1.
1884
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As of the start of 1884, the Gregorian calendar was 12 days ahead of the Julian calendar, which remained in localized use until 1923. January 4 – The Fabian Society is founded in London, january 5 – Gilbert and Sullivans Princess Ida has its première at the Savoy Theatre, London. January 18 – Dr. William Price attempts to cremate his dead son, Iesu Grist. Later tried and acquitted on the grounds that cremation is not contrary to English law, he is able to carry out the ceremony on March 14. February 1 – A New English Dictionary on historical principles, part 1, edited by James A. H. Murray, February 5 – Derby County Football Club is founded in England. March 13 – The siege of Khartoum, Sudan begins, april 20 – Pope Leo XIII publishes the encyclical Humanum genus, denouncing Freemasonry and certain liberal beliefs which he considers to be associated with it. April 22 German protectorate in South-West Africa, the Colchester earthquake, England, the UKs most destructive, occurs. May 1 – The eight-hour workday is first proclaimed by the Federation of Organized Trades and this date, called May Day or Labour Day, becomes a holiday recognized in almost every industrialized country. May 16 – Angelo Moriondo of Turin is granted a patent for an espresso machine, may 16, Swedens Finance Minister Robert Themptander becomes his countrys Prime Minister June 4 The future flag of Estonia is consecrated as the flag of the Estonian Students Society. June 13 – LaMarcus Adna Thompson opens the Gravity Pleasure Switchback Railway at Coney Island, july 3 – The Dow Jones Transportation Average, consisting of eleven transportation-related companies, nine railroads and two non-rail companies, was created. The index is the oldest stock index still in use, july 5 – Germany takes possession of Togoland. July 14 – German administration in Cameroon, july 23 – Todays Courier records the first tennis tournaments held on the grounds of Shrubland Hall, Leamington Spa, England. August 5 – The cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty is laid on Bedloes Island in New York Harbor, August 10 – An earthquake measuring 5.5 Mfa affected a very large portion of the eastern United States. The shock had a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII, chimneys were toppled in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania. Property damage was severe in Jamaica and Amityville in New York, August 22 – Sino-French War breaks out. August 23 – Sino-French War, Battle of Fuzhou, French Admiral Amédée Courbets Far East Squadron virtually destroys Chinas Fujian Fleet, september 5 – Staten Island Academy is founded. September 15 –Medicine, The invention of local anesthesia by Karl Koller is made public at a congress in Heidelberg. October 6 – The United States Naval War College is established in Newport, october 18 – The University of Wales, Bangor is founded
2.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
3.
1882 in the United States
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Events from the year 1882 in the United States. Oscar Wilde arrives in the United States for a lecture tour. January 5 – Charles J. Guiteau is found guilty of the assassination of James A. Garfield, march 22 – Polygamy is made a felony by the Edmunds Act passed by the United States Congress. March 29 – The Knights of Columbus, a Catholic fraternal service organization, is incorporated in New Haven, Connecticut by Father Michael J. McGivney. April 3 – Old West outlaw Jesse James is shot in the back of the head and killed by fellow outlaw Robert Ford in his home at St. Joseph, may 6 – The Chinese Exclusion Act is the first significant law that restricts immigration into the U. S. June 30 – Charles J. Guiteau, the assassin of President James A. Garfield, is hanged, august 3 – The U. S. Congress passes the 1882 Immigration Act. August 5 – Standard Oil of New Jersey is established, September 4 – Thomas Edison starts the worlds first commercial electrical power plant, lighting one square mile of lower Manhattan. September 5 – The first United States Labor Day parade is held in New York City, September 30 – The Vulcan Street Plant, the first hydroelectric central station to serve a system of private and commercial customers in North America, comes on stream in Appleton, Wisconsin. October 5 – The Society for Ethical Culture of Chicago is founded by Felix Adler, October 16 – The New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad runs its first trains over the entire system between Buffalo, New York, and Chicago. Nine days later the Seney Syndicate sells the road to William Henry Vanderbilt for US$7.2 million, November 14 – Franklin Leslie shoots Billy Claiborne dead in the streets of Tombstone, Arizona. The Personal Liberty League is established to oppose the movement in the U. S. Carolyn Merrick is elected president of the Womans Christian Temperance Union. Buffalo Bills Wild West Show debuts, Senator from Alabama from 1937 to 1938 September 12 – George L. Berry, U. S. Senator from Tennessee from 1937 to 1938 October 5 – Robert Goddard, rocket scientist October 14 – Éamon de Valera, third President of Ireland January 3 – Clement Claiborne Clay, U. S. Senator from Alabama from 1853 to 1862, Confederate States Senator from Alabama from 1862 to 1864 January 30 – Henry Whitney Bellows, clergyman of the Unitarian Church February 25 – James Bates, U. S. Senator from Georgia from 1877 to 1882 November 5 – Robert Woodward Barnwell, Senator from South Carolina from 1862 to 1865 December 10 – Alexander Gardner, Scottish-born Civil War photographer Media related to 1882 in the United States at Wikimedia Commons
4.
1883 in the United States
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Events from the year 1883 in the United States. January 16 – The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act, reforming the United States civil service with the aim to end the spoils system, January 19 – The first electric lighting system employing overhead wires begins service in Roselle, New Jersey. February 23 – Alabama becomes the first U. S. state to enact an antitrust law, february 28 – The first vaudeville theater is opened, in Boston, Massachusetts. May 24 – Brooklyn Bridge is opened to traffic after 13 years of construction, may 30 – In New York City, a rumor that the Brooklyn Bridge is going to collapse causes a stampede which crushes 12 people. July 4 – The worlds first rodeo is held in Pecos, september 5 – Mary F. Hoyt becomes the first woman appointed to the U. S. federal civil service when she becomes a clerk in the Bank Redemption Agency of the Department of the Treasury. September 15 – The University of Texas at Austin opens to students, september 29 – A consortium of flour mill operators in Minneapolis, Minnesota, forms the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad as a means to get their product to the Great Lakes ports, November 3 – American Old West, Self-described Black Bart the Po-et gets away with his last stagecoach robbery, but leaves an incriminating clue that eventually leads to his capture. November 18 – U. S. and Canadian railroads institute 5 standard continental time zones, November 28 – Whitman College is chartered as a 4-year college in Walla Walla, Washington. The Wolfs Head Society is founded at Yale University, a depression starts in Seattle, United States. The Capital Area Humane Society of Ohio was founded, gilded Age Depression of 1882–85 January 25 – Homer Bone, U. S. S. Hempstead, 2nd Governor of Iowa from 1850 till 1854, march 4 – Alexander H. Stephens, the only Vice President of the Confederate States of America. April 28 – William M. July 22 – Edward Ord, engineer and United States Army officer who saw action in the Seminole War, the Indian Wars, dodge, United States Senator from Iowa from 1848 till 1855. November 26 – Sojourner Truth, abolitionist and womens rights activist Media related to 1883 in the United States at Wikimedia Commons
5.
1885 in the United States
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Events from the year 1885 in the United States. President, Chester A. Arthur, Grover Cleveland Vice President, until March 4, vacant March 4–November 25, Thomas A. Hendricks starting November 25, vacant Chief Justice, Morrison Waite Speaker of the House of Representatives, John G. Carlisle Congress, February 16 – Charles Dow publishes the first edition of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The index stood at a level of 62.76, and represented the average of 14 stocks,12 railroads. February 21 – United States President Chester A. Arthur dedicates the Washington Monument, March 3 – A subsidiary of the American Bell Telephone Company, American Telephone and Telegraph, is incorporated in New York. March 4 – Grover Cleveland is inaugurated as President of the United States, april 30 – A bill is signed in the New York State legislature forming the Niagara Falls State Park. May – The Depression of 1882–85 ends, june 17 – The Statue of Liberty arrives in New York Harbor. July 14 – Sarah E. Goode is the first female African-American to apply for and receive a patent, august 25 – Laura Ingalls Wilder married Almanzo Wilder. September 2 – The Rock Springs massacre occurs in Rock Springs, Wyoming,150 white miners attack their Chinese coworkers, killing 28, wounding 15, september 8 – Saint Thomas Academy is founded in Minnesota. October 13 – The Georgia Institute of Technology is established in Atlanta, November 25 – Vice President Thomas A. Patent Office acknowledges this date as the day Dr Pepper is served for the very first time, the first skyscraper is built in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Michigan Technological University opens its doors for the first time in what is now the Houghton County Fire Hall, camp Dudley, the oldest continually running boys camp in America, is founded. January 24 – Martin Delany, African-American abolitionist, journalist, and physician February 12 – Alexandre Mouton, United States Senator from Louisiana from 1843 till 1846. May 4 – Irvin McDowell, Union Army officer known for their defeat in the First Battle of Bull Run July 23 – Ulysses S. Grant, september 3 – William M. Gwin, United States Senator from California from 1850 till 1855 and from 1857 till 1861. McClellan, soldier, civil engineer, railroad executive, and politician November 25 – Thomas A. Hendricks, december 15 – Robert Toombs, United States Senator from Georgia from 1853 till 1861. December 29 – James E. Bailey, United States Senator from Tennessee from 1877 till 1881, media related to 1885 in the United States at Wikimedia Commons
6.
1886 in the United States
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Events from the year 1886 in the United States. March – Anti-Chinese sentiments result in riots in Seattle, USA, March 17 – Carrollton Massacre,20 African Americans are killed in Mississippi. May 1 – A general strike begins in the United States, may 8 – Pharmacist Dr. John Stith Pemberton invents a carbonated beverage that would be named Coca-Cola. May 17 – Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad, may 29 – Pharmacist John Pemberton begins to advertise Coca-Cola. June 2 – U. S. President Grover Cleveland marries Frances Folsom in the White House and she is 27 years his junior. June 9 – The centennial of the Stoughton Musical Society is celebrated, july 23 – Steve Brodie fakes a jump from the Brooklyn Bridge. August 20 – A massive hurricane demolishes the town of Indianola, August 31 – The 7.0 Mw Charleston earthquake affects southeastern South Carolina with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X. Sixty people were killed and damage is estimated at $5–6 million, september 4 – Indian Wars, After almost 30 years of fighting, Apache leader Geronimo surrenders with his last band of warriors to General Nelson Miles at Skeleton Canyon in Arizona. October 28 – In New York Harbor, U. S. President Grover Cleveland dedicates the Statue of Liberty, undated – Father Augustine Tolton, the first Roman Catholic priest from the United States to proclaim himself African American, is ordained in Rome. Gilded Age January 11 – Chester Conklin, comic film actor February 27 – Hugo Black, U. S. Cooke, Jr. admiral December 25 – Kid Ory, jazz trombonist and bandleader January 13 – Thomas Wakeman, founded the first Sioux Indian YMCA January 22 – James T. Farley, senator from California from 1879 to 1885. January 26 – David Rice Atchison, U. S. S, senator from California from 1881 to 1886 March 9 – Jerome B. Senator from Illinois from 1877 to 1883 August 4 – Samuel J. Tilden, 25th Governor of New York from 1875 to 1876 and 1876 Democratic presidential candidate August 10 – John W. Stevenson, U. S. Senator from Kentucky from 1871 to 1877 October 10 – David Levy Yulee, senator from Illinois from 1871 to 1877 Media related to 1886 in the United States at Wikimedia Commons
7.
Flag of the United States
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The flag of the United States, often referred to as the American flag, is the national flag of the United States. S. Nicknames for the flag include The Stars and Stripes, Old Glory, the current design of the U. S. flag is its 27th, the design of the flag has been modified officially 26 times since 1777. The 48-star flag was in effect for 47 years until the 49-star version became official on July 4,1959, the 50-star flag was ordered by the then president Eisenhower on August 21,1959, and was adopted in July 1960. It is the version of the U. S. flag and has been in use for over 56 years. At the time of the Declaration of Independence in July 1776, the flag contemporaneously known as the Continental Colors has historically been referred to as the first national flag. The name Grand Union was first applied to the Continental Colors by George Preble in his 1872 history of the American flag, the flag closely resembles the British East India Company flag of the era, and Sir Charles Fawcett argued in 1937 that the company flag inspired the design. Both flags could have been constructed by adding white stripes to a British Red Ensign. However, an East India Company flag could have nine to 13 stripes. In any case, both the stripes and the stars have precedents in classical heraldry, Flag Day is now observed on June 14 of each year. While scholars still argue about this, tradition holds that the new flag was first hoisted in June 1777 by the Continental Army at the Middlebrook encampment. The first official U. S. flag flown during battle was on August 3,1777, Massachusetts reinforcements brought news of the adoption by Congress of the official flag to Fort Schuyler. A voucher is extant that Capt. Swartwout of Dutchess County was paid by Congress for his coat for the flag, the 1777 resolution was most probably meant to define a naval ensign. In the late 18th century, the notion of a flag did not yet exist. The flag resolution appears between other resolutions from the Marine Committee, on May 10,1779, Secretary of the Board of War Richard Peters expressed concern it is not yet settled what is the Standard of the United States. However, the term, Standard, referred to a standard for the Army of the United States. Each regiment was to carry the standard in addition to its regimental standard. The national standard was not a reference to the national or naval flag, the appearance was up to the maker of the flag. Some flag makers arranged the stars into one big star, in a circle or in rows, one arrangement features 13 five-pointed stars arranged in a circle, with the stars arranged pointing outwards from the circle, the so-called Betsy Ross flag
8.
Timeline of United States history
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This is a timeline of United States history, comprising important legal and territorial changes and political and economic events in the United States and its predecessor states. To read about the background to these events, see History of the United States, some dates before September 14,1752, when the British government adopted the Gregorian calendar, may be given in the Old Style
9.
Federal government of the United States
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The Federal Government of the United States is the national government of the United States, a republic in North America, composed of 50 states, one district, Washington, D. C. and several territories. The federal government is composed of three branches, legislative, executive, and judicial, whose powers are vested by the U. S. Constitution in the Congress, the President, and the courts, including the Supreme Court. The powers and duties of these branches are defined by acts of Congress. The full name of the republic is United States of America, no other name appears in the Constitution, and this is the name that appears on money, in treaties, and in legal cases to which it is a party. The terms Government of the United States of America or United States Government are often used in documents to represent the federal government as distinct from the states collectively. In casual conversation or writing, the term Federal Government is often used, the terms Federal and National in government agency or program names generally indicate affiliation with the federal government. Because the seat of government is in Washington, D. C, Washington is commonly used as a metonym for the federal government. The outline of the government of the United States is laid out in the Constitution, the government was formed in 1789, making the United States one of the worlds first, if not the first, modern national constitutional republics. The United States government is based on the principles of federalism and republicanism, some make the case for expansive federal powers while others argue for a more limited role for the central government in relation to individuals, the states or other recognized entities. For example, while the legislative has the power to create law, the President nominates judges to the nations highest judiciary authority, but those nominees must be approved by Congress. The Supreme Court, in its turn, has the power to invalidate as unconstitutional any law passed by the Congress and these and other examples are examined in more detail in the text below. The United States Congress is the branch of the federal government. It is bicameral, comprising the House of Representatives and the Senate, the House currently consists of 435 voting members, each of whom represents a congressional district. The number of each state has in the House is based on each states population as determined in the most recent United States Census. All 435 representatives serve a two-year term, each state receives a minimum of one representative in the House. There is no limit on the number of terms a representative may serve, in addition to the 435 voting members, there are six non-voting members, consisting of five delegates and one resident commissioner. In contrast, the Senate is made up of two senators from each state, regardless of population, there are currently 100 senators, who each serve six-year terms
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Media related to 1884 in the United States at Wikimedia Commons
