Explore the major historical events, famous births, and notable deaths that occurred in the year 1885. This year saw 76 significant events. 11 notable figures were born. 1 notable figure passed away.
From 1885 to 1908, many atrocities were committed in the Congo Free State (today the Democratic Republic of the Congo) under the absolute rule of King Leopold II of Belgium.
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a picaresque novel by American author Mark Twain that was first published in the United Kingdom in December 1884 and in the United States in February 1885.
From 1885 to 1908, many atrocities were committed in the Congo Free State (today the Democratic Republic of the Congo) under the absolute rule of King Leopold II of Belgium.
The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre was designed by C. J.
American socialite Edith Jones (23) weds American businessman Edward Robbins Wharton (35), at the Trinity Chapel, New York City, becoming Edith Wharton; divorce in 1913
German author and future Nobel Laureate Gerhart Hauptmann (22) weds Marie Thienemann in Radebeul, Saxony; separate in 1893, divorce in 1904
Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck-Schönhausen; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898) was a German statesman and...
College professor and future 28th US President Woodrow Wilson (28) weds Presbyterian minister's daughter and artist Ellen Louise Axson (25) in Savannah, Georgia, until her death in 1914
Louis Pasteur was a French chemist, pharmacist, and microbiologist renowned for his discoveries of the principles of vaccination, microbial fermentation, and pasteurization, the last of which was...
Author Arthur Conan Doyle (26) weds Louisa Hawkins
American "Little House On The Prairie" author Laura Ingalls (18) weds Almonzo James Wilder (28) in De Smet, South Dakota, until his death in 1949
Pulitzer Prize-winning American author (Age of Innocence) Edith Jones (23), marries Edward "Teddy" Wharton (36)
German engineer Gottlieb Daimler unveils his "Reitwagen", the world's first gasoline-powered motorcycle
Prince Itō Hirobumi çi.ɾoꜜ.bɯ.mʲi]; born Hayashi Risuke (林 利助); 16 October 1841 – 26 October 1909) was a Japanese statesman who served as the first prime minister of Japan from 1885 to 1888.
General Wolseley receives last distress signal of General Gordon in Khartoum
The Sino-French or Franco-Chinese War, also known as the Tonkin War, was a limited conflict fought from August 1884 to April 1885 between the French Third Republic and the Qing dynasty for influence...
Dr William Grant of Iowa, performs 1st appendectomy in America on Mary Gartside, aged 22
Henrik Ibsen's play "Vildauden," (The Wild Duck) premieres in Oslo
Wilson Alwyn Bentley (February 9, 1865 – December 23, 1931), also known as Snowflake Bentley, was an American meteorologist and photographer, who was the first known person to take detailed...
Battle of Abu Klea (Battle of Abu Tulayh), Sudan: British Desert Column defeat Mahdist forces: 76 British and 1,100 Mahdists killed
Battle of Abu Kru (Battle of Gubat), Sudan: British Desert Column defeat Mahdist forces: 121 British and untold Mahdists killed
Muhammad Ahmed ("Mahdi") rebels conquer Khartoum
Hawaii is an island state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about 2,000 miles (3,200 km) southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two non-contiguous U.S.
Carl Peters founds German East-Africa Society
The Washington Monument is a 555-foot (169 m) tall obelisk on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate George Washington, a Founding Father of the United States and the nation's...
US Congress condemns barbed wire around government grounds
1st US state (California) establishes a permanent forest commission
1st performance of Caesar Franck's "Lesson Djinns"
Jules François Camille Ferry was a French statesman and republican philosopher. He was one of the leaders of the Moderate Republicans and served as Prime Minister of France from 1880 to 1881 and 1883...
Cremation is a method of final disposition of a corpse through burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial.
The Battle for Kushka triggers the Pandjeh Incident which nearly gives rise to war between the British Empire and Russian Empire
Great Britain declares Bechuanaland a protectorate
Henry Lee Higginson starts the "Popular Music" series with the Boston Symphony, which evolves into the Boston Pops Orchestra in 1900
Maria "Goeie Mie" Swanenburg sentence to life for killing 27 in Netherlands
Good Housekeeping is an American lifestyle media brand that covers a wide range of topics from home decor and renovation, health, beauty and food, to entertainment, pets and gifts.
John E. W. Thompson named US minister to Haiti
Sarah Ann Henley survives 76-m jump from Clifton Bridge in Bristol, England
First mass production of shoes by Jan Matzeliger's Consolidated Lasting Machine Company in Lynn, Massachusetts
Roof collapse kills 30 at murder trial in France
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury formed a government in June 1885, upon his appointment as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom by Queen Victoria, succeeding William Ewart Gladstone.
Canada's North-west Insurrection ends with surrender of Big Bear
Five German warships anchor off Zanzibar
Leo Daft opens America's first commercially operated electric streetcar in Baltimore
The Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885 (48 & 49 Vict. c. 69), or "An Act to make further provision for the Protection of Women and Girls, the suppression of brothels, and other purposes," was an Act of...
13,000 meteors are seen in one hour near the Andromeda Galaxy, the closest major galaxy to the Milky Way at 2.537 million light-years from Earth
In Rock Springs, Wyoming, 150 white miners, who are struggling to unionize so they can strike for better wages and working conditions, attack their Chinese fellow workers, killing 28, wounding 15, and forcing several hundred more out of town
The first cafeteria-style, self-service restaurant, the Exchange Buffet, opens in New York City
First gasoline pump is delivered to a gasoline dealer in Fort Wayne, Indiana
After the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878, the 1878 Treaty of Berlin set up an autonomous state, the Principality of Bulgaria, within the Ottoman Empire.
Highest football score recorded in any first-class soccer match: Arbroath 36–0 Bon Accord in Scotland
5th America's Cup: Puritan (NY Yacht Club) beats Genesta (Royal Yacht Squadron, Isle of Wight, UK) by 1:38 for 2-0 series win
Riots break out in Montreal, Canada, to protest against mandatory smallpox vaccinations
Dutch demonstrate for general voting rights
Lord Randolph Churchill delivers a speech in Ulster opposing Home Rule, stating, "Ulster will fight and Ulster will be right"
Five German warships depart to Zanzibar
The Blackpool Tramway runs from Blackpool to Fleetwood on The Fylde in Lancashire, England. The line dates back to 1885 and is one of the oldest electric tramways in the world.
British protectorates were protectorates under the jurisdiction of the British government.
Special mail delivery service begins in the US
The history of the Georgia Institute of Technology can be traced back to Reconstruction-era plans to develop the industrial base of the Southern United States.
Baseball sets all players' salaries at $1,000-$2,000 for the 1885 season
John Ward & several teammates secretly form Brotherhood of Prof Base Ball Players, 1st baseball union
Johann Strauss' operetta "Zigeunerbaron (Gypsy Baron)" premieres in Vienna
Tacoma vigilantes drive out Chinese, burn their homes & businesses
US mint at Carson City, Nevada, directed to close
Canadian Pacific Railway completed at Craigellachie - connects British Columbia with Eastern Canada
Edward Jakobowski's opera "Ermine" premieres in London at the Comedy Theatre
Montreal & Britannia Football Clubs (QRFU) defeat Ontario Combined Team (ORFU) 3-0 in CRFU Championship game
Serbia invades Bulgaria, beginning the two-week Serbo-Bulgarian War; the Serbs are later defeated decisively [O.S. November 2]
The Serbian Army with Russian support, invades Bulgaria
Bulgarians, led by Stefan Stambolov, repulse a larger Serbian invasion force at Slivinitza
Amsterdam police attack meeting of social-democrats united
Banff National Park is Canada's first national park, established in 1885 as Rocky Mountains Park.
The first photograph of a meteor is taken by Austro-Hungarian photographer Ladislaus Weinek in Prague, Austrian-Hungarian Empire
Opera "Regina di Saba" premieres in Vienna
49th Congress (1885-87) convenes
Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country in the Indian Ocean that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands.
Alice Paul, American activist, known for american activist, was born on 1885-01-11.
Jerome Kern, American composer, known for american composer, was born on 1885-01-27.
Bess Truman is born
Malcolm Campbell, British athlete, known for british racing driver and speed record holder, was born on 1885-03-11.
Niels Bohr, Danish theoretical physicist, known for danish theoretical physicist, was born on 1885-10-07.
Ezra Pound, American poet and critic, known for american poet and critic, was born on 1885-10-30.
Will Durant, American historian, philosopher and writer, known for american historian, philosopher and writer, was born on 1885-11-05.
George S. Patton united states army general, known for united states army general, was born on 1885-11-11. George Smith Patton Jr.
John Curtin is born
Hans Luther is born
Albert Kesselring, German military officer, known for german military officer, was born on 1885-11-30.
George McClellan, American major general, known for american major general, died on 1885-10-29.
From 1885 to 1908, many atrocities were committed in the Congo Free State (today the Democratic Republic of the Congo) under the absolute rule of King Leopold II of Belgium.
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a picaresque novel by American author Mark Twain that was first published in the United Kingdom in December 1884 and in the United States in February 1885.
From 1885 to 1908, many atrocities were committed in the Congo Free State (today the Democratic Republic of the Congo) under the absolute rule of King Leopold II of Belgium.
The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre was designed by C. J.
American socialite Edith Jones (23) weds American businessman Edward Robbins Wharton (35), at the Trinity Chapel, New York City, becoming Edith Wharton; divorce in 1913
German author and future Nobel Laureate Gerhart Hauptmann (22) weds Marie Thienemann in Radebeul, Saxony; separate in 1893, divorce in 1904
Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck-Schönhausen; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898) was a German statesman and...
College professor and future 28th US President Woodrow Wilson (28) weds Presbyterian minister's daughter and artist Ellen Louise Axson (25) in Savannah, Georgia, until her death in 1914
Louis Pasteur was a French chemist, pharmacist, and microbiologist renowned for his discoveries of the principles of vaccination, microbial fermentation, and pasteurization, the last of which was...
Author Arthur Conan Doyle (26) weds Louisa Hawkins
American "Little House On The Prairie" author Laura Ingalls (18) weds Almonzo James Wilder (28) in De Smet, South Dakota, until his death in 1949
Pulitzer Prize-winning American author (Age of Innocence) Edith Jones (23), marries Edward "Teddy" Wharton (36)
German engineer Gottlieb Daimler unveils his "Reitwagen", the world's first gasoline-powered motorcycle
Prince Itō Hirobumi çi.ɾoꜜ.bɯ.mʲi]; born Hayashi Risuke (林 利助); 16 October 1841 – 26 October 1909) was a Japanese statesman who served as the first prime minister of Japan from 1885 to 1888.
General Wolseley receives last distress signal of General Gordon in Khartoum
The Sino-French or Franco-Chinese War, also known as the Tonkin War, was a limited conflict fought from August 1884 to April 1885 between the French Third Republic and the Qing dynasty for influence...
Dr William Grant of Iowa, performs 1st appendectomy in America on Mary Gartside, aged 22
Henrik Ibsen's play "Vildauden," (The Wild Duck) premieres in Oslo
Wilson Alwyn Bentley (February 9, 1865 – December 23, 1931), also known as Snowflake Bentley, was an American meteorologist and photographer, who was the first known person to take detailed...
Battle of Abu Klea (Battle of Abu Tulayh), Sudan: British Desert Column defeat Mahdist forces: 76 British and 1,100 Mahdists killed
Battle of Abu Kru (Battle of Gubat), Sudan: British Desert Column defeat Mahdist forces: 121 British and untold Mahdists killed
Muhammad Ahmed ("Mahdi") rebels conquer Khartoum
Hawaii is an island state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about 2,000 miles (3,200 km) southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two non-contiguous U.S.
Carl Peters founds German East-Africa Society
The Washington Monument is a 555-foot (169 m) tall obelisk on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate George Washington, a Founding Father of the United States and the nation's...
US Congress condemns barbed wire around government grounds
1st US state (California) establishes a permanent forest commission
1st performance of Caesar Franck's "Lesson Djinns"
Jules François Camille Ferry was a French statesman and republican philosopher. He was one of the leaders of the Moderate Republicans and served as Prime Minister of France from 1880 to 1881 and 1883...
Cremation is a method of final disposition of a corpse through burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial.
The Battle for Kushka triggers the Pandjeh Incident which nearly gives rise to war between the British Empire and Russian Empire
Great Britain declares Bechuanaland a protectorate
Henry Lee Higginson starts the "Popular Music" series with the Boston Symphony, which evolves into the Boston Pops Orchestra in 1900
Maria "Goeie Mie" Swanenburg sentence to life for killing 27 in Netherlands
Good Housekeeping is an American lifestyle media brand that covers a wide range of topics from home decor and renovation, health, beauty and food, to entertainment, pets and gifts.
John E. W. Thompson named US minister to Haiti
Sarah Ann Henley survives 76-m jump from Clifton Bridge in Bristol, England
First mass production of shoes by Jan Matzeliger's Consolidated Lasting Machine Company in Lynn, Massachusetts
Roof collapse kills 30 at murder trial in France
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury formed a government in June 1885, upon his appointment as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom by Queen Victoria, succeeding William Ewart Gladstone.
Canada's North-west Insurrection ends with surrender of Big Bear
Five German warships anchor off Zanzibar
Leo Daft opens America's first commercially operated electric streetcar in Baltimore
The Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885 (48 & 49 Vict. c. 69), or "An Act to make further provision for the Protection of Women and Girls, the suppression of brothels, and other purposes," was an Act of...
13,000 meteors are seen in one hour near the Andromeda Galaxy, the closest major galaxy to the Milky Way at 2.537 million light-years from Earth
In Rock Springs, Wyoming, 150 white miners, who are struggling to unionize so they can strike for better wages and working conditions, attack their Chinese fellow workers, killing 28, wounding 15, and forcing several hundred more out of town
The first cafeteria-style, self-service restaurant, the Exchange Buffet, opens in New York City
First gasoline pump is delivered to a gasoline dealer in Fort Wayne, Indiana
After the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878, the 1878 Treaty of Berlin set up an autonomous state, the Principality of Bulgaria, within the Ottoman Empire.
Highest football score recorded in any first-class soccer match: Arbroath 36–0 Bon Accord in Scotland
5th America's Cup: Puritan (NY Yacht Club) beats Genesta (Royal Yacht Squadron, Isle of Wight, UK) by 1:38 for 2-0 series win
Riots break out in Montreal, Canada, to protest against mandatory smallpox vaccinations
Dutch demonstrate for general voting rights
Lord Randolph Churchill delivers a speech in Ulster opposing Home Rule, stating, "Ulster will fight and Ulster will be right"
Five German warships depart to Zanzibar
The Blackpool Tramway runs from Blackpool to Fleetwood on The Fylde in Lancashire, England. The line dates back to 1885 and is one of the oldest electric tramways in the world.
British protectorates were protectorates under the jurisdiction of the British government.
Special mail delivery service begins in the US
The history of the Georgia Institute of Technology can be traced back to Reconstruction-era plans to develop the industrial base of the Southern United States.
Baseball sets all players' salaries at $1,000-$2,000 for the 1885 season
John Ward & several teammates secretly form Brotherhood of Prof Base Ball Players, 1st baseball union
Johann Strauss' operetta "Zigeunerbaron (Gypsy Baron)" premieres in Vienna
Tacoma vigilantes drive out Chinese, burn their homes & businesses
US mint at Carson City, Nevada, directed to close
Canadian Pacific Railway completed at Craigellachie - connects British Columbia with Eastern Canada
Edward Jakobowski's opera "Ermine" premieres in London at the Comedy Theatre
Montreal & Britannia Football Clubs (QRFU) defeat Ontario Combined Team (ORFU) 3-0 in CRFU Championship game
Serbia invades Bulgaria, beginning the two-week Serbo-Bulgarian War; the Serbs are later defeated decisively [O.S. November 2]
The Serbian Army with Russian support, invades Bulgaria
Bulgarians, led by Stefan Stambolov, repulse a larger Serbian invasion force at Slivinitza
Amsterdam police attack meeting of social-democrats united
Banff National Park is Canada's first national park, established in 1885 as Rocky Mountains Park.
The first photograph of a meteor is taken by Austro-Hungarian photographer Ladislaus Weinek in Prague, Austrian-Hungarian Empire
Opera "Regina di Saba" premieres in Vienna
49th Congress (1885-87) convenes
Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country in the Indian Ocean that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands.
Alice Paul, American activist, known for american activist, was born on 1885-01-11.
Jerome Kern, American composer, known for american composer, was born on 1885-01-27.
Bess Truman is born
Malcolm Campbell, British athlete, known for british racing driver and speed record holder, was born on 1885-03-11.
Niels Bohr, Danish theoretical physicist, known for danish theoretical physicist, was born on 1885-10-07.
Ezra Pound, American poet and critic, known for american poet and critic, was born on 1885-10-30.
Will Durant, American historian, philosopher and writer, known for american historian, philosopher and writer, was born on 1885-11-05.
George S. Patton united states army general, known for united states army general, was born on 1885-11-11. George Smith Patton Jr.
John Curtin is born
Hans Luther is born
Albert Kesselring, German military officer, known for german military officer, was born on 1885-11-30.