What Happened in 1859

Douglass Flees to Canada After Harper's Ferry Raid

John Brown and other abolitionist followers raid the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, then in Virginia. He plans to start a slave insurrection and... Read more

US Senator William Seward sells Harriet Tubman house in Auburn, New York

On the road between Syracuse and Rochester, were a number of sympathetic Quakers and other abolitionists settled at Auburn. Here also was the home... Read more

Victor Herbert Is Born

Victor Herbert was born on February 1, 1859 in Dublin, Ireland. He studied music in Germany, where he became a cellist and composer for the court... Read more

Oregon is the 33rd State Admitted to the Union

Act of Congress Admitting Oregon to the Union (dated February 14, 1859) Whereas the people of Oregon have framed, ratified and adopted a... Read more

Q. K. Philander Doesticks Attends A Slave Auction

On March 3, 1859, journalist Q. K. Philander Doesticks (Mortimer Thomson) attended an auction of 436 men, women, and children formerly held by... Read more

Charles Dickens publishes A Tale of Two Cities

A Tale of Two Cities (1859) is a novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. With 200 million copies... Read more

Big Ben Starts Ticking

Big Ben is the nickname for the great bell of the clock at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, and is often extended to refer to... Read more

Wreck of the SS Admella

The wreck of the SS Admella in the early hours of August 6th 1859 was only the beginning of a horrific week for survivors who remained on board, in... Read more

John Brown Leads Raid on Harpers Ferry

Late on the night of October 16, 1859, John Brown and twenty-one armed followers stole into the town of Harper's Ferry, Virginia (now West... Read more

Henry McCarty, aka 'Billy the Kid' is Born

The infamous Western outlaw known as "Billy the Kid" is born in a poor Irish neighborhood on New York City's East Side. Before he was shot dead at... Read more

Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species is Published

On the Origin of Species proved unexpectedly popular, with the entire stock of 1,250 copies oversubscribed when it went on sale to booksellers on... Read more