- Dec 2 Camille Saint-Saëns' opera "Samson et Dalila" premieres in Weimar
Music Recording
Dec 6 Thomas Edison records himself reciting "Mary had a little lamb"
Thomas Edison
- Dec 6 Washington Post publishes 1st edition
- Dec 7 Thomas Edison demonstrates his phonograph (gramophone) to the editors of "Scientific American"
- Dec 16 Anton Bruckner's 3rd Symphony in D, premieres
- Dec 22 Thomas Edison's phonograph is announced by Scientific American
- Dec 22 "American Bicycling Journal" begins publishing (Boston, Mass)
- Dec 24 Thomas Edison files a patents for the phonograph
- Dec 26 Socialist Labor Party of North America holds 1st national convention
- Dec 28 John Stevens, applies for a patent for his flour rolling mill
- Dec 30 Johnannes Brahms' 2nd Symphony in D, premieres in Vienna