1850 in the United States
| 1850 in the United States | |
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| Years: | 1847 1848 1849 – 1850 – 1851 1852 1853 |
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 30 stars (1848–51) | |
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Timeline of United States history
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Events from the year 1850 in the United States.
Incumbents
Federal Government
- President: Zachary Taylor (Whig) (until July 9), Millard Fillmore (Whig) (starting July 9)
- Vice President: Millard Fillmore (Whig) (until July 9), vacant (starting July 9)
- Chief Justice: Roger B. Taney
- Speaker of the House of Representatives: Howell Cobb (D-Georgia)
- Congress: 31st
Events
January–March
- January 29 – Henry Clay introduces the Compromise of 1850 to the U.S. Congress.
- February 28 – The University of Utah opens in Salt Lake City, Utah.
- March 7 – United States Senator Daniel Webster gives his "Seventh of March" speech in which he endorses the Compromise of 1850 in order to prevent a possible civil war.
- March 16 – Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter is published.
- March 19 – American Express is founded by Henry Wells & William Fargo.
April–June
- April 4 – Los Angeles, California is incorporated as a city.
- April 15 – San Francisco, California is incorporated as a city.
- April 19 – Clayton-Bulwer Treaty is signed by the United States and Great Britain, allowing both countries to share Nicaragua and not claim complete control over the proposed Nicaragua Canal.
- May 7 – The Brigantine USS Advance is loaned to the United States Navy.
- May 23 – The USS Advance puts to sea from New York to search for John Franklin's Arctic expedition.
- June 3 – The traditional date of Kansas City, Missouri's founding. This is the date on which it is incorporated by Jackson County, Missouri as the "Town of Kansas".
July–September
July 9: Vice President Millard Fillmore becomes President with the death of President Taylor
- July 9 – President Zachary Taylor dies in office; Vice President Millard Fillmore becomes the 13th President of the United States.
- September 9
- California is admitted as the 31st U.S. state (see History of California).
- The New Mexico Territory is organized by order of the U.S. Congress.
- September 18 – The Fugitive Slave Law is passed by the U.S. Congress.
October–December
- October 19 – Phi Kappa Sigma International Fraternity was founded at the University of Pennsylvania.
- October 28 – Delegate Edward Ralph May delivers speech on behalf of African American suffrage to the Indiana Constitutional Convention.
Undated
- The American System of Watch Manufacturing starts in Roxbury, Massachusetts, U.S.A. (the Waltham Watch Company).
- US census shows that 11.2% of the population classed as "Negro" are of mixed race.
- Lehman Brothers is established in Montgomery, Alabama.
- Allan Pinkerton forms the North-Western Police Agency, later the Pinkerton National Detective Agency.
- Harriet Tubman becomes an official conductor of the Underground Railroad.
- St. Mary's Institute (the future University of Dayton) is founded in Dayton, Ohio.
- The University of Rochester is founded in Rochester, New York.
Ongoing
- California Gold Rush (1848–1855)
Births
- February 15 – Albert B. Cummins, United States Senator from Iowa from 1908 till 1926. (died 1926)
- July 7 – William E. Mason, United States Senator from Illinois from 1897 till 1903. (died 1921)
- October 30 – John Patton, Jr., United States Senator from Michigan from 1894 till 1895. (died 1907)
Deaths
- March 28 – Gerard Brandon, 4th and 6th Governor of Mississippi from 1825 till 1826 and from 1826 till 1832. (born 1788)
- April 24 – John Norvell, United States Senator from Michigan from 1837 till 1841. (born 1789)
- May 16 – William Hendricks, United States Senator from Indiana from 1825 to 1837. (born 1782)
- July 9 – Zachary Taylor, 12th President of the United States from 1849 till 1850. (born 1784)
- November 19 – Richard Mentor Johnson, United States Senator from Kentucky from 1819 till 1829. 9th Vice President of the United States from 1837 till 1841. (born 1780)
External links
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Media related to 1850 in the United States at Wikimedia Commons