Historical Events
- May 22 1st wagon train with 700 - 1000 migrants, departs Independence, Missouri for Oregon
Famous Birthdays
- May 2 Karl Michael Ziehrer, Austrian composer, born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1922)
- May 6 Grove Karl Gilbert, American geologist (investigated Lake Bonneville, Utah), born in Rochester, New York (d. 1918)
- May 9 Isabella "Belle" Boyd, American actress and Confederate spy during US Civil War, born in Martinsburg, Virginia (d. 1900)
- May 10 Kaufmann Kohler, German-born American reform rabbi and theologian, born in Fürth (d. 1926)
- May 10 Benito Pérez Galdós, Spanish novelist (Episodios Nacionales), born in Las Palmas, Spain (d. 1920)
- May 13 Count Paul J Smet de Naeyer, Belgian politician
- May 20 Pedro Miguel Marques y Garcia, Spanish violinist and composer, born in Palma, Majorca (d. 1918)
- May 21 Charles-Albert Gobat, Swiss politician, recipient of the 1902 Nobel Peace Prize, born in Tramelan, Switzerland (d. 1914)
- May 21 Louis Renault, French lawyer, born in Autun, France (d. 1918)
- May 29 Émile Pessard, French composer, born in Paris (d. 1917)
Famous Deaths
Noah Webster
May 28 Noah Webster, American lexicographer (Webster's Dictionary), dies at 84
Noah Webster
