Explore the major historical events, famous births, and notable deaths that occurred in the year 1839. This year saw 42 significant events. 3 notable figures were born.
Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre was a French scientist, artist and photographer recognized for his invention of the eponymous daguerreotype process of photography.
Charles Robert Darwin (12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology.
First Grand National steeplechase at Aintree Racecourse, Liverpool: Jem Mason wins aboard 5/1 favorite Lottery
Dutch prince Willem Alexander (later William III) weds cousin Princess Sophia
Louis Daguerre's daguerreotype photographic process with complete working instructions is published "free to the world" in Paris as a gift from the French government
The First Opium War, also known as the Anglo-Chinese War, was a series of military engagements fought between the British Empire and the Chinese Qing dynasty between 1839 and 1842.
Cyclone slams southeastern India with high winds and a 40-foot storm surge, destroying the city of Coringa. Storm waves sweep inland, destroying 20,000 ships and killing an estimated 300,000 people.
Two-day storm off the Irish and English coasts is immortalized as the "Big Wind"
First tea from leaves of indigenous plants of Assam, India, arrives in the United Kingdom [date approximate] [1]
Earthquake at Martinique destroys half of Port Royal - 700 die
Anthracite coal is first used to smelt iron in Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania
Aden is an ancient port city in the southern part of the Arabian peninsula, on the north coast of the Gulf of Aden, positioned near the eastern approach to the Red Sea, and has been the de facto...
Battle of Yungay, Chile defeats a Peruvian and Bolivian alliance
Aroostoock (or "Pork & Beans) War: Boundary dispute between Maine & New Brunswick
The Detroit Boat Club was established in 1839, as a sport rowing club. It was first created on the Detroit River during a time in which Detroit was just starting to grow.
Congress prohibits dueling in District of Columbia
William Smith Otis (September 20, 1813 – November 13, 1839) was an American inventor of the steam shovel. Otis received a patent for his creation on February 24, 1839.
Seminoles & black allies shipped from Tampa Bay Florida, to the West
Prussian government limits work week for children to 51 hours
First recorded use of "OK" [oll korrect] appears in the Boston Morning Post
1st Henley Royal Regatta on the river Thames, England
The Federal Republic of Central America (Spanish: República Federal de Centro América), initially known as the United Provinces of Central America (Provincias Unidas del Centro de América), was a...
Treaty of London constitutes Belgium an independent kingdom & Luxembourg a Grand Duchy
The Cunard Steamship Company Ltd forms San Bonifacio
Hawaiian Declaration of Rights is signed
Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England.
King of Hawaii Kamehameha III issues Edict of toleration which gives Roman Catholics freedom to worship in the Hawaiian Islands. The Hawaii Catholic Church and the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace is later established
Slaves aboard a Spanish schooner La Amistad revolt to secure their freedom while being transported from one Cuban port to another
A normal school or normal college trains teachers in the norms of pedagogy and curriculum. Other names include teacher training colleges or teachers' colleges.
Chartist riots break out in Birmingham, England
Beta Theta Pi (ΒΘΠ), commonly known as Beta, is a North American social fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.
Hong Kong was under British rule from 1841 to 1997, except for a brief period of Japanese occupation during the Second World War from 1941 to 1945.
Salon of Varietes opens in Amsterdam
First Canadian track and field meet held at Caer Howell Grounds
The history of rail transport in the Netherlands is generally considered to have begun on September 20, 1839, when the first train, drawn by De Arend, successfully made the 16 km (9.9 mi) trip from...
British Association expedition to Antarctica ships Erebus and Terror set sail from England to attempt to locate the magnetic South Pole
Joseph Saxton, a machine inspector at the US Mint, takes the first daguerreotype photograph in the US of the Central High School building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The First Opium War, also known as the Anglo-Chinese War, was a series of military engagements fought between the British Empire and the Chinese Qing dynasty between 1839 and 1842.
Newport is a city and county borough in Wales, on the River Usk near its confluence with the Severn Estuary, approximately 12 mi (19 km) northeast of Cardiff.
The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is a public senior military college in Lexington, Virginia, United States.
1st US anti-slavery party, Liberty Party, convenes in NY
American Statistical Association organizes in Boston
Paul Cézanne, French painter, known for french painter, was born on 1839-01-19. Paul Cézanne was a French Post-Impressionist painter whose work introduced new modes of representation, influenced…
Modest Mussorgsky, Russian musician, known for russian composer, was born on 1839-03-21.
John Ballance is born
Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre was a French scientist, artist and photographer recognized for his invention of the eponymous daguerreotype process of photography.
Charles Robert Darwin (12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology.
First Grand National steeplechase at Aintree Racecourse, Liverpool: Jem Mason wins aboard 5/1 favorite Lottery
Dutch prince Willem Alexander (later William III) weds cousin Princess Sophia
Louis Daguerre's daguerreotype photographic process with complete working instructions is published "free to the world" in Paris as a gift from the French government
The First Opium War, also known as the Anglo-Chinese War, was a series of military engagements fought between the British Empire and the Chinese Qing dynasty between 1839 and 1842.
Cyclone slams southeastern India with high winds and a 40-foot storm surge, destroying the city of Coringa. Storm waves sweep inland, destroying 20,000 ships and killing an estimated 300,000 people.
Two-day storm off the Irish and English coasts is immortalized as the "Big Wind"
First tea from leaves of indigenous plants of Assam, India, arrives in the United Kingdom [date approximate] [1]
Earthquake at Martinique destroys half of Port Royal - 700 die
Anthracite coal is first used to smelt iron in Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania
Aden is an ancient port city in the southern part of the Arabian peninsula, on the north coast of the Gulf of Aden, positioned near the eastern approach to the Red Sea, and has been the de facto...
Battle of Yungay, Chile defeats a Peruvian and Bolivian alliance
Aroostoock (or "Pork & Beans) War: Boundary dispute between Maine & New Brunswick
The Detroit Boat Club was established in 1839, as a sport rowing club. It was first created on the Detroit River during a time in which Detroit was just starting to grow.
Congress prohibits dueling in District of Columbia
William Smith Otis (September 20, 1813 – November 13, 1839) was an American inventor of the steam shovel. Otis received a patent for his creation on February 24, 1839.
Seminoles & black allies shipped from Tampa Bay Florida, to the West
Prussian government limits work week for children to 51 hours
First recorded use of "OK" [oll korrect] appears in the Boston Morning Post
1st Henley Royal Regatta on the river Thames, England
The Federal Republic of Central America (Spanish: República Federal de Centro América), initially known as the United Provinces of Central America (Provincias Unidas del Centro de América), was a...
Treaty of London constitutes Belgium an independent kingdom & Luxembourg a Grand Duchy
The Cunard Steamship Company Ltd forms San Bonifacio
Hawaiian Declaration of Rights is signed
Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England.
King of Hawaii Kamehameha III issues Edict of toleration which gives Roman Catholics freedom to worship in the Hawaiian Islands. The Hawaii Catholic Church and the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace is later established
Slaves aboard a Spanish schooner La Amistad revolt to secure their freedom while being transported from one Cuban port to another
A normal school or normal college trains teachers in the norms of pedagogy and curriculum. Other names include teacher training colleges or teachers' colleges.
Chartist riots break out in Birmingham, England
Beta Theta Pi (ΒΘΠ), commonly known as Beta, is a North American social fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.
Hong Kong was under British rule from 1841 to 1997, except for a brief period of Japanese occupation during the Second World War from 1941 to 1945.
Salon of Varietes opens in Amsterdam
First Canadian track and field meet held at Caer Howell Grounds
The history of rail transport in the Netherlands is generally considered to have begun on September 20, 1839, when the first train, drawn by De Arend, successfully made the 16 km (9.9 mi) trip from...
British Association expedition to Antarctica ships Erebus and Terror set sail from England to attempt to locate the magnetic South Pole
Joseph Saxton, a machine inspector at the US Mint, takes the first daguerreotype photograph in the US of the Central High School building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The First Opium War, also known as the Anglo-Chinese War, was a series of military engagements fought between the British Empire and the Chinese Qing dynasty between 1839 and 1842.
Newport is a city and county borough in Wales, on the River Usk near its confluence with the Severn Estuary, approximately 12 mi (19 km) northeast of Cardiff.
The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is a public senior military college in Lexington, Virginia, United States.
1st US anti-slavery party, Liberty Party, convenes in NY
American Statistical Association organizes in Boston
Paul Cézanne, French painter, known for french painter, was born on 1839-01-19. Paul Cézanne was a French Post-Impressionist painter whose work introduced new modes of representation, influenced…
Modest Mussorgsky, Russian musician, known for russian composer, was born on 1839-03-21.
John Ballance is born