1841 Events

1841 Douglass Speaks at Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society Convention
In 1841, Douglass spoke about his slave experiences at a convention of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society held on Nantucket Island. He impressed prominent abolitionist leaders, includ...
1841 Frederick de Moleyns Patents First Incandescent Light bulb
In 1841, Frederick de Moleyns of England was granted the first patent for an incandescent lamp, with a design using platinum wires contained within a vacuum bulb.
1841 P. T. Barnum Purchases Scudder's American Museum
In 1841 Barnum bought Scudder’s American Museum located across from St. Paul’s on the southeast corner of Broadway and Ann Street. He transformed the five-story exterior into a giant, gau...
1841 Viennese Dermatologist, Ferdinand von Hebra, Titles Skin Condition Psoriasis
While it may have been visually, and later semantically, confused with leprosy, it was not until 1841 that the condition was finally given the name psoriasis by the Viennese dermatologist...
1841 Feb 13
to 1841 Nov 27
 Charles Dickens publishes Barnaby Rudge
Barnaby Rudge: A Tale of the Riots of Eighty (commonly known as Barnaby Rudge) is an historical novel by the author Charles Dickens. Barnaby Rudge (along with The Old Curiosity Shop) was ...
1841 Mar 4 William Henry Harrison is inaugurated as the ninth president of the United States
President Harrison has the dual distinction among all the Presidents of giving the longest inaugural speech and of serving the shortest term of office. Known to the public as "Old Tippec...
1841 Mar 9 The Survivors Of The Amistad Mutiny Are Freed
The Supreme Court issued a ruling on March 9, 1841, freeing the remaining thirty-five survivors of the Amistad mutiny. Although seven of the nine justices on the court hailed from Southe...
1841 Apr Edgar Allan Poe Becomes the Editor at Graham's Magazine
April 1841 Editing Again Poe begins as an editor at Graham's Magazine, where he works until May 1842. The magazine runs Poe's short story "The Murders in the Rue Morgue," the first-ever...
1841 Apr 5 Joseph Smith Jr. Marries Louisa Beaman
Joseph and Louisa were married on April 5, 1841, “in a grove Near Main Street in the City of Nauvoo, The Prophet Joseph dictating the ceremony and Br Nobles repeating it after him.”, reme...