Explore 1429 historical events from 1880–1889.
On 5 September 1887, a fire broke out in the backstage area of the Theatre Royal in Exeter, England, during the production of The Romany Rye. The fire caused panic throughout the t…
A fire that killed 186 people broke out at the Theatre Royal, Exeter, England.
Johannes Brahms was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period. His music features expressive counterpoint, freer dissonance, rhythmic vitality, and tradi…
Johannes Brahms (pictured) conducted the premiere of his Double Concerto, composed for violinist Joseph Joachim and…
The Haymarket affair, also known as the Haymarket massacre, the Haymarket riot, the Haymarket Square riot, or the Haymarket Incident, was the aftermath of a bombing that took place…
Rallies are held throughout the United States demanding the eight-hour work day, culminating in the Haymarket affair in
The Haymarket affair, also known as the Haymarket massacre, the Haymarket riot, the Haymarket Square riot, or the Haymarket Incident, was the aftermath of a bombing that took place…
Haymarket affair: In Chicago, United States, a homemade bomb is thrown at police officers trying to break up a labor ral
The eight-hour day movement was a social movement that appeared in various countries to regulate the length of a working day. The goal was preventing excesses and abuses of working…
Workers marching for the Eight-hour day in Milwaukee, Wisconsin were shot at by Wisconsin National Guardsmen in what bec
The Great Vancouver Fire destroyed most of the newly incorporated city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on June 13, 1886. It started as two land-clearing fires to the west o…
A fire devastates much of Vancouver, British Columbia
John Stith Pemberton was an American pharmacist, chemist, and Confederate States Army officer who is best known as the inventor of Coca-Cola. On May 8, 1886, he developed an early …
Pharmacist John Pemberton first sells a carbonated beverage named "Coca-Cola" as a patent medicine
A pharmacist, also known as a chemist in Commonwealth English, is a healthcare professional who is knowledgeable about preparation, mechanism of action, clinical usage and legislat…
The pharmacist John Pemberton places his first advertisement for Coca-Cola, which appeared in The Atlanta Journal
Mount Tarawera is a volcano on the North Island of New Zealand within the older but volcanically productive Ōkataina Caldera. Located 24 kilometres southeast of Rotorua, it consist…
Mount Tarawera in New Zealand erupts, killing 153 people and burying the famous Pink and White Terraces
Ferdinand Frédéric Henri Moissan was a French chemist and pharmacist who won the 1906 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work in isolating fluorine from its compounds. Among his othe…
Henri Moissan isolated elemental Fluorine for the first time
Montreal is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest in Canada, and the eighth-largest in North America. Founded in 1642 as Ville-Marie, or "City of Mary", it…
The first transcontinental train trip across Canada departs from Montreal, Quebec
Carl Friedrich Benz was a German engine designer and automotive engineer. His Benz Patent-Motorwagen from 1885 is considered the first practical, modern automobile and the first ca…
Karl Benz officially unveils the Benz Patent-Motorwagen, the first purpose-built automobile.
The 1886 Charleston earthquake in South Carolina occurred about 9:50 p.m. local time August 31. It caused 60 deaths and $5–6 million in damage to 2,000 buildings in the Southeaster…
The 7.0 Mw Charleston earthquake strikes southeastern South Carolina with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme),…
Stephen Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, serving from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. He was the first Democrat elected president after th…
US president Grover Cleveland dedicates the Statue of Liberty.
Michális Dórizas was a Greek athlete who competed in throwing events at the 1906, 1908 and 1912 Summer Olympics. He won a silver medal in the javelin throw in 1908 and a bronze in …
Michalis Dorizas, Greek-American football player and javelin thrower (died 1957)
The New-York Tribune was an American newspaper founded in 1841 by editor Horace Greeley. It bore the moniker New-York Daily Tribune from 1842 to 1866 before returning to its origin…
The New-York Tribune becomes the first newspaper to use a linotype machine, eliminating typesetting by hand.
The Canadian Pacific Railway, also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is o…
The Canadian Pacific Railway's first scheduled train from Montreal arrives in Port Moody on the Pacific coast, after…
The American Indian Wars, also known as the American Frontier Wars, and the Indian Wars, were initially fought by European colonial empires, the United States, and briefly the Conf…
American Indian Wars: After almost 30 years of fighting, Apache leader Geronimo, with his remaining warriors,…
The Normanton incident was a series of events surrounding the sinking of the British merchantman Normanton of the coast of Japan's Wakayama Prefecture on 24 October 1886. Normanto…
Normanton incident: As the British merchant vessel Normanton sinks off the coast of Japan, her European officers…
Ernst Johannes Fritz Thälmann was a German communist politician, revolutionary, and leader of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) from 1925 to 1933.
Ernst Thälmann, German politician (died 1944)
Izidor Cankar was a Slovenian author, art historian, diplomat, journalist, translator, and liberal conservative politician. He was one of the most important Slovenian art historian…
Izidor Cankar, Slovenian historian, author, and diplomat (died 1958)
Gertrude "Ma" Rainey was an American blues singer and influential early-blues recording artist. Dubbed the "Mother of the Blues", she bridged earlier vaudeville and the authentic e…
Ma Rainey, American singer-songwriter (died 1939)
Ğabdulla Möxəmmətğərif ulı Tuqay was a Tatar poet, critic, publisher, and towering figure of Tatar literature. Tuqay is often referred to as the founder of modern Tatar literature …
Ğabdulla Tuqay, Russian poet and publicist (died 1913)
Erich Salomon was a German news photographer known for his pictures in the diplomatic and legal professions and the innovative methods he used to acquire them.
Erich Salomon, German-born news photographer (died 1944)