Tag Archives: 1835

7 January 1835

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HMS Beagle, with Charles Darwin on board, drops anchor off the Chonos Archipelago.

The HMS Beagle was a 10-gun brig of the Royal Navy, launched in 1820 and famed for its role in scientific exploration. Initially intended for combat, the vessel gained historical significance as a survey ship, particularly during its second voyage (1831–1836) when Charles Darwin joined the crew as a naturalist. Under the command of Captain Robert FitzRoy, the Beagle conducted extensive surveys of the South American coastline and circumnavigated the globe. This expedition profoundly influenced Darwin, providing him with observations and specimens that contributed to his groundbreaking theory of evolution by natural selection. The Beagle’s robust design enabled it to endure harsh conditions, making it a symbol of scientific discovery and maritime resilience.

25 August 1835

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The first Great Moon Hoax article is published in The New York Sun, announcing the discovery of life and civilization on the Moon.

The Great Moon Hoax was a series of six articles published in The New York Sun newspaper in August 1835. These articles falsely claimed that the famous astronomer Sir John Herschel had made incredible discoveries on the Moon, including the existence of animals, plants, and even humanoid beings.

The articles were published between August 25 and August 31, 1835. The hoax captured the public’s imagination and led to a significant increase in the newspaper’s circulation. It wasn’t until later that the articles were revealed to be entirely fabricated, though by then, they had already left a lasting impact on the public and the media.

The hoax is often cited as one of the earliest examples of “fake news” and remains a fascinating piece of media history.

7 January 1835

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HMS Beagle, with Charles Darwin on board, drops anchor off the Chonos Archipelago

HMS Beagle was a ship that played a crucial role in Charles Darwin’s groundbreaking scientific journey, leading to the development of his theory of evolution by natural selection. The Beagle was a Royal Navy survey ship, originally designed for naval hydrographic surveys. It was a relatively small ship, a brig-sloop, with a length of about 90 feet (27 meters).

In 1831, the Beagle set sail on its most famous voyage, captained by Robert FitzRoy. Charles Darwin, a young naturalist at the time, was invited to join the expedition as the ship’s naturalist. The primary purpose of the journey was to conduct coastal surveys of South America, particularly in the regions of Tierra del Fuego and Patagonia.

The voyage, which lasted almost five years from 1831 to 1836, took the Beagle to various locations, including the Galápagos Islands, Tahiti, Australia, and the Cape of Good Hope. Darwin collected a vast amount of specimens and made detailed observations of the flora, fauna, geology, and indigenous peoples in these regions.

One of the most significant stops during the journey was the Galápagos Islands. Darwin’s observations of the unique wildlife on these islands, including the distinctive finches, tortoises, and other species, played a crucial role in the development of his theory of evolution. The idea of natural selection, where species with advantageous traits have a better chance of survival and reproduction, emerged from his studies and observations during the Beagle voyage.

Darwin’s work, later published as “On the Origin of Species” in 1859, revolutionized the understanding of life on Earth and remains one of the most influential scientific theories in history. The HMS Beagle, though initially a naval survey ship, became synonymous with this transformative scientific journey and its role in shaping the theory of evolution.

2 June 1835

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P. T. Barnum and his circus start their first tour of the United States.

P.T. Barnum, whose full name was Phineas Taylor Barnum, was an American showman, entrepreneur, and businessman. He is best known for his creation and management of the Barnum & Bailey Circus, which was often referred to as “The Greatest Show on Earth.” Barnum was born on July 5, 1810, in Bethel, Connecticut, and he passed away on April 7, 1891, in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Barnum’s career in show business began in the 1830s when he purchased and exhibited a slave woman named Joice Heth, whom he claimed to be the 161-year-old nursemaid of George Washington. Although the authenticity of this claim was dubious, Barnum’s marketing skills and ability to generate public interest helped draw large crowds to see the exhibit.

In 1841, Barnum purchased Scudder’s American Museum in New York City and turned it into a major attraction. The museum showcased a wide array of curiosities, oddities, and live performances, including animal displays, historical exhibits, and theatrical productions. Barnum’s knack for promotion and sensationalism made the museum a popular entertainment destination.

Barnum’s involvement in the circus industry began in 1871 when he partnered with William Cameron Coup to create P.T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan, and Hippodrome. The circus featured a mix of exotic animals, sideshow acts, and live performances, including acrobats, clowns, and aerialists. Over time, Barnum expanded the circus, and in 1881, he merged it with James A. Bailey’s circus to form Barnum & Bailey Circus.

The Barnum & Bailey Circus became known as “The Greatest Show on Earth” and grew to become one of the most prominent and well-known circuses in the world. It featured a massive traveling operation that showcased a wide range of acts, including animal performances, trapeze artists, jugglers, tightrope walkers, and more. The circus employed thousands of people, including performers, animal trainers, and support staff, and toured extensively throughout the United States and even internationally.

Barnum’s success was not only attributed to his ability to entertain but also to his skills as a marketer and promoter. He was a master of generating publicity and attracting attention to his shows through various means, including advertising, sensational claims, and engaging stunts.

It’s important to note that while Barnum’s circus brought joy and wonder to many, it also faced criticism for its treatment of animals and the exploitation of human oddities in its sideshows. As societal attitudes changed over time, there was an increasing backlash against the use of animals for entertainment, leading to the decline of traditional circuses.

In 2017, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, the successor to Barnum’s original circus, closed its doors after 146 years of operation. The decision was partly influenced by changing public perceptions of animal welfare and the decline in attendance.

Despite the controversies surrounding his shows, P.T. Barnum’s legacy as an entertainment pioneer and a master showman endures. His influence on the circus industry and popular entertainment cannot be understated, and he remains an iconic figure in American cultural history.

30 January 1835

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In the first assassination attempt against a President of the United States, Richard Lawrence attempts to shoot president Andrew Jackson, but fails and is subdued by a crowd, including several congressmen as well as Jackson himself.

9 December 1835

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The Texian Army captures San Antonio, Texas.

Inspired by the spirited leadership of Benjamin Rush Milam, the newly created Texan Army takes possession of the city of San Antonio, an important victory for the Republic of Texas in its war for independence from Mexico.

Milam was born in 1788 in Frankfort, Kentucky. He became a citizen and soldier of Mexico in 1824, when newly independent Mexico was still under a republican constitution. Like many Americans who immigrated to the Mexican state of Texas, Milam found that the government both welcomed and feared the growing numbers of Americans, and treated them with uneven fairness. When Milam heard in 1835 that Santa Ana had overthrown the Mexican republic and established himself as dictator, Milam renounced his Mexican citizenship and joined the rag-tag army of the newly proclaimed independent Republic of Texas.

After helping the Texas Army capture the city of Goliad, Milam went on a reconnaissance mission to the southwest but returned to join the army for its planned attack on San Antonio-only to learn that the generals were postponing the attack on San Antonio for the winter. Aware that Santa Ana’s forces were racing toward Texas to suppress the rebellion, Milam worried that any hesitation would spell the end of the revolution. Milam made an impassioned call for volunteers, asking: “Who will go with old Ben Milam into San Antonio?”

Inspired by Milam’s bold challenge, three hundred men did volunteer, and the Texas Army began its attack on San Antonio at dawn on December 5. By December 9, the defending forces of the Mexican army were badly beaten, and the commanding general surrendered the city. Milam, however, was not there to witness the results of his leadership–he was killed instantly by a sniper bullet on December 7. If Milam had survived, he might well have been among the doomed defenders of the Alamo that were wiped out by Santa Ana’s troops the following March.

25 August 1835

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A Great Moon Hoax article is published in The New York Sun, announcing the discovery of life and civilization on the Moon.

The “Great Moon Hoax” refers to a series of six articles that were published in The Sun, a New York newspaper, beginning on August 25, 1835, about the supposed discovery of life and even civilization on the Moon. The discoveries were falsely attributed to Sir John Herschel, one of the best-known astronomers of that time.

The story was advertised on August 21, 1835, as an upcoming feature allegedly reprinted from The Edinburgh Courant. The first in a series of six was published four days later on August 25.

Authorship of the article has been attributed to Richard Adams Locke, a reporter who, in August 1835, was working for The Sun. Locke publicly admitted to being the author in 1840, in a letter to the weekly paper New World. Still, rumours persisted that others were involved. Two other men have been noted in connection with the hoax: Jean-Nicolas Nicollet, a French astronomer travelling in America at the time though he was in Mississippi, not New York, when the Moon-hoax issues appeared, and Lewis Gaylord Clark, editor of The Knickerbocker, a literary magazine. However, there is no good evidence to indicate that anyone but Locke was the author of the hoax.

Assuming that Richard A. Locke was the author, his intentions were probably, first, to create a sensational story which would increase sales of The Sun, and, second, to ridicule some of the more extravagant astronomical theories that had recently been published. For instance, in 1824, Franz von Paula Gruithuisen, professor of Astronomy at Munich University, had published a paper titled “Discovery of Many Distinct Traces of Lunar Inhabitants, Especially of One of Their Colossal Buildings.” Gruithuisen claimed to have observed various shades of color on the lunar surface, which he correlated with climate and vegetation zones. He also observed lines and geometrical shapes, which he felt indicated the existence of walls, roads, fortifications, and cities.

However, a more direct object of Locke’s satire was Rev. Thomas Dick, who was known as “The Christian Philosopher” after the title of his first book. Dick had computed that the Solar System contained 21.9 trillion inhabitants. In fact, the Moon alone, by his count, would contain 4,200,000,000 inhabitants. His writings were enormously popular in the United States, his fans including intellectual luminaries such as Ralph Waldo Emerson.

9 December 1835

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The Texian Army captures San Antonio, Texas.

Inspired by the spirited leadership of Benjamin Rush Milam, the newly created Texan Army takes possession of the city of San Antonio, an important victory for the Republic of Texas in its war for independence from Mexico.

Milam was born in 1788 in Frankfort, Kentucky. He became a citizen and soldier of Mexico in 1824, when newly independent Mexico was still under a republican constitution. Like many Americans who immigrated to the Mexican state of Texas, Milam found that the government both welcomed and feared the growing numbers of Americans, and treated them with uneven fairness. When Milam heard in 1835 that Santa Ana had overthrown the Mexican republic and established himself as dictator, Milam renounced his Mexican citizenship and joined the rag-tag army of the newly proclaimed independent Republic of Texas.

After helping the Texas Army capture the city of Goliad, Milam went on a reconnaissance mission to the southwest but returned to join the army for its planned attack on San Antonio-only to learn that the generals were postponing the attack on San Antonio for the winter. Aware that Santa Ana’s forces were racing toward Texas to suppress the rebellion, Milam worried that any hesitation would spell the end of the revolution. Milam made an impassioned call for volunteers, asking: “Who will go with old Ben Milam into San Antonio?”

Inspired by Milam’s bold challenge, three hundred men did volunteer, and the Texas Army began its attack on San Antonio at dawn on December 5. By December 9, the defending forces of the Mexican army were badly beaten, and the commanding general surrendered the city. Milam, however, was not there to witness the results of his leadership–he was killed instantly by a sniper bullet on December 7. If Milam had survived, he might well have been among the doomed defenders of the Alamo that were wiped out by Santa Ana’s troops the following March.

25 August 1835

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A Moon Hoax article is published in The New York Sun claiming the discovery of life and civilization on the Moon.

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Throughout the final week of August 1835, a long article appeared in serial form on the front page of the New York Sun.

The article started by triumphantly listing a series of stunning astronomical breakthroughs the famous British astronomer, Sir John Herschel, had made “by means of a telescope of vast dimensions and an entirely new principle.” Herschel, the article declared, had established a “new theory of cometary phenomena”; he had discovered planets in other solar systems; and he had “solved or corrected nearly every leading problem of mathematical astronomy.” Then, almost as if it were an afterthought, the article revealed Herschel’s final, stunning achievement. He had discovered life on the moon.

The article was an elaborate hoax. Herschel hadn’t really observed life on the moon, nor had he accomplished any of the other astronomical breakthroughs credited to him in the article. In fact, Herschel wasn’t even aware until much later that such discoveries had been attributed to him. However, the announcement caused enormous excitement throughout America and Europe. To this day, the moon hoax is remembered as one of the most sensational media hoaxes of all time.