The 1850s

1851 175 years ago

Sojourner Truth delivers her famous Ain't I a Woman? speech at the Woman's Rights Convention in Akron, Ohio

Sojourner Truth was an American abolitionist and activist for African-American civil rights, women's rights, and alcohol temperance. Truth was born into slavery in Swartekill, New …

Sojourner Truth delivers her famous Ain't I a Woman? speech at the Woman's Rights Convention in Akron, Ohio

1851 175 years ago

Annibale de Gasparis discovers asteroid 15 Eunomia.

Annibale de Gasparis was an Italian astronomer, known for discovering asteroids and his contributions to theoretical astronomy.

Annibale de Gasparis discovers asteroid 15 Eunomia.

1851 175 years ago

Isaac Singer is granted a patent for his sewing machine.

Isaac Merritt Singer was an American inventor, actor, and businessman. He made important improvements in the design of the sewing machine and was the founder of what became one of …

Isaac Singer is granted a patent for his sewing machine.

1851 175 years ago

William Lassell discovers the moons Umbriel and Ariel orbiting Uranus.

William Lassell was an English merchant and astronomer. He is remembered for his improvements to the reflecting telescope and his ensuing discoveries of four planetary satellites.

William Lassell discovers the moons Umbriel and Ariel orbiting Uranus.

1851 175 years ago

Ponnambalam Ramanathan, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician, third Solicitor General of Sri Lanka (died 1930)

Sir Ponnambalam Ramanathan, was a Ceylonese lawyer and politician who served as Solicitor-General of Ceylon.

Ponnambalam Ramanathan, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician, third Solicitor General of Sri Lanka (died 1930)

1851 175 years ago

Alexander Dianin, Russian chemist (died 1918)

Aleksandr Pavlovich Dianin was a Russian chemist from Saint Petersburg. He carried out studies on phenols and discovered a phenol derivative now known as bisphenol A and the accord…

Alexander Dianin, Russian chemist (died 1918)

1851 175 years ago

Harriet Beecher Stowe's anti-slavery serial, Uncle Tom's Cabin, or Life Among the Lowly, starts a ten-month run in the N

Harriet Elisabeth Beecher Stowe was an American author and abolitionist. She came from the religious Beecher family and wrote a popular novel called Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852), which…

Harriet Beecher Stowe's anti-slavery serial, Uncle Tom's Cabin, or Life Among the Lowly, starts a ten-month run in the N

1851 175 years ago

The first America's Cup is won by the yacht America.

The America's Cup is a sailing competition and the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. America's Cup match races are held between two sailing yachts: one…

The first America's Cup is won by the yacht America.

1851 175 years ago

Christiana Resistance: Escaped slaves led by William Parker fight off and kill a slave owner who, with a federal…

The Christiana Resistance, also known as Christiana incident, or Christiana riot, was the successful armed resistance by free Blacks and escaped slaves to a raid led by a federal m…

Christiana Resistance: Escaped slaves led by William Parker fight off and kill a slave owner who, with a federal…

1851 175 years ago

First publication of The New-York Daily Times, which later becomes The New York Times.

The New York Times (NYT) is a newspaper based in Manhattan, New York City. The New York Times covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces and re…

First publication of The New-York Daily Times, which later becomes The New York Times.

1851 175 years ago

Herman Melville's Moby-Dick is first published as The Whale by Richard Bentley of London.

Herman Melville was an American writer of the American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works are Moby-Dick (1851), Typee (1846), a romanticized account of his experiences …

Herman Melville's Moby-Dick is first published as The Whale by Richard Bentley of London.

1851 175 years ago

Siegmund Lubin, Polish-American businessman, founded the Lubin Manufacturing Company (died 1923)

Siegmund Lubin was an American motion picture pioneer who founded the Lubin Manufacturing Company (1902–1917) of Philadelphia.

Siegmund Lubin, Polish-American businessman, founded the Lubin Manufacturing Company (died 1923)

1851 175 years ago

Leopoldo Alas, Spanish author, critic, and academic (died 1901)

Leopoldo Enrique García-Alas y Ureña, also known as Clarín, was a Spanish realist novelist and journalist born in Zamora. His inflammatory articles, known as paliques (“chitchat”),…

Leopoldo Alas, Spanish author, critic, and academic (died 1901)

1851 175 years ago

Thomas Dewing, American painter (died 1938)

Thomas Wilmer Dewing was an American painter working at the turn of the 20th century. Schooled in Paris, Dewing was noted for his figure paintings of aristocratic women. He was a f…

Thomas Dewing, American painter (died 1938)

1851 175 years ago

Aristide Bruant, French singer and actor (died 1925)

Aristide Bruant was a French cabaret singer, comedian, and nightclub owner. He is best known as the man in the red scarf and black cape featured on certain famous posters by Henri …

Aristide Bruant, French singer and actor (died 1925)

1851 175 years ago

Anna Laurens Dawes, American author and anti-suffragist (died 1938)

Anna Laurens Dawes was an American author and anti-suffragist. She was the daughter of Henry Laurens Dawes, a Republican United States Senator and Representative of Massachusetts.

Anna Laurens Dawes, American author and anti-suffragist (died 1938)

1851 175 years ago

James Budd, American lawyer and politician, 19th Governor of California (died 1908)

James Herbert Budd was an American lawyer and politician who served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for California's 2nd district from 1883 to 1885 and as the 19th…

James Budd, American lawyer and politician, 19th Governor of California (died 1908)

1851 175 years ago

Simon Kahquados, Potawatomi political activist (died 1930)

Simon Kahquados, born Kakanisaiga, was a leader of the Potawatomi people in Wisconsin, United States, and played a pivotal role in creating the federally recognized Forest County P…

Simon Kahquados, Potawatomi political activist (died 1930)

1851 175 years ago

Emile Berliner, German-American inventor, invented the Gramophone record (died 1929)

Emile Berliner was a German-American inventor and businessman who invented the lateral-cut flat disc record, also known as a "gramophone record," used with a gramophone. He founded…

Emile Berliner, German-American inventor, invented the Gramophone record (died 1929)

1851 175 years ago

Léon Bourgeois, French police officer and politician, 64th Prime Minister of France, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1925)

Léon Victor Auguste Bourgeois was a French statesman. His ideas influenced the Radical Party regarding a wide range of issues.

Léon Bourgeois, French police officer and politician, 64th Prime Minister of France, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1925)

1851 175 years ago

Angelo Moriondo, Italian inventor of the espresso machine (died 1914)

Angelo Moriondo was an Italian inventor, who is usually credited with patenting the earliest known espresso machine, in 1884. His machine used a combination of steam and boiling wa…

Angelo Moriondo, Italian inventor of the espresso machine (died 1914)

1851 175 years ago

Ture Malmgren, Swedish journalist and politician (died 1922)

Ture Robert Ferdinand Malmgren was a Swedish journalist, book publisher, and municipal politician. A prominent figure in his hometown of Uddevalla, Malmgren became a colorful and w…

Ture Malmgren, Swedish journalist and politician (died 1922)

1851 175 years ago

Jacques-Arsène d'Arsonval, French physician and physicist (died 1940)

Jacques-Arsène d'Arsonval was a French physician, physicist and inventor of the moving-coil d'Arsonval galvanometer and the thermocouple ammeter. D'Arsonval was an important contri…

Jacques-Arsène d'Arsonval, French physician and physicist (died 1940)

1851 175 years ago

Charles Joseph Bonaparte, American lawyer and politician, 46th United States Attorney General (died 1921)

Charles Joseph Bonaparte was an American lawyer and political activist of French noble descent who advocated for progressive and liberal causes. Originally from Baltimore, Maryland…

Charles Joseph Bonaparte, American lawyer and politician, 46th United States Attorney General (died 1921)