1872 in the United States

See also: 1871 in the United States, other events of 1872, 1873 in the United States]

[edit] Events

January 2 - Brigham Young, is arrested for bigamy (25 wives).
February 20 - In New York City the Metropolitan Museum of Art opens.
March 1 - Yellowstone National Park is established as the world's first national park
March 5 - George Westinghouse patents the air brake for railways.
March 26 - Earthquake at Lone Pine, California with an estimated magnitude of 7.2 .
May 10 - Victoria Woodhull becomes the first woman nominated for President of the United States.
May 22 - Reconstruction: President Ulysses S. Grant signs the Amnesty Act of 1872 into law restoring full civil rights to all but about 500 Confederate sympathizers.
November - Ulysses S. Grant defeats Horace Greeley in the U.S. presidential election
November 5 - Women's suffrage: In defiance of the law, suffragist Susan B. Anthony votes for the first time (on November 18 she was served an arrest warrant and in the subsequent trial she was fined $100 - she never paid the fine).
November 9 - Great Boston Fire of 1872: In Boston, Massachusetts, a large fire begins to burn on Lincoln Street. The two day event destroyed about 65 acres (260,000 m²) of city, 776 buildings, much of the financial district and caused US$60 million in damage.