On This Day
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Construction begins on Clay St (San Francisco) for world's 1st cable railroad

San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the fourth-most populous city in California and the 17th-most populous in the United States, with a population of 827,526 in 2024.

San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the fourth-most populous city in California and the 17th-most populous in the United States, with a population of 827,526 in 2024. Among U.S. cities with a population of 300,000 or more, San Francisco is ranked first by per capita income, second by population density, and sixth by aggregate income as of 2023. Some 4.6 million residents live in the city's metropolitan statistical area, which is the 13th-largest in the United States. Around 9.2 million live in the San Jose–San Francisco–Oakland combined statistical area, the fifth-largest in the United States.

Prior to European settlement, San Francisco was inhabited by the Yelamu Ohlone.

Historical Significance

San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the fourth-most populous city in California and the 17th-most populous in the United States, with a population of 827,526 in 2024.

Events Before

  1. The Moerdijk railway bridge over Hollands Diep in South Holland opens, becoming the longest bridge in Europe at that tim

    The Moerdijk railway bridge over Hollands Diep in South Holland opens, becoming the longest bridge in Europe at that time

  2. Yohannes IV is crowned Emperor of Ethiopia in Axum, the first imperial coronation in Axum in over 200 years

    Yohannes IV is crowned Emperor of Ethiopia in Axum, the first imperial coronation in Axum in over 200 years

  3. German physicist and X-ray pioneer Wilhelm Röntgen (26) weds Anna Bertha Ludwig in Apeldoorn, Netherlands, until her dea

    German physicist and X-ray pioneer Wilhelm Röntgen (26) weds Anna Bertha Ludwig in Apeldoorn, Netherlands, until her death in1919

  4. New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art opens

    The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an encyclopedic art museum in New York City.

  5. Yellowstone becomes the world's first national park

    Yellowstone National Park is a national park of the United States located in the northwest corner of the state of Wyoming, with small portions extending into Montana and Idaho.

Events After

  1. New York City annexes the West Bronx

    The boroughs of New York City are the five major governmental districts that compose New York City. They are the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island.

  2. Ulysses S. Grant's daughter Nellie marries in the White House

    Ellen Wrenshall Grant (July 4, 1855 – August 30, 1922) was the third child and only daughter of U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant and First Lady Julia Grant.

  3. Johann Strauss Jr's opera "Die Fledermaus" premieres in Vienna

    Johann Strauss Jr's opera "Die Fledermaus" premieres in Vienna

  4. First Impressionist art exhibition opens in Paris, features Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Camille Pi

    First Impressionist art exhibition opens in Paris, features Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro and Berthe Morisot

  5. Game of lawn tennis is introduced by Welsh Major Walter Clopton Wingfield, who introduces a rubber ball to bounce on gra

    Game of lawn tennis is introduced by Welsh Major Walter Clopton Wingfield, who introduces a rubber ball to bounce on grass

More from the 1870s

Belgium disbands its salt tax

Belgium disbands its salt tax

The Moerdijk railway bridge over Hollands Diep in South Holland opens, becoming the longest bridge in Europe at that tim

The Moerdijk railway bridge over Hollands Diep in South Holland opens, becoming the longest bridge in Europe at that time

Japan adopts the Gregorian calendar

Japanese calendar types have included a range of official and unofficial systems. At present, Japan uses the Gregorian calendar together with year designations stating the year of the reign of the…

New York City annexes the West Bronx

The boroughs of New York City are the five major governmental districts that compose New York City. They are the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on June 2, 1873?
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the fourth-most populous city in California and the 17th-most populous in the United States, with a population of 827,526 in 2024. Among U.S. cities with a population of 300,000 or more, San Francisco is ranked first by per capita income, second by population density, and sixth by aggregate income as of 2023.
Why is Construction begins on Clay St (San Francisco) for world's 1st cable railroad significant?
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the fourth-most populous city in California and the 17th-most populous in the United States, with a population of 827,526 in 2024.

Explore More

June 2 in HistoryYear 1873