1898

January 1

• Lightship replaces whistling buoy at mouth of San Francisco Bay. [1]
• d'Annunzio's "Sogno d'un mattino di primavera" premieres in Rome. [1]

January 3

• James Wimshurst British designer/inventor (vacuum pump), dies at age 70. [1]

January 4

• First installment of William Dean Howell's "Life and Letters" appears. [1]
• Frantisek Pivoda composer, dies at age 73. [1]

January 6

• First telephone message from a submerged submarine, by Simon Lake. [1]

January 11

• Gaetano Capocci composer, dies at age 86. [1]

January 13

• Emile Zola publishes his open letter (J'accuse) in defense of Captain Alfred Dreyfus in Paris. [1]

January 14

• Joe Darling hits the first six in Tests (out of the ground). [1]
• Reverend Charles L Dodgson better known as Lewis Carroll, dies at age 66. [1]

January 23

• W A Remy composer, dies at age 66. [1]

January 28

• Alexandru Flechtenmacher composer, dies at age 74. [1]

February 1

• First auto insurance policy in US issued, by Travelers Insurance Company. [1]

February 8

• John Ames Sherman patents first envelope folding and gumming machine (Massachusetts). [1]

February 11

• Owen Smith of North Carolina, AME Zion minister, named minister to Liberia. [1]

February 15

• A massive explosion of unknown origin sinks the battleship USS Maine in Cuba's Havana harbor, killing 260 of the American crew members. [1] [129] [304.69]

February 18

• Frances Willard founder (Woman's Christian Temperance), dies at age 58. [1]

February 22

• Black postmaster lynched, his wife and three daughters shot in Lake City South Carolina. [1]

February 23

• In France, Emile Zola is imprisoned for writing his "J'accuse" letter accusing government of anti-Semitism and wrongly jailing Alfred Dreyfus. [1]

March 2

• Australia complete a 4-1 series annihilation of England. [1]

March 8

• Richard Straus' "Don Quixote" premieres in Keulen. [1]

March 16

• Aubrey (Vincent) Beardsley English illustrator (Salome), dies at age 23. [1]

March 17

• First practical submarine first submerges, New York City, New York (for 1 hour 40 minutes). [1]
• Blanche Kelso Bruce (Senator-Mississippi, 1875-1881), dies in Washington DC at age 57. [1]

March 19

• Joao da Cruz Brazilian poet, dies at age 26. [1]

March 20

• Luis Palés Matos Puerto Rican poet (Tuntún the paso y grifería), dies. [1]

March 24

• First automobile sold. [1]

March 25

• Intercollegiate Trapshooting Association formed in New York City, New York. [1]

March 27

• Sajjid Ahmad Chan co founder (Pakistan), dies at age 80. [1]

March 31

• Edward Noyes Westcott US attorney/writer (David Harum), dies. [1]

April 8

• Battle of Atbara River, Anglo-Egyptian forces crush 6,000 Sudanese. [1]

April 11

• President William McKinley asks for Spanish-American War declaration. [1]

April 12

• Army transfers Yerba Buena Island in San Francisco Bay to Navy. [1]

April 18

• Gustave Moureau painter, dies. [1]

April 20

• US Assay Office in Deadwood South Dakota opens. [1]

April 21

• Louis Theodore Gouvy composer, dies at age 78. [1]
• Spanish-American War begins. [1]

April 22

• First Spanish-American War action: USS Nashville, takes enemy ship. [1]
• US Congress passes Volunteer Army Act calling for a Volunteer Cavalry. [1]
• US President William McKinley orders blockade of Cuban harbors. [1]

April 24

• Spain declares war on US rejecting ultimatum to withdraw from Cuba. [1]
• US fleet under commodore Dewey sails from Hong Kong to Philippines. [1]

April 25

• US declares war on Spain over Cuba. [1]

May 1

• Alphonse Wauters Belgian historian, dies at age 81. [1]
• George Dewey commands, "You may fire when you are ready, Gridley" as US route Spanish fleet at Manila. [1]

May 3

• Camp Merriman established at Presidio (San Francisco). [1]

May 12

• Louisiana adopts new constitution with "grandfather clause" designed to eliminate black voters. [1]

May 19

• Post Office authorizes use of postcards. [1]

May 21

• US Assay Office in Seattle Washington authorized. [1]

May 22

• Edward Bellamy writer, dies at age 48. [1]

May 23

• First Philippine Expeditionary Troops sail from San Francisco. [1]

May 25

• First US troop transport to Manila leaves San Francisco. [1]

May 26

• San Francisco approves City Charter, allows Municipal ownership of utiliies. [1]

May 27

• Arthur Pinero's "Trelawney of the 'Wells'" premieres in London. [1]

May 28

• Edward Bellamy US author (Looking Backward), dies. [1]

June 1

• Trans-Mississippi International Exposition opens in Omaha. [1]

June 7

• Social Democracy of America party holds first national convention, Chic. [1]

June 9

• China leases Hong Kong's new territories to Britain for 99 years. [1]

June 10

• US Marines land in Cuba, during Spanish-American War. [1]

June 13

• Yukon Territory of Canada organized, Dawson chosen as capital. [1]

June 18

• Amusement pier opens, Atlantic City, New Jersey. [1]

June 24

• American troops, drive Spanish forces from La Guasimas Cuba. [1]

June 27

• Canadian Joshua Slocum completes the first solo circumnavigation of the globe. [5]

June 29

• In Near Islands, Alaska, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake occurs. [53]

July 1

• Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Riders charge up San Juan Hill. [1]

July 3

• Joshua Slocum completes first solo circumnavigation of the globe. [1]
• US Navy defeats Spanish fleet in Santiago harbor, Cuba. [1]

July 4

• "La Bourgogne" collides with "Cromartyshire", 560 drown. [1]
• French liner La Bourgogne collides with barque Cromartyshire, 50 die. [1]
• US flag hoisted over Wake Island (Spanish-American War). [1]

July 7

• President McKinley signs resolution of annexation of Hawaiian Is. [1]
• US annexes Hawaii. [1]

July 8

• Philadelphia Phillies Red Donahue no-hits Boston Braves, 5-0. [1]

July 13

• Guglielmo Marconi patents the radio. [1]
• San Francisco Ferry Building at foot of Market Steet opens. [1]

July 16

• A Charlois discovers asteroid #437 Rhodia. [1]

July 17

• Spanish American War-Spaniads surrender to US at Santiago Cuba. [1]

July 22

• Belgica crew see first sunrise in 1600 hours-first to endure Antarct winter. [1]

July 25

• First US troops land and occupy Puerto Rice, at Guanica Bay. [1]

August 12

• Hawaii formally annexed to US. [1]
• Peace protocol ends Spanish-American War, signed. [1]

August 16

• Roller coaster patented. [1]

August 28

• Caleb Bradham renames his carbonated soft drink "Pepsi-Cola". [5]

September 2

• Lord Kitchener retakes Sudan for Britain. [1]

September 15

• National Afro-American Council forms in Rochester New York. [1]

September 30

• City of New York established. [1]

October 1

• Henry Huntington buys the Los Angeles Railway. [1]
• Jews are expelled from Kiev Russia. [1]

October 18

• American flag raised in Puerto Rico. [1]

October 20

• NC Mutual and Provident Insurance Company forms. [1]

November 2

• Theodor Herzl arrives in Jerusalem. [1]

November 10

• Race riot in Wilmington North Carolina (8 blacks killed). [1]

November 22

• The opera "Iris" is produced (Rome). [1]

November 27

• Side-wheeler "Portland" sinks off Cape Cod, 190 die. [1]

December 10

• Spanish-American War ends; US acquires Philippines, Puerto Rico and Guam. [1]

December 12

• The United States and Spain sign the Treaty of Paris, officially ending the Spanish-American War and granting the United States former Spanish possessions as Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines. [129]

December 13

• George Frederick Bristow composer, dies at age 72. [1]

December 18

• Automobile speed record set-63 kph (39 mph). [1]

December 21

• Scientists Pierre and Marie Curie discover radium. [1]

December 24

• Eugeniusz Pankiewicz composer, dies at age 41. [1]
• Herman Heijermans' "Ghetto" premieres in Amsterdam. [1]

December 26

• Marie and Pierre Curie announce the isolation of Radium. [5]

December 29

• Georg Goltermann composer, dies at age 74. [1]

1899

January 1

• Cuba liberated from Spain by US (National Day) (US occupies till 1902). [1]

January 10

• Gerard Keller Dutch writer (Vlugmaren), dies at age 69. [1]

January 17

• US takes possession of Wake Island in Pacific. [1]

January 19

• Anglo-Egyptian Sudan forms. [1]

January 24

• Belgium government of Vandenpeereboom forms. [1]
• Rubber heel patented by Humphrey O'Sullivan. [1]

January 25

• Alfredo d'Escragnolle French/Brazilian writer (Innocencia), dies. [1]

January 28

• American Social Science Association incorporated byUS Congress. [1]

January 29

• Alfred Sisley painter, dies. [1]
• Robert J Fruin Dutch historian (80-year war), dies at age 75. [1]

February 3

• -16 degrees F (-27 degrees C), Minden Louisiana (state record). [1]

February 4

• Revolt against US occupation of Philippines. [1]

February 6

• Georg Leo earl von Caprivi German chancellor, dies at age 67. [1]
• Spanish-American War ends, peace treaty ratified by Senate. [1]

February 10

• -39 degrees F (-39 degrees C), Milligan Ohio (state lowest temperature record). [1]
• US-Spain peace treaty signed by President McKinley; US gets Puerto Rico and Guam. [1]

February 11

• -15 degrees F (-26 degrees C), Washington DC (district record). [1]
• -61 degrees F (-52 degrees C), Montana (record low temperature). [1]
• George Morgan first English motorist to die in an motor accident, dies. [1]

February 12

• -47 degrees F (-44 degrees C), Camp Clarke NB (state record). [1]

February 13

• -16 degrees F (-27 degrees C), Minden Louisiana (state record). [1]
• -1 degrees F (-18 degrees C) New Orleans Louisiana. [1]
• -2 degrees F (-19 degrees C) Tallahassee Florida (state record). [1]

February 14

• US Congress begins using voting machines. [1]

February 16

• François Félix Faure President of France (1895-99), dies at age 57. [1]

February 18

• 80 degrees F, San Francisco California. [1]
• M Sophus Lie Norwegian mathematician, dies at age 56. [1]
• San Francisco named as a port of dispatch for Army transports. [1]

February 20

• Illinois Tel and Tel granted franchise for Chicago freight tunnel system. [1]

February 25

• Paul Julius von Reuter founder of the news agency (Reuters), dies. [1]

March 1

• György earl Apponyi Hungarian Member of Parliament, dies at age 90. [1]

March 2

• President McKinley signs bill creating Mount Rainier National Park (5th in US). [1]

March 3

• US Congress authorizes Lafayette silver dollar. [1]
• George Dewey becomes first in US with rank of Admiral of the Navy. [1]

March 5

• First performance of Edward MacDowell's second Concerto in D. [1]

March 6

• German pharmaceutical company Friedrich Bayer registers Aspirin (brand name for acetylsalicylic acid) with the Imperial Patent Office in Berlin. [1] [5] [129]

March 10

• French Ministry of Travaux Publics requires all motorists of France to carry a driving license. [55.51]

March 14

• Emile Erckmann French writer (Waterloo), dies at age 76. [1]

March 17

• Windsor luxury hotel in New York City catches fire, 92 die. [1]

March 18

• Douglas Strutt Galton English engineer (rails, trains), dies at age 76. [1]
• Phoebe, a moon of Saturn is discovered by Pickering. [1]
• Svetolik Rankovic Serbian writer (Crushed Ideals), dies at age 35. [1]

March 20

• Martha M Place of Brooklyn New York, becomes first woman to die by electrocution. [1]

March 21

• British and French accord about West-Africa. [1]

April 1

• North Carolina Mutual opens doors for business. [1]

April 11

• Treaty of Paris is ratified, ending war; Spain cedes Puerto Rico to US. [1]

April 16

• West of Eureka, California, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake occurs. [53]

April 17

• Hans Balatka composer, dies at age 74. [1]

April 20

• Édouard Pailleron, French attorney/comedian, dies at age 64. [1]

April 21

• Heinrich Kiepert German cartographer/geographer, dies at age 80. [1]

April 24

• Transvaal British Uitlanders ask Queen Victoria for aid. [1]

May 9

• Lawn mower patented. [1]

May 15

• Francisque Sarcey French writer (Le Temps), dies at age 70. [1]

May 17

• Victoria and Albert Museum foundation laid England. [1]

May 18

• World Goodwill Day-26 nations meet in first Hague Peace Conference. [1]

May 24

• First auto repair shop opens (Boston). [1]

May 25

• Marie-Rosalie "Rosa" Bonheur French painter, dies at age 68. [1]

May 29

• Frantz Jehin-Prume composer, dies at age 60. [1]

May 31

• Bronx acquires Keltch Memorial Park. [1]
• Conference of Bloemfontein fails. [1]

June 2

• Black Americans observed day of fasting to protest lynchings. [1]

June 10

• Improved Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks forms in Cincinnati. [1]

June 29

• Brazo River in Texas floods 12 miles wide causing $10 mil damage. [1]

July 1

• Gideon Society established to place bibles in hotels. [1]
• San Francisco City Hall turned over to city, after 29 years of building. [1]

July 14

• In Cook Inlet, Alaska, a magnitude 7.2 earthquake occurs. [53]

July 17

• NEC Corporation is organized as the first Japanese joint venture with foreign capital. [5]

July 18

• Horatio Alger Jr American clergyman and author, dies. [1]

July 29

• First motorcycle race, Manhattan Beach, New York. [1]

August 15

• Louisville's Henry Dowling struck out five times in a game. [1]

September 4

• In Near Cape Yakataga, Alaska, a magnitude 7.9 earthquake occurs. [53]

September 6

• Carnation processes its first can of evaporated milk. [1]

September 10

• In Yakutat Bay, Alaska, a magnitude 8.0 earthquake occurs. [1] [53]

September 14

• Henry Bliss becomes first automobile fatality (New York). [1]

September 20

• In Menderes Valley, Turkey (Ottoman Empire), a magnitude 6.9 earthquake occurs. 1,100 deaths. Severe damage to buildings, bridges, railroad and telegraph lines; many landslides. [53]

September 23

• In Cape Yakataga, Alaska, a magnitude 6.9 - 7.0 earthquake occurs. [53]

October 17

• Sutro railroad sold to Robert F Morrow for $215,000. [1]

November 21

• Garret Augustus Hobart 24th Vice President, died. [1]

November 23

• First jukebox (Palais Royal Hotel, San Francisco). [1]

December 2

• US and Germany agree to divide Samoa between them. [1]

December 4

• 56thUS Congress (1899-1901) convenes. [1]
• Webb Hayes son of President Rutherford Hayes receives medal of honor. [1]

December 7

• Antoni Katski composer, dies at age 82. [1]

December 8

• Natal: British fall/burst out belegerd Ladysmith. [1]

December 10

• First defeat of "Black Week" - Battle at Stormberg South Africa - Boers vs British army; nearly 3000 British troops killed. [1]
• Frank Wedekind's "Der Kammersang" premieres in Berlin. [1]

December 11

• Second defeat of "Black Week" - Battle of Magersfontein - Boer leader Cronjé versus General Methuen. [1]
• Andrew "Andy" Wauchope British general-major, dies in battle. [1]
• Lord Winchester British marquis/major, dies in battle. [1]

December 12

• First case of plague on Oahu HI. [1]

December 15

• Third defeat of "Black Week" - Battle at Colenso South Africa (Boers-British army). [1]

December 17

• Frederick "Freddy" Roberts son of British field marshal, dies in battle. [1]

December 18

• Fieldmarshal Lord Roberts appointed British supreme commander in South Africa. [1]
• John William Glover composer, dies at age 84. [1]

December 22

• Dwight L Moody US evangelist (Student Volunteer Movement), dies. [1]

December 23

• Fieldmarshal Lord Roberts departs Southampton to South Africa. [1]
• Tentative Turkish and German treaty on construction of Baghdad railway. [1]

December 25

• Raphael Soyer artist (Depression scenes in New York City). [1]
• In Hemet-San Jacinto, California, a magnitude 6.4 earthquake occurs. [53]

December 26

• Mafeking: Bathe-Powells failed assault up fort Game Tree: 24 killed. [1]

December 29

• English fleet brings German postschip Bundesrath up. [1]

December 30

• James Paget English surgeon (disease of Paget), dies at age 85. [1]

December 31

• Karl Millöcker Austrian conductor/composer (Try-out Kiss), dies at age 57. [1]