode resigns. [1]
April 21
* First railroad bridge across Mississippi River, Rock Island IL-

Davenport IA. [1]
April 26
* Prince Florestan I of Monaco grants Napoléon Langlois and Albert

Aubert a concession to build and run a bathing establishment and
casino. [187.299]
April 29
* End of Crimean War. [1]
May 3
* Adolfo Fumagalli composer, dies at age 27. [1]

* Adolphe Charles Adam French composer/critic (Giselle), dies at age
52. [1]
May 6
* William Hamilton metaphysicist, dies. [1]
May 7
* Argentine and Brazilian sign a navigation pact. [1]
May 15
* Second San Francisco Vigilance Committee organized. [1]
May 19
* Senator Charles Sumner, Massachusetts, spoke out against slavery.

[1]
May 21
* Lawrence Kansas captured, sacked by pro-slavery forces. [1]
242
May 22
* Violence in Senate, South Carolina Representative Brooks used a

cane on Massachusetts Senator Sumner. [1]
May 24
* Pottawatomie Massacre took place in Kansas. [1]
May 27
* Doctor William Palmer found guilty of poisoning. [1]
June 17
* Republican Party opens its first national convention in Philadelphia.

[1]
July 15
* Natal established as a British colony separate from Cape Colony.

[1]
July 17
* Sunday school excursion train collides killing 46 children

(Philadelphia). [1]
August 10
* Hurricane washes away 2-300 revelers at Last Island, Louisiana. [1]
August 27
* The first parliamentary election by secret ballot is held for the

Victoria Leguislature. [55.22]
September 14
* Battle of San Jacinto, Nicaragua defeats invaders. [1]
October 19
* James Kelly and Jack Smith fight bareknuckle for 6h15m in

Melbourne. [1]
243
October 24
* Constitution of South Australia adopted. [1]
1857
January 2
* Birth of Frederick Opper cartoonist (Willie and His Papa, Maud the
Mule, Alphonse and Gaston). [1]
January 6
* Patent for reducing zinc ore granted to Samuel Wetherill,

Pennsylvania. [1]
January 8
* Dion Boucicauly's "Poor of NY" premieres in New York City, New

York. [1]
January 9
* In Fort Tejon, California, a magnitude 7.9 earthquake occurs on the

San Andreas fault, which ruptured a distance of about 300 kilometres.
[1] [53]
January 20
* Edward Francis Fitzwilliam composer, dies at age 32. [1]
January 27
* Dorothea von Benckendorff Baltic monarch of Lieven, dies at age

72. [1]
February 7
* Félix PBOG Earl of Merode, Belgian minister of War, dies at age 65.
[1]
February 14
* Johannes B van Bree Dutch violinist/composer/conductor, dies at

age 56. [1]
244
February 15
* Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka Russian composer, dies at age 53. [1]
February 16
* Auguste-Gaspard-Louis Desnoyers French engraver, dies at age 77.

[1]
* Elisha Kent Kane Arctic explorer (Kane Basin), dies at age 37. [1]
* Gallaudet College (National Deaf Mute college) forms (Washington
DC). [1]
February 18
* Insurrection of Chinese in Sarawak, Borneo. [1]
February 21
* US Congress outlaws foreign currency as legal tender in US. [1]

* US issues flying eagle cents. [1]
February 24
* First perforated US postage stamps delivered to the government.

[1]
* Los Angeles Vineyard Society organized. [1]
February 26
* Ole Andreas Lindeman composer, dies at age 88. [1]
March 6
* Dred Scott Decision: Supreme Court rules slaves cannot be

citizens. [1]
March 11
* Manuel José Quintana Spanish author/poet (A la paz), dies at age

84. [1]
March 12
* Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Simon Boccanegra" premieres in Venice.

[1]
245
March 17
* Adolph Trube composer, dies at age 42. [1]
March 21
* Abraham J van der Aa lexicographer (Biograph dictionary), dies at

age 64. [1]
* Earthquake hits Tokyo; about 107,000 die. [1]
March 23
* Elisha Otis' first elevator installed (488 Broadway, New York City).
[1]
March 25
* Frederick Laggenheim takes first photo of a solar eclipse. [1]
April 12
* Gustave Flaubert's "Madame Bovary" published. [1]
April 21
* Alexander Douglas patents the bustle. [1]
April 27
* Establishment of Jewish congregations in Lower Austria prohibited.

[1]
April 29
* US Army, Pacific Division headquarters is permanently established

at Presidio (San Francisco). [1]
April 30
* San Jose State University forms. [1]
May 1
* A coalition of Central American states ousts William Walker,

president of Nicaragua. [1] [246.66]
246
May 2
* LC Alfred the Musset French poet (Lesson caprices Marianne), dies.

[1]
May 10
* Indian Mutiny begins with revolt of Sepoys of Meerutkazerne, Delhi.

[1]
May 11
* E François Vidocq French criminalogist/police officer, dies at age

81. [1]
* Delhi falls in Indian Mutiny. [241.9]
May 19
* William Francis Channing and Moses G Farmer patents electric fire

alarm. [1]
June 2
* James Gibbs, Virginia., patents chain-stitch single-thread sewing

machine. [1]
June 15
* San Francisco Water Works organized. [1]
June 27
* H Goldschmidt discovers asteroid #45 Eugenia. [1]
September 12
* 423 die when "Central America" sinks off Cape Romain South
Carolina. [1]
September 16
* Typesetting machine patent. [1]
September 30
247
* US occupies Sand, Baker, Howland and Jarvis Is. south of Hawaii.
[1]
October 6
* American Chess Association organized; first major US chess

tournament (New York City). [1]
October 10
* American Chess Association formed (New York City). [1]
December 3
* Christian D Rauch German sculptor, dies at age 80. [1]
December 8
* First production of Dion Boucicaults "Poor of New York". [1]
December 11
* François Henri Joseph Castil-Blaze composer, dies at age 73. [1]
December 16
* Birth of Edward Emerson Barnard Tennesee, astronomer (Jupiter's

5th satellite). [1]
* In Naples, Italy, a magnitude 6.9 earthquake occurs. 11,000 dead.
[1] [53]
December 29
* Franz Liszt's "Die Hunnenschlacht" premieres in Weimar. [1]
December 31
* Queen Victoria chooses Ottawa as new capital of Canada. [1]
1858
January 1
* In Great Britain, the Matrimonial Causes Act of 1857 comes into

effect, allowing affordable divorce to the middle class. [55.50]
* Canada begins using decimal currency system. [1]
248
January 3
* Rachel [Elisabeth Rachel-Félix], French singer/actress (Muse), dies

at age 36. [1]
January 5
* Johann Radetzky von Radetz Austrian earl/field marshal, dies at

age 91. [1]
January 7
* Willem Broes vicar/theologist (Textenrol), dies at age 91. [1]
January 8
* Friedrich Karl Kuhmstedt composer, dies at age 48. [1]
January 10
* Birth of Heinrich Zille German cartoonist (Cheerful Blätter,

Simplicissimus). [1]
January 14
* French Emperor Napoleon III escapes attempt on his life by Felice

Orsini, an Italian patriot who was later executed. [1]
January 25
* Mendelssohn's "Wedding March" first played, at wedding of Queen

Victoria's daughter Princess Victoria, to crown prince of Prussia. [1]
January 27
* Gerrit van der Linde Jz Dutch "Principal", poet, dies at age 49. [1]
January 28
* John Brown organized raid on Arsenal at Harper's Ferry. [1]
January 30
* Charles Hallé founds Hallé Orchestra in Manchester. [1]
249
February 11
* First apparition of Mary to 14-year-old Bernadette of Lourdes

France. [1]
February 13
* Sir Richard Burton and John Speake explore Lake Tanganyika,

Africa. [1]
February 16
* Georg F Creuzer German philological/historian, dies at age 86. [1]
February 19
* Alois Basil Nikolaus Tomasini composer, dies at age 78. [1]
February 21
* Edwin T Holmes installs first electric burglar alarm (Boston

Massachusetts). [1]
February 22
* Dion Boucicault's "Jessie Brown" premieres in New York City, New

York. [1]
March 2
* Frederick Cook, New Orleans, patents a cotton-bale metallic tie. [1]
March 3
* József Bajza Hungarian author/poet/critic, dies at age 54. [1]
March 8
* Leoncavallo's opera "I Pagliacci" is produced (Naples). [1]
March 9
* Albert Potts of Philadelphia patents the street mailbox. [1]
March 18
250
* Dutch Van der Brugghen government resigns. [1]
March 23
* Streetcar patented (Eleazer A Gardner of Philadelphia). [1]
March 30
* Pencil with attached eraser patented (Hyman L Lipman of

Philadelphia). [1]
April 3
* Sigismund Ritter von Neukomm Austrian composer, dies at age 79.

[1]
April 7
* Anton Diabelli Austria publisher/composer, dies at age 76. [1]
April 8
* Anton Diabelli Austrian composer/publisher, dies at age 76. [1]
April 12
* First US billiards championship is held in Detroit (Michael J Phelan

wins). [1]
April 15
* Battle of Azimghur, Mexicans defeat Spanish loyalists. [1]
April 16
* Johann Baptist Cramer German/British pianist/composer/publisher,

dies at age 87. [1]
May 4
* War of the Reform (México); Liberals establish capital at Vera Cruz.

[1]
May 8
* John Brown holds antislavery convention. [1]
251
May 11
* Minnesota admitted as 32nd US state. [1]
May 15
* Royal Italian Opera opens in Covent Garden London. [1]
May 22
* Confederación Granadina (now Colombia) forms. [1]
May 24
* Birth of Johan C Braakensiek political cartoonist (Green

Amsterdammer). [1]
May 28
* Dion Boucicault's "Foul Play" premieres in London. [1]
May 30
* Hudson Bay Company's rights to Vancouver Island revoked. [1]
June 2
* Donati Comet first seen named after its discoverer. [1]
June 21
* Louisiana chess prodigy Paul Morphy arrives in Europe. [1]
June 29
* Treaty of Algun, China cedes north bank of Amur River to Russia.

[1]
July 2
* Partial emancipation of Russian serfs. [1]
July 29
* First commercial treaty between US and Japan signed. [1]
252
* US citizens allowed to live anywhere in Japan. [1]
July 31
* In Dublin, Ireland, Richard Dixon Oldham is born; geologist and

seismologist, discovered the evidence for the existence of the Earth's
core. [53]
August 2
* First street mailboxes-Boston, Massachusetts [1]
August 5
* After several unsuccessful attempts, Cyrus West Field and others

complete the first transatlantic telegraph cable. [1] [5]
August 15
* Regular mail to the Pacific coast begins. [1]
August 16
* Britain's Queen Victoria telegraphs President James Buchanan. [1]
August 17
* First bank in Hawaii opens. [1]
August 21
* First Lincoln-Douglas debate (Illinois). [1]
September 1
* First transatlantic cable fails after less than one month. [1]
September 8
* Lincoln makes a speech about when you can fool people. [1]
September 16
* First overland mail for California. [1]
September 28
253
* Donati's comet becomes the first to be photographed. [1]
October 27
* RH Macy and Company opens first store, (6th Ave-New York City)
Gross receipts $1106. [1]
November 9
* First performance of New York Symphony Orchestra. [1]
November 17
* Origin of Modified Julian Period. [1]
December 12
* First Canadian coins circulated (1, 5, 10, and 20 cent pieces). [1]
December 16
* Dutch government decides to vacate Schokland Island. [1]

* Richard Bright British Dr (Bright's disease/nephritis), dies at age
69. [1]
December 18
* Joseph-Henri-Ignace Mees composer, dies at age 81. [1]

* Passy, at Paris: first "Samedi soir" i/d villa of lovers Rossini. [1]
December 27
* Alexandre Pierre François Boely composer, dies at age 73. [1]
1859
January 5
* First steamboat sails, Red River. [1]
January 8
* Antoine GB Schayes Belgian historian/archaeologist, dies at age

50. [1]
254
January 20
* B v Arnim writer, dies at age 73. [1]

* Bettina Brentano composer, dies at age 73. [1]
January 22
* Brahms' first piano concerto (in D minor) premieres, Hanover. [1]
January 27
* Carl A Agardh Swedish botanist/bishop of Karlstad, dies at age 74.

[1]
February 6
* Johannes Josephus Viotta composer, dies at age 45. [1]
February 10
* General Horsford defeats Begum of Oude and Nana Sahib in Indian

mutiny. [1]
February 14
* Oregon admitted as 33rd state of the USA. [1]
February 17
* Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Un Ballo in maschera" premieres at the

Apollo Theatre in Rome. [1]
February 19
* Dan Sickles is acquitted of murder on grounds of temporary

insanity first time this defense is successfully used. [1]
February 25
* First use of "insanity plea" to prove innocence. [1]
February 26
* Ferdinand Lukas Schubert composer, dies at age 64. [1]

* Paul Morphy's chess match versus Augustus Mongredien begins;
Morphy wins. [1]
255
February 28
* Arkansas legislature requires free blacks to choose exile or slavery.

[1]
March 1
* Josef Theodor Krov composer, dies at age 61. [1]

* Present seal of San Francisco adopted (its second). [1]
March 18
* Vera Cruz besieged by Miramón (Cons) in Mexican War of Reform.

[1]
March 19
* Charles François Gounod's opera "Faust" premieres in Paris France.

[1]
March 21
* Scottish National Gallery opens in Edinburgh. [1]

* Zoological Society of Philadelphia, first in US, incorporated. [1]
March 26
* First sighting of Vulcan, a planet thought to orbit inside Mercury. [1]
March 28
* First performance of John Brahms' first Serenade for orchestra. [1]
April 4
* The opera "Dinorah" is produced (Paris France). [1]
April 6
* US recognizes Liberal government in México's War of the Reform.

[1]
April 12
256
* Hibernia Savings and Loan Society of San Francisco incorporates.
[1]
* John Emde German evangelist, dies at about age 84. [1]
April 14
* Charles Dickens' "A Tale Of Two Cities" published. [1]
April 25
* Ground broken for Suez Canal. [1]
April 27
* "Pomona" sinks in North Atlantic drowning all 400 aboard. [1]
April 30
* Paul Morphy returns from 10-month chess tour of Europe, retires.

[1]
* Sergei T Aksakov Russian writer (Bagrova-vnuka), dies at age 67.
[1]
May 2
* Britain's Prince Albert opens the Royal Albert Bridge, which spans
the River Tamar from Plymouth to Cornwall. [241.9]
May 5
* Peter G L Dirichlet German mathematician, dies at age 53. [1]
May 6
* Friedrich Heinrich Alexander explorer/scientist, dies. [1]
May 10
* Johan archduke of Austria (Firechief and Housewife), dies. [1]
May 22
* Ferdinand II [Re Bomba] Dutch King of Sicily, dies at age 49. [1]
May 31
257
* The tower clock known as Big Ben, located at the top of St.
Stephen's Tower, rings out over the Houses of Parliament in
Westminster, London, for the first time. [129]
June 11
* Comstock silver load discovered near Virginia City, Nevada. [1]
June 12
* Comstock Silver Lode in Nevada discovered. [1]
June 28
* (to June 29) First dog show is held, in Newcastle-on-Tyne, England.

Two classes of dogs are judged: pointers and setters. [1] [55.51]
June 30
* Charles Blondin is first to cross Niagara Falls on a tightrope. [1]
July 1
* Balloon covers a record 809 miles over Saint Louis, Missouri, USA.
[1]
July 5
* Captain NC Brooks discovers Midway Islands. [1]
July 12
* Paper bag manufacturing machine patented by William Goodale,

Massachusetts [1]
August 27
* First successful oil well drilled, near Titusville, Penn. [1]
August 28
* A geomagnetic storm causes the Aurora Borealis to shine so

brightly that it is seen clearly over parts of USA, Europe and as far
afield as Japan. [5]
September 1
258
* First pullman sleeping car in service. [1]
* RC Carrington and R Hodgson make first observation of solar flare.
[1]
September 2
* Gas lighting introduced to Hawaii. [1]
September 20
* Patent granted on the electric range. [1]
September 29
* Great auroral display in US. [1]
October 19
* Wilhelm Tempel discovers diffuse nebula around Pleid star Merope.

[1]
November 12
* At the Cirque Napoléon in Paris, Jules Leotard performs the first

Flying Trapeze circus act. [1] [55.39]
November 24
* Charles Darwin's book On the Origin of Species by Means of

Natural Selection is published in England. [1] [129]
December 2
* John Brown US abolitionist, hanged in Charles Town West Virginia at

age 59. [1]
December 5
* Dion Boucicault's "Octaroon" premieres in New York City, New York.

[1]
* Louis Poinsot French mathematician/instrument maker, dies at age
82. [1]
December 15
259
* GR Kirchoff describes chemical composition of Sun. [1]
December 16
* Wilhelm Grimm writer (Grimm's Fairy Tales), dies at age 73. [1]
December 19
* Grading started for Market Street railroad. [1]
December 21
* Nicolaas C Kist Dutch church historian/archivist, dies at age 66. [1]
December 28
* Thomas Babington Macaulay English essayist/historian, dies. [1]
December 31
* Dutch colony in Dutch Indies counts 4,800 slaves. [1]

* Luigi Ricci composer, dies at age 54. [1]
1860
January 1
* Slavery ends of in Netherlands Indies. [1]
January 5
* Saint John Nepomucene Neumann first male US saint, dies. [1]
January 12
* Martinus J Niewindt bishop on Curaçao (christened slaves), dies at

age 63. [1]
January 20
* Dutch troops conquer Watampone in Celebes. [1]
January 27
* Janó Bolyai Hungarian mathematician (parallel), dies at age 57. [1]
260
January 28
* Britain formally returns Mosquito Coast to Nicaragua. [1]
January 29
* American College established in Rome by Pope Pius IX. [1]
January 30
* Francesco Antonio Norberto Pinto composer, dies at age 44. [1]
February 1
* First rabbi to open House of Representatives, Morris Raphall of New

February 3
* Thomas Clemson takes office as first US superintendent of

agriculture. [1]
February 9
* Edmond Willem van Dam van Isselt Dutch military/liberal politician,

dies at age 63. [1]
February 10
* John Brahms' second Serenade in A, premieres. [1]
February 13
* King Basse Kajuara departs Boni South-Celebes. [1]
February 16
* Dutch Rochussen/Van Bosse government resigns. [1]
February 20
* Henry Drummond English banker/religious leader, dies at age 69.

[1]
February 22
261
* Shoe-making workers of Lynn Mississippi, strike successfully for
higher wages. [1]
March 9
* First Japanese ambassador arrives in San Francisco en route to

Washington DC. [1]
March 12
* US Congress accepts Pre-emption Bill; free land in West for

colonists. [1]
March 17
* Japanese embassy arrives aboard Candinmarruh [sic]. [1]
March 21
* US extradition treaty with Sweden. [1]
March 24
* Clipper Andrew Jackson arrives in San Francisco, 89 days out of

New York. [1]
March 27
* M L Byrn patents "covered gimlet screw with a 'T' handle"

(corkscrew). [1]
March 28
* Johann Ludwig Bohner composer, dies at age 73. [1]
March 29
* Dion Boucicault's "Colleen Bawn" premieres in New York City, New

York. [1]
April 2
* First Italian Parliament met at Turin. [1]
April 3
262
* Pony Express began between Saint Joseph Missouri and
Sacramento California. [1]
April 7
* Grand duke Frederik I liberalizes laws in Bathe. [1]
April 9
* In Paris, France, inventor Edouard-Leon Scott de Martinville makes

the first (known) audio recording, ten seconds long, of a person singing
a folk song. The recording is made on a phonautograph that scratches
sound waves onto a sheet of paper blackened by the smoke of an oil
lamp. [35]
April 13
* First Pony Express reaches Sacramento, California. [1] [5]
April 14
* First Pony Express rider arrives in San Francisco California from

Saint Joseph Missouri. [1]
April 16
* Carolina duchess of Berry/daughter of crown prince of Naples, dies.

[1]
April 18
* Count István Széchenyi statesman, commits suicide. [1]
April 28
* Isaac da Costa poet/writer (Réveil, Wachter!), dies at age 62. [1]
April 30
* Navaho Indians attack Fort Defiance (Canby). [1]
May 4
* Emil Nikolaus von Reznicek composer, dies. [1]
May 16
263
* Republican convention (Chicago) selects Abraham Lincoln
candidate. [1]
May 18
* Republican Party nominates Abraham Lincoln for president. [1]
May 21
* Johannes Frederick Frohlich composer, dies at age 53. [1]
May 23
* Albert Richard Smith author/lecturer, dies. [1]
May 26
* Garibaldi occupies Palermo Italy. [1]
June 7
* Workmen start laying track for Market Street Railroad, San

Francisco. [1]
June 15
* First White settlement in Idaho (Franklin). [1]
June 23
* US Congress establishes the Government Printing Office. [1]

* US Secret Service created. [1]
July 9
* Temperature hits 115 degrees F in Fort Scott and 112 degrees F in

Topeka Kansas. [1]
July 19
* First railroad reaches Kansas. [1]
July 25
* First US intercollegiate billard match (Harvard versus Yales). [1]
264
August 3
* American Canoe Association founded at Lake George New York. [1]
August 8
* Queen of Sandwich Islands (Hawaii) arrives in New York City. [1]
August 11
* Nation's first successful silver mill (Virginia City, Nev). [1]
September 7
* Excursion steamer "Lady Elgin" drowns 340 in Lake Michigan. [1]
September 8
* Loss of steamer, "Lady Elgin". [1]
September 20
* First British royalty to visit US, Prince of Wales (King Edward VII).
[1]
October 8
* Telegraph line between Los Angeles and San Francisco opens. [1]
October 12
* British and French troops capture Peking. [1]

* Sir Henry G W Smith leader of British-Indian forces, dies at age 73.
[1]
October 13
* First aerial photo taken in US (from a balloon), Boston. [1]
October 15
* 11-year-old Grace Bedell writes to Lincoln, tells him to grow a

beard. [1]
November 6
265
* Abraham Lincoln (Republican-Illinois-Representative) elected 16th
President. [1]
November 11
* First Jewish wedding in Buenos Aires Argentina. [1]
December 7
* Constantine S Aksakov Russian historian/poet, dies at age 43. [1]
December 17
* Anaheim Township created in Los Angeles County. [1]
December 24
* Joseph Jefferson's "Rip Van Winkle" premieres in New York City,

New York. [1]
December 26
* Maiden voyage of first steamship owned by one man (C

Vanderbilt). [1]
December 28
* Cornelius Broere Dutch Roman Catholic clergyman/poet, dies at

age 57. [1]
1861
January 1
* Porfirio Diaz conquers Mexico City. [1]
January 2
* Death of Friedrich Wilhelm IV in Sanssoci Palace, Potsdam,

Germany; King of Prussia (1840-61). [1] [37]
* Wilhelm I becomes the Prussian King. [37]
January 6
266
* New York City, New York mayor proposes New York become a free
city, trading with N and S. [1]
January 11
* Mexico City captured by Juárez (Liberal) in War of the Reform. [1]
January 12
* Václav Hanka Czech author/translator/forger, dies at age 69. [1]
January 15
* Steam elevator patented by Elisha Otis. [1]
January 17
* Flush toilet (with separate water tank and a pull chain) patented by
Mr Thomas Crapper (Honest!). [1]
January 23
* Agoston Haraszthy, first vintner in Sonoma Valley, imports 100,000

cuttings of 350 varieties from Europe. [1]
January 29
* Kansas becomes 34th state. [1]
January 31
* Franciscus J van Vree Dutch Catholic foreman, dies at age 53. [1]
* Friedrich Hebbel's "Siegfrieds Tod" premieres in Weimar. [1]
* State of Louisiana takes over US Mint at New Orleans. [1]
February 1
* Dike breaks in Gelderland Netherlands. [1]
February 5
* First moving picture peep show machine is patented by Samuel

Goodale of Cincinnati. [1]
* Kinematoscope patented by Coleman Sellers, Philadelphia
Pennsylvania. [1]
267
February 6
* English Admiral Robert Ritzroy issues first storm warnings for ships.
[1]
February 10
* Francis Danby Exmouth, painter, dies. [1]
February 11
* President-elect Lincoln takes train from Spingfield Illinois to

Washington DC. [1]
February 12
* Hippolyte-Andre-Baptiste Chelard composer, dies at age 72. [1]
February 13
* Abraham Lincoln declared President. [1]

* Colonel Bernard Irwin attacks and defeats hostile Chiricahua
Indians. [1]
February 18
* King Victor Emmanuel II of Sardinia becomes first king of Italy. [1]

* Louis C Luzac Dutch minister of Internal affairs, dies at age 74. [1]
February 19
* Russian Tsar Alexander II abolishes serfdom. [1]
February 20
* Steeple of Chichester Cathedral blown down during a storm. [1]
February 21
* Navaho Indians elect Herrero Grande as chief. [1]
February 22
* On a bet Edward Weston leaves Boston to walk to Lincoln's

inauguration. [1]
268
February 23
* Dutch Premier Floris A van Hall resigns. [1]

* President-elect Lincoln arrives secretly in Washington DC to take
office. [1]
February 27
* US Congress authorizes first stamped newspaper wrappers for

mailing. [1]
* Warsaw Massacre Russians fire on crowd demonstrating against
Russian rule of Poland. [1]
February 28
* Territories of Nevada and Colorado created. [1]
March 2
* Government Printing Office purchases first printing plant,

Washington DC. [1]
* US Congress creates Dakota and Nevada Territories out of the
Nebraska and Utah territories. [1]
March 3
* Russian Tsar Alexander II abolishes serfdom. [1]
March 4
* Lincoln inaugurated as 16th President; first time US has five former

Presidents living. [1]
* President Lincoln opens Government Printing Office. [1]
March 10
* Josepf François Snel composer, dies at age 67. [1]
March 14
* Abraham Louis Niedermeyer composer, dies at age 58. [1]
March 17
* Italy declares independence; Kingdom of Italy proclaimed. [1]

* Petter Conrad Boman composer, dies at age 56. [1]
269
March 22
* First US nursing school chartered. [1]
March 23
* London's first tramcars, designed by Mr Train of New York, begins

operating. [1]
March 27
* Black demonstrators in Charleston staged ride-ins on street cars.

[1]
April 8
* Elisha G Otis US elevator builder (Otis), dies at age 50. [1]
April 18
* Heinrich August Neithardt composer, dies at age 67. [1]
April 19
* Baltimore riots - four soldiers, 9 civilians killed. [1]
April 30
* President Abraham Lincoln ordered Federal Troops to evacuate

Indian Territory. [1]
May 3
* Anthony Philip Heinrich composer, dies at age 80. [1]
May 8
* Láseló Teleki Hungarian earl/revolutionary, commits suicide. [1]
May 12
* Christian Heinrich Hohmann composer, dies at age 50. [1]
May 18
270
* Friedrich Hebbels "Kriemhildes Rache" premieres in Weimar. [1]
May 20
* Cornerstone of University of Washington laid in Seattle. [1]
May 24
* Elmer Ellsworth US warrior (Chicago Zouaves), shot to death at age

23. [1]
* James T Jackson US landlord (doodde EE Ellsworth), shot dead). [1]
May 25
* John Merryman is arrested under suspension of writ of habeas

corpus it later sparks a supreme court decision protecting the writ. [1]
May 31
* Mint at New Orleans closes. [1]
June 19
* Anaheim Post Office established. [1]
June 28
* Leipzig Observatory discovers short-period (6.2 years) Comet

d'Arrest. [1]
July 1
* First public schoolhouse opens at Washington and Mason Street,

San Francisco. [1]
July 3
* Pony Express arrives in San Francisco with overland letters from

New York. [1]
July 17
* US Congress authorizes paper money. [1]
July 20
271
* Confederate state's congress began holding sessions in Richmond,
Virginia. [1]
August 5
* US Army abolishes flogging. [1]

* US levies its first Income Tax (3% of incomes over $800). [1]
August 8
* William Bateson, originator of term "genetics". [1]
September 17
* First day school for freedmen forms at Fortress Monroe Virginia. [1]
September 25
* Secretary of US Navy authorizes enlistment of slaves. [1]
October 24
* First transcontinental telegram sent ending the Pony Express. [1]
October 26
* The Pony Express officially ceases operations. [5]
November 4
* University of Washington founded in Seattle. [1]
November 26
* At Wheeling, a convention adopts a constitution for new state West

Virginia. [1]
December 5
* Gatling gun patented. [1]
December 14
* Albert prince consort of England and husband of Queen Victoria,

dies at age 42. [1]
272
* George HG earl of Aberdeen English Minister of Foreign affairs, dies
at age 76. [1]
* Heinrich August Marschner composer, dies at age 66. [1]
December 15
* Gualtiero Sanelli composer, dies at age 45. [1]
December 16
* Karol Joseph Lipinski composer, dies at age 71. [1]
December 26
* In Tilsit, Germany, Emil Wiechert is born; pioneer in the science of

seismology. [53]
* Philip Saint George Cocke Confederate Brigadier-General, commits
suicide at age 52. [1]
December 30
* American banks stops payments in gold. [1]
December 31
* 22,990 mm of rain falls in Cherrapunji Assam in 1861, world

record. [1]
1862
January 1
* First US income tax (3% of incomes > $600, 5% of incomes >

$10,000). [1]
January 5
* Joseph Frohlich composer, dies at age 81. [1]
January 10
* Samuel Colt inventor (6 shot revolver), dies at age 47. [1]
January 18
273
* John Tyler 10th US President (1841-45), dies in Richmond Virginia
at age 71. [1]
January 20
* General Felix Zollicoffer killed after mistakenly riding into union

lines. [1]
January 21
* Bozena Nemcová [Barnora Panklová], Czechoslovakian author, dies

at age 41. [1]
January 24
* James McIntosh US confederate Brigadier General, dies in battle at

about age 33. [1]
* Romania principality arises under King Alexander Cuza. [1]
January 31
* Telescope maker Alvin Clark discovers dwarf companion of Sirius.

[1]
February 1
* Julia Howe publishes "Battle Hymn of the Republic". [1]
February 3
* Jean-Baptiste Biot French physicist/astronomer, dies at age 87. [1]
February 7
* Frantisek Jan Skroup composer, dies at age 61. [1]
February 8
* Dion Boucicault's opera "The Lily of Killarney" is produced

(London). [1]
February 10
* Dutch second government of Thorbecke forms. [1]
February 21
274
* Justinus A C Kerner German family doctor/poet/writer, dies at age
75. [1]
February 24
* Bernard S Ingemann Danish author (Holger Danske), dies at age

72. [1]
February 25
* US Congress establishes the US Bureau of Engraving and Printing.

[1]
* Paper currency (greenbacks) introduced in US by President
Abraham Lincoln. [1]
February 27
* Gabriele dell' Addolorata patron of Italian Catholic youth, dies at

age 23. [1]
February 28
* The opera "La Reine de Saba" premieres (Paris). [1]
March 2
* Frederick West Lander US Union Brigadier-General/poet, dies at

age 40. [1]
March 7
* Ben McCulloch US Confederate Brigadier-General (KIA), dies at age

50. [1]
* John Baillie McIntosh US General-Major (Union Army), dies at age
32. [1]
* William Slack US Confederate Brigadier-General, dies in battle. [1]
March 8
* Adrien de La Fage composer, dies at age 56. [1]

* Nat Gordon last pirate, hanged in New York City, New York for
stealing 1,000 slaves. [1]
March 10
275
* Great Britain and France recognizes independence of Zanzibar. [1]
* US issues first paper money ($5, $10, $20, $50, $100, $500 and
$1000). [1]
March 17
* Fromental Halevy [Elie Levy], French opera composer, dies at age

62. [1]
March 19
* F Wilhelm von Schadow German painter (Modern Vasari), dies at

age 73. [1]
March 22
* San Marino and Italy conclude treaty of friendship and cooperation.

[1]
March 23
* Karl Robert von Nesselrode German chancellor, dies at age 81. [1]
April 3
* James Clark Ross Arctic explorer, dies. [1]
April 4
* Harmen S Sytstra Dutch poet/editor (Iduna), dies at age 45. [1]
April 6
* Adley Hogan Gladden Confederate Brigadier-General, dies in battle

at age 51. [1]
* Albert Sidney Johnston US Confederate General, dies in battle at
age 59. [1]
April 7
* Sydney Nelson composer, dies at age 62. [1]
April 8
* John D Lynde patents aerosol dispenser. [1]
276
April 9
* George W Johnson US planter/Confederate (Governor-Kentucky),

dies at about age 50. [1]
April 10
* William Harvey Lamb Wallace US lawyer/Brigadier-General, dies at

age 40. [1]
April 19
* Louis Powell Harvey US Governor of Wisconsin, drowns. [1]

* Simon Fraser Canadian explorer, dies. [1]
April 21
* US Congress establishes US Mint in Denver Colorado. [1]

* Ellen Price Wood's "East Lynne, premieres in Boston. [1]
April 25
* Charles Ferguson Smith US Union General-Major, dies of infection

at age 55. [1]
May 5
* French army intervenes in Puebla México: Cinco de Mayo. [1]
May 6
* Henry David Thoreau, American writer/pacifist (Walden Pond), dies

at age 44. [1] [5]
May 7
* Much of Enschede Netherlands destroyed by fire. [1]
May 14
* Adolphe Nicole of Switzerland patents the chronograph. [1]
May 15
* Department of Agriculture created. [1]
277
* General Benjamin F Butler issues "Woman's Order" - women of
New Orleans to be treated as whores as a result of their treatment of
Union soldiers. [1]
May 16
* Jean Joseph Etienne Lenoir builds first automobile. [1]

* Lev A Ms Russian nobleman/poet, dies at age 40. [1]
May 18
* William H Keim US Union Brigadier-General, dies in battle at age

48. [1]
May 19
* Homestead Act becomes law provides cheap land for settlement of

West. [1]
May 20
* Homestead Act provides cheap land for settlement of the West. [1]
May 24
* Westminster Bridge across Thames opens. [1]
May 25
* Johann N Nestroy Austria; actor (Einmal Keine Sorgen Haben), dies

at age 60. [1]
May 29
* Franciszek Wincenty Mirecki composer, dies at age 71. [1]
May 31
* Robert Hatton Confederate Brigadier-General, dies in battle at

about age 34. [1]
June 7
* William Mumford first US citizen hanged for treason. [1]
July 1
278
* US Congress outlaws polygamy (first time); bad news for Utah. [1]
* Lincoln appoints Isaac Newton sec of agriculture. [1]
July 2
* Lincoln signs act granting land for state agricultural colleges. [1]
July 4
* Lewis Carroll creates Alice in Wonderland for Alice P Liddell. [1]
July 7
* Land Grant Act endows state colleges with federal land. [1]
July 12
* US Congress authorizes Medal of Honor. [1]
July 16
* David G Farragut became first rear admiral in US Navy. [1]
July 17
* US army authorized to accept blacks as laborers. [1]
July 24
* Martin Van Buren 8th pres, dies in Kinderhook New York. [1]
July 27
* Steamer "Golden Gate" burns and sinks off west coast of Mexico.
[1]
August 14
* Lincoln receives first group of blacks to confer with US president.

[1]
August 28
* Belle Boyd released from Old Capital Prison in Washington, DC. [1]
279
August 29
* Battle of Aspromonte-Italian royal forces defeat rebels. [1]

* US Bureau of Engraving and Printing begins operation. [1]
September 1
* Oliver Tilden of the Bronx, killed in the Civil War in Virginia. [1]
September 4
* North Beach and Mission Railway Company organized in San

Francisco. [1]
November 4
* Gatling gun patented (Richard J Gatling). [1]
November 6
* NY-San Francisco direct telegraphic link established. [1]
November 11
* The opera "La Forza Del Destino" is produced (Saint Petersburg

Russia). [1]
December 6
* President Lincoln orders hanging of 39 Santee Sioux Indians. [1]
December 7
* Sylvester Churchill US Union Brigadier-General, dies. [1]
December 13
* Conrad Feger Jackson US Union Brigadier-General, dies in battle at

age 49. [1]
* Maxcy Gregg US Confederate Brigadier-General, dies in battle at
age 48. [1]
* Thomas Reade Rootes Cobb Confederate Brigadier-General, dies in
December 14
280
* George Dashiell Bayard Union Brigadier-General, dies at age 27.
[1]
December 16
* Kingdom of Nepal accepts its constitution. [1]
December 18
* Johnson Kelly Duncan architect/Confederate Brigadier-General, dies

at age 35. [1]
December 24
* Joseph Funk composer, dies at age 84. [1]
December 26
* First US navy hospital ship enters service. [1]

* 38 Santee Sioux Indians hanged in Mankato Minnesota, due to
their uprising. [1]
December 28
* Joaquim Casimiro Junior composer, dies at age 54. [1]
December 31
* James Edward Rains lawyer/Confederate Brigadier-General, dies in

* Joshua Woodrow Sill US Union Brigadier-General, dies in battle at
age 31. [1]
1863
January 1
* First homestead under the Homestead Act claimed, near Beatrice

Nebraska. [1]
* Franz Schuberts "Missa Solemnis" premieres in Leipzig. [1]
* Emancipation Proclamation (ending slavery) issued by President
Lincoln. [1]
January 2
281
* Roger Weightman Hanson Confederate Brigadier General, dies in
January 9
* Ferdinand Huber composer, dies at age 71. [1]
January 10
* First underground railway opens in London. [1]

* January-uprising begins in Poland. [1]
January 13
* Chenille manufacturing machine patented by William Canter, New

* Thomas Crapper pioneers one-piece pedestal flushing toilet. [1]
January 15
* First US newspaper printed on wood-pulp paper, Boston Morning

Journal. [1]
January 17
* E J Horace Vernet French painter, dies at age 73. [1]
January 19
* General Mieroslawski appointed dictator of Poland. [1]
January 21
* City of Dublin leases part of Cattle Market for 100,000 years. [1]
January 26
* 54th Regiment (Black) infantry forms. [1]
January 29
* Battle at Bear River Washington: US Army versus Indians. [1]
February 2
* Samuel Clemens becomes Mark Twain for first time. [1]
282
February 9
* Fire extinguisher patented by Alanson Crane. [1]
February 10
* First US fire extinguisher patent granted to Alanson Crane, Virginia.

[1]
* PT Barnum stages wedding of Tom Thumb and Mercy Lavinia
Warren (New York City, New York). [1]
February 24
* Arizona Territory created. [1]
February 25
* US Congress creates national banking system, comptroller of

currency. [1]
February 26
* Lincoln signs National Currency Act. [1]
March 2
* US Congress authorizes track width of 4'8.5" for Union Pacific

railroad. [1]
March 3
* Abraham Lincoln approves charter for National Academy of

Sciences. [1]
* US Congress authorizes a US mint at Carson City Nevada. [1]
* Free city delivery replaces zone postage; 449 letter carriers hired.
[1]
* Gold certificates (currency) authorized byUS Congress. [1]
* Idaho Territory forms. [1]
March 4
* Territory of Idaho established. [1]
March 17
283
* John Pelham US Confederate artillery major, dies in battle at age
24. [1]
March 21
* Edwin Vose Sumner US Union-General-Major (Fair Oaks), dies at

age 66. [1]
* Naval Engagement at Havana Cuba-USS Henrick Hudson versus BR
Wild Pigeon. [1]
March 25
* First Army Medal of Honor awarded. [1]
March 27
* President Davis calls for this to be a day of fasting and prayer. [1]
March 28
* James Cooper US attorney/senator/Union-Brigadier-General, dies at

age 52. [1]
March 30
* Danish prince Wilhelm Georg of Sleeswÿk-Holstein-Sonderburg-

Glücksburg chosen as king George of Greece. [1]
April 2
* Bread revolt in Richmond Virginia. [1]
April 8
* Joseph Netherclift composer, dies at age 70. [1]
April 10
* Giovanni B Amia Italian astronomer/physicist/botanist, dies at age

77. [1]
April 13
* Hospital for Ruptured and Crippled in New York is first orthopedic

hospital. [1]
284
April 14
* William Bullock patents continuous-roll printing press. [1]
April 15
* Jan Nepomuk Kanka composer, dies at age 90. [1]
April 17
* Daniel Smith Donelson Confederate General/cousin of Andrew

Jackson, dies at age 61. [1]
April 21
* Declaration of Bahá'u'lláh; Bahá'í Feast of Ridván (Jalâl 13, 20). [1]
May 8
* Confederación Granadina becomes Estados Unidos de Colombia.

[1]
May 14
* Emile Racine Gauthier Prudent composer, dies at age 46. [1]
May 22
* War Department establishes Bureau of Colored Troops. [1]
May 28
* First black regiment (54 Massachusetts) leaves Boston to fight in

Civil War. [1]
* Edmund Kirby Jr Union-Brigadier-General, dies of injuries at age 23.
[1]
May 31
* First horse race at Longchamps racecourse in France. [80.186]
June 13
* Samuel Butler publishes first part of "Erewhon," Christchurch, New

Zealand. [1]
285
June 17
* Travelers Insurance Company of Hartford chartered (first accident

insurer). [1]
June 20
* First bank chartered in US (National Bank of Davenport Iowa). [1]
June 29
* Very first First National Bank opens in Davenport, Iowa. [1]
July 1
* Free city delivery of mail begins in 49 US cities; postage 3 cents

per ounce. [1]
July 3
* On the third day of the Battle of Gettysburg, Confederate General

George Pickett leads a 15,000-man column a mile toward Union
positions at Cemetery Ridge, after an hour-long cannon bombardment.
But Union artillery and infantry survived, and devastate the attacking
force, killing or wounding 7,000 within an hour. [129]
July 4
* Boise, Idaho founded (now capital of Idaho). [1]
July 6
* Northern Territory passes from New South Wales to South Australia.

[1]
July 10
* Clement Clarke Moore ('Twas the Night Before Xmas), dies at age
83. [1]
July 26
* Sam Houston, president of Texas, dies at age 70. [1]
August 3
286
* Governor Seymour asks Lincoln to suspend draft in New York. [1]
* Saratoga Racetrack (New York) opens. [1]
August 12
* First cargo of lumber leaves Burrard Inlet (Vancouver, British

Columbia, Canada area). [1]
September 1
* Railroad and ferry connection between San Francisco and Oakland

inaugurated. [1]
September 17
* Pope Pius IX encyclical On persecution in New Grenada. [1]
September 27
* The united kingdom of Italy is proclaimed. The Lotto is made a

legal source of national income. [80.235] [187.87]
September 29
* The opera "Pescatori di Perle", more properly known as "Les

Pêcheurs de Perles", is produced (Paris). [1]
October 3
* US President Abraham Lincoln designates last Thursday in

November as Thanksgiving Day. [1]
October 6
* Dr Charles H Sheppard opens the first public bath, in Brooklyn. [1]
October 15
* Cliff House opens in San Francisco (first of many on the site). [1]
October 26
* Worldwide Red Cross organized in Geneva. [1]
October 29
287
* International Committee of the Red Cross founded (Nobel Prize
1917, 1944, 1963). [1]
November 1
* Fortifications built on Angel Island (San Francisco Bay) by troops.

[1]
November 23
* Patent granted for a process of making color photographs. [1]
December 4
* Storm flood ravages Nethe coastal provinces. [1]
December 8
* Jesuit Church of La Compana in Santiago Chile catches fire, 2,500

die in panic. [1]
December 13
* Friedrich Hebbel writer, dies at age 50. [1]
December 22
* Michael Corcoran Union Brigadier-General, dies at age 36. [1]
December 24
* W M Thackeray writer, dies at age 52. [1]
1864
January 4
* Mateo Ferrer composer, dies at age 75. [1]
January 8
* Victor-Charles-Paul Dourlen composer, dies at age 83. [1]
January 11
* Charing Cross Station opens in London. [1]
288
January 13
* Stephen Foster composer (My Old Kentucky Home), dies in a New

York hospital at age 37. [1]
January 16
* Anton Schindler German violinist/biographer (Beethoven), dies at

age 68. [1]
January 23
* Michele Puccini composer, dies at age 50. [1]
January 24
* Otto Jonas Lindblad composer, dies at age 54. [1]

* Stephen Gardner Champlin Brigadier General (Union), dies at
about age 36. [1]
January 27
* Franz von Klenze German architect (palace Leuchtenberg), dies at

age 59. [1]
January 31
* Hamilton Rowan Gamble US judge/Governor of Missouri (1861-64),

dies. [1]
February 1
* Second German-Danish war begins. [1]

* Austrian/Prussian troops occupy Sleeswijk/Holstein. [1]
February 15
* Fire in Rotterdam Netherlands damages Museum Boymans. [1]

* Israel Zangwill writer/Zionist/philanthropist, dies. [1]
* William Dyce painter, dies. [1]
February 16
* Vaclav Jindrich Veit composer, dies at age 58. [1]
289
February 19
* Knights of Pythias form first lodge in Washington DC (12

members). [1]
* William Edwin Baldwin US Confederate Brigadier-General, dies. [1]
February 21
* First US Catholic parish church for blacks dedicated, Baltimore

Maryland. [1]
* Jeffery Forrest US Confederate Brigadier-General, dies in battle. [1]
March 1
* Louis Ducos du Hauron patents movie machine (never built). [1]
March 3
* Ulric Dahlgren Union Colonel, dies in battle at age 21. [1]
March 4
* Thomas Starr King Unitarian clergyman (Christianity and

Humanity), dies. [1]
March 5
* First track meet between Oxford and Cambridge. [1]
March 10
* Maximilian II Jozef King of Bayern (1848-64), dies at age 52. [1]
March 14
* Rossini's "Petite Messe Solennelle" premieres in Paris France. [1]
March 17
* Alexandre Calamo Swiss painter/etcher/lithographer, dies at age

53. [1]
March 18
* Dale Dike on Humber River crumbles drowning some 240. [1]
290
March 19
* Charles François Gounod's opera "Mireille" is produced (Paris

France). [1]
March 29
* Great Britain gives Isotope Islands back to Greece. [1]
March 30
* Louis Alexander Balthasar Schindelmeisser composer, dies 52. [1]
April 10
* Austrian Archduke Maximilian becomes emperor of México. [1]
April 12
* Thomas Green, US Confederate Brigadier-General, dies in battle at

age 50. [1]
April 13
* Johann Schneider composer, dies at age 74. [1]
April 17
* Bread revolt in Savannah Georgia. [1]
April 22
* Birth of Phil May Wortley Yorkshire, cartoonist. [1]

* US mints 2-cent coin (first appearance of "In God We Trust"). [1]
April 29
* Charles-Julien Brianchon math (Brianchon's theorem), dies at age

80. [1]
April 30
* New York becomes first state to charge a hunting license fee. [1]
May 2
291
* Giacomo Meyerbeer composer, dies at age 72. [1]
May 9
* Ship battle at Helgoland, Austria-Denmark. [1]
May 16
* Lean Bear Cheyenne chief, murdered. [1]
May 17
* N Hawthorne writer, dies at age 59. [1]
May 19
* Nathaniel Hawthorne US, writer (Scarlet Letter), dies. [1]
May 20
* John Clare English poet (Little Trotty Wagtail), dies at age 70. [1]
May 26
* Ch Sealsfield writer, dies at age 71. [1]

* Territory of Montana is formed. [1]
May 29
* Mexican Emperor Maximilian arrives at Vera Cruz. [1]
June 7
* Abe Lincoln renominated for President by Republican Party. [1]
June 11
* 300' (90 m) of Meigg's Wharf washed away in storm. [1]
June 29
* Grand Trunk Railway accident; 100 killed. [1]
July 2
* Statuary Hall in US Capitol established. [1]
292
August 2
* Second Saratoga Racetrack (New York) opens. [1]
August 5
* Spectrum of a comet observed for first time, by Giovanni Donati.

[1]
August 8
* Red Cross Anniversary. [1]
August 22
* Geneva Convention signed, by 12 nations. [1]
August 25
* Combination rail and ferry service available from San Francisco to

Alameda. [1]
August 29
* William Huggins discovers chemical composition of nebulae. [1]
September 4
* Bread riots in Mobile, Alabama. [1]
October 4
* National black convention meets (Syracuse New York). [1]
October 5
* Most of Calcutta destroyed by cyclone (approx 60,000 die). [1]
October 11
* Slavery abolished in Maryland. [1]
October 12
* Roger Taney Supreme Court Chief Justice, dies at age 87. [1]
293
October 30
* Helena, Montana's capital, founded. [1]
October 31
* Nevada admitted as 36th state. [1]
November 3
* Antonio Gonsalves Dias Brazilian national poet, dies at sea. [1]
November 8
* Abraham Lincoln elected to his second term as President. [1]
November 9
* First export of goods from Burrard Inlet, British Columbia, Canada

to a foreign country. [1]
November 10
* Austrian Archduke Maximilian became emperor of Mexico. [1]
November 15
* First US mines school opens in basement of Columbia University,

New York. [1]
November 29
* Colorado militia kills 150 peaceful Cheyenne Indians. [1]
December 4
* Romanian Jews are forbidden to practice law. [1]
December 8
* Pope Pius IX publishes encyclical Quanta cura ("Syllabus errorum").

[1]
December 21
294
* William Henry Fry composer, dies at age 51. [1]
December 29
* Fire Department celebrates first annual ball. [1]
1865
January 3
* Con Orem and Hugh O'Neill box 193 rounds before darkness ends
match. [1]
* Jozef Lies Flemish painter, dies at age 43. [1]
January 16
* Confederate Brigadier General John Pegram marries Hetty Cary. [1]

* San Francisco Dramatic Chronicle started. [1]
January 19
* NV Suriname Bank established. [1]
February 4
* Hawaiian Board of Education formed. [1]
February 15
* Nicholas Wiseman first Archbishop of Westminster (1850-65), dies.

[1]
February 20
* M I T establishes first US collegiate architectural school. [1]
February 22
* Tennessee adopts a new constitution abolishing slavery. [1]
February 25
* Otto Ludwig German writer (Zwischen Himmel und Erde), dies at

age 47. [1]
March 1
295
* Anna Paulowna Romanova great monarch of Russia, dies at age 70.
[1]
March 2
* British newspaper "Morning Chronicle" begins publishing. [1]

* Freedman's Bureau founded for Black Education, 1865. [1]
March 3
* Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands established

to help destitute free blacks. [1]
March 4
* President Lincoln inaugurated for his second term as President. [1]
March 6
* President Lincoln's second Inaugural Ball. [1]
March 20
* Michigan authorizes workers' cooperatives. [1]
March 25
* SS General Lyon at Cape Hatteras catches fire and sinks, killing

400. [1]
March 26
* Thomas Hancock pioneer of rubber industry (Stoke Newington),

dies. [1]
March 28
* Albert G Bilders Dutch landscape painter, dies at age 26. [1]
April 2
* Richard Cobden founder Anti-Corn-Law League, dies at age 60. [1]
April 8
296
* John Park composer, dies at age 61. [1]
April 14
* President Abraham Lincoln shot in Ford's Theatre by John Wilkes

Booth. [1]
April 15
* Otto von Bismarck elevated to Earl. [1]

* President Abraham Lincoln dies, at 7:22 am, morning after being
shot by John Wilkes Booth. [1] [5]
April 17
* Mary Surratt is arrested as a conspirator in Lincoln's assassination.

[1]
April 20
* Chicago's Crosby Opera House opens. [1]
April 21
* Abraham Lincoln's funeral train leaves Washington. [1]
April 24
* Fire alarm and police telegraph system put into operation (San
Francisco). [1]
April 26
* Charles J Sax Belgian inventor (saxophone), dies at age 74. [1]

* John Wilkes Booth assassin, is shot dead near Bowling Green
Virginia at age 27. [1]
April 27
* Cornell University (Ithaca New York) is chartered. [1]
April 28
* Giacomo Meyerbeer's opera "L'Africaine", premieres in Paris

France. [1]
297
May 5
* First US train robbery (North Bend Ohio). [1]
May 23
* Flag flown at full staff over White House, first time since Lincoln
shot. [1]
* Grand Review begins in Washington DC. [1]
May 30
* William Clarke Quantrill criminal/Confederate bushwhacker, dies at

age 27. [1]
June 10
* Wagner's "Tristan und Isolde" first performance München Germany.

[1]
June 19
* All slaves in Texas freed. [1]
July 4
* First edition of "Alice in Wonderland" is published. [1]
July 5
* William Booth founded Salvation Army in London. [1]
July 7
* Four Lincoln assassination conspirators, including Mary Surratt,

hanged. [1]
July 13
* Horace Greeley advises his readers to "Go west young man". [1]
* PT Barnum's museum burns down. [1]
July 14
* First ascent of Matterhorn. [1]
298
August 17
* Near Memphis, Tennessee, a magnitude 5.0 earthquake occurs.

Felt from St. Louis, Missouri, to Jackson, Mississippi. [53]
September 1
* Joseph Lister performs first antiseptic surgery. [1]
September 24
* James Cooke walks tightrope from Cliff House to Seal Rocks, San
Francisco. [1]
October 8
* In Santa Cruz Mountains, California, a magnitude 6.3 earthquake

occurs; severe damage in several towns. [1] [53]
October 10
* John Hyatts patents the billiard ball. [1]
October 31
* William Parson third Earl of Rosse and maker of large telescopes,

dies. [1]
November 7
* London Gazette, oldest surviving journal, is founded. [1]
November 10
* Henry Wirzm Confederate prison superintendant executed for

excessive cruelty. [1]
November 11
* Mary Edward Walker, first Army female surgeon, awarded Medal of

Honor. [1]
November 13
* PT Barnum's New American museum opens in Bridgeport. [1]

* US issues first gold certificates. [1]
299
November 18
* Mark Twain publishes "Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras

County". [1]
November 26
* Alice in Wonderland published. [1]
December 1
* Constant van Crombrugghe Flemish monastery founder, dies at

age 76. [1]
December 6
* 13th Amendment is ratified, abolishing slavery. [1]

* Sebastian de Iradier Spanish composer (Arreglito), dies at age 56.
[1]
December 17
* Franz Schubert's "Unvolendete Symphony" premieres. [1]
December 18
* First US cattle importation law passed. [1]

* Francisco Manuel da Silva composer, dies at age 70. [1]
December 20
* De Clear-Alkmaar railway opens. [1]
December 26
* James H Mason (Massachusetts) patents first US coffee percolator.

[1]
1866
January 9
* Fisk University establishes. [1]
January 11
300
* Steamship London sinks in storm off Land's End England, kills 220.
[1]
January 15
* Bedrich Smetana's opera "Branibori versus Cechach" premieres in

Prague. [1]
* M T d'Azeglio writer, dies. [1]
January 20
* Prim's Insurrection in Spain ends. [1]
January 27
* John Gibson sculptor, dies. [1]
February 4
* Mary Baker Eddy cures her injuries by opening a bible. [1]
February 10
* Dutch government Frans van der Putte forms. [1]
February 13
* Jesse James holds up his first bank, Liberty Missouri ($15,000). [1]
February 21
* Lucy B Hobbs (Taylor) becomes first US woman to earn a DDS

degree. [1]
February 26
* New York Legislature establishes New York City Metropolitan Board

of Health. [1]
March 1
* Paraguayan canoes sink two Brazilian ironclads on Rio Parana. [1]
March 2
301
* First US company to make sewing needles by machine
incorporated, Connecticut. [1]
March 4
* Alexander Campbell Irish/US founder Disciples of Christ, dies at

age 77. [1]
March 10
* Antonio Francesco Gaetano S Pacini composer, dies at age 87. [1]
March 19
* Immigrant ship Monarch of the Seas sinks in Liverpool; 738 die. [1]
* Louis Clapisson composer, dies at age 57. [1]
March 20
* Rikard Nordraak composer, dies at age 23. [1]
March 21
* US Congress authorizes national soldiers' homes. [1]
March 24
* Maria Amalia of Bourbon-Sicily, wife of Louis Filips of Austria, dies.

[1]
* Death of Ferdinand, ending Hesse-Homburg dynasty, which is
absorbed by the grand duke of Hess-Darmstadt. [187.212]
March 27
* Andrew Rankin patents the urinal. [1]

* President Johnson vetoes civil rights bill; it later becomes 14th
Amendment. [1]
March 28
* First ambulance goes into service. [1]
March 29
* Menachem Mendel of Lubavitch Rabbi/Chassidic leader, dies. [1]
302
March 30
* Bedrich Smetana's "Verkaufte Braut" (Sold Bride), premieres. [1]
April 1
* Aime Ambroise Simon Leborne composer, dies at age 98. [1]

* Johannes C H de Meijere Dutch zoologist, dies. [1]
* US Congress rejects presidential veto gives all equal rights in US.
[1]
April 6
* G.A.R. (Grand Army of the Republic) is established. [1]
April 9
* Civil Rights Bill passes over President Andrew Johnson's veto. [1]
April 10
* American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA)

forms. [1]
April 15
* William Jackson composer, dies at age 51. [1]
April 16
* Karakozov attempts to assassinate Tsar Alexander II of Russia. [1]

* Nitroglycerine at Wells Fargo and Company office explodes. [1]
May 1
* American Equal Rights Association forms. [1]
May 4
* Woodward's Gardens opens to public. [1]
May 7
* German premier Otto von Bismarck seriously wounded in assassin

attempt. [1]
303
May 16
* Charles Elmer Hires invents root beer. [1] [5]

* US Congress authorizes nickel 5-cent piece (replaces silver half-
dime). [1] [5]
May 17
* Adolf Bernhard Marx composer, dies at age 70. [1]
May 18
* French Government of De Putte resigns. [1]
May 24
* Berkeley California named (for George Berkeley, Bishop of Cloyne).

[1]
May 28
* Dutch Government of Zuylen van Nijevelt/Heemskerk forms. [1]
May 30
* The opera "Die Verkaufte Braut" premieres (Prague). [1]
June 1
* Renegade Irish Fenians invade Fort Erie Ontario from US. [1]
June 2
* Renegade Irish Fenians surrender to US forces. [1]
June 7
* Irish Fenians raid Pigeon Hill, Québec. [1]
June 13
* House passes 14th Amendment. [1]
June 15
* C H F Peters discovers asteroid #88 Thisbe. [1]
304
* Prussia attacks Austria. [1]
July 4
* Firecracker thrown in wood starts fire destroying half of Portland,

Maine. [1]
July 10
* Indelible pencil patented by Edson P Clark, Northampton,

Massachusetts [1]
July 12
* Prussian army crushes Austrians at Koniggratz. [187.213]
July 25
* US Grant named first general of Army. [1]
July 26
* Canoe Club opens in England. [1]
July 27
* The Atlantic Cable is successfully completed (1,686 miles long),

allowing transatlantic telegraph communication for the first time. [1]
[5]
July 28
* Metric system becomes a legal measurement system in US. [1]
August 10
* Transatlantic cable laid - Former President Buchanan

communicates over it to Queen Victoria. [1]
August 11
* World's first roller rink opens (Newport, Rhode Island). [1]
August 20
* President Andrew Johnson formally declares Civil War over. [1]
305
August 23
* Treaty of Prague ends Austro-Prussian war. [1]
September 4
* First Hawaiian daily newspaper published. [1]
October 6
* First train robbery in US. [1]
November 4
* Kingdom of Italy annexes Venetia. [1]
November 17
* The opera "Mignon" is produced (Paris). [1]
November 20
* First national convention of Grand Army of the Republic (veterans'

organization). [1]
* Howard University founded (Washington, DC). [1]
* Pierre Lalemont patents rotary crank bicycle. [1]
November 30
* Work begins on first US underwater highway tunnel, Chicago. [1]
December 3
* Johann Wenzel Kalliwoda composer, dies at age 65. [1]

* Paid fire department replaces volunteer companies. [1]
December 6
* Chicago water supply tunnel 3,227 metres into Lake Michigan

completed. [1]
December 11
* First yacht race across the Atlantic Ocean. [1]
306
December 21
* Cheyennes, Arapho's, Sioux, Fetterman Massacre. [1]
December 26
* Samuel Ryan Curtis Union General-Major, dies at age 49. [1]
1867
January 8
* Legislation gives suffrage to DC blacks, despite President Johnson's

veto. [1]
January 12
* Leo Tolstoy's "Smert Ioonna Groznogo" premieres in Saint

Petersburg. [1]
* Victor Cousin French philosopher/minister of Education, dies at age
74. [1]
February 1
* Bricklayers start working 8-hour days. [1]
February 3
* Prince Mutsuhito, 14, becomes Emperor Meiji of Japan (1867-1912).

[1]
February 5
* Salomon Munk published Arabic edition of Maimounides, dies. [1]
February 6
* Peabody Fund forms to promote Black education in South. [1]
February 9
* Nebraska becomes 37th US state. [1]
February 13
* Johann Strauss' "Blue Danube" waltz premieres in Vienna. [1]
307
February 14
* Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company issues

first policy. [1]
* Morehouse College organizes (Augusta, Georgia). [1]
February 17
* First ship passes through Suez Canal. [1]

* Gyula Andressy becomes premier of Hungary. [1]
February 23
* George Thomas Smart composer, dies at age 90. [1]
March 1
* Howard University, Washington DC, chartered. [1]

* Most of Nebraska becomes 37th US state (expanded later). [1]
March 2
* US Congress abolishes peonage in New Mexico. [1]

* French A Durlet Belgian sculptor/architect, dies at age 50. [1]
* Howard University established. [1]
* Jesse James-gang robs bank in Savannah Missouri, one dead. [1]
* US Congress creates the Department of Education. [1]
March 6
* Wiktor Kazynski composer, dies at age 54. [1]
March 11
* Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Don Carlos" premieres in Paris France. [1]

* Great Mauna Loa eruption (Hawaiian volcano). [1]
March 12
* Last French troops leave Mexico. [1]
March 15
* Michigan becomes first state to tax property to support a

university. [1]
308
March 16
* Benjamin Hanby composer, dies at age 33. [1]
March 22
* Ferdinando Giorgetti composer, dies at age 70. [1]
March 29
* British North America Act (Canadian constitution) is passed. [1]

* US Congress approves Lincoln Memorial. [1]
March 30
* US purchases Alaska from Russia for US$7,200,000 (2 cents an

acre-Seward's Folly). [1] [129]
April 1
* Blacks vote in municipal election in Tuscumbia Alabama. [1]

* International Exhibition opens in Paris France. [1]
* Singapore, Penang and Malakka become British crown colonies. [1]
April 8
* The first World's Fair is inaugurated in Paris. [5]
April 18
* Robert Smirke architect, dies. [1]
April 19
* Robert Smirke British architect, dies. [1]
April 23
* Queen Victoria and Napoleon III turn down plans for a channel
tunnel. [1]
April 24
* In Manhattan, Kansas, a magnitude 5.1 earthquake occurs. [53]
309
* Black demonstrators stage ride-ins on Richmond Virginia
streetcars. [1]
April 25
* Tokyo is opened for foreign trade. [1]
April 27
* The opera "Roméo et Juliette" is produced (Paris France). [1]
May 1
* Howard University chartered. [1]
May 5
* Battle of Pueblo; Mexicans defeat Maximilian's forces (Cinco de

Mayo). [1]
May 7
* Blacks stage ride-in to protest segregation in New Orleans. [1]
May 11
* Treaty of London drawn, concerning Luxembourg. [1]
May 13
* Birth of Sir Frank Brangwyn Wales, painter/muralist/cartoonist

(Willam Morris). [1]
May 20
* British parliament rejects John Stuart Mills law on women suffrage.

[1]
* Royal Albert Hall foundation laid by Queen Victoria. [1]
May 23
* Archibald Alison Scottish historian, dies at age 74. [1]

* Jesse James-gang rob bank in Richmond Missouri (two die, $4,000
taken). [1]
June 12
310
* Austro-Hungarian Empire forms. [1]
June 19
* First Belmont Stakes, Ruthless wins. [1]

* Maximilian Mexican emperor, executed, Mexican republic restored.
[1]
June 20
* US President Andrew Johnson announces purchase of Alaska. [1]
June 25
* Barbed wire is patented by Lucien Smith of Kent, Ohio. [55.22]
June 27
* Bank of California opens doors. [1]
July 1
* Dominion of Canada formed (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario

and Québec). [1]
July 2
* First US elevated railroad begins service, New York City. [1]
July 7
* C H F Peters discovers asteroid #92 Undina. [1]
July 17
* First permanent university dental school in US, Harvard. [1]
July 21
* City Gardens on Folsom opens. [1]
August 1
* Blacks vote for first time in a state election in South (Tenn). [1]
311
August 6
* Faustin-Élie Soulouque emperor of Haiti, dies (birth date unknown).

[1]
August 7
* Ira Aldridge actor dies at age 63 in Lodes Poland. [1]
August 10
* Ira Frederick Aldridge US Negro tragedian, dies (birth date unkn).

[1]
August 12
* President A Johnson defiesUS Congress suspending Secretary of

War Edwin Stanton. [1]
August 15
* Second Reform Bill extends suffrage in England. [1]
August 28
* US occupies Midway Islands in the Pacific. [1]
September 9
* Luxembourg gains independence. [1]
September 13
* General E R S Canby orders South Carolina courts to impanel

blacks jurors. [1]
September 28
* Toronto becomes the capital of Ontario. [1]
September 30
* Midway Islands formally declared a US possession. [1]
October 5
312
* Last day of Julian calendar in Alaska. [1]
October 14
* 15th and last Tokugawa Shogun resigns in Japan. [1]
October 16
* Alaska adopts the Gregorian calendar, crosses international date

line. [1]
October 18
* US takes formal possession of Alaska from Russia ($7.2 million). [1]

[129]
October 29
* Mail packets "Rhone" and "Wye" capsizes off Saint Thomas Virgin
Islands. [1]
November 4
* 90 kegs of powder used to get rock from Telegraph Hill for seawall.
[1]
November 15
* The first stock ticker is unveiled in New York City. [129]
November 25
* Alfred Nobel invents dynamite. [1]
December 4
* Grange organized to protect farm interests. [1]
December 6
* Giovanni Pacini composer, dies at age 71. [1]
December 7
* Rudolf Viole composer, dies at age 42. [1]
313
December 19
* Jean-Georges Kastner composer, dies at age 57. [1]

* Victims of "Angola Horror" burned to death (Angola New York). [1]
December 22
* Jean-Victor Poncelet French mathematician (kinematics), dies at

age 79. [1]
December 23
* First self-made millionairess (Sarah Breedlove-hair straightener).

[1]
December 27
* Ontario and Québec legislatures hold first meeting. [1]
December 29
* First telegraph ticker used by a brokerage house, Groesbeck and

Company, New York. [1]
1868
January 3
* Meiji Restoration returns authority to Japan's emperors. [1]

* Moritz Hauptmann composer, dies at age 75. [1]
January 7
* Arkansas constitutional convention meets in Little Rock. [1]

* Mississippi constitutional convention meets in Jackson. [1]
* William Batchelder Bradbury composer, dies at age 51. [1]
January 14
* Heinrich Schenker Austrian musicologist (Ursatz), dies at age 66.

[1]
* North Carolina constitutional convention meets in Raleigh. [1]
* South Carolina constitutional convention, meets with a black
majority. [1]
January 16
314
* Refrigerator car patented by William Davis, a fish dealer in Detroit.
[1]
January 20
* Florida constitutional convention meets in Tallahassee. [1]
January 22
* Moritz Ganz composer, dies at age 61. [1]
January 28
* Adalbert Stifter Austrian author (Witiko), commits suicide at age

62. [1]
February 10
* Conservatives and military, seize Convention Hall in Florida. [1]
February 11
* Léon Foucault discovers first physical proof of Earth's rotation,

dies. [1]
February 16
* Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks founded in New York.

[1]
February 24
* First US parade with floats (Mardi Gras-Mobile Alabama). [1]

* House of Representatives vote 126 to 47, to impeach President
Andrew Johnson. [1]
February 25
* Andrew Johnson impeached for violation of the Tenure of Office act.

[1]
February 29
* First British government of Disraeli forms. [1]
315
* [Charles] Louis I [Augustus] King of Bavaria (L Montez), dies at age
81. [1]
March 2
* Carl Eberwein composer, dies at age 81. [1]

* University of Illinois opens. [1]
March 5
* Arrigo Boito's opera "Mefistofele" premieres in Milan. [1]

* Stapler patented in England by C H Gould. [1]
* US Senate organizes to decide charges against President Andrew
Johnson. [1]
March 9
* The opera "Hamlet" premieres in Paris France. [1]
March 12
* US Congress abolishes manufacturer's tax. [1]

* Great Britain annexes Basutoland in Africa. [1]
March 13
* US Senate begins President Andrew Johnson impeachment trial. [1]
March 17
* Postage stamp canceling machine patent issued. [1]
March 20
* Jesse James Gang robs bank in Russelville Kentucky of $14,000. [1]
March 21
* First US professional women's club, Sorosis, is founded in New York

City, New York. [1]
March 23
* University of California founded (Oakland CA). [1]
March 24
316
* Metropolitan Life Insurance Company forms. [1]
March 28
* James Thomas Brudenell 7th earl of Cardigan, dies at about age

70. [1]
March 29
* In Ka'u District, Hawaii, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake occurs. [53]
March 31
* Chinese Embassy arrives aboard steamship China. [1]
April 1
* Hampton Institute opens. [1]
April 2
* In Ka'u District, Island of Hawaii, a magnitude 7.9 earthquake

occurs. This earthquake caused 77 deaths (tsunami, 46; landslide, 31).
[53]
April 3
* Franz Adolf Berwald, Swedish composer, dies at age 71. [1]
April 6
* Brigham Young marries his 27th and final wife. [1]
April 10
* First performance of John Brahms' "Ein german Requiem". [1]

* British defeat King of Abyssinia at Magdala. [1]
April 13
* Theodorus [Kasa] emperor of Abyssinia, commits suicide. [1]
April 14
* South Carolina voters approve constitution, 70,758 to 27,228. [1]
317
April 16
* Louisiana voters approve new constitution. [1]
April 18
* San Francisco Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals formed.

[1]
May 3
* Olof Wilhelm Udden composer, dies at age 68. [1]
May 9
* Anton Bruckner's first Symphony in C, premieres. [1]
May 15
* Dutch Government of Zuylen van Nijevelt falls. [1]
May 16
* Bedrich Smetana's opera "Dalibor" premieres in Prague. [1]

* President Andrew Johnson acquitted during Senate impeachment,
by one vote. [1]
May 20
* Republican National Convention, meets in Chicago, nominates

Grant. [1]
May 22
* Great Train Robbery; 7 men (Reno Brothers) make off with $98,000
in cash. [1]
* Julius Plücker German mathematician/physicist (formula of P), dies.
[1]
May 23
* Kit Carson, American frontiersman, dies. [5] (1881 [1])
May 26
318
* Michael Barrett Irish nationalist, last British public execution. [1]
* President Andrew Johnson avoids impeachment by one vote. [1]
May 31
* First Memorial Day parade held in Ironton Ohio. [1]
June 1
* Texas constitutional convention meets in Austin. [1]
June 9
* First meeting of the Board of Regents, University of California. [1]
June 19
* Major General E R S Canby removes mayor of Columbia South

Carolina. [1]
June 23
* Christopher Latham Sholes patents "Type-writer". [1]
July 11
* J C Watson discovers asteroid #100 Hekate. [1]
July 13
* Oscar J Dunn, former slave, installed as lt governor of Louisiana.

[1]
July 14
* Tape measure enclosed in a circular case patented, AJ Fellows,

Connecticut. [1]
July 20
* First use of tax stamps on cigarettes. [1]
July 25
* Territory of Wyoming created. [1]
319
July 28
* 14th Amendment ratified, citizenship to exslaves. [1]
August 8
* Quake destroys Arica Chile. [1]
August 11
* Thaddeus Stevens architect of Radical Reconstruction, dies at age

76. [1]
August 13
* In Peru and Bolivia, a magnitude 8.5 earthquake occurs. 25,000

killed. Damage extreme (US$300 million). [1] [53]
August 18
* Pierre Janssan discovers helium in solar spectrum during eclipse.

[1]
September 8
* New York Athletic Club formed. [1]
September 22
* Race riots in New Orleans Louisiana. [1]
September 23
* Grito de Lares proclaims Puerto Rico's independence (crushed by

Spain). [1]
September 28
* Battle of Alcolea, causes Queen Isabella 2 of Spain to flee to

France. [1]
* Opelousas Massacre at Saint Landry Parish Louisiana (200 blacks
killed). [1]
October 7
* Cornell University (Ithaca New York) opens. [1]
320
October 10
* Cuba revolts for independence against Spain. [1]

* Declaration of the plan of Yara in Cuba. [1]
October 17
* Constitution of Grand Duchy of Luxembourg comes into effect. [1]
October 21
* Severe earthquake at 7:53 AM, centered in Hayward, California. [1]
October 26
* B F Randolph South Carolina state senator, assassinated. [1]

* White terrorists kill several blacks in Saint Bernard Parish
Louisiana. [1]
November 3
* Ulysses Grant (Republican) wins presidential election over Horatio

Seymour (Democrat). [1]
November 11
* First American amateur track and field meet (New York City). [1]
November 13
* American Philological Association organized in New York. [1]

* Gioacchino (Antonio) Rossini composer (Barber of Seville), dies at
age 76. [1]
November 23
* Louis Ducos du Hauron patents trichrome color photo process. [1]
December 1
* John D Rockefeller begins anti oil war. [1]
December 2
* First British government of Disraeli resigns. [1]
321
December 5
* First American bicycle college opens (New York). [1]
December 7
* Jesse James gang robs bank in Gallatin Missouri, kills 1. [1]
December 9
* First British government of Gladstone forms. [1]
December 25
* Linus Yale developer of cylinder lock, dies. [1]
1869
January 13
* Colored National Labor Union, first Black labor convention. [1]

* National convention of black leaders meets in Washington DC. [1]
January 17
* Alexander Sergeyevich Dargomyzhsky composer, dies at age 55.

[1]
January 18
* Elegant California Theatre opens in San Francisco California. [1]
January 20
* Elizabeth Cady Stanton becomes first woman to testify beforeUS

Congress. [1]
January 28
* Prudent-Louis Aubery du Boulley composer, dies at age 72. [1]
February 1
* Frederik W Conrad hydraulic engineer/railway pioneer, dies at age

68. [1]
322
February 2
* James Oliver invents the removable tempered steel plow blade. [1]
February 3
* Booth theater at 23rd and 6th opens in New York City, New York
(Romeo and Juliet). [1]
February 4
* Johan M Dautzenberg Flemish author/novelist (Future), dies at age

60. [1]
February 6
* Harper's Weekly publishes first picture of Uncle Sam with chin

whiskers. [1]
February 19
* US Assay Office in Boise ID authorized. [1]
February 20
* Tennessee Governor W C Brownlow declares martial law in Ku Klux

Klan crisis. [1]
February 23
* Louisiana governor signs public accommodations law. [1]
February 26
* 15th Amendment guaranteeing right to vote sent to states. [1]

* Franz Schubert's "4th Tragic" premieres. [1]
March 1
* Alphonse MLP de Lamartine Fr poet (History of Girondins), dies at

age 78. [1]
* Postage stamps showing scenes are issued for first time. [1]
March 3
323
* University of South Carolina opens to all races. [1]
March 4
* Ulysses Grant inaugurated as 18th President. [1]
March 8
* Louis Hector Berlioz French composer (Symphony Fantastic), dies

at age 65. [1]
March 13
* Arkansas legislature passes anti-Klan law. [1]
March 15
* Cincinnati Red Stockings beat Antioch 41-7. [1]
March 16
* Hiram R Revels makes the first official speech by a black in the

Senate. [1]
March 19
* Guillaume Nerenburger Belgian General (triangulatie), dies at age

64. [1]
March 23
* Charles Lucas composer, dies at age 60. [1]
April 1
* Anthony G O Ridder van Rappard Minister of Reformed Worship,

dies at age 69. [1]
April 5
* Daniel Bakeman last surviving veteran of the Revolutionary War,

dies at age 109. [1]
April 6
* First plastic, Celluloid, patented. [1]
324
April 8
* American Museum of Natural History opens (New York City, New

York). [1]
April 9
* Hudson Bay Company cedes its territory to Canada. [1]
April 10
* US Congress increases number of Supreme Court judges from 7 to

9. [1]
April 12
* North Carolina legislature passes anti-Klan Law. [1]
April 13
* Steam power brake patented (George Westinghouse). [1]
April 16
* Ebenezer Bassett, first US Negro diplomat, begins service in Haiti.

[1]
April 20
* Johann Carl Gottfried Loewe composer, dies at age 72. [1]

* Piotr Studzinski composer, dies at age 42. [1]
April 30
* Hawaiian YMCA organized. [1]
May 1
* "Folies-Bergère" opens in Paris France. [1]

* A colt is reported killed by a meteorite near New Concord Ohio. [1]
May 10
* Golden Spike driven, completes Promontory Point UT-

Transcontinental railroad. [1]
325
* Wilhelm Bernard Molique composer, dies at age 66. [1]
May 15
* National Woman Suffrage Association forms. [1]
May 29
* Philippe Vandermaelen Flemish cartographer/publisher, dies at age

73. [1]
June 1
* Voting Machine patented by Thomas Edison. [1]
June 8
* Ives W McGaffey of Chicago patents first vacuum cleaner (it

sucks). [1]
June 9
* Charles Elmer Hires sells his first root beer (Philadelphia). [1]
June 10
* Agnes arrives in New Orleans with first ever shipment of frozen

beef. [1]
June 15
* Celluloid patented by John Wesley Hyatt, Albany, New York. [1]

* Mike McCoole (US) defeats Tom Allen (England) in bare-knuckle
bout. [1]
June 21
* The opera "Die Meistersinger" is produced (Munich). [1]
July 1
* US mint at Carson City, Nevada opens. [1]
July 6
326
* Black candidate for lt governor of Virginia, Dr J H Harris, defeated.
[1]
July 15
* A J Hayne black captain of Arkansas militia, assassinated. [1]

* Margarine is patented in Paris, for use by French Navy. [1]
August 1
* First voyage down Colorado River. [1]
August 17
* First international boat race (Thames River) (Oxford beats

Harvard). [1]
August 23
* First carload of freight (boots and shoes) arrives in SF, from Boston.
[1]
August 24
* Waffle iron invented. [1]
September 6
* First westbound train arrives in San Francisco. [1]

* Mine fire kills 179 at Avondale Pennsylvania. [1]
September 10
* Baptist minister invents the rickshaw in Yokohama, Japan. [1]
September 22
* The opera "Das Rheingold" is produced (Munich). [1]
September 24
* Black Friday; Wall Steet panic after Gould and Fisk attempt to
corner gold. [1]
October 1
327
* First postcards are issued (Vienna). [1]
October 8
* Franklin Pierce 14th president of US, dies in Concord, New

Hampshire. [1]
October 16
* Hotel in Boston becomes the first to have indoor plumbing. [1]
October 21
* First shipment of fresh oysters comes overland from Baltimore. [1]
October 26
* First American steeplechase horserace (Westchester, New York).

[1]
November 15
* Free postal delivery formally inaugurated. [1]
November 17
* Suez Canal opens (Egypt). [1]
December 6
* Jan de Liefde II Dutch vicar/author (People's Welfare), dies at age

54. [1]
December 8
* 20th Roman Catholic ecumenical council, Vatican I, opens in Rome.

[1]
December 9
* Noble Order of Knights of Labor founded, Philadelphia. [1]
December 10
* Women suffrage (right to vote) granted in Wyoming Territory (US

first). [1]
328
December 18
* Louis Moreau Gottschalk composer, dies at age 40. [1]
December 24
* Edwin M[cMasters] Stanton US Secretary of War (1861-65), dies at

age 55. [1]
December 28
* William Finley Semple of Mount Vernon, Ohio, USA, patents

chewing gum. [1] [5]
December 30
* Philadelphia Knights of Labor forms. [1]
1870
January 3
• Brooklyn Bridge construction begins; completed May 24, 1883. [1]

• Constantine D Uschinsky Russian educationalist, dies at age 46. [1]
January 7
• Karl Schwencke composer, dies at age 72. [1]
January 8
• US mint at Carson City Nevada begins issuing coins. [1]
January 10
• Georgia legislature reconvenes. [1]

• John D Rockefeller incorporates Standard Oil. [1]
January 11
• Adolf Ganz composer, dies at age 73. [1]
January 15
329
• Donkey first used as symbol of American Democratic Party, in Harper's Weekly.
[1]
January 20
• Ship City of Boston vanishes at sea with all 177 aboard. [1]
• Hiram R Revels elected to fill unexpired term of Jefferson Davis. [1]
January 23
• 173 Blackfoot Indians (140 women and children) killed in Montana by US Army.
[1]
January 25
• Soda fountain patented by Gustavus Dows. [1]
January 26
• Cesare Pugni composer, dies at age 67. [1]
January 27
• First sorority (Kappa Alpha Theta) (DePauw University in Greencastle Indiana).

[1]
• Manitoba and Northwest Territories incorporated. [1]
February 2
• Mark Twain, 34, marries Olivia Langdon in Elmira New York. [1]
• The Cardiff Giant (supposed petrified human) proved to be gypsum. [1]
February 3
• 15th Amendment (Black suffrage) passed. [1]
February 5
• First motion picture shown to a theater audience, Philadelphia. [1]
February 9
• Grant signs the bill establishing Federal Meteorological Service. [1]
February 10
330
• City of Anaheim incorporates (first time). [1]
• YWCA (Young Women's Christian Association) is founded (New York City, New
York). [1]
February 11
• Jacob M de Kempenaer Dutch Minister of Internal Affairs (1848-49), dies at age

76. [1]
• Leopold Eugen Mechura composer, dies at age 66. [1]
February 12
• Official proclamation sets April 15 as last day of grace for US silver coins to
circulate in Canada. [1]
February 15
• Ground broken for Northern Pacific Railway near Duluth Minnesota. [1]
February 17
• Esther Morris appointed first female judge. [1]
February 26
• First New York City subway line opens (pneumatic powered). [1] [5]
• Wyatt Outlaw black leader of Union League in North Carolina, lynched. [1]
March 1
• Francisco S López President of Paraguay (1862-70), dies at age 43. [1]
March 7
• Cincinnati Red Stockings, first pro BB team, begin 8-month tour of Midwest and
East. [1]
March 9
• Theodore Labarre composer, dies at age 65. [1]
March 10
• Isaak-Ignaz Moscheles composer, dies at age 75. [1]
March 14
331
• California legislature approves act making Golden Gate Park possible. [1]
March 17
• Massachusetts legislature authorizes incorporation of Wellesley Female Seminary.

[1]
March 18
• First US National Wildlife Preserve (Lake Meritt in Oakland CA). [1]

• Joaquin y Garbayo Gaztambide composer, dies at age 48. [1]
March 19
• Antônio Carlos Gomes's opera "Il Guarany" premieres in Milan Italy. [1]
March 30
• 15th Amendment passes, guarantees right to vote regardless of race. [1]
April 1
• Patrick Gass Sergeant of Lewis and Clark Expedition, dies at age 98. [1]
April 2
• Victoria Woodhull is first woman to be nominated for US President. [1]
April 4
• Golden Gate Park established by City Order #800. [1]
April 8
• Charles-Auguste de Beriot Belgian violinist/composer, dies at age 68. [1]
April 9
• American Anti-Slavery Society dissolves. [1]
April 13
• Metropolitan Museum of Art forms in New York City. [1]
April 15
332
• Last day US silver coins allowed to circulate in Canada. [1]
April 16
• Anatoli O Demidov Russian ruler of Donato/traveller, dies. [1]

• Vaudeville Theatre Strand opens in London. [1]
April 19
• Andreas Schelfhout painter/etcher/lithographer, dies at age 83. [1]

• Camille Marie Stamaty composer, dies at age 59. [1]
• William Henry Havergal composer, dies at age 77. [1]
April 27
• Heinrich Schliemann discovers Troi. [1]
May 1
• Francisco Solano López fieldmarshal/President of Paraguay. [1]
May 6
• Birth of John McClutcheon cartoonist (Pulitzer Prize-1931). [1]
May 12
• Manitoba becomes a province of Canada. [1]
May 14
• Ramon Vilanova y Barrera composer, dies at age 69. [1]
May 20
• Second Chamber abolishes capital punishment. [1]
May 24
• Memoria of Jackson Kemper, first Missionary Bishop in US. [1]
May 25
• Irish Fenians raid Eccles Hill, Québec. [1]
May 30
333
• Gustave Vogt composer, dies at age 89. [1]
May 31
• US Congress passes first Enforcement Act (rights of blacks). [1]

• E J DeSemdt patents asphalt pavement. [1]
June 9
• Charles Dickens author, dies in England. [1]
June 14
• All-pro Cincinnati Red Stockings suffer first loss in 130 games. [1]
June 22
• US Congress creates Department of Justice. [1]
June 25
• The opera "Die Walküre" is produced (Munich). [1]
June 26
• First section of Atlantic City (New Jersey) Boardwalk opens. [1]
June 30
• Ada Kepley becomes first female law college graduate. [1]
July 8
• US Congress authorizes registration of trademarks. [1]

• Governor Holden of North Carolina declares Casswell County in a state of
insurrection. [1]
July 15
• Hudson's Bay and Northwest Territories transferred to Canada. [1]

• Manitoba becomes 5th Canadian province and NW Territories created. [1]
July 19
• France declares war on Prussia; the Franco-Prussian war begins. [1]
334
July 24
• First trans-US rail service begins. [1]
July 30
• Staten Island ferry "Westfield" burns, killing 100. [1]
August 6
• White conservatives suppresed black vote and captured Tenn legislature. [1]
August 15
• Transcontinental Railway actually completed. [1]
August 17
• First ascent of Mount Rainier, Washington. [1]

• Mrs Esther Morris becomes first woman magistrate (South Pass, Wyoming). [1]
September 1
• Napoleon III captured at Sedan. [1]
September 4
• Third French republic proclaimed as they overthrow their king. [1]
September 27
• Henry TP Comstock Canadian silver prospector, dies at age 50. [1]
October 2
• Italy annexes Rome and Papal States; Rome made Italian capital. [1]
October 12
• Robert E Lee, General of the Confederate Army, dies at age 63. [1] [5]
October 19
• First (4) blacks elected to House of Reps. [1]
October 20
335
• In Canada, a magnitude 6.5 earthquake occurs, centered between Montreal and
Quebec in the Saint Lawrence Valley. The shock was felt over an area estimated
to be at least a million square miles including Sault Sainte Marie. [53]
October 25
• Pimlico Race Course opens in Baltimore. [1]

• Postcards first used in US. [1]
November 1
• US Weather Bureau begins operations (24 locations). [1]
November 8
• Democratic governor elected in Tennessee. [1]
December 5
• Alexandre Dumas writer (The Three Musketeers, The Count of Monte Cristo),
dies at age 68. [1]
December 16
• Stanislaw Duniecki composer, dies at age 31. [1]
December 17
• Giuseppe Saverio Raffaele Mercadante composer, dies at age 75. [1]
December 22
• Constantine D Uschinsky Russian educator, dies at age 46. [1]

• Jules Janssen flies in a balloon in order to study a solar eclipse. [1]
December 24
• Giusseppi Verdi's "Aida" premieres at Cairo Opera, one year after the opening of
the Suez Canal, for which it was commissioned. [1]
December 28
• Alexey Fyodorovich L'vov composer, dies at age 72. [1]

• Peter van Schendel Dutch painter, dies at age 64. [1]
December 30
336
• Prim Spanish general, murdered. [1]
December 31
• J D Schneiter patents rocket mail in France, (not done). [1]
1871
January 1
• Belgium disbands salt tax. [1]
January 2
• King Amadeus I of Spain inaugurated at age 25. [1]
January 3
• Oleomargarine patented by Henry Bradley, Binghamton New York. [1]
January 10
• Pierre A du Terrail French writer, dies at age 41. [1]
January 16
• Jefferson Long of Georgia sworn in as second black congressman. [1]
January 17
• First cable car patented, by Andrew S Hallidie (begins service in 1873). [1]
January 18
• Second German Empire proclaimed by Kaiser Wilhelm I and Bismarck. [1] [37]
January 19
• First Negro lodge of US Masons approved, New Jersey. [1]
January 21
• John J Rochussen Governor-General of Netherlands-Indies (1845-51), dies at age

73. [1]
337
January 26
• US income tax repealed. [1]
January 28
• Paris surrenders to Prussians. [1]
January 31
• Millions of birds fly over western San Francisco, darken the sky. [1]
February 1
• Alexander Nikoleyevich Serov composer, dies at age 51. [1]
February 9
• Federal fish protection office authorized byUS Congress. [1]
February 20
• In Molokai, Hawaii, a magnitude 6.8 earthquake occurs. This earthquake caused

severe damage on the islands of Lanai, Molokai, and Maui, and minor damage on
Hawaii and Oahu. [53]
February 24
• Théodore Caruelle d'Aligny French painter/etcher, dies at age 73. [1]
February 26
• Charles Niellon Belgian brigade general, dies at age 76. [1]
February 27
• Meeting of Alabama claims commission. [1]
February 28
• Second Enforcement Act gives federal control of congressional elections. [1]
March 1
• J Milton Turner named minister to Liberia. [1]
338
March 3
• US Congress changes Indian tribes status from independent to dependent. [1]

• US Congress establishes the civil service system. [1]
March 16
• First fertilizer law enacted. [1]
March 18
• Communards revolt in Paris France. [1]
March 20
• Antonio Buzzolla composer, dies at age 56. [1]
March 21
• Journalist Henry M Stanley begins his famous expedition to Africa. [1]

• Otto von Bismarck elevated Fürst. [1]
March 22
• William Holden of North Carolina is first governor removed from office by

impeachment. [1]
March 26
• François-Joseph Fétis Belgian musicologist/composer, dies at age 87. [1]

• Paris Commune founded. [1]
March 28
• San Francisco Art Association holds open reception at 430 Pine. [1]
March 29
• Albert Hall is opened by Queen Victoria in London. [1]
March 30
• W F A A Louisa/Lovisa queen of Sweden/Norway, dies at age 42. [1]
April 5
339
• Georg Andreas Henkel composer, dies at age 66. [1]
April 7
• Alexander grandson of English queen Victoria, dies at one day old. [1]
• Wilhelm Freiherr von Tegetthoff Austrian Admiral (Helgoland/Lissa), dies at age
43. [1]
April 8
• Charles-Louis Hanssens composer, dies at age 68. [1]
April 10
• William Hammond Hall's maps and surveys of Golden Gate Park accepted. [1]
April 14
• Canada sets denominations of currency as dollars, cents, and mills. [1]
April 16
• German Empire ends all anti-Jewish civil restrictions. [1]
April 18
• Omar Pasha [Michael Lats] Croatian Governor, dies at age 64. [1]
April 20
• Third Enforcement Act (President can suspend writ of habeas corpus). [1]
April 21
• Elisabeth Grube writer, dies. [1]
April 23
• Blossom Rock in San Francisco Bay blown up. [1]
April 24
• Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Aida" is produced (Cairo). [1]
April 27
340
• Sigismond Fortune François Thalberg composer, dies at age 59. [1]
April 29
• John Gelinde van Blom Fries notary/author, dies at age 75. [1]
April 30
• Apaches in Arizona surrender to white and Mexican adventurers; 144 die. [1]
May 7
• Louis Papineau political reformer, dies. [1]
May 8
• English-US treaty ends Alabama dispute. [1]
May 10
• Peace of Frankfurt-am-Main concluded between France and Germany; France

cedes Elzas. [1]
May 11
• John Herschel cataloguer of southern hemisphere stars, dies at age 79. [1]
May 12
• Daniel-François-Esprit Auber French opera composer, dies at age 89. [1]

• John F W Herschel British astronomer (Catalogue of Nebulae), dies. [1]
• Segregated street cars integrated in Louisville Kentucky. [1]
May 17
• Indians fighter General Sherman escapes in ambulance versus Comanches. [1]
May 21
• French regular troops attack Commune of Paris; 17,000 die. [1]
May 24
• Francisco Salvador Daniel composer, dies at age 40. [1]
May 26
341
• Aime Maillart composer, dies at age 54. [1]
May 28
• Paris communards revolt put down. [1]
June 13
• Hurricane kills 300 in Labrador. [1]
June 15
• Phoebe Couzins is first woman graduate of a US collegiate law school. [1]
June 16
• Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine founded, New York City. [1]
June 20
• Ku Klux Klan trials began in federal court in Oxford Mississippi. [1]
June 30
• Guatemala revolts for agarian reforms. [1]
July 20
• British Columbia becomes 6th Canadian province. [1]
July 23
• C H F Peters discovers asteroid #114 Kassandra. [1]
July 25
• Carrousel patented by Wilhelm Schneider, Davenport, Iowa. [1]
October 8
• Great Chicago Fire kills 200, destroys over 4 square miles (10 square km) of
Chicago buildings, and original Emancipation Proclamation. (In 1944, the estate
of Louis Cohn releases a letter claiming he knocked over a lantern in a barn
while playing craps with friends.) [1] [80.147] [187.283]
October 17
342
• President Grant suspends writ of habeas corpus. [1]
October 24
• Mob in Los Angeles hangs 18 Chinese. [1]
October 27
• Boss Tweed (William Macy Tweed), Democratic leader of Tammany Hall,

arrested after New York Times exposed his corruption. [1]
November 10
• Stanley presumes to meet Livingston in Ujiji, Central Africa. [1]
November 21
• Moses Gale patents a cigar lighter. [1]
November 22
• Oscar J Dunn (Lieutenant Governor-Louisiana), dies suddenly, charges he was

poisoned. [1]
November 24
• National Rifle Association organized (New York City). [1]
November 28
• Ku Klux Klan trials began in Federal District Court in South Carolina. [1]
December 12
• Jules Janssen discovers dark lines in solar corona spectrum. [1]
December 16
• Willibald Alexis German writer (Schloss Avalon), dies at age 73. [1]
December 19
• Albert L Jones (New York City, New York), patents corrugated paper. [1]
December 27
343
• World's first cat show (Crystal Palace, London). [1]
December 29
• Ferdinand Marcucci composer, dies at age 71. [1]
1872
January 3
* First patent list issued by US Patent Office. [1]
January 20
* California Stock Exchange Board organized. [1]
January 21
* Franz Grillparzer Austrian playwright (Sappho/Libussa), dies at age

81. [1]
January 28
* In Samaxi (Shemakha), Azerbaijan (Azerbaydzhan, Russia), a

magnitude 5.7 earthquake occurs. 188 killed. Samaxi almost
completely destroyed; about 30,000 people left homeless. [53]
January 29
* Francis L Cardoza elected State Treasurer of South Carolina. [1]
February 7
* Alcorn A and M College opens. [1]
February 14
* First state bird refuge authorized (Lake Merritt CA). [1]
February 20
* Hydraulic electric elevator patented by Cyrus Baldwin. [1]

* Luther Crowell patents a machine that manufactures paper bags.
[1]
* Metropolitan Museum of Art opens (New York City, New York). [1]
344
* Silas Noble and JP Cooley patents toothpick manufacturing
machine. [1]
February 21
* Pavel P Gagarin Russian monarch/politician, dies at age 82. [1]
February 22
* First national convention of the Prohibition Party (Columbus Ohio).

[1]
* Labor Reform Party formed at Columbus Ohio. [1]
March 1
* Yellowstone becomes world's first national park. [1]
March 5
* George Westinghouse Jr patents triple air brake for trains. [1]
March 7
* -8 degrees F in Boston Massachusetts. [1]
March 10
* Giuseppe Mazzini Italian revolutionary (Giovane Italy), dies at age

66. [1]
March 22
* Illinois becomes first state to require sexual equality in

employment. [1]
March 26
* In Owens Valley, California, a magnitude 7.4 earthquake occurs. [1]

[53]
* Thomas J Martin patents fire extinguisher. [1]
March 30
* Nicolaos Mantzaros composer, dies at age 76. [1]
April 1
345
* First edition of The Standard. [1]
April 2
* George B Brayton patents gasoline powered engine. [1]

* Samuel F B Morse developer of electric telegraph, dies at age 80.
[1]
April 9
* Samuel R Percy patents dried milk. [1]
April 10
* First National black convention meets in New Orleans. [1]

* Arbor day first celebrated in Nebraska, later changed to April 22.
[1]
April 12
* Jesse James gang robs bank in Columbia Kentucky (one

dead/$1,500). [1]
April 14
* Dominion Lands Act passed-Canada's Homestead Act. [1]

* San Francisco organizes Bar Association. [1]
April 20
* Ljudwit Gaj Croatian writer/poet (Pjesma iz Zagorja), dies at age

62. [1]
* San Francisco Bar Association organized. [1]
April 24
* Volcano Vesuvius erupts. [1]
April 27
* Ion Heliade-Radulescu Romanian politician/author, dies at age 70.

[1]
May 1
346
* Amalia princess of Weimar/wife of prince Hendrik the Navigator,
dies. [1]
May 10
* Victoria Woodhull becomes first woman nominated for US

president. [1]
May 15
* Thomas Hastings composer, dies at age 87. [1]
May 16
* Metropolitan Gas Company lamps lit for first time. [1]
May 17
* Bohemian Club incorporated. [1]

* Fryderyk Edward Sobolewski composer, dies at age 63. [1]
May 19
* Johan van Dale schoolmaster (New Dutch Language Wordbook),

dies at age 44. [1]
May 22
* Amnesty Act restores civil rights to Southerners (except for 500).

[1]
May 24
* Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld painter, dies. [1]
May 30
* Mahlon Loomis patents wireless telegraphy. [1]
May 31
* Birth of William Heath Robinson England, illustrator/cartoonist (Don

Quixote). [1]
June 5
347
* Republican National Convention meets (Philadelphia). [1]
June 18
* Woman's Sufferage Convention held at Merchantile Liberty Hall. [1]
July 9
* Doughnut cutter patented by John Blondel, Thomaston, Maine. [1]
July 18
* Benito Juárez Cuban justice/general (battle of Acapulco), dies at

age 66. [1]
* Britain introduces secret ballot voting. [1]
July 31
* C H F Peters discovers asteroids #122 Gerda and #123 Brunhild.

[1]
August 23
* First Japanese commercial ship visits SF, carrying tea. [1]
October 19
* World's largest gold nugget (215 kg) found in New South Wales. [1]
November 5
* Susan B Anthony fined $100 for trying to vote for Ulysses S Grant.
[1]
November 7
* Mary Celeste sails from New York to Genoa; found abandoned four
weeks later. [1]
November 9
* Fire destroys nearly 1,000 buildings in Boston. [1]
November 29
* Cornelius Krieghoff Canadian, dies. [1]
348
December 7
* HMS Challenger sets sail on 3.5-year world oceanographic cruise.

[1]
December 12
* Willem A Schimmelpenninck van der Oye Dutch politician, dies at

age 72. [1]
December 13
* Helena Beeloo, Hague's maid, murdered by Henry Jut. [1]
December 15
* Near Lake Chelan, Washington, a magnitude 6.8 earthquake

occurs. [53]
December 26
* 4th largest snowfall in New York City history (18"). [1]
December 31
* Aleksis Kivi [Stenvall] Finnish writer/poet (Kanervala), dies at age

38. [1]
* The casinos of Homburg, Germany, operate for the last time,
shutting down on order of the Prussian government. [80.295]
[187.199,213]
1873
January 1
* Origin of Japanese Era. [1]
January 3
* John Lodge Ellerton composer, dies at age 71. [1]
January 6
* Pope Pius IX encyclical "On the Church in Armenia". [1]

* US Congress begins investigating Crédit Mobilier scandal. [1]
349
January 11
* First livestock market newspaper published, Drover's Journal,

Chicago. [1]
January 13
* PBS Pinchback relinquishes office at Louisiana Governor. [1]
January 14
* "Celluloid" registered as a trademark. [1]

* P B S Pinchback elected to Senate. [1]
January 22
* Britains SS Northfleet sinks at Dungeness England, 300 die. [1]
January 28
* Henry Hugo Pierson composer, dies at age 57. [1]
February 1
* Matthew Maury hydrographer, dies. [1]
February 11
* Spanish Cortes fires king Amadeus I. [1]
February 12
* US Congress abolishes bimetallism and authorizes $1 and $3 gold

coins. [1]
February 13
* Petrus AS van Limburg Brouwer [Abraham van Luik], literary, dies.

[1]
February 14
* Charles Samvei Bovy-Lysberg composer, dies at age 52. [1]
February 20
350
* University of California gets its first Medical School (University of
California/San Francisco). [1]
February 27
* Dutch socialist Samuel van Wooden demands law against child

labor. [1]
March 3
* US Congress authorizes federal departmental postage stamps. [1]

* US Congress and government raise own salary, retroactively. [1]
March 4
* New York Daily Graphic, first illustrated daily newspaper in US,

published. [1]
March 5
* Marie-Alexis Castillon de Saint-Victor composer, dies at age 34. [1]
March 9
* Royal Canadian Mounted Police founded. [1]
March 20
* Adolfe Louis Eugene Fetis composer, dies at age 52. [1]
March 22
* Slavery is abolished in Puerto Rico. [1]
March 30
* Benedict Augustin Morel psychologist (dementia praecox), dies at

age 63. [1]
April 1
* British White Star passenger steamship Atlantic sinks in a storm off

Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 585 die. [1] [71.28]
* Mehmed Kemal's play Vatan premeres in Constantinople. [1]
351
April 13
* Carlo Coccia composer, dies at age 90. [1]

* Colfax Massacre in Grant Parish Los Angeles (60 blacks killed). [1]
April 17
* Semyon Stepanovich Gulak-Artemovsky composer, dies at age 60.

[1]
April 18
* Justus Freiherr von Liebig German chemist, dies at age 69. [1]
April 25
* Walter de la Mare English poet/author (Behold the Dreamer), dies

at age 43. [1]
May 1
* First US postal card issued. [1]

* David Livingstone British physician/explorer (Africa), dies at age
60. [1]
* Emperor Franz Jozef opens 5th World's Fair in Wien (Vienna). [1]
May 7
* US marines attack Panamá. [1]
May 8
* John Stuart Mill great Empiricist philosopher, dies at age 66. [1]
May 13
* Kaspar Masek composer, dies at age 79. [1]
May 15
* Alexander J Cuza monarch of Moldavia/Romania, dies at age 53. [1]
May 20
352
* Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis receive a US patent for "Improvement
in Fastening Pocket-Openings", work pants reinforced with metal rivets,
marking the birth of blue jeans. [5] [129]
May 22
* Alessandro Manzoni writer, dies at age 88. [1]
May 23
* Canada's North West Mounted Police Force (RCMPF) forms. [1]

* Postal cards sold in San Francisco for first time. [1]
May 24
* Leo Delibes' opera "Le Roi l'a Dit" premieres in Paris France. [1]
May 26
* August Conradi composer, dies at age 51. [1]
June 2
* Ground broken on Clay Steet (San Francisco) for world's first cable
railroad. [1]
June 13
* J C Watson discovers asteroid #132 Aethra. [1]
June 18
* Susan B Anthony fined $100 for attempting to vote for President.

[1]
June 22
* Prince Edward Island joins Canada. [1]
July 1
* Henry Flipper of Georgia is second black to enter West Point. [1]

* Prince Edward Island becomes 7th Canadian province. [1]
July 4
353
* Aquarium opens in Woodward Gardens. [1]
July 21
* Jesse James, first train robbery. [1]
August 1
* SF's first cable car begins service. [1]
August 2
* First trial run of San Francisco cable car, Clay Street between
Kearny and Jones. [1]
August 14
* "Forest and Stream" begins publishing. [1]
August 18
* First ascent of Mount Whitney, California (14,494 feet). [1]
September 6
* Regular Cable Car service begins on Clay Street. [1]
September 17
* Nineteen students attend opening class at Ohio State University.

[1]
September 19
* Black Friday: Jay Cooke and Company fails, causing a securities

panic. [1]
September 20
* Panic sweeps New York Stock Exchange (railroad bond default/bank

failure). [1]
November 4
* Dentist John Beers of San Francisco patents the gold crown. [1]
354
November 12
* Bay District Race Track opens. [1]
December 6
* Manuel Acuña Mexican poet (Ante un Cadáver), dies at age 24. [1]
December 14
* J Louis R Agassiz Swiss geologist/paleo-biologist), dies. [1]
December 30
* American Metrological Society forms (New York City, New York)

weights, measures and money. [1]
1874
January 1
* New York City annexes the Bronx. [1]
January 13
* Battle between jobless and police in New York City, New York, 100s
injured. [1]
* US troops land in Honolulu to protect the king. [1]
January 14
* I D Shadd elected Speaker of the lower house of the Mississippi

legislature. [1]
January 17
* Armed Democrats seize Texas government ending Radical

Reconstruction. [1]
* Chang and Eng Bunker Chinese/Thai Siamese twins, die at age 62.
[1]
January 19
* H v Fallersleben writer, dies at age 75. [1]
January 21
355
* Franz Grillparzer's "Libussa" premieres in Vienna. [1]
January 24
* General J van Swieten conquers Kraton Atjeh, after 1000's die. [1]
* Mussorgsky's opera "Boris Godunov" premieres in Saint Petersburg
Russia. [1]
January 31
* Jesse James gang robs train at Gads Hill Missouri. [1]
February 8
* David F Strauss German theologist, dies at age 66. [1]
February 9
* Jules Michelet French historian (History of France), dies at age 75.

[1]
February 12
* King David Kalakaua of Sandwich Island Hawaii, is first king to visit

US. [1]
February 17
* [Lambert] Adolphe J Quetelet Belgian astronomer/sociologist, dies

at age 77. [1]
February 21
* Benjamin Disraeli replaces William Gladstone as English premier.

[1]
* Oakland Daily Tribune begins publication. [1]
February 24
* Anselmo Clave composer, dies at age 49. [1]
March 8
* Millard Fillmore 13th President (1850-53), dies at age 74. [1]
356
March 10
* Purdue University (Indiana) admits its first student. [1]
March 11
* Charles Sumner a white civil rights leader, dies at age 63. [1]
March 20
* Hans Christian Lumbye composer, dies at age 63. [1]
March 21
* US Grant's daughter Nellie marries in the White House. [1]
March 22
* Young Men's Hebrew Association is founded in New York City, New

York. [1]
April 5
* Johann Strauss Sr's opera "Die Fledermaus", premieres in Vienna.

[1]
April 14
* Hermanus J Abbring Dutch author/engineer on Curaçao, dies at age

86. [1]
April 15
* New York legislature passes compulsory education law. [1]
April 16
* Dr David Livingstones corpse arrives in Southampton. [1]
April 18
* David Livingstone buried in Westminster Abbey. [1]
April 19
* Barracks on Alcatraz Island destroyed in fire. [1]
357
* Owen Jones architect, dies. [1]
April 24
* Birth of Willem E Roelofs Dutch painter/cartoonist. [1]
April 27
* White League, Paramilitary white supremacist organization, forms.

[1]
May 1
* Vilem Blodek composer, dies at age 39. [1]
May 5
* Dutch second Chamber passes child labor law. [1]
May 9
* The first horse-drawn omnibus makes its debut in the city of

Mumbai. [5]
* Victoria Embankment, in London opens. [1]
May 12
* US Assay Office in Helena Montana authorized. [1]
May 13
* Pope Pius IX encyclical "On the Greek-Ruthenian rite". [1]
May 16
* First recorded dam disaster in US (Williamsburg Massachusetts).

[1]
May 20
* Levi Strauss markets blue jeans with copper rivets, price US$13.50
per dozen. [1]
May 29
* Present constitution of Switzerland takes effect. [1]
358
June 20
* First US Lifesaving Medal awarded (Lucian Clemons). [1]
June 22
* Dr Andrew T Sill, of Macon, Missouri, finds science of osteopathy.

[1]
* Howard Staunton world chess champion, designer of chess pieces,
dies. [1]
June 28
* Freedmen's Bank closes. [1]
July 1
* First US kidnapping for ransom, 4-year-old Charles Ross, $20,000.

[1]
July 4
* Social Democratic Workmen's Party of North America formed. [1]
July 12
* Ontario Agricultural College founded. [1]
July 31
* Patrick Francis Healy, SJ, inaugurated as president of Georgetown

University. [1]
August 26
* Sixteen blacks lynched in Tennessee. [1]
September 1
* Sydney General Post Office opens in Australia. [1]
October 10
* Fiji becomes a British possession. [1]
359
November 3
* James Theodore Holly, elected bishop of Haiti. [1]
November 7
* First cartoon depicting elephant as Republican Party symbol, by T

Nast. [1]
November 9
* Israel Bak created first hebrew printing press, dies. [1]
November 18
* National Woman's Christian Temperance Union organizes in

Cleveland. [1]
November 19
* William Marcy "Boss" Tweed, of Tammany Hall (New York City)

convicted of defrauding the city of $6M, sentenced to 12 years'
imprisonment. [1]
November 24
* Joseph F Glidden patents barbed wire. [1]
December 8
* Jesse James gang takes train at Muncie KS. [1]
December 15
* First reigning king to visit US (of Hawaii) received by President

Grant. [1]
December 16
* Abraham Capadose physician/missionary, dies at age 79. [1]
December 22
* Johann Peter Pixis composer, dies at age 86. [1]
December 24
360
* Pope Pius IX proclaims a jubilee for 1875. [1]
1875
January 3
* Baldassare Galuppi Italian composer (opera's buff), dies at age 68.

[1]
* George Bizet composer, dies. [1]
January 5
* Charles Garnier's new Opera opens in Paris. [1]

* President Grant sends federal troops to Vicksburg Mississippi. [1]
January 18
* Joseph Philbrick Webster composer, dies at age 55. [1]
January 23
* Charles Kingsley English vicar/writer (Westward Ho!), dies at age

55. [1]
January 24
* Camille Saint-Saëns' "Danse Macabre" premieres. [1]
January 25
* Anti-slavery society formed in New York. [1]

* Leopold Jansa composer, dies at age 79. [1]
January 26
* Electric dental drill (battery-operated) is patented by George F

Green of Michigan, USA. [1] [55.47]
February 1
* William Sterndale Bennett composer, dies at age 58. [1]
February 3
* Everhardus J Potgieter writer (Liedekens van Bontekoe), dies at age

66. [1]
361
February 4
* Princess Louise marries Prince Philip von Saksen-Coburg-Gotha in

Belgium. [1]
February 17
* Luís Varela Brazilian romantic poet, dies at age 33. [1]
February 19
* Jean B Vuillaume French violin maker (octobas), dies at age 76. [1]
February 22
* Charles Lyell British geologist (Elements of Geology), dies at age

77. [1]
February 25
* Kiowa Indians under Lone Wolf (Guipago) surrender at Fort Sill. [1]
March 1
* US Congress passes Civil Rights Act; invalidated by Supreme Court,

1883. [1]
March 3
* US Congress authorizes 20-cent coin, lasts only three years. [1]

* Georges Bizet's opera "Carmen" premieres (Paris France). [1]
March 10
* Louis Joseph Daussoigne-Mehul composer, dies at age 84. [1]
March 14
* Smetana's "Vysehrad" premieres. [1]
March 15
* First US cardinal (John McCloskey) invested. [1]
March 18
362
* Ferdinand Laub composer, dies at age 43. [1]
March 27
* Edgar Quinet French writer/historian (Ahasvérus), dies at age 72.

[1]
March 30
* Marie Moke Pleyel composer, dies at age 63. [1]
April 7
* Georg Herwegh writer, dies at age 57. [1]
April 11
* Heinrich Schwabe discoverer of 11-year sunspot cycle, dies. [1]
April 17
* "Snooker" (variation of pool) invented by Sir Neville Chamberlain.

[1]
April 24
* Jose Maria de la Purificacion Ventura composer, dies at age 58. [1]
April 25
* Latest date for measurable snow in New York City (3"). [1]
May 1
* 238 members of "Whiskey Ring" accused of anti-US activities. [1]
May 5
* Jan A C A van Nispen tot Sevenaer Dutch Member of Parliament

(1848-75), dies at age 71. [1]
May 7
* German SS Schiller sinks near Scilly Islands, 312 killed. [1]
363
May 16
* Quake in Venezuela and Colombia kills 16,000. [1]
May 20
* Amalia wife of King Otto of Greece, dies at age 58. [1]

* International Bureau of Weights and Measures established by
treaty. [1]
May 23
* Johann Wilhelm Mangold composer, dies at age 78. [1]
June 3
* C H F Peters discovers asteroid #144 Vibilia and #145 Adeona. [1]

* Georges Bizet France, composer (...and that's no Bull!). [1]
June 5
* Pacific Stock Exchange formally opens. [1]
June 8
* A Borrelly discovers asteroid #146 Lucina. [1]
June 19
* Formal opening of US Marine Hospital at Presidio. [1]
July 1
* Universal Postal Union established. [1]
July 4
* White Democrats kill several blacks in terrorist attacks in

Vicksburg. [1]
July 9
* Francis Preston Blair Jr famed Saint Louis lawyer, dies at age 54.
[1]
July 10
364
* L Schulhof discovers asteroid #147 Protogeneia. [1]
July 19
* Emma Abbott, a floating hospital for sick kids, makes trial trip, New
York City. [1]
July 31
* Andrew Johnson 17th pres, dies in Tennessee at age 66. [1]
August 25
* Matthew Webb becomes first to swim English Channel (21h 45m).

[1]
September 9
* Lotta's Fountain (Kearny and Market) dedicated. [1]
September 11
* First newspaper cartoon strip. [1]
October 5
* Palace Hotel on Market Street, San Francisco opens. [1]
October 22
* Sons of the American Revolution organized. [1]
November 2
* In Northern Georgia, USA, a magnitude 4.3 earthquake occurs. [53]
November 4
* "Pacific" collides with "Orpheus" off Cape Flattery Washington, 236

dies. [1]
November 5
* Susan B Anthony arrested for attempting to vote. [1]
365
November 7
* Verney Cameron is first European to cross equatorial Africa. [1]
November 17
* Amer Theosophical Society founded by Mme Blavatsky and Colonel

Olcott. [1]
December 4
* William Marcy "Boss" Tweed (New York City-Tammany Hall) escapes

from jail. [1]
December 6
* 44thUS Congress (1875-77) convenes. [1]
December 7
* Natives Sons of the West organized. [1]
December 8
* Aleksandr Ostrovsky's "Volki i Ovsty" premieres in Saint

Petersburg. [1]
December 10
* Otogaki Rengetsu zen nun/benefactress of Tessai, dies at about

age 84. [1]
December 17
* Violent bread riots in Montréal. [1]
December 20
* Michail P Pogodin Russian historian/writer (Povesti), dies at age 75.

[1]
December 22
* Nikolay Alexeyevich Titov composer, dies at age 75. [1]
December 25
366
* The Lambs Club in New York is founded. [1]
December 30
* Andrassy Note calls for Christian-Muslim religious freedoms. [1]
1876
January 1
* Founding of the Reichsbank and the Mark becomes the German

currency. [37]
January 3
* First free kindergarten in US opens in Florence Massachusetts. [1]
January 10
* Charles EH de Coussemaker Belgian musicologist/historian, dies at

age 70. [1]
February 3
* Gino Capponi Italian marquis/literary/premier of Toscane, dies at

age 83. [1]
February 7
* President Grant's private-secretary Orville acquitted in Whiskey

Ring. [1]
February 10
* Johan August Soderman composer, dies at age 43. [1]
February 12
* Al Spalding opens his sporting good shop. [1]
February 14
* A G Bell and Elisha Gray apply separately for telephone patents;

Supreme Court eventually rules Bell rightful inventor. [1]
367
February 15
* Historic Elm at Boston blown down. [1]
February 17
* Sardines first canned (Julius Wolff-Eastport ME). [1]
February 18
* Direct telegraph link established between Britain and New

Zealand. [1]
February 21
* Henry John Gauntlett composer, dies at age 70. [1]
February 22
* Johns Hopkins University opens. [1]
February 24
* Henrik Ibsen's "Peer Gynt" premieres in Oslo. [1]

* Jan Pieter Heije Dutch physician/writer/poet, dies at age 67. [1]
February 28
* Charles Edward Horsley composer, dies at age 53. [1]
March 1
* Guernsey Cattle Club forms (Farmington Connecticut). [1]
March 2
* Rutherford B Hayes elected President. [1]
March 4
* Alfred Holmes composer, dies at age 38. [1]

* US Congress decides to impeach Minister of War Belknap. [1]
March 5
368
* Marie-C-S de Flavigny Agoult [Daniel Stern], Fren author, dies at
age 70. [1]
March 7
* Alexander Graham Bell is granted a patent for the telephone. [1]

[5]
* Battle at Gura: Ethiopian emperor Yohannes beats Egyptians. [1]
March 10
* First telephone call made (Alexander Graham Bell to Thomas

Watson). [1]
March 17
* General Crook destroy Cheyennes and Oglala-Sioux Indian camps.

[1]
March 18
* F Freiligrath writer, dies at age 65. [1]
March 19
* Jozef Stefani composer, dies at age 75. [1]
April 2
* Paul van Vlissingen Dutch ship owner, dies at age 78. [1]
April 3
* Henriette Davidis writer, dies. [1]
April 8
* Amiliare Ponchielli's opera "La Gioconda", premieres in Milan. [1]
April 11
* Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks is organized. [1]

* Sir Charles Gordon ends religious tolerance in Sudan. [1]
April 16
369
* Augustin-Philippe Peellaert composer, dies at age 83. [1]
April 18
* Daniel O'Leary completes a 500 mile walk in 139 hours 32

minutes. [1]
April 19
* Samuel Sebastian Wesley composer, dies at age 65. [1]
April 22
* Tchaikovsky completes his "Swan Lake" ballet. [1]
May 7
* Franz count of Pocci German artist/composer (Alchemist), dies at

age 69. [1]
May 8
* Truganini last originating Tasmanian, dies. [1]
May 10
* Centennial Fair opens in Philadelphia. [1]
May 12
* Henri A Esquiros French poet (Evangile du peuple), dies at age 63.

[1]
May 13
* Amersfoort-Zutphen railway opens. [1]
May 17
* 7th US Cavalry under Custer leaves Fort Lincoln. [1]
May 19
* Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer Dutch historian/politician, dies at

age 74. [1]
370
May 20
* Harold grandson of English queen Victoria, dies at age 8 days old.

[1]
* Khristo Botev Bulgarian poet, dies. [1]
May 24
* Henry Kingsley English/Australian writer, dies at age 46. [1]
May 26
* Frantisek Palacky Czechoslovakia, historian/Member of Parliament,

dies at age 77. [1]
* HMS Challenger returns from 128,000-km oceanographic
exploration. [1]
May 27
* Joseph Bosworth lexicographer/scholar, dies. [1]
June 5
* Bananas become popular in US, at Centennial Exposition in

Philadelphia. [1]
June 14
* California Street Cable Car Railroad Company gets its franchise. [1]
June 15
* Sara Spencer (Republican) is first woman to address a US

presidential cconvention. [1]
June 21
* Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna Mexican general (took Alamo), dies

at age 82. [1]
June 25
* US Army General George Custer attacks the Lakota and Cheyenne

village. [246.70]
* Native American forces led by Chiefs Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull
defeat the U.S. Army troops of Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong
371
Custer in a bloody battle near southern Montana's Little Bighorn River.
[1] [129] [246.70]
July 4
* First public exhibition of electric light in San Francisco. [1]
July 8
* White terrorists attack Black Republicans in Hamburg South

Carolina, killing 5. [1]
July 12
* Paul Henry discovers asteroid #164 Eva. [1]
July 20
* First US intercollegiate track meet held, Saratoga, NY; Princeton

wins. [1]
August 1
* Colorado becomes 38th US state. [1]
August 2
* In Deadwood, South Dakota, James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok is shot

dead (from behind) by Jack McCall while playing poker, for no known
reason. He reportedly held a pair of Aces and a pair of 8s. [1] [187.264]
August 8
* Dan O'Leacy completes 500 mile walk in 139h32m. [1]

* Thomas Edison patents mimeograph. [1]
August 13
* Reciprocity Treaty between US and Hawaii ratified. [1]
August 14
* Prairie View State University forms. [1]
August 16
372
* The opera "Siegfried" is produced (Bayreuth). [1]
August 17
* The opera "Götterdämmerung" is produced (Bayreuth). [1]
September 6
* Race riot in Charleston South Carolina. [1]

* Southern Pacific line from Los Angeles to San Francisco completed.
[1]
October 6
* American Library Association organized in Philadelphia. [1]
October 9
* First two-way telephone conversation, first over outdoor wires. [1]
October 16
* Race riot at Cainhoy South Carolina (5 whites and one black killed).
[1]
October 18
* Francis Preston Blair newspaper editor (Washington Globe), dies at

age 85. [1]
October 23
* New Orleans Mint reopens as an assay office. [1]
October 26
* President sends federal troops to South Carolina. [1]
November 7
* Meharry Medical College established at Central Tennessee College.

[1]
* President Rutherford B Hayes and Samuel J Tilden claim
presidential victory. [1]
December 3
373
* Hermann Goetz composer, dies at age 35. [1]
December 5
* Daniel Stillson (Massachusetts) patents first practical pipe wrench.

[1]
* Fire at Brooklyn Theater kills 295, trampled or burned to death. [1]
December 6
* First crematorium in US begins operation, Washington

Pennsylvania. [1]
* City of Anaheim incorporated for second time. [1]
* US Electorial College picks Representative Hayes as President
(although Tilden won). [1]
December 8
* Suriname begins compulsory education for 7-12 years. [1]
December 20
* Hannah Omish at age 12 is youngest ever hanged in US. [1]
December 23
* Turkey's first constitution proclaimed. [1]
December 28
* Frederik Paludan-Müller Danish poet (Abels död), dies at age 67.

[1]
December 29
* Eleven passenger cars crash in a ravine near Ashtabula Ohio, 92

die. [1]
* Frédéric A Bartholdi (Statue of Liberty sculptor) weds Jeanne-
Emilie. [1]
1877
January 1
* England's Queen Victoria proclaimed empress of India. [1]
374
January 4
* Cornelius Vanderbilt US robber baron, dies at age 82. [1]
January 11
* Pietro Romani composer, dies at age 85. [1]
January 12
* Death of Wilhelm Hofmeister in Lindenau, Germany; botanist,

pioneer in comparative plant morphology, professor at the University
of Tübingen. [37]
January 15
* US Assay Office in Helena, Montana opens. [1]
January 16
* Color organ (for light shows) patented, by Bainbridge Bishop. [1]
January 25
* US Congress determines presidential election between Hayes-

Tilden. [1]
January 30
* Storm flood ravages Dutch coastal provinces. [1]
February 1
* Joseph-Leon Gatayes composer, dies at age 71. [1]
February 7
* First Guernsey Cattle Club organizes (New York City, New York). [1]
February 12
* First news dispatch by telephone, between Boston and Salem

Massachusetts. [1]
* US railroad builders strike against wage reduction. [1]
375
February 20
* First cantilever bridge in US completed, Harrodsburg Kentucky. [1]
February 27
* US Electoral College declares R Hayes winner Presidential election.

[1]
March 2
* Rutherford B Hayes (Republican) declared President despite

Samuel J Tilden (Democrat) winning the popular vote, but is one
electoral vote shy of victory. [1]
March 3
* Rutherford B Hayes is sworn in as the 19th President. [1]
March 4
* Hendrik E van Rijgersma Dutch Governor (Saint Maarten), dies at

age 42. [1]
* Tsjaikovski's incomplete ballet "Zwanenmeer" premieres in
Moscow. [1]
March 5
* Rutherford B Hayes inaugurated as 19th US President. [1]
March 9
* Mark Prager Lindo English/Dutch author (Netherlands Spectator),

dies at age 58. [1]
March 12
* Crystobal Oudrid y Segura composer, dies at age 52. [1]

* Great Britain annexes Walvis Bay at Cape colony. [1]
March 13
* US Patent Office awards a patent to Chester Greenwood of

Farmington, Maine for ear protectors (earmuffs). [66.4]
March 18
376
* President Hayes appoints Frederick Douglass marshal of
Washington DC. [1]
March 19
* Australia beat England by 45 runs in very first Test match. [1]
March 24
* University boat race between Oxford and Cambridge ends in a

dead heat. [1]
* Walter Bagehot English economist/critic/banker, dies at age 51. [1]
March 28
* Vincenzo Fioravanti composer, dies at age 77. [1]
March 31
* Antoine A Cournot French mathematician (rule of C), dies at age

75. [1]
* British high director/Governor sir Bartle Frere arrives in Capetown.
[1]
April 2
* At West's Amphitheatre in London, England, Zazel performs the

first human-cannonball circus act. The Cannon is powered by elastic
springs. [55.39] (April 10 [1])
* First Easter egg roll held on White House lawn. [1]
April 7
* Errico Petrella composer, dies at age 63. [1]
April 10
* Federal troops withdrawn from Columbia South Carolina. [1]
April 12
* British annex Transvaal, in South Africa. [1]
April 15
377
* First telephone installed Boston-Somerville Massachusetts. [1]
April 19
* The opera "Les Cloches de Corneville" is produced (Paris France).

[1]
April 24
* Last federal occupying troops withdraw from south (New Orleans).

[1]
* Russia declares war on Turkey through Romania. [1]
April 27
* President Rutherford Hayes removes Federal troops from Louisiana,

Reconstruction ends. [1]
* The opera "Le Roi de Lahore" is produced (Paris France). [1]
May 7
* Cincinnati Enquirer, first uses the term "Bullpen" to indicate foul

territory. [1]
May 8
* First Westminster Dog Show held. [1]
May 10
* In Chile, a magnitude 8.3 earthquake occurs, producing a 24 metre

tsunami that caused extensive damage along the Peru-Chile coast. The
tsunami was observed at all the islands of the Hawaiian archipelago,
and caused fatalities in Hawaii and Japan. [53]
May 13
* César Franck's "Lesson Eolides" premieres. [1]
May 14
* John Roberts composer, dies at age 54. [1]
May 17
378
* Edwin T Holmes installs first telephone switchboard burglar alarm.
[1]
May 29
* John Lothrop Motley (History of United Netherlands), dies at age

63. [1]
June 1
* US troops authorized to pursue bandits into Mexico. [1]
June 14
* In the USA, the first Flag Day observance is held on the 100th
anniversary of the adoption of the Stars and Stripes. [129]
June 20
* Alexander Graham Bell installs the world's first commercial

telephone service in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. [5]
July 23
* First US municipal railroad, Cincinnati Southern, begins operations.

[1]
* First telephone and telegraph line in Hawaii completed. [1]
July 24
* First time federal troops are used to combat strikers. [1]
August 2
* San Francisco Public Library opens with 5,000 volumes. [1]
August 12
* Asaph Hall discovers Deimos, the smaller of Mars' two moons. [1]
[5]
* Thomas Edison invents the Edisonphone, a sound recording device.
[1]
August 17
* Asaph Hall discovers Mars' moon Phobos. [1]
379
August 29
* Brigham Young second president of Mormon Church, dies. [1]
September 5
* Southern blacks led by Pap Singleton settle in Kansas. [1]
September 20
* Chase National Bank opens in New York City (later merges into
Chase Manhattan). [1]
September 23
* Urbain JJ Leverrier codiscoverer of Neptune, dies. [1]
September 27
* John Mercer Langston named minister of Haiti. [1]
October 5
* Chief Joseph surrenders, ending Nez Percé War. [1]
October 9
* American Humane Association organized in Cleveland. [1]
October 15
November 9
* American Chemical Society chartered in New York. [1]
November 15
* In Eastern Nebraska, a magnitude 5.1 earthquake occurs. [53]
November 21
* Thomas Edison announces his invention of the phonograph, a

machine that could record and play sound. [1] [5]
380
November 29
* Thomas Edison demonstrates the hand-cranked phonograph. [1]
December 2
* Camille Saint-Saëns' opera "Samson et Dalila" premieres in

Weimar. [1]
December 6
* First sound recording made (Thomas Edison). [1]

* Washington Post publishes first edition. [1]
December 7
* Thomas A Edison demonstrates the gramophone. [1]
December 10
* Federico Ricci composer, dies at age 68. [1]

* Jared Kirtland US physician/naturalist, dies. [1]
December 12
* José M de Alencar Brazilian writer/minister of Justice, dies at age

48. [1]
December 15
* Thomas Edison patents phonograph. [1]
December 16
* Anton Bruckner's third Symphony in D, premieres. [1]
December 26
* Socialist Labor Party of North America holds first national

convention. [1]
December 27
* Nikolai A Nekrasov Russian poet (Metshty into Zvuki), dies at age

56. [1]
381
December 28
* John Stevens, Wisconsin, applies for a patent on his flour rolling

mill. [1]
December 29
* Willem Sassen Dutch Attorney General on Curaçao (Affair-S), dies.

[1]
December 30
* Johnannes Brahms' second Symphony in D, premieres in Vienna.

[1]
December 31
* Alberto Mazzucato composer, dies at age 64. [1]

* JD Gustave Courbet French painter (Baigneuses), dies at age 58.
[1]
1878
January 8
* Secret meeting of King Leopold II's agent and Henry Morton

Stanley. [1]
January 9
* Victor Emmanuel II king of Sardinia (1849-61)/Italy (1861-78), dies

at age 57. [1]
January 10
* US Senate proposes female suffrage. [1]
January 14
* US Supreme court rules race separation on trains unconstitutional.

[1]
January 19
* Henri V Regnault French physicist/chemist, dies at age 67. [1]
382
January 28
* First telephone exchange (New Haven Connecticut). [1]

* George W Coy hired as first full-time telephone operator. [1]
* Yale Daily News published, first college daily newspaper. [1]
February 1
* George Cruikshank English illustrator (Grimm), dies at age 85. [1]
February 2
* Greece declares war on Turkey. [1]
February 7
* Pius IX "Pio Nono", [Giovanni Ferretti], Pope (1846-78), dies at age

85. [1]
February 8
* Elias M Fries Swedish botanist (mycologicum), dies at age 83. [1]
February 10
* Peace of Zanjón. [1]

* Peter Tchaikovsky's 4th Symphony in F, premieres. [1]
February 11
* First US bicycle club, Boston Bicycle Club, forms. [1]

* First weekly Weather report published in United Kingdom. [1]
February 16
* Silver dollar became US legal tender. [1]
February 17
* First telephone exchange in San Francisco opens with 18 phones.

[1]
* José Amador de los Ríos Spanish historian/poet, dies at age 59. [1]
February 18
383
* Peter D Regout industrialist (Sphinx, Maastricht), dies at age 76.
[1]
February 19
* Charles F Daubigny French restaurateur/painter, dies at age 61. [1]

* Thomas Alva Edison patents the gramophone (phonograph). [1] [5]
February 21
* First telephone directory (with 50 names) issued (New Haven

Connecticut). [1]
February 22
* Franz Hunten composer, dies at age 84. [1]

* Greenback Labor Party formed (Toledo Ohio). [1]
February 28
* US congress authorizes large-size silver certificate. [1]
March 3
* Bulgaria liberated from Turkey (Peace of San Stefano). [1]
March 16
* King Oskar II of Sweden sells St. Barthelemew island to France. [7]

* William Banting English undertaker, dies. [1]
March 24
* Albin Masek composer, dies at age 73. [1]

* British frigate Eurydice sunk; 300 lost. [1]
March 26
* Hastings College of Law founded. [1]

* Sabi Game Reserve, world's first official designated game reserve,
opens. [1]
March 27
* Dobri Voynikov composer, dies at age 44. [1]

* George Gilbert Scott architect, dies. [1]
384
April 1
* Eugene Gautier composer, dies at age 56. [1]
April 2
* First issue of Rotterdam's Newspaper. [1]
April 5
* Wilhelm Speyer composer, dies at age 87. [1]
April 9
* First Lady Lucy Hayes begins egg rolling contest on White House
lawn. [1]
April 10
* California State Cable Car Railroad Company starts service. [1]
April 12
* William M "Boss" Tweed New York politician, dies. [1]
April 15
* Harley Procter introduces Ivory Soap. [1]
April 21
* New York installs first firehouse pole. [1]

* Pope Leo XIII publishes encyclical Inscrutabili. [1]
* Temistocle Solera composer, dies at age 62. [1]
* The ship Azor leaves Charleston with 206 blacks for Liberia. [1]
April 23
* First Dutch test drive of steam tram. [1]

* Friedrich Preller landscape painter, dies. [1]
May 2
* US stops minting 20-cent coin. [1]
385
May 4
* Phonograph shown for first time at Grand Opera House. [1]
May 14
* Vaseline is first sold (registered trademark for petroleum jelly). [1]
May 19
* Blanche Kelso Bruce appointed register of treasury by President

Garfield. [1]
May 22
* Franz von Holstein composer, dies at age 52. [1]
May 23
* Attorney John Henry Smyth named minister to Liberia. [1]
May 24
* CA Parker (Harvard) wins first American bike race, Beacon Park

Boston. [1]
May 25
* Gilbert and Sullivans opera "HMS Pinafore" premieres in London.

[1]
May 27
* Carlo Marsili composer, dies at age 49. [1]
May 31
* German battleship Grosser Kurfürst sinks, 284 killed. [1]

* US Congress accept decrease in dollar circulation. [1]
June 4
* Cyprus ceded by Turkey to Britain for administrative purposes. [1]
June 15
386
* First attempt at motion pictures (used 12 cameras, each taking 1.
[1]
June 18
* C H F Peters discovers asteroid #188 Menippe. [1]
July 9
* An improved corncob pipe patented by Henry Tibbe, Washington,

Mo. [1]
* Corncob pipe patented (Henry Tibbe). [1]
July 13
* Treaty of Berlin amended terms of Treaty of San Stefano. [1]
July 20
* First telephone introduced in Hawaii. [1]
August 21
* The American Bar Association is founded at Sarasota, New York. [1]

[5]
September 1
* First female telephone operator starts work (Emma Nutt in Boston).

[1]
September 30
* First Portuguese immigrants arrive in Hawaii. [1]
October 15
* Edison Electric Light Company incorporated. [1]
December 1
* First White House telephone installed. [1]
December 3
* Settlers arrive at Petach Tikvah Israel. [1]
387
December 9
* Joseph Pulitzer buys Saint Louis Dispatch for $2,500. [1]
December 12
* Joseph Pulitzer begins publishing "St Louis Dispatch". [1]
December 18
* French SS Byzantin sinks after collision in Dardanellen, 210 killed.

[1]
December 25
* Anna Claypoole Peale US painter of miniatures, dies. [1]
December 26
* First US store to install electric lights, Philadelphia. [1]
December 28
* Jose Bernardo Alcedo composer, dies at age 90. [1]

* Pope Leo XIII publishes encyclical Quod apostolici muneris
(socialism). [1]
1879
January 1
* John Brahms' Violin Concerto in D major premieres in Leipzig. [1]
January 2
* British battleship Thunder explodes in Gulf of Ismid, 9 die. [1]
January 7
* Dutch King Willem II marries Emma von Waldeck-Pyrmont. [1]
January 9
* Cheyenne prisoners led by Dull Knife revolt at Fort Robinson. [1]
388
* Don Joaquin BF Espartero fieldmarshall/viceroy of Navarra, dies at
age 86. [1]
* Kirland Warbler discovered on Andros Island in Bahamas. [1]
January 11
* Zulu war against British colonial rule in South Africa begins. [1]
January 12
* British Zulu War begins Lieutenant-General Chelmsford invades

Zululand. [1]
January 13
* In St. Augustine, Florida, a large magnitude earthquake occurs. Felt

from Daytona Beach to Savannah, Georgia. [53]
* WF Hendrik the Navigator prince of Netherlands/viceroy of
Luxembourg, dies at age 58. [1]
January 16
* January record 13" of snow falls in New York City, New York (broken
Jan 7, 1996). [1]
January 20
* British troops under Lord Chelmsford set camp at Isandlwana. [1]
January 21
* Henrik Ibsen's "Et Dukkehjem" premieres in Copenhagen. [1]
January 22
* Anthony Durnford British Colonel, dies in battle. [1]

* George Shepstone British political affiliate, dies in battle. [1]
* James Shields (Democrat) elected US senator from Missouri after
previously serving as US senator from Illinois and Minnesota. [1]
* Zulus attack British Army camp in Isandhlwana South Africa. [1]
January 23
* Adolf Jensen composer, dies at age 42. [1]
January 29
389
* Antonia MB Antonucci Italian cardinal/diplomat, dies at age 80. [1]
* Custer Battlefield National Monument, Montana established. [1]
January 30
* French President MacMahon resigns. [1]
February 5
* Joseph Swan demonstrates light bulb using carbon glow. [1]
February 8
* Sandford Fleming first proposes adoption of Universal Standard

Time at a meeting of the Royal Canadian Institute. [5]
February 10
* First electric arc light used (California Theater). [1]

* Henry Morton Stanley departs to the Congo. [1]
* Honoré V Daumier French painter/lithographer, dies at age 70. [1]
* Wolter R baron van Hoëvell Dutch vicar/abolitionist, dies at age 66.
[1]
February 11
* Honore Daumier caricaturist/painter, dies. [1]

* Willem J van Zeggelen Dutch author/novelist/writer, dies at age 67.
[1]
February 12
* At New York City's Madison Square Garden, the first artificial ice
rink in North America opens. [1] [5]
* News about slaughtering of Isandlwana reaches London. [1]
February 14
* Chilean troops occupy Antofagasta. [1]
February 15
* US Congress authorizes women lawyers to practice before the

Supreme Court. [1]
390
February 18
* Arabs capture Egyptian premier Nabar Pasha. [1]
February 21
* Peter P van Bosse Dutch liberal minister of Finance, dies at age 69.
[1]
February 22
* First 5 and 10 cent store opened by Frank W Woolworth in Utica

New York. [1]
February 25
* US Congress passed first Timberland Protection Act. [1]
February 27
* Constantine Fahlberg discovers saccharin (artificial sweetener). [1]
February 28
* "Exodus of 1879" southern blacks flee political/economic

exploitation. [1]
March 1
* Library of Hawaii founded. [1]
March 3
* First female lawyer heard by Supreme Court (Belva Ann Bennett

Lockwood). [1]
* In Washington, D.C., the United States Geological Survey is
established, in the Department of the Interior, with responsibilities:
"classification of the public lands, and examination of the geological
structure, mineral resources, and products of the national domain". [1]
[53]
March 13
* Adolf Anderssen German world champion chess (1851..66), dies at

age 60. [1]
391
March 29
* Tsjaikovski's opera "Jevgeni Onegin" premieres in Moscow. [1]
March 30
* David van der Kellen Dutch coin engraver, dies at age 74. [1]
* Thomas Couture French painter/author, dies at age 63. [1]
April 8
* Khedive Ismael of Egypt fires French/British ministers. [1]

* Milk is sold in glass bottles for first time. [1]
April 9
* Ernst Friedrich Richter composer, dies at age 70. [1]
April 16
* Bernadette saint/(saw Virgin Mary at Lourdes), dies in Nevers

France. [1]
April 18
* Anthony Pannizim principal librarian (British Museum), dies. [1]

* Trial of Standing Bear-Crook on Indians citizen rights begins. [1]
April 20
* First mobile home (horse drawn) used in a journey from London

and Cyprus. [1]
May 4
* William Froude British civil engineer/shipbuilder (F Integer), dies at

age 68. [1]
May 8
* George Selden files for first patent for a gasoline-driven

automobile. [1]
May 10
* Meteor falls near Estherville IA. [1]
392
May 16
* Antonin Dvorák's "Slavic Dancing" premieres. [1]

* Treaty of Gandamak to set up Afghan state between Russia and
English. [1]
May 21
* Battle of Iquiquw. [1]
May 24
* William Lloyd Garrison abolitionist (Liberator), dies at age 73. [1]
May 30
* 92 degrees F highest temperature ever recorded in Cleveland Ohio

in May. [1]
* Gilmore Garden (New York City) renamed Madison Square Garden.
[1]
May 31
* First electric railway opens at Berlin Trades Exposition. [1]

* Madison Square Garden opens its doors. [1]
June 13
* A Borrelly discovers asteroid #198 Ampella. [1]
June 16
* Gilbert and Sullivan's "HMS Pinafore" debuts at Bowery Theatre

New York City. [1]
June 21
* F W Woolworth opens first store (failed almost immediately). [1]
July 9
* C H F Peters discovers asteroid #199 Byblis. [1]
July 17
393
* First railroad opens in Hawaii. [1]
July 27
* C H F Peters discovers asteroid #200 Dynamene. [1]
August 27
* Sir Rowland Hill introduced postage stamps, dies at age 84. [1]
August 30
* John B Hood confederate general (lost Atlanta), dies at age 48. [1]
August 31
* William Barber 6th US chief engraver (1844-79), dies. [1]
September 20
* US Grant comes to San Francisco for elaborate extended visit. [1]
September 23
* Baldwin steam motors tram first tried in Sydney Australia. [1]
September 28
* Sydney Australia innaugurates steam motor tram route. [1]
October 21
* In Menlo Park, New Jersey, Thomas Alva Edison succeeds in

creating an electric lamp, with carbonized cotton filament, burning for
14.5 hours. [1] [55.54]
November 1
* US parent office grants Thomas Edison patent on electric lamp.

[55.54]
November 2
* In a six-day footrace a Mr Weston loses to a horse, 900 to 885 km.

[1]
394
November 4
* James and John Ritty patent first cash register, to combat stealing
by bartenders in their Dayton, Ohio saloon. [1]
November 19
* National Association of Trotting Horse Breeders determines what

"is" a trotter. [1]
December 5
* First automatic telephone switching system patented. [1]
December 13
* First federal fish hatching steamer launched (Wilmington

Delaware). [1]
December 20
* Tom Edison privately demonstrated incandescent light at Menlo

Park. [1]
December 26
* Jean Leonard Marie Poiseuille dies. [1]

* John Brahms' "Tragic Ouverture" premieres. [1]
December 28
* North British Railway's train falls as Firth bridge collapses

(Scotland). [1]
December 30
* Gilbert and Sullivan's "Pirates of Penzance" premieres. [1]
December 31
* Cornerstone laid for Honolulu's Iolani Palace (only royal palace in

US). [1]
* Edison gives first public demonstration of his incandescent lamp.
[1]
* Gilbert/Sullivan's "Pirates of Penzance" premieres in New York City,
New York. [1]
395
1880
January 1
* French workers begin official ground-breaking for a sea-level canal

across Colombia's Panama province. [1] [150.61]
January 4
* Anselm Feuerbach German painter, dies. [1]
January 6
* Record snow cover in Seattle-120cm. [1]
January 8
* [Joshua] Norton I Emperor of US/Protector of México, dies at age

60. [1]
January 9
* 6' (1.8 metres) of snow falls in Seattle in five days. [1]
January 12
* Ida Gräfin von Hahn-Hahn author (Aus der Gesellschaft), dies at

age 74. [1]
January 21
* First US sewage disposal system separate from storm drains,

Memphis Tennessee. [1]
January 27
* Thomas Edison patents electric incandescent lamp. [1]
February 2
* SS Strathleven arrives in London with first Australian frozen

mutton. [1]
February 4
396
* Steele MacKay's "Hazel Kirke" premieres in New York City, New
York. [1]
February 10
* Isaäc M "Isaac A" Crémieux French minister of Justice, dies at age

83. [1]
* Pope Leo XIII publishes encyclical Arcanum about Christian
marriage. [1]
February 12
* National Croquet League organizes (Philadelphia). [1]
February 16
* American Society of Mechanical Engineers founded, New York City,

New York. [1]
February 17
* Tsar Alexander II of Russia survives an assassination attempt. [1]
February 22
* In Yokohama, Japan, a magnitude 5.8 earthquake occurs. [53]
February 29
* Gotthard railway tunnel between Switzerland and Italy opens. [1]
March 3
* Birth of Anne C Veth Dutch cartoonist/art critic. [1]
March 4
* New York Daily Graphic publishes first half-tone engraving, by S H

Horgan. [1]
March 10
* General Wolseley opens new legislative council in Pretoria. [1]

* Salvation Army of England sets up US welfare and religious activity.
[1]
397
March 15
* Jan K J de Jonge Dutch historian, dies at age 51. [1]
March 18
* Birth of Christopher K H de Nerée tot Babberich cartoonist. [1]
March 23
* Flour rolling mill patented (John Stevens of Wisconsin). [1]

* Gustav Adolf Mankell composer, dies at age 67. [1]
March 24
* Tobacco Growers' Mutual Insurance Company incorporates in

Connecticut. [1]
March 25
* Joseph Rummel composer, dies at age 61. [1]

* Ludmilla Assing writer, dies. [1]
March 26
* Mariano Soriano Fuertes y Piqueras composer, dies at age 62. [1]
March 28
* Achille Peri composer, dies at age 67. [1]

* Eelco Refer linguistic (Oera Linda Book?), dies at age 49. [1]
March 29
* Jakob Axel Josephson composer, dies at age 62. [1]
March 31
* First town completely illuminated by electric lighting (Wabash

Indiana). [1]
* Henryk Wieniawski Polish violist/composer, dies at age 44. [1]
April 7
* Diederich Krug composer, dies at age 58. [1]
398
April 23
* Guess Saleh [Sarief Bastaman] Javanese painter, dies. [1]
April 24
* Amateur Athletic Association, governing body for men's athletics in

England and Wales, is founded in Oxford, England. [1]
* A bomb explodes in the Monte Carlo casino; many are wounded by
glass, but no serious theft is carried out. [187.304]
May 8
* Gustave Flaubert French writer (Salammbô), dies. [1]
May 9
* Johann Hermann Berens composer, dies at age 54. [1]
May 10
* General Wolseley opens new legislative council in Pretoria. [1]

* John Goss composer/organist, dies at age 79. [1]
May 16
* Karl August Krebs composer, dies at age 76. [1]
May 20
* Eugène prince the Ligne Belgian prince of Ambise, dies at age 76.
[1]
May 22
* Heinrich Freiherr von Gagern German liberal politician, dies at age

80. [1]
May 26
* John Curwen composer, dies at age 63. [1]
May 31
* League of American Wheelmen (first US bicycle association), forms

in Newport Rhode Island. [1]
399
July 19
* San Francisco Public Library starts lending books. [1]
July 21
* Compressed air accident kills 20 workers on Hudson River tunnel,

New York. [1]
July 23
* First commercial hydroelectric power plant begins, Grand Rapids,

Mich. [1]
July 27
* Battle of Maiwand, at which Dr Watson was wounded, breaks out.

[1]
August 14
* Construction of Cologne Cathedral completed. [1]
September 7
* Geo Ligowsky patents device to throw clay pigeons for

trapshooters. [1]
September 9
* President Hayes visits San Francisco. [1]
September 30
* Henry Draper takes that first photograph of the Orion Nebula. [1]
October 15
* Köln cathedral completed, 633 years after it begun. [1]
October 27
* Theodore Roosevelt marries Alice Lee, on his 22nd birthday. [1]
November 2
400
* James A Garfield (Republican) elected President. [1]
November 24
* Southern University established. [1]
December 2
* Josephine Lang composer, dies at age 65. [1]
December 8
* 5,000 armed Boers gather in Paardekraal South Africa. [1]
December 12
* Michel Chasles French mathematician (geometry), dies at age 83.

[1]
December 15
* Carlo Boncompagni di Mombello Italian minister of Justice, dies at

age 76. [1]
December 16
* Republic of South Africa forms. [1]
December 20
* Battle at Bronker's Spruit, Transvaal: Farmers beat Britten. [1]

* New York's Broadway lit by electricity, becomes known as "Great
White Way". [1]
December 22
* George Eliot Victorian novelist (Adam Bede), dies on 61st birthday.

[1]
December 27
* Alessandro Nini composer, dies at age 75. [1]
1881
401
January 1
* Dr John H Watson is introduced to Sherlock Holmes. [1]
January 2
* Camille Saint-Saëns' third Concerto in B, premieres. [1]
January 4
* Johannes Brahms' "Academic Festival Overture" premieres,

Breslau. [1]
January 22
* Ancient Egyptian obelisk "Cleopatra's Needle" erected in Central

Park. [1]
January 25
* Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell form the first

telephone company. [5]
January 26
* Union of Baptists Communities forms in Foxholl. [1]
January 28
* Battle at Laing's Neck Natal Boers beat superior powered British.

[1]
January 30
* Jaak Nikolaas Lemmens Flemish composer, dies at age 58. [1]
February 1
* US Assay Office in Saint Louis Missouri authorized. [1]
February 2
* Aleksej F Pisemski Russian writer (Clodhopper), dies at age 59. [1]
February 5
402
* Phoenix Arizona incorporates. [1]
* Thomas Carlyle historian/essayist, dies in London at age 85. [1]
February 6
* Pieter Mijer Governor-General of Netherlands Indies (1866-72), dies

at age 68. [1]
February 7
* Battle at Ingogo, Transvaal Boers beat superior British forces. [1]

* Fredrik Cygnaeus Finnish poet/literature critic, dies at age 73. [1]
February 9
* Feodor M Dostoevski Russian novelist (Crime and Punishment),

dies at age 59. [1]
February 10
* Jacques Offenbach's opera "Les Contes d'Hoffman" premieres in

Paris. [1]
February 19
* Kansas becomes first state to prohibit all alcoholic beverages. [1]
February 24
* De Lesseps' Company begins work on Panamá Canal. [1]
February 26
* Natal British troops under General-Major Colley occupy Majuba Hill.

[1]
* SS Ceylon begins first round-the-world cruise from Liverpool. [1]
February 27
* Battle at Amajuba, South Africa Boers versus British army under

General Colley. [1]
* George Colley British governor of Natal/General, dies in battle at
age 46. [1]
March 4
403
* California becomes first state to pass plant quarantine legislation.
[1]
* Holmes and Watson begin "A Study in Scarlet", first case together.
[1]
* James A Garfield inaugurated as 20th President. [1]
* South African President Kruger accepts ceasefire. [1]
March 13
* Alexander II Tsar of Russia, assassinated at age 62. [1]
March 15
* Emory Upton US Union General-Major (Selma), commits suicide at

age 42. [1]
March 16
* Modest P Mussorgsky Russian composer (Boris Godunov), dies at

age 42. [1]
March 18
* [PT] Barnum and [James A] Bailey's Greatest Show on Earth opens

(Madison Square Garden). [1]
March 23
* Boers and Britain sign peace accord; end first Boer war. [1]
* Gas lamp sets fire to Nice France opera house; 70 die. [1]
* Nikolay Rubinstein composer, dies at age 45. [1]
March 24
* Friedrich Hecker German revolutionary republic politician, dies at

age 69. [1]
March 28
* Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky composer, dies at age 42. [1]
March 31
* Gaetano Gaspari composer, dies at age 73. [1]
April 1
404
* Anti-Jewish riots in Jerusalem. [1]
* Kingdom post office in Netherlands opens. [1]
April 5
* Transvaal regains independence under British suzerainty. [1]
April 7
* Pierre Napoleon Bonaparte Corsican Member of Parliament, dies at

age 65. [1]
April 11
* Kristian Mandrup Elster Norwegian author (Torn Trondal), dies at

age 40. [1]
* River ferry "Princess Victoria" sinks in Thames River Ontario, 180
die. [1]
* Spelman College founded. [1]
April 16
* George William Martin composer, dies at age 56. [1]
April 18
* Natural History Museum of South Kensington England opens. [1]
April 19
* Benjamin Disraeli first Earl (Beaconsfield)/novelist, dies. [1]

* Michel Abeloos Flemish sculptor, dies at age 53. [1]
April 23
* Gilbert and Sullivan's opera "Patience or Bunthorne's Bride"

produced in London. [1]
April 25
* 250,000 Germans petition to bar foreign Jews from entering

Germany. [1]
* French troops occupy Algeria and Tunisia. [1]
April 27
405
* Ludwig A Benedek Austrian General, dies at age 76. [1]
* Pogroms against Russian Jews start in Elisabethgrad. [1]
April 28
* Robert W Ollinger US warden/last victim of Billy the Kid, dies. [1]
May 3
* Josip Jurcic Slovic writer (Schone Vida), dies. [1]
May 5
* Anit-Jewish rioting in Kiev Ukraine. [1]
May 8
* Henry Morton Stanley signs contract with Congolian monarch. [1]
May 10
* Lighthouse on Ameland begins operation. [1]
May 11
* Bedrich Smetana's opera "Libusa" premieres in Prague. [1]

* Henri-Frédéric Amiel Swiss/French writer (Journal Intime), dies at
age 59. [1]
May 12
* Treaty of Bardo, Tunisia becomes a French protectorate. [1]
May 16
* World's first elec tram goes into service in Lichterfelder (near

Berlin). [1]
May 17
* Frederick Douglass appointed recorder of deeds for Washington

DC. [1]
* Revised version of New Testament. [1]
May 21
406
* In Washington, D.C., humanitarians Clara Barton and Adolphus
Solomons found the American National Red Cross. [1] [129]
May 23
* Leopold von Ranke historian, dies. [1]
May 24
* Canadian ferry Princess Victoria sinks near London Ontario, 200

die. [1]
* Samuel Palmer landscape painter, dies. [1]
June 3
* Japanese giant salamander dies in Dutch zoo at age 55; oldest

amphibian. [1]
June 14
* Player piano patented by John McTammany, Jr, Cambridge,

Massachusetts [1]
June 24
* 200 drown as train runs off bridge near Cuautla Mexico. [1]
June 30
* Henry Highland Garnet, named minister to Liberia. [1]
July 1
* The world's first international telephone call takes place between

St. Stephen, New Brunswick, Canada, and Calais, Maine, United States.
[1] [5]
* US Assay Office in Saint Louis, Missouri opens. [1]
July 2
* President Garfield shot by Charles J Guiteau a disappointed office-

seeker. [1]
July 4
407
* Brooker T Washington establishes Tuskegee Institute. [1]
July 15
* William "Billy the Kid" Bonney killed by Pat Garrett. [1]
July 20
* Sioux Indian leader Sitting Bull, surrenders to federal troops. [1]
August 1
* US Quarantine Station authorized for Angel Island, San Francisco

Bay. [1]
August 4
* In Seville, Spain, a European record hot temperature of 122

degrees F (50 degrees C) is recorded. [1] [54]
September 11
* Triple landslides bury Elm Switz. [1]
September 18
* Chicago Tribune reports on a televide experiment. [1]
September 19
* James A Garfield US president, dies of gunshot wound. [1]
September 20
* Chester A Arthur sworn in as president. [1]
October 1
* The first electric power-station providing current for both public

and domestic use begins operation. The hydro-electric Central Power
Station operates on the River Wey at Godalming, Surrey, England.
[55.56]
October 15
* First American fishing magazine, American Angler published. [1]
408
October 26
* In Tombstone, Arizona, USA, the Earp brothers and Doc Holliday

face off against the Clanton-McLaury gang in a shootout at the OK
Corral. The Earp brothers were bank security guard Wyatt, town
marshal Virgil, and Morgan. The Clantons (Ike, Billy) and McLaurys
(Tom, Frank) and Billy Claiborne were cowboys, cattle rustlers, thieves
and murderers. The 30-second shootout ended with Billy Clanton and
the McLaury brothers dead, and Virgil and Morgan Earp and Doc
Holliday wounded. The three are arrested by the county sheriff and
charged with murder, but found not guilty a month later. [1] [187.265]
[129]
November 14
* Charles J Guiteau goes on trial for President Garfield's

assassination. [1]
November 15
* American Federation of Labor (AFL) founded (Pittsburgh). [1]
December 3
* Henry M Stanley finds Leopoldville/Kinshasa. [1]
December 4
* The Los Angeles Times is first published. [5]
December 5
December 7
* Julius FA Bahnsen German philosopher (Tragic as Weltgesetz), dies

at age 51. [1]
December 8
* Vienna's Ring Theater destroyed by fire, kills between 640-850. [1]
December 13
409
* August Senoa Croatian writer (Kletva [The Curse]), dies at age 43.
[1]
December 17
* Lewis H Morgan US ethnologist (Iroquois-Indians), dies at age 62.

[1]
December 19
* Jules Massenet's opera "Hérodiade" is produced (Brussels). [1]
1882
January 2
* Because of anti-monopoly laws, Standard Oil is organized as a

trust. [1]
January 3
* William H Ainsworth English writer (Guy Fawkes), dies at age 76.

[1]
January 13
* Richard Wagner completes his opera "Parsifal". [1]
January 15
* First US ski club forms (Berlin New Hampshire). [1]
January 17
* First Dutch female physician Aletta Jacobs opens office. [1]
January 20
* John Linnell British painter/miniaturist/engraver, dies. [1]
January 21
* Anton Emil Titl composer, dies at age 72. [1]
January 25
410
* Bilu, a Russian Zionist organization, forms. [1]
* Peter Singer composer, dies at age 71. [1]
January 26
* France government of Gambetta falls. [1]
February 2
* Fabio Campana composer, dies at age 63. [1]

* Knights of Columbus forms in New Haven Connecticut. [1]
February 3
* Circus owner PT Barnum buys his world famous elephant Jumbo.

[1]
* Guglielmo Quarenghi composer, dies at age 55. [1]
February 10
* Rimski-Korsakovs opera "Snyegurochka" premieres in Saint

Petersburg. [1]
February 11
* Gustav Schmidt composer, dies at age 65. [1]
February 12
* Social-Democratic Union forms in Amsterdam. [1]
February 13
* Henry Highland Garnet diplomat, dies in Monrovia Liberia at age

66. [1]
February 15
* First cargo of frozen meat leaves New Zealand for Britain, on SS

Dunedin. [1]
February 21
* New York City's 24 hour race begins, winner with most mileage in
24 hours. [1]
411
February 22
* With 120 miles James Saunders wins New York City's 24 hour race
and $100 prize. [1]
February 28
* First US college cooperative store opens, at Harvard University. [1]
March 2
* Louis Kufferath composer, dies at age 70. [1]
March 3
* New York Steam Corp begins distributing steam to Manhattan

buildings. [1]
March 4
* Britain's first electric trams run in East London. [5]
March 6
* Monarch Milan Obrenovic of Serbia crowns himself king. [1]
March 16
* Charles R Darwin English naturalist (Origin of species), dies at age

73. [1]
* US Senate ratifies treaty establishing the Red Cross. [1]
March 18
* Morgan Earp brother of Wyatt Earp, shot and killed while playing
billiards in Tombstone. [1]
March 22
* Edmunds Act adopted by US to suppress polygamy in the

territories. [1]
* Jumbo the elephant at the London Zoological Gardens at Regent's
Park is crated for transfer to ship to America. [66.18]
March 24
412
* German scientist Robert Koch discovers bacillus cause of TB. [1]
* Henry Wadsworth Longfellow US poet (Song of Hiawatha), dies at
age 75. [1]
March 25
* Jumbo the elephant leaves England on the Assyrian Monarch ship,

headed to America. [66.18]
* First demonstration of pancake making (Department store in New
York City, New York). [1]
March 29
* Knights of Columbus chartered for Catholic men. [1]
April 3
* Friedrich Wilhelm Kucken composer, dies at age 71. [1]

* Jesse James outlaw, shot dead at age 34, in Saint Joseph Missouri
by Robert Ford. [1]
* Wood block alarm invented, when alarm rang, it dropped 20 wood
blocks. [1]
April 9
* Dante Gabriel Rossetti poet/pre-Raphaelite painter, dies at age 53.

[1]
* Jules Quicherat French historian/archaeologist (Mélanges), dies at
age 66. [1]
April 10
* Jumbo the elephant arrives in New York aboard the Assyrian

Monarch ship. [66.18]
* Matson founds his shipping company (San Francisco and Hawaii).
[1]
April 13
* Anti-Semitic League forms in Prussia. [1]
April 19
* Charles Robert Darwin evolutionist (Origin of Species), dies. [1]
April 25
413
* Johann CF Zöllner German astronomer (astro photography), dies.
[1]
April 27
* Ralph Waldo Emerson US poet (Representive Men), dies. [1]
April 29
* The "Elektromote" - a forerunner of the trolleybus - is given its first

trial run by Ernst Werner von Siemens in Berlin. [5]
May 6
* Chinese Exclusion Act: US Congress ceases Chinese immigration.

[1]
* Epping Forest England dedicated by Queen Victoria. [1]
* Lord Frederick Cavendish assassinated by Fenian Invincibles, in
Dublin. [1]
* Thomas Henry Burke assassinated by Fenian Invincibles, in Dublin.
[1]
May 8
* David Belasco's "La Belle Russe" premieres in New York City. [1]
May 9
* Telegraph Hill Railroad Company organized. [1]
May 13
* Jules-Nicolas Crevaux French explorer, murdered at age 35. [1]

* Toba-Indians killed 20 members of French expedition. [1]
May 15
* May Laws-Czar Alexander III bans Jews from living in rural

Romania. [1]
May 20
* Henrik Ibsen's "Ghosts" (Gengangere) premieres in Chicago. [1]

* Saint Gotthard-railroad tunnel between Switzerland and Italy
opens. [1]
414
May 23
* 6" of snow falls in eastern Iowa. [1]
June 2
* Guiseppi Garibaldi Italian rebel leader, dies at age 74. [1]
June 6
* Cyclone in Arabian Sea (Bombay India) drowns 100,000. [1]

* Electric iron patented by Henry W. Seely, New York City. [1]
June 16
* 17" hailstones weighing 1.75 pounds fall in Dubuque Iowa. [1]
June 17
* Tornado kills 130 in Iowa. [1]
July 2
* James Garfield assassinated by "job-seeker". [1]
July 4
* Telegraph Hill Observatory opens in San Francisco. [1]
July 12
* First ocean pier in US completed, Washington, DC. [1]
July 13
* 200 die as train derails near Tcherny, Russia. [1]
July 19
* J Palisa discovers asteroid #226 Weringia. [1]
July 28
* The opera "Parsifal" is produced (Bayreuth). [1]
415
August 1
* Henry Kendall Australian poet, dies of tuberculosis at age 43. [1]
August 3
* US Congress passes first law restricting immigration. [1]
August 5
* Standard Oil of New Jersey is established. [5]
August 7
* Hatfields of south West Virginia and McCoys of east Kentucky feud,

100 wounded or die. [1]
August 8
* Snow falls on Lake Michigan. [1]
September 4
* First district lit by electricty (New York's Pearl Street Station). [1]
September 5
* The first United States Labor Day parade (10,000 workers) is held
in New York City. [1] [5]
September 10
* First international conference to promote anti-semitism meets in

Dresden Germany (Congress for Safeguarding of Non-Jewish Interests).
[1]
September 13
* Britain invades Egypt. [1]
September 18
* Pacific Stock Exchange opens (as the Local Security Board). [1]
October 22
416
* In Southeast Oklahoma, a magnitude 4.9 earthquake occurs. [53]
November 7
* Near Denver, Colorado, a magnitude 6.2 earthquake occurs. [53]
December 2
* Amsterdam Artis Zoo opens aquarium. [1]
December 6
* A Trollope writer, dies. [1]

* Atmosphere of Venus detected during transit. [1]
December 10
* John Brahms' "Gesang der the Parzen" premieres. [1]
December 11
* Boston's Bijou Theatre, first American playhouse lit exclusively by

electricity, first performance, Gilbert and Sullivan's "Iolanthe". [1]
* Victorien Sardous "Fedora", with Sarah Bernhardt, premieres in
Paris. [1]
December 14
* Henry Morton Stanley returns to Brussels from the Congo. [1]
December 22
* First string of Christmas tree lights created by Thomas Edison. [1]
December 31
* Léon Michel Gambetta French attorney/premier (1881-82), dies at

age 44. [1]
1883
January 4
* Nicolas Ledesma composer, dies at age 91. [1]
417
January 10
* Fire at uninsured Newhall Hotel in Milwaukee WI kills 71; General

Tom Thumb of P T Barnum fame, escapes unhurt. [1]
January 13
* Fire in circus Ferroni in Berditschoft Poland kills 430. [1]

* Henrik Ibsen's "En Folkefiende" premieres in Oslo. [1]
January 16
* Pendleton Act creates basis of US Civil Service system. [1]
January 21
* Jacopo Tomadini composer, dies at age 62. [1]
January 23
* Gustave Doré French illustrator, dies at age 51. [1]
January 24
* Friedrich von Flotow German baron/composer, dies at age 70. [1]
February 1
* French Lieutenant-Colonel Gustave Borgnis-Desbordes reaches

Bamako on the Niger. [1]
* Pavel Melnikov Russian historian/author, dies. [1]
February 7
* Lieutenant-Colonel Borgnis-Desbordes founds Fort Bamako Niger.

[1]
February 8
* Louis Waterman begins experiments to invent the fountain pen. [1]
February 10
* Fire at un-insured New Hall Hotel in Milwaukee Wisconsin, kills 71.

[1]
418
February 13
* Pavel Melnikov [Petsjerski], Russian historian, dies at age 64. [1]

* Wilhelm Richard Wagner German composer (Die Walküre), dies in
Venice at age 69. [1]
February 14
* First state labor union legislation; New Jersey legalizes unions. [1]
February 16
* "Ladies Home Journal" begins publication. [1]
February 17
* A Ashwell patents free-toilet in London. [1]

* Napoleon Coste composer, dies at age 76. [1]
February 21
* Second French government of Ferry begins. [1]
February 23
* Alabama becomes first US state to enact an antitrust law. [1]

* American Anti-Vivisection Society organized (Philadelphia). [1]
February 27
* Oscar Hammerstein patents first cigar-rolling machine. [1]
February 28
* First US vaudeville theater opens (Boston). [1]
March 3
* US Congress authorizes the first steel vessels in US navy. [1]
March 4
* Alexander H Stephens Vice President Confederate States, dies at

age 71. [1]
* John Gordon Cashmans begins "Vicksburg Evening Post" in
Mississippi. [1]
419
March 14
* Karl Marx, German philosopher (Communist Manifesto), dies at age

64. [1] [5]
March 15
* Karol Studzinski composer, dies at age 55. [1]
March 19
* Jan Matzeliger invents first machine to manufacture entire shoes.

[1]
March 20
* Unity treaty of Paris signed; protects industrial property. [1]
March 24
* First telephone call between New York and Chicago. [1]
March 31
* First performance of César Franck's "Le Chasseur Maudit". [1]

* Utrecht begins water pipe system. [1]
April 2
* Battle at Bamako French assault on Fabous arm forces attack. [1]
April 12
* French troops under Lieutenant-Colonel Borgnis-Desbordes occupy

Bamako Senegal. [1]
April 13
* Alfred Packer convicted of cannibalism. [1]
April 14
* Leo Delibes' opera "Lakmé", premieres in Paris France. [1]
April 16
420
* Paul Kruger chosen President of Transvaal. [1]
April 18
* Agnes Tyrrell composer, dies at age 36. [1]
April 22
* Octave Fouque composer, dies at age 38. [1]
April 23
* John Heemskerk Azn forms Dutch government. [1]
April 24
* 28 Surinamers depart to Amsterdam World's Fair. [1]
May 1
* "Buffalo Bill" Cody put on his first Wild West Show. [1]
* Amsterdam World's Fair opens. [1]
* New York Athletic Club hires Bob Rogers as first American pro
sports trainer. [1]
May 4
* John Gordon Cashmans begins "Vicksburg Evening Post"

(Mississippi). [1]
May 15
* Italy signs military treaty with Austria-Hungary and Germany. [1]
May 17
* Buffalo Bill Cody's first wild west show premieres in Omaha. [1]
* Lydia Estes Pinklham patent-medicine manufacturer, dies. [1]
May 20
* The eruption of Krakatoa that ultimately leads to the volcano's

destruction begins. [5]
* William Chambers author/publisher, dies. [1]
421
May 23
* Cyprian K Norwid Polish painter/poet/playwright (Wanda), dies. [1]
May 24
* In New York State, the Brooklyn Bridge opens over the East River,
connecting New York and Brooklyn. Construction took 14 years and
caused 27 deaths. With a span of 1595 feet, the Brooklyn Bridge is the
largest suspension bridge ever built to date. [1] [129]
May 26
* Abd el-Kader Algerian sultan/religious ruler, dies at about age 74.

[1]
May 27
* Czar Alexander III crowned in Moscow. [1]
May 28
* August Freyer composer, dies at age 79. [1]
May 29
* Albrecht of Prussia mistress of John van Rossum, dies at age 73. [1]
* WFLC Marianne princess of Orange-Nassau, dies. [1]
May 30
* Rumor that the Brooklyn Bridge is going to collapse caused a

stampede that kills 12. [1]
May 31
* French fleet under Pierre begins siege of Tamatave, Madagascar.

[1]
June 2
* Chicago's "El" opens to traffic. [1]
June 9
422
* First commercial electric railway line begins operation (Chicago El).
[1]
June 11
* Birth of Frank O. King Cashton, Wisc., "Gasoline Alley" cartoonist.

[1]
July 4
* Buffalo Bill Cody presents first wild west show, North Platte, Nebr.
[1]
July 27
* Montgomery Blair lawyer (Dred Scot V Sandford), dies at age 70.

[1]
July 28
* In Ischia, Italy, volcano Epomeo erupts, causing a magnitude 5.6

earthquake. The thermal resort of Casamicciola is devastated, over
2,000 people killed, over 1,200 houses were destroyed. [1] [53]
August 12
* The last quagga dies at the Artis Magistra zoo in Amsterdam. [5]
August 26
* Krakatoa erupts with increasingly large explosions; kills 36,000. [1]

[5]
August 27
* Krakatoa, west of Java, explodes with a force of 1,300 megatons.

[1]
August 29
* Seismic sea waves created by the Krakatoa eruption create a rise

in the English Channel 32 hours after the explosion. [1]
September 8
423
* Northern Pacific Railroad's last spike driven at Independence
Creek, Mont. [1]
September 13
* Cleveland Hugh Daily no-hits Philadelphia 1-0. [1]
September 24
* National black convention meets in Louisville, Kentucky. [1]
October 4
* Orient Express' first run, linking Turkey to Europe by rail. [1]
October 15
* US Supreme Court declares Civil Rights Act of 1875

unconstitutional. [1]
October 20
* Treaty of Ancon, Peru cedes Tarapaca to Chile. [1]
October 22
* First New York Horse Show held (Madison Square Garden). [1]
* Original Metropolitan Opera House (New York City) grand opening
(Faust). [1]
November 3
* Race riots in Danville Virginia (4 blacks killed). [1]
November 18
* Standard time zones established by railroads in US and Canada. [1]
November 26
* Sojourner Truth abolitionist, women's rights advocate, dies. [1]
December 2
* Johannes Brahms' third Symphony in F, premieres. [1]
424
December 3
* 48th US Congress (1883-85) convenes. [1]
December 9
* New Brunswick adopts Eastern Standard Time (until 1902). [1]
December 20
* International cantilever railway bridge opens at Niagara Falls. [1]
December 22
* August Strindberg's "Lycko-Pers Reja" premieres. [1]
December 25
* Marek Konrad Sokolowski composer, dies at age 65. [1]
1884
January 4
* Last sighting of an eastern cougar (Ontario). [1]
January 6
* Death of Gregor Mendel in Brunn, Austria-Hungary at age 61;

Augustinian monk, pioneer of the science of genetics. [1] [37]
* Paul Taglioni "the Great", Italian/Austrian choreographer, dies at
age 75. [1]
January 8
* Chrome tanning process for leather patented by Augustus Schultz.

[1]
January 18
* General Charles Gordon departs London for Khartoum. [1]
January 19
* Jules Massenet's opera "Manon" premieres in Paris. [1]
425
January 21
* Auguste Franchomme composer, dies at age 75. [1]
January 24
* Johann Christian Gebauer composer, dies at age 75. [1]
January 26
* First Dutch Wagner version of Elizabeth aria. [1]
February 1
* First volume of the first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary : A-

Ant, published. [1] [5]
February 8
* Arnold Henry Guyot Swiss/US geologist/meteorologist, dies at age

76. [1]
February 18
* General Charles Gordon arrives in Khartoum. [1]

* Police seize all copies of Tolstoy's "What I Believe In". [1]
February 19
* Tornadoes in Mississippi, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina,

Tennessee, Kentucky and Indiana kill 800 people. [1]
February 21
* John Pike Hullah composer, dies at age 71. [1]
February 23
* Tambo Tambo Australian aboriginal/US circus attraction, dies at age

23. [1]
February 26
* British and Portuguese treaty signed in Congo by Leopold II. [1]
March 8
426
* First performance of Edward MacDowell's second Piano suite. [1]
March 12
* Mississippi establishes first US state college for women. [1]
March 13
* Siege of Khartoum Sudan begins. [1]

* US adopts Standard Time. [1]
March 17
* John Joseph Montgomery makes first glider flight, Otay California.

[1]
March 19
* Alfonse Charles Renaud de Vilback composer, dies at age 54. [1]
March 27
* First long-distance telephone call, Boston-New York. [1]
March 30
* Hans Hampel composer, dies at age 61. [1]
March 31
* Jan T Beelen Netherlands/Belgian catholic bible expert, dies at age

77. [1]
April 2
* London prison for debtors closed. [1]
April 3
* Carel JCH van Nispen tot Sevenaer Dutch Cath politician, dies at
age 59. [1]
April 6
* Emanuel Geibel writer, dies at age 68. [1]
427
April 7
* Maria van Ackere-Doolaeghe Flemish poet (Avondlamp), dies at

age 80. [1]
April 10
* US Senate accepts Belgian administration of Congo. [1]
April 20
* Pope Leo XIII encyclical "On Freemasonry". [1]
April 21
* Potters Field reopened as Madison Park. [1]
April 22
* Thomas Stevens starts first bicycle trip around the world (2 years 9
months). [1]
* US recognizes King Leopold II's Congo Free State. [1]
April 24
* National Medical Association of Black physicians organizes (Atlanta

Georgia). [1]
May 1
* Construction begins on Chicago's first skyscraper (10 stories). [1]
May 7
* Judah P Benjamin confederate minister of War, dies at age 72. [1]
May 9
* Hermanus W Witteveen theologist, dies at age 69. [1]
May 12
* Bedrich Friedrich Smetana Czechoslovakia, composer (2 Widows),

dies at age 60. [1]
428
May 13
* Cyrus Hall McCormick inventor, dies. [1]

* Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is founded.
[1]
May 14
* Anti-Monopoly party forms in the US. [1]
May 17
* Alaska becomes a US territory. [1]

* Louis Brassin composer, dies at age 43. [1]
May 18
* Heinrich R Göppert German paleo-botanist, dies. [1]
May 19
* Ringling Brothers circus premieres. [1]
May 24
* Anti-Monopoly party and Greenback Party form People's Party in

the US. [1]
May 29
* First steam cable trams start in highgate. [1]
May 31
* Dr John Harvey Kellogg patents "flaked cereal". [1]
June 16
* The first roller coaster in the USA opens at Coney Island, in

Brooklyn, New York. The ride traveled approximately six miles per hour
and cost five cents to ride. [129]
June 27
* J Palisa discovers asteroid #237 Coelestina. [1]
429
July 1
* V Knorre discovers asteroid #238 Hypatia. [1]
July 3
* The Customer's Afternoon Letter first publishes Charles Dow's

American stock average, containing eleven railroad and industrial
stocks: Chicago & North Western, Delaware Lackawanna & Western,
Lake Shore, Louisville & Nashville, Missouri Pacific, New York Central,
Northern Pacific pfd., Pacific Mail, St. Paul, Union Pacific, and Western
Union. (This selected stock average will later become the Dow Jones
Industrial Average.) [5] [228]
July 4
* First US bullfight held (Dodge City Ks). [1]

* Statue of Liberty presented to US in Paris. [1]
July 10
* Paul Morphy US chess wizard, dies. [1]
August 5
* Cornerstone for Statue of Liberty laid on Bedloe's Island (New York

City). [1]
August 10
* In New York City, New York, a magnitude 5.5 earthquake occurs.

The total felt area was estimated at 181,000 square kilometres. [53]
August 28
* First known photograph of a tornado is made near Howard, South

Dakota, USA. [1] [5]
* Mickey Welsh strikes-out first 9 men he faces. [1]
September 20
* 6.2 mile Arlberg railroad tunnel completed in Austria. [1]

* Equal Rights Party nominates female candidates for President and
Vice President. [1]
October 6
430
* Naval War College established in Newport Rhode Island. [1]
October 14
* George Eastman patents paper-strip photographic film. [1]
November 4
* Grover Cleveland (Democrat) beats James G Blaine (Republican)

for first presidential term. [1]
November 6
* British protectorate proclaimed over southeast New Guinea. [1]
November 15
* Colonization of Africa organized at international conference in

Berlin. [1]
November 17
* Cops arrest John L Sullivan in second round for being "cruel". [1]
November 22
* T Thomas Fortune starts New York Freeman (New York Age)

newspaper. [1]
November 25
* John B Meyenberg of Saint Louis patents evaporated milk. [1]
December 4
* Alice Mary Smith composer, dies at age 45. [1]
December 6
* In Washington, D.C., the monument to president George

Washington, a tower of white marble, is completed. [1] [129]
December 9
* Levant Richardson patents ball-bearing skate. [1]
431
December 12
* First Test match played at the Adelaide Oval. [1]
December 16
* Great Britain recognizes King Leopold II's Congo Free State. [1]
December 19
* Italy recognizes King Leopold II's Congo Free State. [1]
December 24
* Austria-Hungary admits King Leopold II's Congo Free State. [1]
December 27
* Netherlands recognizes king Leopold II's Congo Free State. [1]
December 28
* Gerben Colmjon Frisian linguist/publisher, dies at age 56. [1]
December 30
* Anton Bruckner's 7th Symphony in E, premieres in Leipzig. [1]
1885
January 2
• General Wolseley receives last distress signal of General Gordon in Khartoum. [1]
January 4
• Dr W W Grant of Iowa, performs first appendectomy (on Mary Gartside, 22). [1]
• Eduard Yosif Kotek composer, dies at age 29. [1]
January 6
• Peter C Asbjørnsen Norwegian fairy tale writer, dies at age 72. [1]
432
January 11
• Henrik Ibsen's "Vildauden" premieres in Oslo. [1]
January 15
• Wilson Bentley takes the first photograph of a snowflake. [5]
January 17
• British beat Mahdists at Battle of Abu Klea in the Sudan. [1]
January 19
• Battle at Abu Klea Sudan 800-1000 killed. [1]

• Fred Burnaby English Colonel/balloon pioneer, dies in battle. [1]
January 24
• Martin R Delany politician and black nationalist, dies at age 72. [1]
January 25
• Vincent d'Indy's "Saugefleurie" premieres. [1]
January 26
• Charles George Gordon British Governor-General, executed (slain with troops by

Sudanese in Khartoum) at age 51. [1]
• Muhammad Ahmed ("Mahdi") rebels conquer Khartoum. [1]
February 5
• News of fall of Khartoum reaches London. [1]
February 9
• First Japanese arrive in Hawaii. [1]
February 12
• Carl Peters founds German East-Africa Society. [1]
February 15
• Leopold Damrosch composer, dies at age 52. [1]
433
February 17
• Bismarck gives Carl Peters' firm management of East-Africa. [1]
February 18
• Charlotte Helen Sainton-Dolby composer, dies at age 61. [1]

• Mark Twain's "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" published. [1]
February 21
• Washington Monument dedicated (Washington DC). [1]
February 25
• US Congress condemns barbed wire around government grounds. [1]
February 26
• Congress of Berlin, gives Congo to Belgium and Nigeria to England. [1]
March 3
• First US state (California) establishes a permanent forest commission. [1]

• American Telephone and Telegraph (AT&T) incorporates. [1]
• US Congress passes Indian Appropriations Act (Indians wards of federal
government). [1]
• US Post Office offers special delivery for first-class mail. [1]
March 4
• Grover Cleveland inaugrated as first Democratic President since Civil War. [1]
March 14
• Gilbert and Sullivan's opera "Mikado" premieres in London. [1]
March 15
• First performance of César Franck's "Lesson Djinns". [1]
March 19
• Louis Riel returns to Canada, proclaims provisional government, Saskatchewan.

[1]
434
March 20
• John Matzeliger of Suriname patents shoe lacing machine. [1]

• Yiddish theater opens in New York with Golldfaden operetta. [1]
March 21
• Second French government of Ferry resigns. [1]
March 26
• Eastman Film Company manufactures first commercial motion picture film. [1]
• Louis Riel's forces defeat Canadian forces at Duck Lake, Saskatchewan. [1]
March 28
• Fredrick Vilhelm Ludvig Norman composer, dies at age 53. [1]

• US Salvation Army officially organized. [1]
March 31
• Birth of Jules Pascin [Julius Pincas], Bulgarian/US painter/cartoonist. [1]

• Franz Wilhelm Abt German composer/choir conductor, dies at age 65. [1]
• Great Britain declares Bechuanaland a protectorate. [1]
• Philipp Fahrbach composer, dies at age 69. [1]
April 10
• John H Scholten theologist (Free Want), dies at age 73. [1]
April 23
• William Henry Holmes composer, dies at age 73. [1]
April 30
• Boston Pops Orchestra forms. [1]
May 1
• Maria "Goeie Mie" Swanenburg sentence to life for killing 27 in Netherlands. [1]
May 2
• Good Housekeeping magazine goes on sale in the USA for the first time. [1] [5]
• Congo Free State established by King Leopold II of Belgium. [1]
435
May 4
• Aleksandar I Karadjordjevic monarch of Serbia (1842-58), dies at age 78. [1]
May 5
• Lauro Rossi composer, dies at age 73. [1]
May 7
• John E W Thompson, named minister to Haiti. [1]
May 8
• Pavel Krizkovsky composer, dies at age 65. [1]

• Sarah Ann Henley survives 76-metre jump from Clifton Bridge, Avon, England.
[1]
May 10
• Edward Stephen composer, dies at age 62. [1]

• Ferdinand Hiller composer, dies at age 73. [1]
May 11
• Ferdinand Hiller German pianist/composer/conductor, dies at age 73. [1]
May 12
• Battle of Batoche, French Canadians rebel against Canada. [1]
May 13
• Juliana Horatia [Gatty] Ewing author (Lob Lie-by-the-Fire), dies. [1]
May 15
• Canadian Méti insurgent Louis Riel captured, Saskatchewan. [1]
May 19
• First mass production of shoes (Jan Matzeliger in Lynn Massachusetts). [1]

• German chancellor Bismarck takes possession of Cameroon and Togoland. [1]
May 21
436
• Gavril Yakimovich Lomakin composer, dies at age 73. [1]
May 22
• Victor(-Marie) Hugo French writer (Les Misérables), dies at age 83. [1]
May 29
• Alfred von Meissner Austrian physician/writer (Ziska), dies at age 63. [1]
June 5
• J Palisa discovers asteroid #248 Lameia. [1]
June 6
• The opera "Lakmé" is produced (Paris). [1]
June 12
• Roof collapse kills 30 at murder trial in France. [1]
June 17
• Statue of Liberty arrives in New York City aboard French ship Isere. [1] [5]
July 2
• Canada's North-west Insurrection ends with surrender of Big Bear. [1]
July 6
• First inoculation (for rabies) of a human being, by Louis Pasteur. [1] [5]
July 23
• Ulysses S Grant 18th US pres, dies in Mount McGregor, New York, at age 63. [1]
August 10
• Leo Daft opens America's first commercial operated electric streetcar (Balt). [1]
August 14
• Japan's first patent is issued to the inventor of a rust-proof paint. [5]
437
August 29
• Gottlieb Daimler receives German patent for a motorcycle. [1]

• Philadelphia Phillies Charlie Ferguson no-hits Providence 1-0. [1]
August 30
• 13,000 meteors seen in one hour near Andromeda. [1]
September 4
• First cafeteria opens (New York City). [1]
September 5
• First gasoline pump is delivered to a gasoline dealer (Fort Wayne, Ind). [1]
September 11
• Moses Hopkins, named minister to Liberia. [1]
September 15
• Jumbo the elephant is struck by a freight train and killed, in Saint Thomas,
Ontario. [66.18]
September 30
• Bechuanaland becomes a British protectorate. [1]
October 1
• Special delivery mail service begins in US. [1]
October 13
• Birth of Harry Hershfield Cedar Rapids Iowa, cartoonist (Can You Top This?). [1]
October 15
• Hoss Radbourne pitches his 60th win of the season. [1]
October 29
• George B McClellan Union army general, dies at age 58. [1]
438
November 3
• Tacoma vigilantes drive out Chinese, burn their homes and businesses. [1]
November 6
• US mint at Carson City, Nevada directed to close. [1]
November 7
• Canadian Pacific Railway completed at Craigellachie. [1]
November 9
• The opera "Ermine" is produced (London). [1]
November 16
• Louis Riel French rebel who fought against Canada, executed at age 41. [1]
November 25
• Thomas A Hendricks 21st Vice President, dies at age 66, 8 months after taking
office. [1]
November 26
• First meteor photograph. [1]
November 27
• Earliest photograph of a meteor shower made. [1]
November 30
• The opera "Le Cid" is produced (Paris). [1]
December 2
• The opera "Regina di Saba" is produced (Vienna). [1]
December 7
• 49thUS Congress (1885-87) convenes. [1]
December 17
439
• France declares Madagascar a protectorate. [1]
December 22
• Pope Leo XIII proclaims extraordinary jubilee. [1]
December 24
• Louis-Prosper Gachard Belgian historian, dies at age 85. [1]
December 29
• Gottlieb Daimler patents first bike (Germany). [1]
1886
January 4
• Ernest Panckoucke French publisher (Horace), dies at age 77. [1]
January 9
• Jakob Eduard Schmolzer composer, dies at age 73. [1]
January 15
• Weekly Herald, first Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada newspaper, publishes

first issue. [1]
January 16
• Amilcare Ponchielli Italian composer (La Gioconda), dies at age 51. [1]
January 17
• Amilcare Ponchielli Italian composer (La Gioconda), dies at age 51. [1]
January 18
• Michal Czajchovski [Sadik Pasja], writer, dies. [1]
January 19
• Aurora Ski Club, first in US, founded in Minnesota. [1]
440
January 26
• Karl Benz patents first auto with burning motor. [1]
January 27
• First British government of Salisbury resigns. [1]
January 29
• Karl Benz in Karlsruhe patents the first successful gasoline-driven automobile. [1]
[5]
February 9
• President Cleveland declares a state of emergency in Seattle because of anti-

Chinese violence. [1]
February 12
• Second British government of Salisbury forms. [1]

• P J Edvard Backström Swedish writer, dies at age 44. [1]
February 13
• Painter Thomas Eakins resigns from Philadelphia Academy of Art after

controversy over use of male nudes in a coed art class. [1]
February 23
• Aluminum manufacturing process developed. [1]

• London Times publishes world's first classified ad. [1]
• Tsjaikovski's symphony "Manfred" premieres. [1]
March 6
• First US alternating current power plant starts, Great Barrington Massachusetts.

[1]
• First US nurses' magazine, The Nightingale, first appears, New York City, New
York. [1]
March 17
• Carrollton Massacre, (Mississippi) 20 blacks killed. [1]
March 18
441
• Leopold Zunz German intellect (Synagogue Poetry), dies at age 91. [1]
March 20
• First AC power plant in US begins commercial operation, Massachusetts. [1]
March 26
• First cremation in England. [1]
March 29
• Chemist John Pemberton begins to advertise for Coca-Cola (with cocaine). [1]
• John Keble theologian, Bournemouth. [1]
March 31
• Giovanni Rossi composer, dies at age 57. [1]
April 6
• City of Vancouver British Columbia Canada incorporated. [1]

• Declaration of Berlin neutralizes Tonga. [1]
April 9
• Joseph V von Scheffel German writer (Ekkehard), dies at age 60. [1]
April 13
• Karoly Thern composer, dies at age 68. [1]
April 25
• Sigmund Freud opens practice at Rathausstrasse 7, Vienna. [1]
April 29
• First public Dutch electricity opens. [1]
May 1
• Conrad Busken Huet writer (Country of Rubens). [1]

• Heinrich Franz Daniel Stiehl composer, dies at age 56. [1]
• US general strike for 8 hour day, begins. [1]
442
May 3
• M A Maclean elected first mayor of Vancouver British Columbia. [1]
May 4
• Haymarket riot in Chicago; bomb kills 7 policemen. [1]
May 5
• Joseph Albert German photographer (Albertotype), dies at age 61. [1]
May 8
• Atlanta pharmacist (Jacob's Pharmacy) Dr John Styth Pemberton invents Coca

Cola (contained cocaine). [1]
May 15
• Emily Dickinson US poet, dies at age 55. [1]
May 19
• Camille Saint-Saëns' third Symphony in C, premieres. [1]
June 2
• Grover Cleveland is first to wed during presidency (Frances Folsom). [1]
June 13
• Fire destroys nearly 1,000 buildings in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. [1]
• King Ludwig II of Bavaria drowns. [1]
June 28
• C H F Peters discovers asteroid #259 Aletheia. [1]
July 3
• The New York Tribune becomes the first newspaper to use a linotype machine,
eliminating hand typesetting. [1] [5]
July 4
443
• First scheduled transcontinental passenger train reaches Port Moody, British
Columbia, Canada. [1] [5]
July 6
• Horlick's of Wisconsin offers first malted milk to public. [1]
July 10
• Eruption of Tarawera volcano destroys famous pink and white. [1]
July 23
• Steve Brodie supposedly survives plunge from Brooklyn Bridge. [1]
August 31
• First major earthquake recorded in eastern US, at Charleston, South Carolina. [1]
• Crocker-Woolworth National Bank organized. [1]
• In Charleston, South Carolina, a magnitude 7.3 earthquake occurs. [53]
September 4
• Geronimo is captured, ending last major US-Indian war. [1]
September 14
• George K Anderson of Memphis, Tennessee, patents typewriter ribbon. [1] [5]
October 1
• US mint at Carson City, Nevada closes. [1]
October 7
• Spain abolishes slavery in Cuba. [1]
October 10
• First dinner jacket worn to autumn ball at Tuxedo Park, New York (the tuxedo).
[1]
• David L Yule first Jewish US senator, dies. [1]
October 12
• Hurricane and sea surge kills 250 at Indianola Texas. [1]
444
October 27
• Musical fantasy "Night on Bald Mountain," performed in Russia. [1]
October 28
• Statue of Liberty dedicated by President Grover Cleveland, it is celebrated by the

first confetti (ticker tape) parade in New York City. [1]
November 18
• Chester A Arthur (21st President), dies in New York at age 56. [1]
November 22
• Victoria Street Cable Tram route begins in Melbourne, Australia. [1]
November 30
• The Folies Bergere hall in Paris, France, stages its first revue, the Place aux
Jeunes. [129]
• First commercially successful AC electric power plant opens, Buffalo. [1]
December 5
• Peter Hofstede de Groot Dutch reformed theologist, dies at age 84. [1]
December 8
• American Federation of Labor (AFL) formed by 26 craft unions; Samuel

Gompers elected AFL president. [1]
December 14
• Antoni Wincenty Rutkowski composer, dies at age 27. [1]
December 16
• Rift at Dutch Reformed Church over "Doleantie". [1]
December 22
• First national accountants' society in US formed (New York City, New York). [1]
1887
445
January 1
• Johan Hendrik Koelman portrait painter, dies at age 66. [1]
January 4
• Thomas Stevens is first man to bicycle around the world (San Francisco-San
Francisco); 21,700km. [1]
January 5
• First US school of librarianship opens at Columbia University. [1]
January 7
• Abraham I van Lier Dutch actor/director (Gran Théâtre), dies at age 74. [1]
January 14
• Friedrich von Amerling Austrian painter, dies at age 83. [1]

• Peter "Peerke" Donders missionary (Father of Melaatsen), dies at age 77. [1]
January 16
• Cliff House damaged when schooner "Parallel"'s powder cargo explodes. [1]
January 20
• US Senate approves the naval base lease of Pearl Harbor. [1]
January 21
• Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) forms. [1]
January 26
• Battle of Dogali Abyssinian Emperor John IV defeats Italians. [1]
February 1
• Harvey Wilcox of Kansas subdivides 120 acres he owned in Southern California

and starts selling it off as a real estate development (Hollywood). [1]
February 3
• To avoid disputed national elections,US Congress creates Electoral Count Act. [1]
446
February 4
• Interstate Commerce Act authorizes federal regulation of railroads. [1]
February 5
• Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Otello" premieres at La Scala in Italy. [1]

• Snow falls on San Francisco. [1]
February 8
• Aurora Ski Club of Red Wing Minnesota became the first US ski club. [1]
• Dawes Act passed (Indians living apart from tribe granted citizenship). [1]
February 10
• Ellen Wood English author (Pomeroy Abbey), dies at age 73. [1]
• Pieter van der Aa Dutch geographer, dies at age 54. [1]
February 15
• Alexander Borodin composer, dies. [1]

• Birth of H M Bateman Sutton Forest New South Wales, cartoonist. [1]
February 16
• First newspaper convention (Rochester New York). [1]

• Eduard Douwes Dekker writes his last text (Lf8-c5). [1]
February 19
• Eduard Douwes Dekker Dutch writer (Max Havelaar), dies at age 66. [1]
February 20
• Germany, Austria-Hungary and France end Triple Alliance. [1]
February 21
• First US bacteriology laboratory opens (Brooklyn). [1]

• Oregon becomes first US state to make Labor Day a holiday. [1]
February 22
• Union Labor Party organized in Cincinnati. [1]
447
February 23
• US Congress grants Seal Rocks to San Francisco. [1]

• French/Italian Riviera struck by Earthquake; 2,000 die. [1]
February 27
• Alexander Porfir'yevich Borodin Russian composer, dies at age 53. [1]
March 2
• American Trotting Association organized in Detroit Michigan. [1]

• August W Eichler German botanist, dies at age 47. [1]
• Wilhelm Troszel composer, dies at age 63. [1]
March 3
• American Protective Association forms (anti-Catholic) in Clinton IA. [1]

• Anne Sullivan begins teaching six-year-old blind-deaf Helen Keller. [1]
March 4
• Gottlieb Daimler unveils his first automobile, which he test runs in Esslingen and
Cannstatt, Germany. [5]
March 8
• Everett Horton, Connecticut, patents fishing rod of telescoping steel tubes. [1]
• Pavel Annenkov Russian literature historian/critic, dies at age 73. [1]
March 13
• Chester Greenwood of Maine patents earmuffs. [1]
March 15
• Michigan appoints first salaried game and fish warden in US(William Alden
Smith). [1]
March 16
• Emanuel Kania composer, dies at age 59. [1]
March 17
448
• The A.B. Dick Company sells the first Diaphragm Mimeograph duplicating
machine. [55.52]
March 20
• Pavel Annenkov Russian literature historian, dies at age 73. [1]
March 24
• Oscar Straus appointed first Jewish ambassador from US (to Turkey). [1]
March 28
• Ditler G Monrad Danish bishop/premier (1863-), dies at age 75. [1]
April 4
• Susanna Medora Salter elected first US woman mayor (Argonia Kansas). [1]
April 5
• Anne Sullivan teaches "water" to Helen Keller. [1]
April 10
• President Abraham Lincoln is re-buried with his wife in Springfield Illinois. [1]
April 11
• Pyotr Petrovich Sokal'sky composer, dies at age 54. [1]
April 12
• Henrik Ibsen's "Rosmersholm", premieres in Oslo. [1]
April 26
• Huntsville Electric Company is established to sell electricity. [1]
April 28
• Carl Ferdinand Pohl composer, dies at age 67. [1]
April 30
• Friedrich Wilhelm Markull composer, dies at age 71. [1]
449
May 2
• G Rossini's corpse transfered to Santa Croce, Florence. [1]

• Hannibal W Goodwin patents celluloid photographic film. [1]
May 3
• In Sonora, Mexico, a magnitude 7.4 earthquake occurs. [53]
May 8
• Alexander Ulyanov brother of Lenin/hanged for assassination of tsar. [1]
May 9
• Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West Show opens in London. [5]
May 18
• Emmanuel Chabriers opera "Le Roi Malgré Luis" premieres in Paris France. [1]
May 19
• Pieter Blussé van Alblas liberal minister of Finance, dies at age 75. [1]
May 23
• First transcontinental train arrives in Vancouver British Columbia. [1]

• Ludwig Mathias Lindeman composer, dies at age 74. [1]
May 24
• Sultan Bargash of Zanzibar grants East African Association at East African

harbors. [1]
May 25
• Gas lamp at Paris Opera catches fire; 200 die. [1]
May 26
• Racetrack betting becomes legal in New York state. [1]
May 27
• Coenraad J van Houten Dutch cocoa manufacturer, dies at age 86. [1]
450
June 7
• Monotype type-casting machine patented by Tolbert Lanston, Washington DC. [1]
June 8
• In Almaty (Vernyy), Kazakhstan (Turkestan, Russia), a magnitude 7.3 earthquake

occurs. Almaty destroyed; many fissures, landslides and mudslides observed. [53]
• A Borrelly discovers asteroid #268 Adorea. [1]
June 21
• Britain celebrates golden jubilee of Queen Victoria. [1]
July 26
• First Esperanto book published. [1]
August 10
• Excursion train crashes killing 101. (Chatsworth, Illinois). [1]
September 15
• Philadelphia celebrates 100th anniversary of US Constitution. [1]
September 16
• The first game of softball is played in Chicago, Illinois. [5]
October 17
• Gustav Kirchoff discoverer of the laws of spectroscopy, dies. [1]
November 8
• Death of John Henry "Doc" Holliday, peacefully in bed, of tuberculosis. [187.265]
November 19
• Emma Lazarus US poet ("Give us your tired and poor"), dies in New York at age
38. [1]
November 23
451
• The opera "The Trumpeter of Suckingen" first American production (New York
City). [1]
November 29
• US receives rights to Pearl Harbor, on Oahu, Hawaii. [1]
December 1
• Albertus J Duymaer van Twist Governor-General of Dutch-Indies, dies at age 78.

[1]
• Sherlock Holmes first appears in print: "A Study In Scarlet". [1]
• Sino-Portuguese treaty recognizes Portugal's control of Macao. [1]
December 2
• Amsterdam's Oscar Carrés Circus Theater opens. [1]

• Charles Dickens' first public reading in US (New York City, New York). [1]
• French President Grévy (80) resigns. [1]
December 5
• Stanley's expedition reaches plateau at Lake Albert Congo. [1]
December 10
• Austria-Hungary/Italy/Great Britain signs military treaty of Balkan. [1]
December 17
• Georges Feydeaus' "Tailleur Pour Dames" premieres in Paris. [1]
December 19
• Jake Kilrain and Jem Smith fight 106 round bare knuckle draw. [1]
December 26
• Jules François Blasini Curaçao pianist/composer, dies at age 40. [1]
December 28
• Sir John Layton Jarvis, first British race horse trainer knighted. [1]
1888
452
January 3
* First wax drinking straw patented, by Marvin C Stone in

Washington DC. [1]
January 5
* Dutch Heidemaatschappij established. [1]

* Henri Herz composer, dies at a day before 85th birthday. [1]
January 13
* National Geographic Society founded (Washington DC). [1]
January 14
* Stephen Heller composer, dies at age 74. [1]
January 21
* Stephan Hale Alonzo Marsh composer, dies at age 83. [1]
January 27
* National Geographic Society organizes (Washington DC). [1]
January 29
* Edward Lear poet/author, dies at age 75. [1]
January 30
* Asa Gray US botanist (Flora of North America), dies at age 77. [1]
* Harry Moses 297 not out for New South Wales against Victoria. [1]
February 5
* Anton Mauve Dutch painter/cousin of Vincent Van Gogh, dies at

age 49. [1]
February 24
* Louisville Kentucky becomes first government in US to adopt

Australian ballot. [1]
453
February 28
* Ferry in San Pablo Bay explodes. [1]

* Vincent d'Indy's Wallenstein-trilogy, premieres. [1]
March 4
* Amos Bronson Alcott US theory/poet (Table Talk), dies at age 88.

[1]
March 6
* Louisa May Alcott US author (Old-fashioned Girl), dies at age 55.

[1]
March 10
* First performance of César Franck's "Psyche". [1]

* Ciro Pinsuti Italian pianist/composer, dies at age 57. [1]
March 11
* Great blizzard of '88 strikes northeast US. [1]
March 12
* Second day of the Great blizzard of '88 in northeast US (400 die).

[1]
* Henry Bergh founder (ASPCA), dies at age 76. [1]
March 13
* Great Blizzard of 1888 rages. [1]
March 14
* Second largest snowfall in New York City, New York history (21
inches). [1]
March 21
* Arthur Pinero's "Sweet Lavender" premieres in London. [1]
March 25
454
* Socialist leader Domela Nieuwenhuis elected to Dutch second
chamber. [1]
March 29
* Charles-Henri Valentin Alkan composer, dies at age 74. [1]
April 14
* William Fisk Sherwin composer, dies at age 62. [1]
April 15
* Matthew Arnold English poet, dies at age 65. [1]
April 16
* Drentse and Friese peat cutters go on strike. [1]
April 24
* Eastman Kodak forms. [1]
April 29
* Old Kavallison, Congo Stanley meet Emin Pasha. [1]
April 30
* Hailstones kill about 250 in Moradabad district of Delhi India. [1]
May 4
* Italy and Spain sign military covenant. [1]
May 7
* Edouard Lalo's opera "Le roi d'Ys" premieres in Paris France. [1]
* George Eastman patents "Kodak box camera". [1]
May 12
* Crouching start first used by Charles Sherrill of Yale. [1]
May 13
455
* Brazil abolishes slavery. [1]
* DeWolf Hopper first recited "Casey at the Bat". [1]
* In Denmark, Inge Lehmann is born; discovered the inner core of
the Earth, a zone of solid materal, at a depth of 5150 km, in the early
1930s. She died in 1993 at the age of 105. [53]
* Princess Isabel of Brazil signs "Lei Auréa" abolishing slavery. [1]
May 16
* CPR opens Hotel Vancouver, Vancouver British Columbia. [1]
May 22
* Leroy Buffington patents a system to build skyscrapers. [1]
June 1
* In Lick Observatory, Mount Hamilton, California, formal opening of

Ewing duplex-pendulum seismometer, Ewing horizontal-pendulum
seismometers, and Gray-Ewing vertical seismometers. [1] [53]
June 3
* "Casey at the Bat" published (San Francisco Examiner). [1]
June 13
* US Congress creates the Department of Labor. [1]
June 25
* Republican Convention, in Chicago, nominates Benjamin Harrison.

[1]
June 29
* The first known recording of classical music, Handel's Israel in

Egypt, is made on wax cylinder. [5]
July 4
* First organized rodeo competition held, Prescott, Arizona. [1]
July 11
* 118 degrees F (48 degrees C), Bennett, Colorado (state record). [1]
456
* Pennsylvania's Monongehela River rises 32' after 24 hour rainfall.
[1]
July 15
* Bandai volcano (Japan) erupts for first time in 1,000 years. [1]
July 23
* Birth of Gluyas Williams SF, cartoonist (Fellows Citizen). [1]
August 5
* Bertha Benz drives from Mannheim to Pforzheim, Germany in the

first long distance automobile trip. [5]
August 7
* Theophilus Van Kannel of Philadelphia patents revolving door. [1]
August 11
* California Theatre closed (now a Pac Tel Phone Store). [1]
August 12
* Bertha, wife of inventor Karl Benz, makes first motor tour. [1]
August 19
* First beauty contest (Spa, Belgium), 18-year-old West Indian wins.

[1]
August 21
* William Seward Burroughs patents the first successful adding

machine in the United States. [5]
August 30
* Lord Walsingham kills 1070 grouse in a single day. [1]
August 31
* Mary Ann Nicholls a 42-year-old prostitute, is found stabbed to

death. [1]
457
September 1
* In North Canterbury, New Zealand, a magnitude 7.0-7.3

earthquake occurs. [53]
September 4
* George Eastman registers the trademark Kodak and receives a

patent for his camera that uses roll film. [1] [5]
September 19
* The first beauty contest is held, the Concours de Beauté, held at

Spa in Belgium. Winner is 18-year-old Bertha Soucaret of Guadeloupe.
[55.22]
October 9
* In the USA, the Washington Monument officially opens to the

general public. [1] [5]
October 10
* Teetotalers excursion train crushed, killing 64 (Mud Run

Pennsylvania). [1]
October 17
* Thomas Edison files a patent for the Optical Phonograph (the first
movie). [5]
October 19
* Moshav Gederah is attacked by the Arabs. [1]
October 23
* Pelham Bay Park in the Bronx, vested. [1]
October 30
* First ballpoint pen patented. [1]
November 3
458
* Jack the Ripper kills last victim. [1]
November 6
* Benjamin Harrison (Republican-Senator-Indiana) beats President

Grover Cleveland (Democrat), 233 electoral votes to 168, Cleveland
received slightly more votes. [1]
November 20
* William Bundy patents the timecard clock. [1]
December 2
* Franz Xaver Witt composer, dies at age 54. [1]

* Mehmed N Kemal Bey Turkish writer/journalist (Vatan), dies at age
47. [1]
December 10
* Mariano Obiols composer, dies at age 79. [1]
December 11
* French Panamá Canal company fails. [1]
December 19
* Stanley's expedition reaches Fort Bodo, East-Africa. [1]
December 23
* Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh cuts off his left ear. [1]
December 30
* Belgium: king Leopold II installs Order of African Star. [1]
1889
January 3
* Admissions convention meets in Ellensburg Washington, asks for

statehood. [1]
January 8
459
* Dr Herman Hollerith receives first US patent for a tabulating
machine (first computer). [1] [55.44]
January 10
* Ivory Coast declared a protectorate of France. [1]

* Martin Andreas Udbye composer, dies at age 68. [1]
January 16
* In Cloncurry, Queensland, an Australian record hot temperature of

128 degrees F (53 degrees C) is recorded. [1] [54]
January 17
* Juan Montalvo Ecuadorian author (Siete Tratados), dies at age 56.

[1]
January 23
* Dr Daniel Hale Williams forms Provident Hospital in Chicago. [1]
January 27
* Ivan S Aksakov Russian journalist, dies at age 65. [1]
January 30
* John Herschel uses camera obscura to photograph 48" (120cm)

telescope. [1]
February 1
* Joseph Gungl composer, dies at age 78. [1]
February 3
* Belle Starr US female gangster, murdered at age 40. [1]
February 7
* Astronomical Society of Pacific holds first meeting in San Francisco.

[1]
February 8
460
* Flood ravages Dutch coast. [1]
February 11
* Meiji constitution of Japan adopted; first Diet convenes in 1890. [1]
February 12
* César Francks Symphony in D, premieres. [1]

* Henrik Ibsen's "Fruen fra Haven" premieres in Oslo. [1]
February 14
* First trainload of fruit (oranges) leaves Los Angeles for the east. [1]
February 22
* Dakotas, Montana and Washington admitted to the union. [1]

* President Cleveland signs bill to admit Dakotas, Montana and
Washington state. [1]
March 2
* Kansas passes first US antitrust. [1]
March 3
* Edward Sydney Smith composer, dies at age 49. [1]
March 4
* Benjamin Harrison inaugurated as 23rd President. [1]
March 8
* Jens/John Ericsson Sweden/US, engineer (fire extinguisher), dies at

age 85. [1]
March 9
* Battle at Gallabat (Metema); Mahdi's beat Abyssinian emperor John

IV. [1]
* Kansas passes first general antitrust law in US. [1]
March 12
461
* Battle at Metema (Gallabad); Ethiopian Emperor Yohannes IV,
defeated. [1]
* Yohannes IV [Kasa], Emperor of Ethiopia (1872-89), dies in battle.
[1]
March 14
* August Strindberg's "Froken Julie" premieres in Copenhagen. [1]

* German Ferdinand von Zeppelin patents his "Navigable Balloon."
[5]
March 15
* Six US and German warships perish in harbor of Apia Samoa, 200

die. [1]
March 17
* Joseph A Alberdingk Thijm [Pauwels Foreestier], poet, dies at age

68. [1]
March 18
* William Henry Monk composer, dies at age 66. [1]
March 23
* President Harrison opens Oklahoma for white colonization. [1]
March 27
* Moritz Furstenau composer, dies at age 64. [1]
March 28
* Matilde "Tillie" Ziegler killed by husband William Kemmler. [1]
March 31
* 300 metre Eiffel Tower officially opens (commemorates French

Revolution). [1]
April 1
* First dishwashing machine marketed (Chicago). [1]
462
April 3
* Savings Bank of the Order of True Reformers opens in Richmond

Virginia. [1]
April 4
* Thomas T H Jorissen historian, dies at age 56. [1]
April 6
* George Eastman places Kodak Camera on sale for first time. [1]
April 18
* In Potsdam, germany, Ernst von Rebeur-Paschwitz makes the first

known recordings of a distant earthquake, taken place in Tokyo, Japan,
an hour earlier. [53]
April 19
* Warren De La Rue astronomer/chemist, dies. [1]
April 22
* Oklahoma land rush officially starts; as many as nine out of ten of

these settlers had jumped the gun, earning themselves the name
"Sooners". [1]
April 30
* First US national holiday, on centennial of Washington's

inauguration. [1]
May 1
* First International Workers Day, according to the second

International. [1]
* Bayer introduces aspirin in powder form (Germany). [1]
May 2
* Abyssinian emperor Menelik II/Italy signs Treaty of Wichale. [1]
May 6
463
* Universal Exposition opens in Paris, France; the Eiffel Tower is
officially opened to the public. [1] [5]
May 15
* Alfred Potocki premier Austrian/Governor/Viceroy of Galicia, dies.

[1]
May 17
* William Roxby Beverly artist, dies. [1]
May 18
* Jules Massenets opera "Esclarmonde" premieres in Paris France. [1]
May 28
* Willem M d'Ablaing lawyer, dies at age 37. [1]
May 29
* August Strindberg's "Hemsoborna" premieres in Copenhagen. [1]
May 30
* The brassiere is invented. [1]
May 31
* Johnstown Flood; 2,209 die in Pennsylvania. [1]
June 3
* The first long-distance electric power transmission line in the

United States is completed, running 14 miles between a generator at
Willamette Falls and downtown Portland, Oregon. [5]
* The Canadian Pacific Railway is completed from coast to coast. [5]
June 6
* Great Fire in Seattle destroys 25 downtown blocks. [1]
June 8
464
* Cable Cars begin service in Los Angeles. [1]
June 12
* Single tornado kills 119, injures 146 (New Richmond Wisc). [1]
June 13
* 2 feet of snow accumulates in Rawlins, Wyoming. [1]
June 19
* Start of Sherlock Holmes adventure "The Man with the Twisted

Lip". [1]
June 28
* Maria Mitchell first US woman astronomer, dies at age 71. [1]
July 1
* Frederick Douglass named Minister to Haiti. [1]

* US mint at Carson City, Nevada reopens. [1]
July 4
* Washington state constitutional convention holds first meeting. [1]
July 8
* John L Sullivan wins by KO in 75 rounds in last bare-knuckle bout.

[1]
* Wall Street Journal begins publishing. [1]
August 23
* First ship-to-shore wireless message received in US (San

Francisco). [1]
September 28
* The first General Conference on Weights and Measures (CGPM)

defines the length of a metre as the distance between two lines on a
standard bar of an alloy of platinum with ten percent iridium, measured
at the melting point of ice. [5]
465
October 1
* Washington voters adopt state constitution in referendum. [1]
October 2
* First Pan American conference (Washington DC). [1]
October 6
* Thomas Edison shows his first motion picture. [1]
October 29
* Stanley Park dedicated in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. [1]
November 2
* North Dakota becomes 39th and South Dakota becomes the 40th
state. [1]
November 8
* Montana admitted as 41st state. [1]
November 11
* Washington admitted as 42nd state. [1]
November 14
* New York World's Nellie Bly (Liz Cochrane) begins 72 day world
trip. [1]
November 15
* Dom Pedro II, Emperor of Brazil, deposed; republic proclaimed. [1]
November 17
* Union Pacific begins daily through service, Chicago-Portland and

San Francisco. [1]
November 18
* Oahu Railway begins public service in Hawaii. [1]
466
November 23
* The first jukebox goes into operation at the Palais Royale Saloon in
San Francisco. [5]
November 27
* First permit issued to drive a car through Central Park (Curtis

Brady). [1]
December 3
* Baltasar Saldoni composer, dies at age 82. [1]
December 4
* Stanley's expedition reaches Bagamoyo in Indian Ocean. [1]
December 6
* Jefferson Davis President of Confederate States of America (1861-

5), dies at age 81. [1]
* Joseph H "Jozef" Neuhuys painter, dies at age 48. [1]
December 7
* Gilbert and Sullivan's "Gondoliers" premieres in London. [1]
December 9
* President Harrison visits opening of Chicago Auditorium. [1]
December 10
* Ludwig Anzengruber Austrian playwright, dies at age 50. [1]
December 12
* Robert Browning English poet (Ring and Book), dies at age 77. [1]
December 13
* Belgium rules on women/child labor law. [1]
December 14
467
* American Academy of Political and Social Science organized,
Philadelphia. [1]
December 15
* Ferdinand II king of Portugal, dies at age 73. [1]
December 19
* Bishop Museum founded in Hawaii. [1]
December 21
* Joseph B Lightfoot English theologist/bishop of Durham, dies at age

61. [1]
December 24
* Daniel Stover and William Hance patent bicycle with back pedal
brake. [1]
1890
January 2
* Alice Sanger becomes first female White House staffer. [1]

* Record 19'2" alligator shot in Louisiana by E A McIlhenny. [1]
January 3
* First US college-level dairy school opens at University of Wisconsin.

[1]
January 7
* Death of Maria Luise Augusta Katharina in Berlin, Germany;

Empress of the German Reich after 1871 as the wife of Wilhelm I. [1]
[37]
* Hans Matthison-Hansen composer, dies at age 82. [1]
* W B Purvis patents fountain pen. [1]
January 10
* Edward Macdowell's "Lancelot and Elaine" premieres. [1]
468
* Death of Johann Joseph Ignaz von Döllinger in Munich, Germany;
Roman Catholic priest, professor of canon law, church historian. [37]
* Pope Leo XIII publishes encyclical Sapientiae Christianae. [1]
January 14
* Francesco D'Arcais composer, dies at age 59. [1]
January 17
* Death of Salomon Sulzer in Vienna, Austria, at age 85; chief cantor

in Vienna, composer, "the father of modern synagogue music". [1] [37]
January 18
* Amadeus I FM king of Spain (1870-73), dies at age 44. [1]
January 20
* Franz Paul Lachner composer, dies at age 86. [1]
January 21
* First issue of Propria Cures, Amsterdam student-weekly newspaper.

[1]
January 22
* José Marti forms La Liga (Union of Cuban exiles) in New York City,
New York. [1]
January 25
* National Afro-American League forms in Chicago. [1]

* Nellie Bly beats Phileas Fogg's time around world by 8 days (72
days). [1] [5]
* United Mine Workers of America forms. [1]
January 30
* Karl Merz composer, dies at age 53. [1]
February 3
* Christophorus H D Buys Ballot Dutch meteorologist, dies at age 72.

[1]
469
February 10
* Around 11 million acres, ceded to US by Sioux Indians opens for

settlement. [1]
February 18
* Julius Andrássy Sr earl/premier of Hungary (1867-71), dies at age

66. [1]
February 20
* Amsterdam Theater destroyed by fire. [1]
February 27
* D Needham and P Kerrigan box 100 rounds (6 hours 39 minutes),

San Francisco; match is draw. [1]
March 1
* First US edition of Sherlock Holmes (Study in Scarlet) published. [1]
March 4
* The longest bridge in the United Kingdom, the Forth Bridge

(railway) (1,710 ft) opens in Scotland. [5]
March 13
* Henry Wylde composer, dies at age 67. [1]
March 18
* First US state naval militia organized (Massachusetts). [1]
March 20
* General Federation of Womens' Clubs founded. [1]

* German emperor Wilhelm II fires republic chancellor Otto Von
Bismarck. [1]
March 21
* Austrian Jewish communities are defined by law. [1]
470
March 22
* Désiré de Haerne Belgian priest/Congressional leader, dies at age

85. [1]
April 2
* Marinus Campbell bibliographer, dies at age 70. [1]
April 6
* French troops under Captain Archinard occupy Segu, West-Sudan.

[1]
April 8
* Junius Morgan philanthropist, dies at age 76. [1]
April 11
* Ellis Island designated as an immigration station. [1]
April 14
* Pan American Day-first conference of American states (Washington

DC). [1]
April 17
* John Barnett composer, dies at age 87. [1]
April 18
* New York Commission of Emigration ends, closing Castle Clinton.

[1]
April 19
* Henry Morton Stanley is inaugurated in Brussels. [1]
April 26
* Henry Morton Stanley inaugurated in London. [1]
April 27
471
* French troops under Captain Archinard occupy Oussébougou West
Sudan. [1]
May 2
* Territory of Oklahoma created. [1]
May 6
* Hubert Leonard composer, dies at age 71. [1]

* Mormon Church renounces polygamy [1006-Truth Restored
(Morman pub)]. [1]
May 12
* Louisiana legalized prize fighting. [1]
May 13
* Lord Salisbury offers Germany Helgoland in exchange for Zanzibar,

Uganda and Equatoria. [1]
May 17
* Clyde Fitch's "Beau Brummel" premieres in New York City. [1]

* Comic Cuts, first weekly comic paper, published in London, created
by Alfred Harmsworth. [1] [55.42]
* Pietro Costanzi's opera "Rustic Chivalry" premieres in Rome. [1]
May 24
* Caprivi succeeds Bismarck on as chancellor of Germany. [1]

* Geo Train and Sam Wall circle world in record 67 days, Tacoma-
Tacoma. [1]
* Tivoli Theater of Varities opens in London. [1]
May 28
* Viktor Ernst Nessler composer, dies at age 49. [1]
June 7
* The Comic Cuts weekly paper introduces the first true comic strip.
[55.42]
472
June 9
* The opera "Robin Hood" is produced (Chicago). [1]
June 13
* Eagle Ave in the Bronx is cut out and named. [1]
July 1
* Canada and Bermuda are linked by telegraph cable. [5]
July 2
* Sherman Antitrust Act prohibits industrial monopolies. [1]
July 3
* Idaho admitted as 43rd US state. [1]
July 13
* John C Fremont declared Republic of California, dies at age 76. [1]
July 15
* A Charlois discovers asteroid #294 Felicia. [1]
July 20
* Snow and hail in Calais, Maine. [1]
July 29
* Vincent Van Gogh dies in Auvers, France. [1]
August 6
* First use of electric chair execution, convicted murderer William

Kemmler, at Auburn Prison, New York. [55.53] (John Hart [1])
* Cy Young pitches and wins first game. [1]
August 8
* Daughters of the American Revolution organizes. [1]
473
August 16
* Alexander Clark, journalist/lawyer, named minister to Liberia. [1]
September 19
* Turkish frigate "Ertogrul" burns off of Japan, kills 540. [1]
September 25
* US Congress establishes Yosemite National Park (California). [1]
September 26
* US stops minting $1 and $3 gold coin and 3-cent piece. [1]
October 1
* Yosemite National Park established. [1]
October 6
* Mormon Church outlaws polygamy. [1]
October 11
* First 100 yard dash under 10 seconds (John Owens 9-4/5 secs,
Washington DC). [1]
* Daughters of the American Revolution founded. [1]
October 15
* Alabama Penny Savings Bank organizes in Birmingham. [1]

* Funny Cuts weekly comic paper first released by Alfred Gray, with
full front-page strip cartoon. [55.42]
October 18
* John Owen is first man to run 100 yd dash in under 10 seconds. [1]
October 23
* The opera "Prince Igor" is produced (Saint Petersburg). [1]
November 4
474
* Great Britain proclaims Zanzibar as a protectorate. [1]
November 20
* Pope Leo XIII encyclical On slavery in the missions. [1]
November 27
* First signal box for San Francisco Police Department goes into
operation. [1]
December 4
* Willem III Dutch king, buried. [1]

* Willem III, Dutch king, buried. [1]
December 5
* Berlioz' opera "Les Troyens" premieres in Karlsruhe. [1]
December 10
* Ludolf Sloet van de Beele Governor-General (Net India 1861-66),

dies at age 84. [1]
December 15
* Sitting Bull Hunkpapa-Sioux chief (Little Big Horn), killed by US

Army. [1]
December 16
* Negro Methodist Episcopal Church founded in Jackson Tennessee.

[1]
December 18
* Lugards expedition to Mengo/Kampala, Uganda. [1]
December 21
* Niels Vilhelm Gade Danish composer, dies at age 73. [1]

* Pim Mulier first and only trip to "Alvesteddetocht". [1]
December 22
475
* Harry Pollitt chairman British communist (1956-60), dies. [1]
December 26
* Heinrich Schliemann German archaeologist (Trojan War), dies at

age 86. [1]
* King Mwanga of Uganda signs contract with East Africa Company.
[1]
December 29
* Big Foot Sioux Indian chief, dies at Wounded Knee. [1]

* US 7th Cavalry massacre 200+ captive Sioux at Wounded Knee
South Dakota; Indian "war" in the west. [1]
December 31
* Ellis Island (New York City, New York) opens as a US immigration

depot. [1]
1891
January 1
* French troops occupy Nioro, West-Sudan, 3000 killed. [1]

* King Pakketvaart sails to Netherlands Indies. [1]
January 5
* Guillaume L Baud Dutch minister of Colonies (1848-49), dies at age

89. [1]
January 7
* Carl Gottfried Wilhelm Taubert composer, dies at age 79. [1]
January 8
* Fredrik Pacius composer, dies at age 81. [1]
January 11
* Georges-Eugène Haussmann French senator/baron, dies at age 81.

[1]
January 16
476
* Clement-Philibert-Leo Delibes composer, dies at age 54. [1]
* Leo Delibes French ballet composer (Lakmé), dies at age 54. [1]
January 17
* Johannes Josephus Hermanus Verhulst composer, dies at age 74.

[1]
January 20
* David Kalakahua emperor of Hawaii, dies. [1]
January 21
* Calixa Lavallee composer, dies at age 48. [1]
January 23
* Boudouin prince of Belgium/count of Flanders, dies at age 21. [1]
January 26
* Nicholaus Otto auto pioneer (internal combustion engine), dies. [1]

* Oscar Wilde's "Duchess of Padua" premieres in New York City, New
York. [1]
January 27
* Mine explosion kills 109 at Mount Pleasant Pennsylvania. [1]
January 31
* Ernest Meissonier French painter/etcher/sculptor, dies at age 75.

[1]
February 6
* First great train robbery by Dalton Gang (Southern Pacific #17). [1]
February 7
* Great Blizzard of 1891 begins. [1]
February 9
477
* First shipment of asparagus arrives in San Francisco from
Sacramento. [1]
* Johan B Jongkind Dutch/French painter (Winter View), dies at age
71. [1]
February 13
* David Dixon Porter US Rear Admiral (Union Army-Civil War), dies at

age 77. [1]
February 14
* William Tecumseh Sherman Union Civil War General (captured

Atlanta), dies at age 71. [1]
February 18
* Captain Archinard's army fights with Nyamina of Niger in West-

Sudan. [1]
February 24
* French troops under Captain Archinard occupy Diéna West Sudan.

[1]
February 26
* First buffalo purchased for Golden Gate Park. [1]

* Henrik Ibsens "Hedda Gabler" premieres in Oslo. [1]
March 3
* US Congress creates Office of Superintendent of Immigration

(Treasury Department). [1]
* US Congress creates US Courts of Appeal. [1]
March 17
* British Steamer "Utopia" sinks off Gibraltar killing 574. [1]

* Napoleon JKP Bonaparte Fren prince/member National Convention,
dies at age 68. [1]
March 18
* Britain is linked to the continent by Telephone. [1]
478
March 21
* A Hatfield marries a McCoy, ends long feud in West Virginia; it

started with an accusation of pig-stealing and lasted 20 years. [1]
March 23
* First jazz concert is held at Carnegie Hall. [1]
March 29
* Georges-Pierre Seurat French painter (Pointillism), dies at age 31.

[1]
April 1
* London-Paris telephone connection opens. [1]

* Painter Gauguin leaves Marseille for Tahiti. [1]
* The Wrigley Company is founded in Chicago, Illinois. [5]
April 7
* Nebraska introduces the 8 hour work day. [1]

* P[hineas] T Barnum US circus promoter (Barnum and Bailey), dies
at age 80. [1]
April 11
* Eight-year old Jewish tailor's daughter disappears in Greece,

rumour spreads that she was a Christian girl ritually killed by Jews. [1]
April 15
* Stephen Albert Emery composer, dies at age 49. [1]
April 17
* Jules Eugene Abraham Alary composer, dies at age 77. [1]
April 22
* In Fatfield, Durham, England, Harold Jeffreys is born. [53]
April 23
* Jews are expelled from Moscow Russia. [1]
479
April 24
* Count Helmuth K B von Moltke Prussian General/fieldmarshal, dies.

[1]
April 25
* President Benjamin Harrison visits San Francisco. [1]
May 4
* Sherlock Holmes "dies" at Reichenbach Falls. [1]
May 5
* Carnegie Hall opens in New York City with Tchaikovsky as guest

conductor. [1]
May 6
* Conductors on London General Omnibus Company go on strike. [1]
May 7
* Battle in Bunyoro: Captain F Lugard stops Muslim rebellion, 300

killed. [1]
May 8
* Helena Petrovina Blavatsky Russian theosophist, dies. [1]
May 12
* Riot against tax increase in Paramaribo Suriname. [1]
May 15
* British Central African Protectorate (now Malawi) is established. [1]

* Jules Massenets opera "Griselde" premieres in Paris France. [1]
* Operations begin at Philips and Company in Holland. [1]
* Pope Leo XIII publishes encyclical Rerum novarum. [1]
May 16
* George A Hormel and Company introduce Spam. [1]
480
May 19
* Rice Institute, which became Rice University, is chartered. [1]
May 20
* Thomas Edison first publically displays his kinetoscope prototype.

[5]
May 22
* First motion picture shown to National Federation of Women's

Clubs. [1]
May 23
* Ignace Xavier Joseph Leybach composer, dies at age 73. [1]
May 26
* Frederick Bowen Jewson composer, dies at age 67. [1]
May 31
* Work on trans-Siberian railway begins. [1]
June 11
* A Charlois discovers asteroid #311 Claudia. [1]
June 29
* 100 degrees F (San Francisco, CA). [1]
July 5
* Hail kills six horses in Rapid City, South Dakota. [1]
July 7
* Travelers cheque patented. [1]
July 8
481
* 61 degrees F, the highest temp for July 1891, in Baltimore and
Philadelphia. [1]
* Future president Harding marries Florence K DeWolfe in Marion
Ohio. [1]
August 4
* George Washington Williams dies at age 41 in Blackpool England.

[1]
August 19
* William Huggins describes astronomical application of spectrum.

[1]
August 24
* Thomas Edison patents the motion picture camera. [1] [5]
September 3
* Cottonpickers organize union and stage strike in Texas. [1]

* John Stephens Durham, named minister to Haiti. [1]
September 14
* "Empire State Express" train goes from New York City to East
Buffalo, a distance of 436 miles, in a record 7H6M. [1]
October 6
* Charles Stewart Parnell leader of the Irish party, dies. [1]
October 12
* Astronomical Society of France is inaugurated. [1]
October 20
* First International six day bike race (New York Madison Square
Gardens) begins. [1]
October 25
* First International six day bike race (New York Madison Square
Gardens) ends. [1]
482
October 28
* In Mino-Owari, Japan, an approximate magnitude 8 earthquake

occurs. Over 7,000 deaths. The earthquake caused damage over a
4200 square mile area. 130,000 houses were destroyed. [1] [53]
November 10
* First Woman's Christian Temperance Union meeting held (in

Boston). [1]
December 2
* 52ndUS Congress (1891-93) convenes. [1]
December 5
* Pedro II of Alcantara emp of Brazil (1831-89), dies. [1]
December 7
* 52ndUS Congress (first to appropriate $1 billion) holds first session.

[1]
December 11
* Johan C J van Schagen Dutch poet/writer (Narrenwijsheid), dies. [1]
December 17
* Msiri king of Garanganja (Katanga), dies in battle. [1]

* Omer Bodson Belgian captain, dies in battle. [1]
December 19
* First Negro Catholic priest ordained in US, Charles Uncles,

Baltimore. [1]
December 20
* Strongman Louis Cyr withstands the pull of four horses. [1]
December 23
* Holger Simon Paulli composer, dies at age 81. [1]
483
December 26
* Birth of Jean Galtier-Boissière French writer/cartoonist/journalist. [1]
December 28
* Alfred Cellier composer, dies at age 47. [1]
December 29
* Edison patents "transmission of signals electrically" (radio). [1]

* Leopold Kronecker German mathematician, dies at age 68. [1]
1892
January 1
* Ellis Island becomes reception center for new immigrants. [1]
January 2
* George B Airy English astronomer/writer, dies at age 90. [1]

* Annie Moore, from Ireland, becomes the first person to pass
through the newly opened Ellis Island. [129]
January 5
* First successful auroral photograph made. [1]
January 7
* Mine explosion kills 100, Krebs Oklahoma-blacks trying to help

rescue white survivors, driven away with guns. [1]
* Tewfik Pasja viceroy of Egypt, dies at age 39. [1]
January 8
* John Heykamp old-catholic archbishop of Utrecht, dies at age 67.

[1]
January 10
* Heinrich Ludwig Egmont Dorn composer, dies at age 91. [1]
January 11
484
* Hawaiian Historical Society founded. [1]
* Paul Gauguin marries a 13-year-old Tahitian girl. [1]
* William D McCoy of Indiana appointed US minister to Liberia. [1]
January 13
* Charles Albert White composer, dies at age 62. [1]
January 16
* Imakita Kosen Zen teacher/abbot of Engagkuji monastery, dies. [1]
January 17
* Alexandre Levy composer, dies at age 27. [1]
January 21
* John Couch Adams English co-discoverer of Neptune, dies. [1]
January 24
* Battle at Mengo, Uganda French missionaries attack British

missionaries. [1]
January 30
* Bobby Abel carries his bat for 132* for England in SCG Test. [1]
* Captain Lugard occupies Uganda's King Mwanga's hide out. [1]
February 1
* Mrs William Astor invites 400 guests to a grand ball at her mansion
thus beginning the use of the "400" to describe the socially elite. [1]
February 2
* Bottle cap with cork seal patented by William Painter (Baltimore).

[1]
February 3
* Russia closes down Yeshiva of Volozhin. [1]
February 7
485
* In Verkhoyansk, Russia, an Asian record cold temperature of -90
degrees F is recorded. [54]
February 11
* Erik Anthon Valdemar Siboni composer, dies at age 63. [1]
February 16
* Henry Walter Bates naturalist/explorer (South America), dies. [1]

* The opera "Werther" is produced (Vienna). [1]
February 20
* Hermann Kopp German chemist (Law of Kopp), dies at age 74. [1]
February 22
* "Lady Windermere's Fan" by Oscar Wilde premieres at Saint James

Theater (London). [1]
February 23
* First college student government established, Bryn Mawr

Pennsylvania. [1]
February 24
* In Imperial Valley, California, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake occurs.

At the old Carrizo station in San Diego County, all adobe buildings were
destroyed. [53]
February 25
* James Barrie's "Walker London" premieres in London. [1]
February 29
* Britain and US sign treaty on seal hunting in Bering Sea. [1]
March 1
* Archibald Scott Scottish chemist, dies at age 60. [1]
March 3
486
* First cattle tuberculosis test in US made, Villa Nova Pennsylvania.
[1]
March 10
* Otto van Raised Governor-General of Netherland Indies (1884-88),

dies at age 69. [1]
March 15
* First escalator patented by inventor Jesse W Reno (New York City,

New York). [1]
* New York State unveils automatic ballot booth (voting machine).
[1]
March 20
* Arthor Goring Thomas composer, dies at age 41. [1]
March 26
* Anton Wallerstein composer, dies at age 78. [1]

* Walt Whitman poet, dies in Camden New Jersey at age 72. [1]
March 29
* William Bowman English anatomist, dies at age 75. [1]
March 31
* Adolf Rzepko composer, dies at age 66. [1]
April 2
* Willem J d'Ablaing van Giessenburg Dut baron/genealogist, dies at

age 79. [1]
April 12
* George C Blickensderfer patents portable typewriter. [1]
April 15
* General Electric Company forms and is incorporated in New York.

[1] [5]
487
April 21
* Black Longshoremen strike for higher wages in Saint Louis Mo. [1]
April 22
* Edouard-Victoire-Antoine Lalo composer, dies at age 69. [1]
April 28
* First performance of Antonin Dvorák's overture "Carneval". [1]
May 1
* US Quarantine Station opens on Angel Island, San Francisco Bay.

[1]
* Willem A Scholten manufacturer (potatoes), dies at age 89. [1]
May 2
* Wilhelm Rust composer, dies at age 69. [1]
May 5
* Jan Nepomuk Skroup composer, dies at age 80. [1]
May 6
* Ernest Guiraud composer, dies at age 54. [1]
May 13
* Jean Alexander Ferdinand Poise composer, dies at age 63. [1]
May 15
* Arthur Hodister British ivory seller (Heart of Darkness), murdered.

[1]
May 16
* John Banvard painted world's largest painting (3 mile canvas), dies.

[1]
* Theodoor J Canneel Flemish painter, dies at age 74. [1]
488
May 17
* György Klapka Hungarian general/parliament leader, dies at age

72. [1]
May 19
* Charles Brady King invents pneumatic hammer. [1]

* National Society of Colonial Dames of America founded. [1]
May 20
* George Sampson patents clothes dryer. [1]

* Triple Alliance between Germany, Italy and Austria-Hungary forms.
[1]
May 21
* Ruggiero Leoncavallo's opera "I Pagliacci" premieres in Milan. [1]
May 22
* Dr Washington Sheffield invents toothpaste tube. [1]
May 28
* Sierra Club forms by John Muir in San Francisco, for conservation of

nature. [1]
May 29
* Baha'u'llah [Mirza HA Noeri] Persian founder (Bahá'í), dies at age

74. [1]
June 18
* Macademia nuts first planted in Hawaii. [1]
July 6
* Striking steelworkers in Homestead, Pa fire on scabs, killing 7. [1]
July 8
* American Psychological Association organized, Worcester,

Massachusetts [1]
489
July 10
* First concrete-paved street built (Bellefountaine, Ohio). [1]
August 4
* Sunday school teacher Lizzie Borden arrested in Fall River,

Massachusetts [1]
August 13
* Baltimore Afro-American forms. [1]
August 16
* Birth of Harold Foster cartoonist (created "Prince Valiant"). [1]
September 7
* James J Corbett kayos John L Sullivan in round 21 at New Orleans.

[1]
September 8
* First appearance of "The Pledge of Allegiance" (Youth's

Companion). [1]
September 9
* Almalthea, 5th moon of Jupiter, discovered by EE Barnard at Lick.

[1]
September 14
* AP Giannini marries Clorinda Cuneo. [1]
September 26
* First public appearance of John Philip Sousa's band (New Jersey).

[1]
October 5
* Dalton Gang ends in shoot-out in Coffeyville, Kansas bank holdup.

[1]
490
October 18
* First commercial long-distance phone line opens (Chicago-New

York). [1]
October 25
* Caroline Harrison President Benjamin Harrison's wife, dies at age

60. [1]
October 31
* Arthur Conan Doyle publishes "The Adventures of Sherlock

Holmes." [5]
November 8
* Grover Cleveland (Democrat) elected President. [1]
December 1
* ? de Bruyne Belgian sergeant in Congo, murdered. [1]

* Joseph Lippens Belgian lieutenant in Congo, murdered. [1]
December 3
* William Bonaparte grandson of Lucien, dies. [1]
December 5
* Anti-semite Hermann Ahlwardt elected to Germany's Reichstag. [1]
December 6
* E Werner von Siemens German industrialist (Siemens AG), dies at

age 75. [1]
December 15
* Charles Balmer composer, dies at age 75. [1]
December 18
* Anton Bruckner's 8th Symphony, premieres. [1]
491
* The Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg holds the first performance
of Tchaikovsky's ballet The Nutcracker. [1] [5]
* Richard Owen English zoologist (Dinosaurus), dies at age 88. [1]
December 20
* Phileas Fogg completes around world trip, according to Verne. [1]

* Pneumatic automobile tire patented, Syracuse New York. [1]
December 26
* The opera "Cristoforo Colombo" is produced (La Scala). [1]
December 27
* Foundation Stone of the Cathedral of Saint John laid (New York City,
New York). [1]
1893
January 1
* First US college extension courses for credit, University of Chicago.

[1]
* Japan adopts the Gregorian calendar. [1]
January 2
* First US commemoratives and first US stamp to picture a woman

issued. [1]
January 4
* US President Harrison grants amnesty to Mormon polygamy. [1]
January 6
* Great Northern Railway connects Seattle with east coast. [1]
January 7
* Death of Josef Stefan in Vienna, Austria; physicist at the University

of Vienna; the Stefan-Boltzmann law of physics. [37]
* Hermann Sudermanns "Heimat" premieres in Berlin. [1]
January 9
492
* Mohara Arab ivory/slave trader, dies in battle and is eaten. [1]
January 10
* Richard Drigo's ballet "The Magic Flute" premieres, Saint

Petersburg. [1]
January 11
* Benjamin F Butler US General /presidential candidate (anti-

monopoly), dies at age 74. [1]
January 13
* British Independent Labor Party forms (Keir Hardie as its leader).

[1]
January 16
* Johan Philip Koelman painter/sculptor/architect, dies at age 74. [1]
January 17
* -17 degrees F (-27 degrees C), Millsboro DE (state record). [1]

* Queen Liliuokalani deposed, Kingdom of Hawaii becomes a
republic. [1]
* Rutherford B Hayes 19th US President (1877-81), dies in Fremont
Ohio at age 70. [1]
January 19
* Julius Eichberg composer, dies at age 68. [1]
January 22
* Vincenz Lachner composer, dies at age 81. [1]
January 23
* José Zorrilla y Moral Spanish poet (Granada), dies at age 75. [1]
January 27
* James G Blaine US minister of foreign affairs, dies at age 62. [1]
493
January 28
* Edward Mcdowell's "Hamlet and Ophelia" premieres in Boston. [1]
January 31
* "Westminster Gazette" begins publishing. [1]
February 1
* Giacomo Puccini's Opera "Manon Lescaut" premieres in Turin. [1]

* Thomas A. Edison finishes construction of the first motion picture
studio, the Black Maria in West Orange, New Jersey. [1] [5]
February 2
* First movie close-up (of a sneeze), Edison studio, West Orange New
Jersey. [1]
February 9
* Canal builder De Lesseps and others sentenced to prison for fraud.

[1]
* Verdi's opera "Falstaff" premieres in Milan. [1]
February 13
* Ignacio M Altamirano Mexican author (El Zarco), dies at age 58. [1]
February 26
* Two Clydesdale horses set record by pulling 48 tons on a sledge,

Michigan. [1]
February 28
* Edward Acheson, Pennsylvania, patents an abrasive he names

"carborundum". [1]
March 1
* Diplomatic Appropriation Act, authorizes the US rank of

ambassador. [1]
March 2
494
* First federal railroad legislation passed; required safety features.
[1]
March 3
* Columbian Isabella silver quarter authorized. [1]

* US Congress authorizes first federal road agency, in Department of
Agriculture. [1]
March 4
* Francis Dhanis' army attacksthe Lualaba, occupies Nyangwe. [1]

* Grover Cleveland (Democrat) inaugrated as 24th US President
(second term). [1]
March 5
* Hippolyte Taine French philosopher/historian, dies at age 64. [1]

* Richard Samuel Hughes composer, dies at age 37. [1]
March 9
* Congo cannibals killed 1000s of Arabs. [1]
March 10
* Ivory Coast becomes a French colony. [1]

* New Mexico State University cancels its first graduation ceremony,
as its only graduate Sam Steele was robbed and killed the night before.
[1]
March 19
* Karel Komzak composer, dies at age 69. [1]
March 30
* Thomas F Bayard becomes first US ambassador in Great Britain.

[1]
April 4
* Alphonse de Candolle Swiss botanist, dies at age 86. [1]
April 5
495
* Cleveland passes Park Act (forerunner of Metroparks). [1]
April 6
* Mormon temple in Salt Lake City dedicated. [1]
April 8
* The Critic reports that the ice cream soda is our national drink. [1]
April 9
* Disma Fumagalli composer, dies at age 66. [1]
April 12
* Battle at Hoornkrans Southwest-Africa German Schutztruppen

chases away Hottentotten under Hendrik Witbooi. [1]
April 19
* John Addington Symonds critic/poet, dies. [1]
April 22
* Francis Dhanis army occupies Kasongo. [1]

* Paul Kruger elected President of Transvaal for third time. [1]
April 26
* First Cleveland Board of Park Commissioners forms. [1]
April 27
* John Murray Corse US General (Union), dies on his 58th birthday.

[1]
April 30
* Edouard Manet French painter (Olympia), dies at age 61. [1]

* Gyula Beliczay composer, dies at age 57. [1]
May 1
* World Columbian Exposition opens in Chicago, Illinois, USA. [1]

[117.19]
496
May 3
* Josef Rudolf Zavrtal composer, dies at age 73. [1]
May 4
* Cowboy Bob Pickett invents bulldogging. [1]

* George Washington Hewitt composer, dies at age 82. [1]
May 5
* Panic of 1893: Great crash on New York Stock Exchange. [1]
May 10
* Imperial Institute in London opens. [1]
May 14
* Earnest E Kummer German mathematician (surface of Kummer),

dies at age 83. [1]
* Johan T Buys Dutch lawyer, dies at age 65. [1]
May 19
* Heavy rain washes "quick clay" into a deep valley, kills 111
(Norway). [1]
May 22
* Montréal Athletic Association beat Ottawa Generals 2-1, in first Cup

Game. [1]
May 27
* Audath Yisroel forms at Kattowitz (Katowice) Poland. [1]
June 1
* The opera "Falstaff" is produced (Berlin). [1]
June 20
* Lizzie Borden found innocent in New Bedford Massachusetts [1]
497
June 21
* First Ferris wheel premieres (Chicago's Columbian Exposition). [1]
June 30
* Excelsior diamond (blue-white 995 carats) discovered. [1]
July 4
* A Borrelly discovers asteroid #369 Aeria. [1]
July 9
* Daniel H Williams performs "world's first successful heart

coperation". [1]
July 11
* The first cultured pearl is obtained by Kokichi Mikimoto. [5]
July 14
* A Charlois discovers asteroid #370 Modestia. [1]
July 15
* Commodore Perry arrives in Japan. [1]
July 16
* A Charlois discovers asteroid #371 Bohemia. [1]
August 7
* 53rdUS Congress (1893-95) convenes. [1]
August 10
* Chinese deported from San Francisco under Exclusion Act. [1]

* Rudolf Diesel's prime model first runs on its own power. [5]
August 14
* Paris Police Ordinance (France) issues first driving licenses,

includes required test. [1] [5] [55.51]
498
August 15
* US no longer allowed exclusive rights in Bering Sea. [1]
September 11
* Bronx Gas and Electric Company opens on Frisby and Tremont Ave.
[1]
September 16
* Cherokee Strip, Oklahoma opened to white settlement

homesteaders. [1]
September 19
* The Electoral Act gives all women in New Zealand the right to vote.
[5]
September 21
* Frank Duryea drives first US-made gas-propelled vehicle (car). [1]
October 1
* Third worst hurricane in US history kills 1,800 (Mississippi). [1]
October 9
* "Chicago Day" at the World's Fair in Chicago, Illinois, USA.

Attendance is 751,026, largest single-day attendance for any peace-
time event in history. [117.20]
October 27
* Hurricane hits coast between Savannah Georgia and Charleston

South Carolina. [1]
October 30
* Sir John Abbott Prime Minister of Canada (Conservative) (1891-92),

dies at age 72. [1]
October 31
499
* The World's Fair in Chicago, Illinois closes. [117.20]
November 28
* Women vote in a national election for the first time: The New
Zealand general election. [5]
December 1
* Eduard Franck composer, dies at age 76. [1]
December 3
* Allan Wilson British/Rhodesian major, dies in battle. [1]

* Ndebeles destroy Rhodesia. [1]
December 5
* First electric car (built in Toronto) could go 15 miles between

charges. [1]
December 9
* George Elvey composer, dies at age 77. [1]
December 11
* Eleven fishing ships wash up at Wadden Sea, 22 killed. [1]
December 14
* Karolina Pawlowa writer, dies at age 86. [1]
December 15
* Dvoráks "From the New World" premieres at Carnegie Hall New

York City. [1]
December 16
* Anton Dvorak's "New World Symphony" premieres. [1]
December 17
* Levinus T Keuchenius Dutch Minister of Colonies (1888-90), dies at

age 71. [1]
500
* Russia ratifies Duple Alliance with France. [1]
December 20
* First state anti-lynching statute approved, in Georgia. [1]
December 22
* Benedikt Randhartinger composer, dies at age 91. [1]

* Johann Czerski German chaplain, dies at age 80. [1]
December 23
* The opera "Hansel und Gretel" is produced (Weimar). [1]
December 24
* Henry Ford completes his first useful gas motor. [1]
December 25
* Birth of Ropert L Ripley Santa Rosa California, cartoonist (Believe It

or Not). [1]
December 28
* French lieutenant Boiteux annexes Tumbuktu. [1]
December 30
* Russia signs military accord with France. [1]

* Samuel White Baker English explorer, dies at age 72. [1]
December 31
* Jacob G de Scheffer Dutch vicar/theologist, dies at age 74. [1]
1894
January 1
* Death of Heinrich Hertz in Bonn, Germany; physicist, discovered

how to produce, send, and receive radio waves. The radio frequency
measurement "hertz" is named for him. [37]
* Denmark adopts Mid-European time. [1]
* Manchester Ship Canal in England opens to traffic. [1]
501
January 4
* France ratifies Duple Alliance with Russia. [1]
January 7
* Motion picture experiment of comedian Fred Ott filmed sneezing.

[1]
January 8
* Columbus World's fair in Chicago destroyed by fire. [1]

* Pierre-Joseph van Beneden paleontologist (life of tapeworms), dies
at age 84. [1]
January 9
* "Edison Kinetoscopic Record of a Sneeze" released in movie

theaters. [1]
* Georges Feydeau's "Un à la Patte" premieres in Paris. [1]
January 13
* Revolution in Sicily crushed by government troops. [1]
January 19
* François Haverschmidt Dutch writer, dies at age 58. [1]
January 21
* Guillaume Jean Joseph Nicolas Lekeu composer, dies at age 24. [1]
January 23
* G W Bunbury of Dublin sets shorthand record of 250 wpm for 10

minutes. [1]
January 27
* Midwinter Fair opens in Golden Gate Park. [1]
January 30
* Pneumatic hammer patented by Charles King of Detroit. [1]
502
* US flag fired on in Rio; prompt satisfaction exacted by Admiral
Benham. [1]
February 2
* US warship Kearsarge wrecked on Roncador Reef, near Solomon

Island. [1]
February 3
* First US steel sailing vessel, Dirigo, launched, Bath Maine. [1]
February 4
* Antoine J "Adolphe" Sax instrument maker (saxophone), dies at

age 79. [1]
February 5
* Female suffrage organization in Amsterdam forms. [1]
February 8
* Enforcement Act repealed, making it easier to disenfranchise

blacks. [1]
February 11
* Pasqual Juan Emilio Arrieta y Corera composer, dies at age 70. [1]
February 13
* Franjo Racki Croatian historian/politician, dies at age 65. [1]
February 14
* Venus is both a morning star and evening star. [1]
February 16
* British troops occupy Ilorin, Gold Coast. [1]
February 19
* Ernesto Camillo Sivori composer, dies at age 78. [1]
503
February 21
* Gustave Caillebotte French shipbuilding designer/painter, dies at

age 45. [1]
February 24
* Nicaragua captures Tegucigalpa, Honduras (National Day, sort of).

[1]
February 25
* James Morrison Steele Mackaye US actor/author/director, dies at

age 51. [1]
March 3
* First Greek-language publication in US begins, "New York Atlantis".

[1]
* 4th and last British government of Gladstone resigns. [1]
March 4
* Great fire in Shanghai; over 1,000 buildings destroyed. [1]
March 5
* Seattle authorizes first municipal employment office in US. [1]
March 8
* New York passes first state dog license law. [1]
March 12
* Pittsburgh issues free season tickets for ladies on Tuesday and

Friday. [1]
March 13
* J L Johnstone of England invents horse racing starting gate. [1]
March 16
* Jules Massenet's opera "Thaïs" premieres in Paris France. [1]
504
March 17
* US and China sign treaty preventing Chinese laborers from

entering US. [1]
March 20
* Lajos Kossuth Hungarian freedom fighter/president (1849), dies at

age 91. [1]
March 21
* Jacob Rosenhaim composer, dies at age 80. [1]
March 24
* 37 miners killed at Franklin Washington. [1]

* Robert Prescott Stewart composer, dies at age 68. [1]
March 25
* Coxey's Army of the unemployed sets out from Massillon Ohio for
Washington DC. [1]
March 27
* Verney L Cameron English explorer (Tanganyika), dies at age 49.

[1]
April 5
* Eleven strikers killed in riot at Connellsville Pennsylvania. [1]
April 8
* Bankim C Chattopadhyaya writer (Mrinalini, Anandamath), dies at

age 55. [1]
April 9
* First performance of Anton Bruckner's 5th Symphony in B in Graz.

[1]
April 12
* British and Belgian secret accord on dividing Central-Africa. [1]
505
April 14
* First public showing of Thomas Edison's kinetoscope (moving

pictures). [1]
April 19
* Jules Massenet's opera "Werther", premieres in New York City. [1]
April 20
* 136,000 mine workers strike in Ohio for pay increase. [1]
April 21
* George Bernard Shaw's "Arms and the Man", premieres in London.

[1]
April 29
* Commonwealth of Christ (Coxey's Army) arrives in Washington DC

500 strong to protest unemployment; Coxey arrested for trespassing at
Capitol. [1]
May 8
* Klara Fey German orchestra leaser (Die Kleinen Betrachtungen),

dies at age 79. [1]
May 11
* American Railroad Union strikes Pullman Sleeping Car Co. [1]
May 12
* Ludwig Englander's musical "Passing Show" premieres in New York

City. [1]
May 14
* Fire in the Boston bleachers spreads to 170 adjoining buildings. [1]
May 21
506
* August A Kundt German physicist, (test of Kundt), dies at age 54.
[1]
May 23
* William Love hosts ground breaking ceremonies for Love Canal. [1]
May 24
* William Joseph Westbrook composer, dies at age 63. [1]
May 26
* Emanuel Lasker (26) becomes World Champion chess player. [1]
May 28
* Belgium Princess Josephine marries Prince Karl von Hohenzollern.

[1]
June 17
* First US poliomyelitis epidemic breaks out, Rutland, Vermont. [1]
June 21
* Workers in Pittsburgh strike Pullman sleeping car company. [1]
June 28
* Labor Day established as a federal employees holiday. [1]
June 30
* Korea declares independence from China, asks for Japanese aid.

[1]
July 2
* Government obtains injunction against striking Pullman Workers.

[1]
July 4
* Elwood Haynes successfully tests one of first US autos at 6 MPH.

[1]
507
* Republic of Hawaii established. [1]
July 6
* Cleveland sends 2,000 troops to Chicago to suppress Pullman

strike. [1]
July 16
* Many negro miners in Alabama killed by striking white miners. [1]

* Treaty of Aoki-Kimberley signed between Japan and England. [1]
July 20
* 2000 fed troops recalled from Chicago, having ended Pullman

strike. [1]
August 18
* US Congress creates Bureau of Immigration. [1]
August 31
* Philadelphia Phillies Billy Hamilton steals 7 bases. [1]
September 15
* Japan defeats China in Battle of Ping Yang. [1]
September 27
* Aqueduct racetrack opens in New York. [1]
October 1
* Civic organization, Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben founded in Omaha,

Nebraska. [1]
October 17
* Ohio national guard kills three lynchers while rescuing a black

man. [1]
October 29
* First election of the Hawaiian Republic. [1]
508
October 30
* Domenico Melegatti obtains a patent for a procedure to be applied

in producing pandoro industrially. [5]
November 1
* Vaccine for diphtheria announced by Dr Roux of Paris. [1]
November 16
* 6,000 Armenians massacred by Turks in Kurdistan. [1]
November 17
* Daily Racing Form founded. [1]
November 18
* First newspaper Sunday color comic section published (New York

World). [1]
November 20
* US intervenes in Bluefields, Nicaragua. [1]
November 25
* Greenback (Independent) Party organizes in Indianapolis. [1]
December 3
* Jozef Schadde Flem architect (Antwerp Stock exchange), dies at

age 76. [1]
* Robert Louis Stevenson English writer (Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde), dies
from a cerebral hemorrhage at age 45. [1]
December 5
* Georges Feydeaus' "L'hôtel du libre échange" premieres in Paris.

[1]
December 7
509
* Ferdinand de Lesseps French engineer/diplomat/earl, dies at age
89. [1]
December 8
* Willem JF Nuyens Dutch physician/Roman Catholic historian, dies at

age 71. [1]
December 9
* Roman Catholics win Parliamentary election in Belgium. [1]
December 13
* Sarah Parker Remond US/Italian abolitionist, dies at age 68. [1]
December 22
* Debussy's "Prélude à l'apres-midi d'un faune" premieres. [1]

* Dutch coast hit by hurricane. [1]
* French officer Alfred Dreyfus court-martialed for treason, triggers
worldwide charges of anti-Semitism (Dreyfus later vindicated). [1]
December 23
* Debussy's ballet "L'aprés-midi d'un faune" premieres in Paris. [1]
December 24
* Scheveningse fishing boats destroyed by storm. [1]
December 29
* Chris Rossetti writer, dies at age 64. [1]
December 30
* Amelia Jenks Bloomer suffragist (Bloomers named for her), dies at

age 76. [1]
December 31
* Thomas J Stieltjes mathematician (Stieltjes-integral), dies at age

38. [1]
1895
510
January 1
* Norway adopts Mid-European time. [1]
January 5
* French Captain Alfred Dreyfus, convicted of treason, publicly

stripped of his rank; later declared innocent. [1]
* Henry James' play "Guy Domville" opens in London. [1]
January 10
* Benjamin Louis Paul Godard composer, dies at age 45. [1]
January 13
* Oscar Wilde's "Ideal Husband" premieres in London. [1]
January 15
* French fleet reaches Majunga, Madagascar. [1]

* Tchaikovsky's ballet "Swan Lake" premieres, Saint Petersburg. [1]
January 17
* French President Casimir-Perier resigns. [1]

* Félix Faure installed as President of France. [1]
January 22
* Edward Solomon composer, dies at age 39. [1]

* National Association of Manufacturers organized in Cincinnati Ohio.
[1]
January 26
* Arthur Cayley mathematician, dies. [1]
January 28
* François Certain de Canrobert French marshal, dies at age 85. [1]
January 29
* King Koko's Kopermannen assault on Akassa Niger, 100's killed. [1]
511
January 30
* C J Eady (Tasmania) first Australian to score twin centuries (vs

Victoria). [1]
* SS Elbe sinks after collision in North Sea, 332 killed. [1]
January 31
* José Martí and others leave New York City, New York for invasion of
Spanish Cuba. [1]
February 4
* First rolling lift bridge opens, Chicago, Illinois. [1]

* Faustina Hasse Hodges composer, dies at age 71. [1]
February 8
* Tchaikovsky/Petipa's "Swan Lake" premieres in Petersburg. [1]
February 11
* -17 degrees F (-27.2 degrees C) in Braemar, Grampian (United

Kingdom record). [1]
* Georgetown became part of Washington DC. [1]
February 13
* Moving picture projector patented. [1]
February 14
* Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Earnest" opens in London.

[1]
February 15
* 23 cm (9") of snow falls on New Orleans. [1]
February 18
* Albrecht arch duke of Austrian (Battle at Custozza), dies at age 77.

[1]
February 20
512
* US Congress authorizes a US mint at Denver Colorado. [1]
* Frederick Douglass escaped slave, anti-slavery leader, dies at age
78. [1]
February 21
* North Carolina Legislature, adjourns for day to mark death of

Frederick Douglass. [1]
February 23
* William Heard, AME minister and educator, named minister to

Liberia. [1]
February 24
* Cuban war of independence begins. [1]

* Ignaz Lachner composer, dies at age 87. [1]
February 26
* Michael Owens of Toledo Ohio patents a glass-blowing machine. [1]
March 2
* Berthe Member of Parliament Morisot French painter/aquarelliste,

dies at age 54. [1]
* Ismail Pasha kedive of Egypt (1863-79), dies at age 64. [1]
March 4
* Gustav Mahler's second Symphony, premieres in Berlin. [1]
March 5
* Nikolai Leskow writer, dies at age 64. [1]
March 9
* Leopold von Sacher-Masoch Austrian writer (Masochism), dies at

age 59. [1]
March 11
* Spanish cruiser Reina Regenta sinks at Gibraltar, 400 killed. [1]
513
March 18
* 200 blacks leave Savannah Georgia for Liberia. [1]
March 19
* Los Angeles Railway established to provide streetcar service. [1]
March 22
* Auguste and Louis Lumiere show their first movie to an invited

audience. [1]
March 25
* Italian troops invade Abyssinia (Ethiopia). [1]
March 26
* King Alfonso plants pine sapling in Madrid, starts Spain's Arbor Day.
[1]
March 30
* British inventor Birt Acres films Oxford-Cambridge. [1]
April 5
* Oscar Wilde loses libel case against Marquess of Queensberry, who

accused him of homosexual practices. [1]
April 11
* Anaheim completes its new electric light system. [1]
April 14
* First performance of Gustav Mahler's (incomplete) second

Symphony. [1]
April 17
* Treaty of Shimonoseki signed, ends first Sino-Japanese War (1894-

95). [1]
514
April 19
* George Scharf critic, dies. [1]

* Victor J van Hinsbergh South Netherlands engraver (PTT-stempels),
dies at age 70. [1]
April 23
* Karl Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig physiologist, dies. [1]
April 24
* Joshua Slocum completes around-the-world voyage in 11-m boat.

[1]
April 30
* Gustav Freytag writer, dies at age 78. [1]
May 8
* China cedes Taiwan to Japan under Treaty of Shimonoseki. [1]
May 11
* Feliks Jaronski composer, dies at age 71. [1]
May 15
* Joseph Whitaker British publisher (Whitaker' Almanack), dies at age

75. [1]
May 19
* José J Marti y Perez Spanish/Cuban poet (Versos sencillos), dies. [1]
May 20
* First commercial movie performance (153 Broadway, New York

City). [1]
* Ratu Agung-Agung Gdé Ngurah radja van Mataram, Lombok, dies.
[1]
May 21
515
* Franz von Suppe Austrian composer (Poet und Bauer), dies at age
76. [1]
May 23
* Franz E Neumann German mineralogist/physicist, dies at age 96.

[1]
May 24
* Henry Irving becomes first theatrical knight. [1]

* Joseph Quinaux Belgian painter, dies at age 73. [1]
May 25
* Ahmed Djevdet Pasja Turkish minister of Justice, dies at age 73. [1]
* Oscar Wilde sentenced to two years hard labor for being a
sodomite. [1]
May 27
* British inventor Birt Acres patents film camera/projector. [1]
June 11
* First auto race. [1]
June 13
* Émile Levassor wins first Paris-Bordeaux-Paris auto race (24 kph).

[1]
June 17
* US Ship Canal (W 225th St) in the Bronx completed; cutting

Marble. [1]
June 20
* First female doctor of science earned (Caroline Willard Baldwin). [1]

* A Charlois discovers asteroid #404 Arsinoe. [1]
* Nicaragua, El Salvador and Honduras form a short-lived
confederation. [1]
July 11
516
* The brothers Lumière show a film for scientists. [5]
July 23
* A Charlois discovers asteroid #405 Thia. [1]
September 18
* Booker T Washington delivers "Atlanta Compromise" address. [1]

* D.D. Palmer of Davenport, Iowa, becomes first chiropractor. [1]
September 21
* First auto manufacturer opens-Duryea Motor Wagon Company. [1]
September 24
* First round-the-world trip by a woman on a bicycle (took 15

months). [1]
September 28
* Louis Pasteur dies. [5] (September 28 [1])
September 30
* France proclaims a protectorate over Madagascar. [1]
October 31
* In Charleston, Missouri, a magnitude 6.6 earthquake occurs. [53]
November 5
* First US patent granted for auto (George B Selden). [1]
November 8
* German physicist Wilhelm Conrad Rontgen becomes the first

person to observe X-rays, electromagnetic energy waves. [1] [129]
November 11
* Bechuanaland becomes part of the Cape Colony. [1]
November 13
517
* First shipment of canned pineapple from Hawaii. [1]
November 26
* Hawaiian Sugar Planters Association formed. [1]
November 27
* Alfred Nobel of Sweden writes his will. He directs that most of his
estate be invested, with the interest used as prizes to those making
the greatest contributions to mankind, in the subjects of physics,
chemistry, medicine, literature, and peace. [1] [7]
November 28
* America's first auto race starts; six cars, 55 miles, winner averages
7 MPH. [1] [5]
December 2
December 7
* Battle at Amba Alagi: Abyssinians beat Italian armies. [1]
December 8
* Battle at Amba Alagi: Ethiopian emperor Menelik II drives Italian

General Baratieri's out. [1]
December 13
* First complete execution of Gustav Mahlers second Symphony. [1]
December 17
* Anti-Saloon League of America formed, Washington DC. [1]

* George Brownell patents a machine to make paper twine
December 25
* Raul d'Avila Pompeia Brazilian writer (Boarding-school), dies at age

32. [1]
518
December 28
* The Lumière brothers have their first paying audience at the Grand
Cafe in Boulevard des Capucines, in Paris, France, marking the debut of
the cinema. [1] [5]
December 29
* Dr L S Jameson begins failed raid on Johannesburg. [1]
December 30
* LP Hartley British writer, dies. [1]
1896
January 1
* Wilhelm Röntgen announces his discovery of x-rays. [1]
January 2
* Battle at Doornkop, South Africa (Boers beat Dr Jamesons troops).

[1]
January 3
* Emperor Wilhelm congratulates President Kruger on the Jameson

Raid. [1]
January 4
* AFL charters Actors' National Protective Union, New York City, New
York. [1]
* Following Mormon abandonment of polygamy, Utah admitted as
45th state. [1]
January 5
* Austrian newspaper "Wiener Presse" publishes first public account

of. [1]
* German physicist Wilhelm Roentgen's discovers x-rays. [1]
* Isaac Albeniz' opera "Pepita Jiminez" premieres in Barcelona. [1]
January 6
519
* Cecil Rhodes resigns as premier of Cape colony. [1]
January 7
* Fanny Farmer publishes her first cookbook. [1]
January 8
* Paul M Verlaine French poet (Elégies, Bonne Chanson), dies at age

51. [1]
January 12
* First X-ray photo in US (Dr Henry Smith, Davidson North Carolina).

[1]
January 15
* Henry Arthur Jones' "Michael and his Lost Angel" premieres in

London. [1]
* Matthew B Brady US photographer (Civil War), dies at about age
72. [1]
January 18
* First demonstration of an x-ray machine in the US, New York City,

New York. [1] [5]
* British troops occupy Kumasi, West Africa. [1]
January 20
* Heinrich M von Battenberg German son-in-law of Victoria, dies at

age 37. [1]
January 23
* Edward Macdowell's second Suite in E, premieres. [1]
January 25
* Birth of John Moores British gambling magnate/multi-millionaire.

[1]
* Frans C Baeckelmans Flemish architect (Court of Justice), dies at
age 68. [1]
520
* Frederic Leighton President of the Royal Academy (1878-96), dies.
[1]
January 28
* Joseph Barnby composer, dies at age 57. [1]
January 29
* Emile Grubbe is first doctor to use radiation treatment for breast

cancer. [1]
February 1
* Giacomo Puccini's Opera "La Boheme" premieres in Turin. [1]
February 4
* Henry David Leslie composer, dies at age 73. [1]
February 6
* Abraham Czn van Stolk Dutch art collector, dies at age 82. [1]
February 8
* Georges Feydeaus' "Le Dindon" premieres in Paris. [1]

* Western Conference forms of Midwestern University, later renamed
Big 10 Conference. [1]
February 11
* Oscar Wildes "Salomé" premieres in Paris. [1]
February 12
* Charles Louis Ambrose Thomas French composer (Mignon), dies at

age 84. [1]
February 13
* Karl Reinthaler composer, dies at age 73. [1]
February 14
* Theodor Herzl publishes "Der Judenstaat". [1]
521
February 15
* E J Nicholson writer, dies. [1]
February 17
* London Country Councils' Muzzling Order becomes effective. [1]
February 18
* Cave of Winds at Niagara Falls goes almost dry for first time in 50
years. [1]
February 22
* Thomas Hughes politican/author of Tom Brown's Schooldays,

Brighton. [1]
February 23
* Tootsie Roll introduced by Leo Hirshfield. [1]
February 25
* Italian government decides to attack governor Baratieri of Eritrea.

[1]
February 28
* France dismisses Queen Ranavalona of Madagascar. [1]
March 1
* ... Albertone Italian General (Eritrea), dies in battle. [1]

* ... Arimondi Italian General (Eritrea), dies in battle. [1]
* ... Dabormida Italian General (Eritrea), dies in battle. [1]
* Battle of Adua: 80,000 Ethiopians destroy 20,000 Italians. [1]
March 2
* Battle of Aduwa, Abyssinia (Ethiopia) defeats invading Italians. [1]
March 5
522
* Italian Governor of Eritrea, General Baldissera, reaches Massawa.
[1]
* Italian premier Crispi resigns. [1]
March 6
* First auto in Detroit Michigan, Charles B King rides his "Horseless

Carriage". [1]
March 7
* Gilbert and Sullivan's last operette "Grand Duke" premieres in

London. [1]
March 8
* Volunteers of America forms (New York City, New York). [1]
March 10
* The Bronx acquires O'Brien Square. [1]
March 12
* First movie in Netherlands (Kalverstr 220). [1]
March 14
* Sutro Baths (San Francisco) opens by Cliff House (closed Sept 1,

1952). [1]
March 16
* Premiere of Mahler's "Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen". [1]
March 20
* Marines land in Nicaragua to protect US citizens. [1]

* Uprising in Matabeleland. [1]
March 23
* Umberto Giordano's opera "Andrea Chénier" premieres in Milan. [1]
March 26
523
* Nanny v Hof writer, dies. [1]
March 28
* E Rundle Charles writer, dies. [1]

* The opera "Andrea Chenier" is produced (Milan). [1]
March 31
* Whitcomb Judson, Chicago Illinois, patents a hookless fastening

(zipper). [1]
April 4
* Announcement of Gold in the Yukon. [1]
April 5
* John Rogers Thomas composer, dies at age 66. [1]
April 12
* Alexander Ritter composer, dies at age 62. [1]
April 14
* John Philip Sousa's "El Capitan", premieres (New York City). [1]
April 19
* Herzl's "The Jewish State" is published. [1]
April 20
* First public film showing in US John Philip Sousa's "El Capitán",

premieres in New York City. [1]
April 23
* Vitascope system of movie projection first demonstrated (Koster

and Bial's Music Hall, New York City). [1]
April 25
* Fight in Central Dance Hall starts fire (Cripple Creek Colorado,

USA). [1]
524
* Sidney Jones and Harry Greenbacks musical premieres in London.
[1]
April 28
* Heinrich von Treitschke German historian, dies. [1]
April 30
* Antonio Cagnoni composer, dies at age 68. [1]
May 1
* Naser ed-Din shah of Persia (1848-96), murdered at age 65. [1]
May 4
* First edition of London Daily Mail (half penny). [1]

* Grease fire ignites half ton of dynamite at Cripple Creek Colorado.
[1]
May 9
* First horseless carriage show in London (featured 10 models). [1]
May 12
* Juan Morel Campos composer, dies at age 38. [1]
May 13
* Nora Perry writer, dies. [1]
May 14
* Lowest US temperature in May recorded (-10 degrees F - Climax

Colorado, USA). [1]
May 15
* Tornado kills 78 in Texas. [1]
May 18
* US Supreme court affirms "separate but equal" policy (Plessy v

Ferguson). [1]
525
May 19
* First auto (Benz) to arrive in Netherlands. [1]
May 20
* Clara Josephine Wieck Schumann composer/pianist, dies at age 76.

[1]
May 26
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average is first published in Customer's

Afternoon Letter. It represents the average of twelve stocks from
important American industries. The previous index by Charles Dow of
mostly railroad stocks is replaced by only industrial stocks.Initial value
is 40.94. The stocks are General Electric, American Cotton Oil
Company, American Sugar Company, American Tobacco Company,
Chicago Gas Company, Distilling & Cattle Feeding Company, Laclede
Gas Light Company, National Lead Company, North American
Company, Tennessee Coal Iron and Railroad Company, U.S. Leather
Company, and United States Rubber Company. [1] [227] [228]
* Last Czar of Russia, Nicholas II, crowned. [1]
May 27
* First major tornado to strike urban US (Saint Louis and E Saint

Louis Missouri); killing 255 and leaving thousands homeless. [1]
* Allard Pierson theologist/philosopher/art historian/poet, dies. [1]
* Bay District Race Track closes. [1]
May 30
* First car accident occurs, Henry Wells hit a bicyclist (New York
City). [1]
June 4
* Henry takes his first Ford through streets of Detroit. [1]
June 6
* George Samuelson leaves New York harbor to row across the

Atlantic. [1]
June 7
526
* G Harpo and F Samuelson leave New York to row the Atlantic (takes
54 days). [1]
June 11
* US Assay Office in Deadwood, South Dakota authorized. [1]
June 15
* Off Sanriku, Japan, a magnitude 8.5 earthquake occurs. 28,000

people were killed and 170 miles of coastline were destroyed by the
resulting 25-metre (80-foot) tsunami. In Hawaii, wharves were
demolished. In California, a 9.5-foot wave was observed. [1] [53]
June 16
* Temperture hits 127 degrees F at Fort Mojave, California. [1]
June 26
* First cinema, 400 seat Vitascope Hall in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Admission is 10 cents. The cinema uses Edison's Vitascope projector.
[55.38]
July 8
* William Jennings Bryan "cross of gold" speech at Democratic

convention. [1]
July 21
* National Federation of Afro-American Women and Colored

Women's. [1]
August 1
* George Samuelson completes rowing the Atlantic (New York to

England). [1]
August 8
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average is 28.48, the lowest point ever
for this index. [228]
August 9
527
* Otto Lilenthal killed during a glider test. [1]
August 16
* Gold discovered in the Klondike, found at Bonanza Creek, Alaska.

[1]
August 17
* Gold is discovered on Klondike River. [1]
August 20
* Dial telephone patented. [1]
August 27
* Zanzibar loses to England in a 38 minute war (9:02 AM-9:40 AM).

[1]
August 29
* Chop suey invented in New York City by chef of visiting Chinese

Ambassador. [1]
September 7
* First closed-circuit auto race, at Cranston, Rhode Island. [1]

* A. H. Whiting won first closed-circuit auto race held. [1]
September 9
* First operation involving a suture of the heart, to close a 1.5-cm

knife wound to the right ventricle. Patent makes a complete recovery.
[55.33]
September 26
* John Philip Sousa led band's first performance (Plainfield, New

Jersey). [1]
October 8
* Dow Jones starts reporting an average of industrial stocks. [1]
528
October 27
* First Pali Road completed in Hawaii (winds so strong streams flow

UP!). [1]
November 3
* William McKinley (Republican) defeats William Jennings Bryan

(Democrat) for President. [1]
November 14
* Power plant at Niagara Falls begins operation. [1]
November 16
* Electricity is first transmitted between a power plant (in Niagara

Falls) and a city (Buffalo, New York). [5]
November 22
* George Washington Gale Ferris inventor (Ferris wheel), dies. [1]
November 24
* First US absentee voting law enacted by Vermont. [1]
December 1
* First certified public accountants receive certificates (New York).

[1]
December 2
* Gerhart Hauptmann's "Die versunkene Glocke" premieres in Berlin.

[1]
December 5
* Henrik Ibsen's "Kejsor og Galileer" premieres in Leipzig. [1]
December 6
* D T Suzuki found the awakening at Engakuji temple, in Kamakura.

[1]
529
December 8
* Earnest Angel German statistician (Law of Angel), dies at age 75.

[1]
December 10
* Alfred Jarry's "Ubu Roi" premieres in Paris. [1]

* Alfred Nobel of Sweden dies. Over his lifetime, 355 patents had
been registered in his name, and he owned 93 factories around the
world. [1] [7]
December 15
* John Acquoy Dutch theologist/church historian, dies at age 67. [1]
December 25
* "Stars and Stripes Forever" written by John Philip Sousa. [1]
December 30
* José Mercado Rizal anti-Spanish rule of Philippines proponent, dies.

[1]
December 31
* 25th auto built in US. [1]
1897
January 1
* Brooklyn merges with New York to form present City of New York.
[1]
January 10
* Henrik Ibsen's "John Gabriel Borkman" premieres in Helsingfors. [1]

* Vincent d'Indy's "Istar" premieres in Amsterdam and Brussels. [1]
January 11
* M H Cannon becomes first woman state senator in US (Utah). [1]
January 12
530
* Birth of Hendrik J Valk painter/cartoonist/graphic artist. [1]
January 14
* 6,960-m (22,834 feet) Cerro Aconcagua (Argentina) first climbed.

[1]
January 16
* John Dewey's essay "My Pedagogic Creed" appears in School

Journal. [1]
January 26
* Battle at Bida Gold Coast British troops beat Nupe's army. [1]
January 27
* British troops occupy Bida Gold Coast (Ghana). [1]
February 5
* Marcel Proust meets Jean Lorrain in a pistol duel. [1]
February 6
* Ebenezer C Brewer British writer (Dictionary of Phrase and Fable),

dies. [1]
February 7
* Galileo Ferraris Italian physicist (Ferrari), dies at age 49. [1]
February 8
* Antonio Cánovas del Castillo premier of Spain, murdered at age 69.

[1]
February 10
* New York Times begins using slogan "All the News That's Fit to
Print". [1]
February 11
531
* White Rose Mission opens on East 97th Street, New York City. [1]
February 17
* National Congress of Parents and Teachers (PTA) organizes

(Washington DC). [1]
February 19
* Karl T Weierstrass German mathematician, dies at age 81. [1]
February 23
* Woldemar Bargiel composer, dies at age 68. [1]
March 4
* William McKinley inaugurated as 25th President of US. [1]
March 5
* American Negro Academy forms. [1]
March 9
* Cleveland Spiders sign Louis Sockalexis, full-blooded Penobscot.

[1]
* Premiere of (parts of) Gustav Mahler's third Symphony (Berlin). [1]
March 10
* Teodulo Mabellini composer, dies at age 79. [1]
March 11
* Berthold Tours composer, dies at age 58. [1]

* Henry Drummond Scottish geologist/evangelist, dies at age 45. [1]
March 12
* Vincent d'Indy's opera "Fervaal" premieres in Brussel. [1]
March 19
* Antoine T d'Abbadie French explorer (Ethiopia), dies at age 87. [1]
532
March 20
* First US orthodox Jewish Rabbinical seminary (RIETS) incorporates

in New York. [1]
* France signs treaty with emperor Menelik II of Abyssinia. [1]
March 29
* Japan adopts Gold Standard. [1]
April 3
* Johannes Brahms German composer/conductor (Hung Dances),

dies at age 63. [1]
April 8
* George Garrett composer, dies at age 62. [1]

* Heinrich von Stephan United Kingdom politician, dies. [1]
April 19
* First performance of Debussy's "Pelléas et Mélisande". [1]
April 22
* New York City Jewish newspaper "Forward" begins publishing (stiil

active). [1]
April 23
* Clement Harris composer, dies at age 25. [1]
April 24
* First reporter, William Price (Washington Star), is assigned to White

House. [1]
April 27
* Grant's Tomb (famed of song and legend) dedicated. [1]
May 2
* William Cleaver Francis Robinson composer, dies at age 63. [1]
533
May 4
* Fire in Paris France bazaar at Rue Jean Goujon kills 200. [1]
May 10
* William Thomas Best composer, dies at age 70. [1]
May 12
* 1800-1900-year-old fossil of "girl of Yde" found in Drente

Netherlands. [1]
* Battle at Thessalië: Turkish army beats Greece. [1]
* Ulrika "Minna" Cant-Johnstown Finnish playwright, dies at age 53.
[1]
* Willem Roelofs painter/lithographer, dies. [1]
May 14
* Great Britain signs treaty with emperor Menelik II of Abyssinia. [1]
May 18
* Irish Music Festival first held (Dublin). [1]

* Paul Dukas "L'Apprenti Sorcier Pruimtabak on the Market"
premieres. [1]
May 21
* Karol Mikuli composer, dies at age 77. [1]

* Yerkes Observatory 40" (1 metre) refractor used for first time. [1]
May 23
* Aleko Konstantinov Bulgarian writer (To Chicago and Back), dies at

age 34. [1]
May 26
* Irish writer Bram Stoker's book Dracula goes on sale in London,

England. [129]
May 31
* In Giles County, Virginia, a magnitude 5.6 earthquake occurs. [53]
534
June 9
* Alvin Graham Clark dies three weeks after first use of Yerkes 40"
lens. [1]
June 12
* In Assam, India, a magnitude 8.3 earthquake occurs. Complete

devastation of over 9,000 square miles and was felt over 1.75 million
square miles. Over 1500 deaths. [1] [53]
June 24
* Hail injures 26 in Topeka Kansas. [1]
July 1
* The Bronx acquires Hutton Square. [1]
July 8
* Harbor Hospital formally opens. [1]
July 17
* First ship arrives in Seattle carrying gold from the Yukon. [1]
July 27
* 37.5 cm (14.75") of rainfall, Jewell, Maryland (state 24-hr record).

[1]
August 31
* Thomas Edison receives a patent on the Kinetoscope, the first

movie projector. [1] [5]
September 21
* New York Sun runs famous "Yes, Virginia there is a Santa Claus,"
editorial. [1]
September 23
* First frontier days rodeo celebration (Cheyene Wyoming). [1]
535
October 21
* Yerkes Observatory of the University of Chicago is dedicated. [1]
October 24
* First comic strip in a newspaper, "The Yellow Kid" by Richard

Outcault in New York Journal. [55.42]
November 15
* John Mercer Langston dies at age 67. [1]
November 25
* Spain grants Puerto Rico autonomy. [1]
December 12
* Anti-Jewish violence breaks out in Bucharest Romania. [1]

* Rudolph Dirks' first Katzenjammer cartoon strip in New York
Journal. [1]
December 16
* First submarine with an internal combustion engine demonstrated.

[1]
* Alphonse Daudet French writer (Tartarin sur les Alpes), dies at age
57. [1]
December 18
* Carlo A Alfieri Italian Member of parliament, dies at age 70. [1]
December 28
* Edmond Rostand's "Cyrano de Bergerac" premieres in Paris. [1]
December 30
* Province of Zululand annexed to Natal colony. [1]
December 31
* Brooklyn's last day as a city, it incorporates into New York City

(1/1/1898). [1]
536
1898
January 1
• Lightship replaces whistling buoy at mouth of San Francisco Bay. [1]

• d'Annunzio's "Sogno d'un mattino di primavera" premieres in Rome. [1]
January 3
• James Wimshurst British designer/inventor (vacuum pump), dies at age 70. [1]
January 4
• First installment of William Dean Howell's "Life and Letters" appears. [1]
• Frantisek Pivoda composer, dies at age 73. [1]
January 6
• First telephone message from a submerged submarine, by Simon Lake. [1]
January 11
• Gaetano Capocci composer, dies at age 86. [1]
January 13
• Emile Zola publishes his open letter (J'accuse) in defense of Captain Alfred
Dreyfus in Paris. [1]
January 14
• Joe Darling hits the first six in Tests (out of the ground). [1]
• Reverend Charles L Dodgson better known as Lewis Carroll, dies at age 66. [1]
January 23
• W A Remy composer, dies at age 66. [1]
January 28
• Alexandru Flechtenmacher composer, dies at age 74. [1]
February 1
537
• First auto insurance policy in US issued, by Travelers Insurance Company. [1]
February 8
• John Ames Sherman patents first envelope folding and gumming machine
February 11
• Owen Smith of North Carolina, AME Zion minister, named minister to Liberia.
[1]
February 15
• USS Maine blows up in Havana harbor, cause unknown-258 sailors die. [1]
February 18
• Frances Willard founder (Woman's Christian Temperance), dies at age 58. [1]
February 22
• Black postmaster lynched, his wife and three daughters shot in Lake City South
Carolina. [1]
February 23
• In France, Emile Zola is imprisoned for writing his "J'accuse" letter accusing
government of anti-Semitism and wrongly jailing Alfred Dreyfus. [1]
March 2
• Australia complete a 4-1 series annihilation of England. [1]
March 8
• Richard Straus' "Don Quixote" premieres in Keulen. [1]
March 16
• Aubrey (Vincent) Beardsley English illustrator (Salome), dies at age 23. [1]
March 17
• First practical submarine first submerges, New York City, New York (for 1 hour
40 minutes). [1]
538
• Blanche Kelso Bruce (Senator-Mississippi, 1875-1881), dies in Washington DC at
age 57. [1]
March 19
• Joao da Cruz Brazilian poet, dies at age 26. [1]
March 20
• Luis Palés Matos Puerto Rican poet (Tuntún the paso y grifería), dies. [1]
March 24
• First automobile sold. [1]
March 25
• Intercollegiate Trapshooting Association formed in New York City, New York. [1]
March 27
• Sajjid Ahmad Chan co founder (Pakistan), dies at age 80. [1]
March 31
• Edward Noyes Westcott US attorney/writer (David Harum), dies. [1]
April 8
• Battle of Atbara River, Anglo-Egyptian forces crush 6,000 Sudanese. [1]
April 11
• President William McKinley asks for Spanish-American War declaration. [1]
April 12
• Army transfers Yerba Buena Island in San Francisco Bay to Navy. [1]
April 18
• Gustave Moureau painter, dies. [1]
April 20
• US Assay Office in Deadwood South Dakota opens. [1]
539
April 21
• Louis Theodore Gouvy composer, dies at age 78. [1]

• Spanish-American War begins. [1]
April 22
• First Spanish-American War action: USS Nashville, takes enemy ship. [1]
• US Congress passes Volunteer Army Act calling for a Volunteer Cavalry. [1]
• US President William McKinley orders blockade of Cuban harbors. [1]
April 24
• Spain declares war on US rejecting ultimatum to withdraw from Cuba. [1]

• US fleet under commodore Dewey sails from Hong Kong to Philippines. [1]
April 25
• US declares war on Spain over Cuba. [1]
May 1
• Alphonse Wauters Belgian historian, dies at age 81. [1]

• George Dewey commands, "You may fire when you are ready, Gridley" as US
route Spanish fleet at Manila. [1]
May 3
• Camp Merriman established at Presidio (San Francisco). [1]
May 12
• Louisiana adopts new constitution with "grandfather clause" designed to eliminate

black voters. [1]
May 19
• Post Office authorizes use of postcards. [1]
May 21
• US Assay Office in Seattle Washington authorized. [1]
May 22
• Edward Bellamy writer, dies at age 48. [1]
540
May 23
• First Philippine Expeditionary Troops sail from San Francisco. [1]
May 25
• First US troop transport to Manila leaves San Francisco. [1]
May 26
• San Francisco approves City Charter, allows Municipal ownership of utiliies. [1]
May 27
• Arthur Pinero's "Trelawney of the 'Wells'" premieres in London. [1]
May 28
• Edward Bellamy US author (Looking Backward), dies. [1]
June 1
• Trans-Mississippi International Exposition opens in Omaha. [1]
June 7
• Social Democracy of America party holds first national convention, Chic. [1]
June 9
• China leases Hong Kong's new territories to Britain for 99 years. [1]
June 10
• US Marines land in Cuba, during Spanish-American War. [1]
June 13
• Yukon Territory of Canada organized, Dawson chosen as capital. [1]
June 18
• Amusement pier opens, Atlantic City, New Jersey. [1]
June 24
541
• American troops, drive Spanish forces from La Guasimas Cuba. [1]
June 27
• Canadian Joshua Slocum completes the first solo circumnavigation of the globe.
[5]
June 29
• In Near Islands, Alaska, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake occurs. [53]
July 1
• Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Riders charge up San Juan Hill. [1]
July 3
• Joshua Slocum completes first solo circumnavigation of the globe. [1]

• US Navy defeats Spanish fleet in Santiago harbor, Cuba. [1]
July 4
• "La Bourgogne" collides with "Cromartyshire", 560 drown. [1]

• French liner La Bourgogne collides with barque Cromartyshire, 50 die. [1]
• US flag hoisted over Wake Island (Spanish-American War). [1]
July 7
• President McKinley signs resolution of annexation of Hawaiian Is. [1]

• US annexes Hawaii. [1]
July 8
• Philadelphia Phillies Red Donahue no-hits Boston Braves, 5-0. [1]
July 13
• Guglielmo Marconi patents the radio. [1]

• San Francisco Ferry Building at foot of Market Steet opens. [1]
July 16
• A Charlois discovers asteroid #437 Rhodia. [1]
July 17
542
• Spanish American War-Spaniads surrender to US at Santiago Cuba. [1]
July 22
• Belgica crew see first sunrise in 1600 hours-first to endure Antarct winter. [1]
July 25
• First US troops land and occupy Puerto Rice, at Guanica Bay. [1]
August 12
• Hawaii formally annexed to US. [1]

• Peace protocol ends Spanish-American War, signed. [1]
August 16
• Roller coaster patented. [1]
August 28
• Caleb Bradham renames his carbonated soft drink "Pepsi-Cola". [5]
September 2
• Lord Kitchener retakes Sudan for Britain. [1]
September 15
• National Afro-American Council forms in Rochester New York. [1]
September 30
• City of New York established. [1]
October 1
• Henry Huntington buys the Los Angeles Railway. [1]

• Jews are expelled from Kiev Russia. [1]
October 18
• American flag raised in Puerto Rico. [1]
October 20
543
• NC Mutual and Provident Insurance Company forms. [1]
November 2
• Theodor Herzl arrives in Jerusalem. [1]
November 10
• Race riot in Wilmington North Carolina (8 blacks killed). [1]
November 22
• The opera "Iris" is produced (Rome). [1]
November 27
• Side-wheeler "Portland" sinks off Cape Cod, 190 die. [1]
December 10
• Spanish-American War ends; US acquires Philippines, Puerto Rico and Guam. [1]
December 12
• First first-class game between New South Wales and Tasmania. [1]
December 13
• George Frederick Bristow composer, dies at age 72. [1]
December 18
• Automobile speed record set-63 kph (39 mph). [1]
December 21
• Scientists Pierre and Marie Curie discover radium. [1]
December 24
• Eugeniusz Pankiewicz composer, dies at age 41. [1]

• Herman Heijermans' "Ghetto" premieres in Amsterdam. [1]
December 29
• Georg Goltermann composer, dies at age 74. [1]
544
1899
January 1
• Cuba liberated from Spain by US (National Day) (US occupies till 1902). [1]
January 10
• Gerard Keller Dutch writer (Vlugmaren), dies at age 69. [1]
January 17
• US takes possession of Wake Island in Pacific. [1]
January 19
• Anglo-Egyptian Sudan forms. [1]
January 24
• Belgium government of Vandenpeereboom forms. [1]

• Rubber heel patented by Humphrey O'Sullivan. [1]
January 25
• Alfredo d'Escragnolle French/Brazilian writer (Innocencia), dies. [1]
January 28
• American Social Science Association incorporated byUS Congress. [1]
January 29
• Alfred Sisley painter, dies. [1]

• Robert J Fruin Dutch historian (80-year war), dies at age 75. [1]
February 3
• -16 degrees F (-27 degrees C), Minden Louisiana (state record). [1]
February 4
• Revolt against US occupation of Philippines. [1]
February 6
545
• Georg Leo earl von Caprivi German chancellor, dies at age 67. [1]
• Spanish-American War ends, peace treaty ratified by Senate. [1]
February 10
• -39 degrees F (-39 degrees C), Milligan Ohio (state lowest temperature record).
[1]
• US-Spain peace treaty signed by President McKinley; US gets Puerto Rico and
Guam. [1]
February 11
• -15 degrees F (-26 degrees C), Washington DC (district record). [1]

• -61 degrees F (-52 degrees C), Montana (record low temperature). [1]
• George Morgan first English motorist to die in an motor accident, dies. [1]
February 12
• -47 degrees F (-44 degrees C), Camp Clarke NB (state record). [1]
February 13
• -16 degrees F (-27 degrees C), Minden Louisiana (state record). [1]
• -1 degrees F (-18 degrees C) New Orleans Louisiana. [1]
• -2 degrees F (-19 degrees C) Tallahassee Florida (state record). [1]
February 14
• US Congress begins using voting machines. [1]
February 16
• François Félix Faure President of France (1895-99), dies at age 57. [1]
February 18
• 80 degrees F, San Francisco California. [1]

• M Sophus Lie Norwegian mathematician, dies at age 56. [1]
• San Francisco named as a port of dispatch for Army transports. [1]
February 20
• Illinois Tel and Tel granted franchise for Chicago freight tunnel system. [1]
February 25
546
• Paul Julius von Reuter founder of the news agency (Reuters), dies. [1]
March 1
• György earl Apponyi Hungarian Member of Parliament, dies at age 90. [1]
March 2
• President McKinley signs bill creating Mount Rainier National Park (5th in US).
[1]
March 3
• US Congress authorizes Lafayette silver dollar. [1]

• George Dewey becomes first in US with rank of Admiral of the Navy. [1]
March 5
• First performance of Edward MacDowell's second Concerto in D. [1]
March 6
• "Aspirin" patented by Felix Hoffmann. [1]
March 10
• French Ministry of Travaux Publics requires all motorists of France to carry a

driving license. [55.51]
March 14
• Emile Erckmann French writer (Waterloo), dies at age 76. [1]
March 17
• Windsor luxury hotel in New York City catches fire, 92 die. [1]
March 18
• Douglas Strutt Galton English engineer (rails, trains), dies at age 76. [1]
• Phoebe, a moon of Saturn is discovered by Pickering. [1]
• Svetolik Rankovic Serbian writer (Crushed Ideals), dies at age 35. [1]
March 20
547
• Martha M Place of Brooklyn New York, becomes first woman to die by
electrocution. [1]
March 21
• British and French accord about West-Africa. [1]
April 1
• North Carolina Mutual opens doors for business. [1]
April 11
• Treaty of Paris is ratified, ending war; Spain cedes Puerto Rico to US. [1]
April 16
• West of Eureka, California, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake occurs. [53]
April 17
• Hans Balatka composer, dies at age 74. [1]
April 20
• Édouard Pailleron, French attorney/comedian, dies at age 64. [1]
April 21
• Heinrich Kiepert German cartographer/geographer, dies at age 80. [1]
April 24
• Transvaal British Uitlanders ask Queen Victoria for aid. [1]
May 9
• Lawn mower patented. [1]
May 15
• Francisque Sarcey French writer (Le Temps), dies at age 70. [1]
May 17
• Victoria and Albert Museum foundation laid England. [1]
548
May 18
• World Goodwill Day-26 nations meet in first Hague Peace Conference. [1]
May 24
• First auto repair shop opens (Boston). [1]
May 25
• Marie-Rosalie "Rosa" Bonheur French painter, dies at age 68. [1]
May 29
• Frantz Jehin-Prume composer, dies at age 60. [1]
May 31
• Bronx acquires Keltch Memorial Park. [1]

• Conference of Bloemfontein fails. [1]
June 2
• Black Americans observed day of fasting to protest lynchings. [1]
June 10
• Improved Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks forms in Cincinnati. [1]
June 29
• Brazo River in Texas floods 12 miles wide causing $10 mil damage. [1]
July 1
• Gideon Society established to place bibles in hotels. [1]

• San Francisco City Hall turned over to city, after 29 years of building. [1]
July 14
• In Cook Inlet, Alaska, a magnitude 7.2 earthquake occurs. [53]
July 17
• NEC Corporation is organized as the first Japanese joint venture with foreign
capital. [5]
549
July 18
• Horatio Alger Jr American clergyman and author, dies. [1]
July 29
• First motorcycle race, Manhattan Beach, New York. [1]
August 15
• Louisville's Henry Dowling struck out five times in a game. [1]
September 4
• In Near Cape Yakataga, Alaska, a magnitude 7.9 earthquake occurs. [53]
September 6
• Carnation processes its first can of evaporated milk. [1]
September 10
• In Yakutat Bay, Alaska, a magnitude 8.0 earthquake occurs. [1] [53]
September 14
• Henry Bliss becomes first automobile fatality (New York). [1]
September 20
• In Menderes Valley, Turkey (Ottoman Empire), a magnitude 6.9 earthquake

occurs. 1,100 deaths. Severe damage to buildings, bridges, railroad and telegraph
lines; many landslides. [53]
September 23
• In Cape Yakataga, Alaska, a magnitude 6.9 - 7.0 earthquake occurs. [53]
October 17
• Sutro railroad sold to Robert F Morrow for $215,000. [1]
November 21
• Garret Augustus Hobart 24th Vice President, died. [1]
550
November 23
• First jukebox (Palais Royal Hotel, San Francisco). [1]
December 2
• US and Germany agree to divide Samoa between them. [1]
December 4
• 56thUS Congress (1899-1901) convenes. [1]

• Webb Hayes son of President Rutherford Hayes receives medal of honor. [1]
December 7
• Antoni Katski composer, dies at age 82. [1]
December 8
• Natal: British fall/burst out belegerd Ladysmith. [1]
December 10
• First defeat of "Black Week" - Battle at Stormberg South Africa - Boers vs British
army; nearly 3000 British troops killed. [1]
• Frank Wedekind's "Der Kammersang" premieres in Berlin. [1]
December 11
• Second defeat of "Black Week" - Battle of Magersfontein - Boer leader Cronjé

versus General Methuen. [1]
• Andrew "Andy" Wauchope British general-major, dies in battle. [1]
• Lord Winchester British marquis/major, dies in battle. [1]
December 12
• First case of plague on Oahu HI. [1]
December 15
• Third defeat of "Black Week" - Battle at Colenso South Africa (Boers-British

army). [1]
December 17
• Frederick "Freddy" Roberts son of British field marshal, dies in battle. [1]
551
December 18
• Fieldmarshal Lord Roberts appointed British supreme commander in South

Africa. [1]
• John William Glover composer, dies at age 84. [1]
December 22
• Dwight L Moody US evangelist (Student Volunteer Movement), dies. [1]
December 23
• Fieldmarshal Lord Roberts departs Southampton to South Africa. [1]

• Tentative Turkish and German treaty on construction of Baghdad railway. [1]
December 25
• Raphael Soyer artist (Depression scenes in New York City). [1]

• In Hemet-San Jacinto, California, a magnitude 6.4 earthquake occurs. [53]
December 26
• Mafeking: Bathe-Powells failed assault up fort Game Tree: 24 killed. [1]
December 29
• English fleet brings German postschip Bundesrath up. [1]
December 30
• James Paget English surgeon (disease of Paget), dies at age 85. [1]
December 31
• Karl Millöcker Austrian conductor/composer (Try-out Kiss), dies at age 57. [1]
552

World History 1800

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World History 1800

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1800

* Dutch East Indies Company dissolves. [1]

* Free black community of Philadelphia Pennsylvania petitionsUS

* First Swedenborgian temple in US holds first service, Baltimore

* William Jones composer, dies at age 73. [1]

* Austrians defeat French in second battle of Novi. [1]

* Johan Wikmanson composer, dies at age 46. [1]

* Napoleon I's sister Carolina marries King Joachim Murat of Naples.

* Edward Rutledge US attorney (signed Declaration of

* US population: 5,308,483; Black population 1,002,037 (18.9%). [1]

* Johann Baptist Christoph Toeschi composer, dies at age 64. [1]

* Dominique Della-Maria composer, dies at age 30. [1]

* Luigi Chiaramonti crowned Pope Pius VII. [1]

* English warship Queen Charlotte catches fire; 700 die. [1]

* French army defeats Turks at Helipolis Turkey, and advance to

* First performance of Ludwig von Beethoven's first Symphony in C.

* James Ross discovers North Magnetic pole. [1]

* John Evangelist Schreiber composer, dies at age 84. [1]

* Library of Congress is established with $5,000 allocation. [1]

* William Cowper English lawyer/poet (Olney Hymns), dies at age 68.

* John H Midderigh Rotterdam patriot, dies at age 46. [1]

* Indiana Territory organized. [1]

* Friedrich von Schiller's "Macbeth" premieres in Weimar. [1]

* King George III survives a second assassination attempt. [1]

* French Bosbeeck veterinarian/robber, hanged. [1]

* Mt Vernon Gardens becomes site of first summer theatre in US. [1]

* Zion AME Church dedicated (New York City). [1]

* Spain cedes Louisiana to France in a secret treaty. [1]

* First President to live in the white house (John Adams). [1]

* Georg Peter Weimar composer, dies at age 66. [1]

* Ireland and Great Britain (England and Scotland) form United

* Johann C Lavater Swiss vicar/philosopher, dies at age 59. [1]

* Domenico Cimarosa Italian composer (Matrimonio segreto), dies at

* John Marshall appointed US chief justice. [1]

* Johann Chrysostomus Drexel composer, dies at age 43. [1]

* France and Austrian sign Peace of Lunéville. [1]

* House breaks electoral college tie, chooses Jefferson President

* Washington DC placed underUS Congressional jurisdiction. [1]

* First President inaugurated in Washington DC (Thomas Jefferson).

* Massachusetts enacts first state voter registration law. [1]

* British drive French forces from Abukir, Egypt. [1]

* Christian Friedrich Penzel composer, dies at age 63. [1]

* Juan de Sesse y Balaguer composer, dies at age 64. [1]

* Andrea Lucchesi composer, dies at age 59. [1]

* Murder attempt on Czar Paul I. [1]

* Aleksandr P Romanov becomes emperor of Russia. [1]

* Anthony Ziesenis architect/sculptor (Camper), dies at age 69. [1]

* Ralph Abercromby English army commander (North Holland), dies

* Soldiers riot in Bucharest, kill 128 Jews. [1]

* Johann von Schiller's "Die Jungfrau von Orleans", premieres in

* First performance of Joseph Haydn's oratorio "Die Jahreszeiten". [1]

* Philippe-Lambert-Joseph Spruyt Flemish painter/engraver, dies at

* Johann Ernst Altenburg composer, dies at age 66. [1]

* Louis C count Barbiano de Belgioioso Austrian diplomat, dies at

* Herman H Vitringa politician (National Meetings), dies. [1]

* Heinrich Gottfried Reichard composer, dies at age 58. [1]

* Tripoli declares war on US for refusing tribute. [1]

* Benedict Arnold Revolutionary War general, dies in London. [1]

* Marie Allard French ballerina, dies at age 59. [1]

* Napoleon elected President of the Italian (Cisalpine) Republic. [1]

* US Congress passes an act calling for a US Capitol library. [1]

* Johann Rudolf Zumsteeg composer, dies at age 42. [1]

* John Beckley of Virginia appointed first Librarian of Congress. [1]