What Happened in 1855

Douglass Publishes Second Autobiography - My Bondage and My Freedom

As a fugitive in exile, Frederick Douglass attacked slavery. In speeches he spoke of the hypocrisy of freedom-loving slaveholders. To combat... Read more

The First Edition of Walt Whitman's "Leaves of Grass" Is Published

When Walt Whitman published his first edition of Leaves of Grass on or around the fourth day of July in 1855, he believed he was embarking on a... Read more

Rowfant Railway Station Is Opened

Rowfant was a railway station on the Three Bridges to Tunbridge Wells Central Line which closed in 1967, a casualty of the Beeching Axe. The... Read more

Carl Schurz Writes To His Wife

On October 29, 1855, recent German immigrant Carl Schurz wrote his wife, Margarethe Meyer Schurz, expressing hope for their future happiness. A... Read more

Gasconade Bridge Train Disaster

The Gasconade Bridge Train Disaster occurred on November 1st, 1855. With more than 600 passengers aboard the Pacific Railroad excursion train... Read more

"Old College", Northwestern University's First Building, Opens

Old College was the first building constructed at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, and was completed in 1855. The cornerstone of... Read more

Charles Dickens publishes Little Dorrit

Little Dorrit is a serial novel by Charles Dickens published originally between 1855 and 1857. It is a work of satire on the shortcomings of the... Read more