Year 1887 Fun Facts, Trivia, and Historical Events

This quick read presents a collection of fun facts, trivia, and historical events from the year 1887. Discover the year’s top news stories, most influential people, sports facts, noteworthy inventions, historic firsts, entertainment news, and much more.

Take a journey through history in just minutes.

1. President of the United States: Grover Cleveland (D-New York)
2. Vice President: Vacant
3. Chief Justice of the Supreme Court: Morrison Waite (Ohio)
4. In 1887, the 49th U.S. Congress was in session until March 4. On that day, the 50th U.S. Congress convened.
5. Unemployment rate: Around 4.3 percent (During the 1880s, no state or federal agencies compiled “accurate tallies” of America’s unemployed. Only “rough estimates” of the U.S. jobless rate were available.)
6. Inflation rate: 1.06 percent
7. $1.00 in 1887 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $35.00 today. In other words, the U.S. dollar has lost around 97 percent of its purchasing power since 1887.
8. The average cost of a new home was $1,000 to $5,000 in urban neighborhoods and $200 to $1,000 in rural areas.
9. In New York City, the average monthly rent for a two- or three-room apartment in a tenement building was between $10.00 and $13.00 per month.
10. Cost of a first-class stamp: Two cents
11. American companies and brands established in 1887 included Bristol Myers Squibb, Gimbels (department store chain), Hearst Communications, Loeb’s (department store chain), Lyndell’s Bakery, Monotype Imaging, the St. Louis Car Company, and Sauer Brands.
12. Consumer products launched during the year included amphetamine and malted milk.
13. In 1887, the average life expectancy at birth in the U.S. was 40 to 45 years because of a high infant mortality rate. Americans who survived childhood often lived into their 50s, 60s, and even 70s.
14. On January 5, Melvil Dewey established the first U.S. library school at Columbia University to “professionalize librarianship.”
15. On January 26, construction began on the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France.
16. On January 28, the largest snowflake ever recorded—an estimated 15 inches wide—fell in Fort Keogh, Montana.
17. On February 2, the first Groundhog Day was observed in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.
18. On February 4, President Cleveland signed the Interstate Commerce Act into law, which created “an Interstate Commerce Commission to oversee the conduct of the railroad industry. With this act, the railroads became the first industry subject to federal regulation.”
19. On March 2, the Hatch Act went into effect, which gave federal funds ”to state land-grant colleges to create a series of agricultural experiment stations.” Initially, each land-grant college in the U.S. received $15,000 in federal funding.
20. On March 8, Everett Horton of Bristol, Connecticut, received a U.S. patent for a telescoping fishing rod.
21. On April 4, Susanna M. Salter became the nation's first female mayor when she was elected by voters in Argonia, Kansas.
22. On April 22, American business magnate Andrew Carnegie married Louise Whitfield.
23. On April 28, Marquis de Dion, a pioneer in the French automotive industry, was the only participant in Europe’s first organized motor race.
24. On April 30, in the first Baker Bowl, the Philadelphia Phillies defeated the New York Giants, 19-10. The game was played in a park located at North Broad and Huntingdon Streets in North Philadelphia.
25. On May 11, Isaac Lewis, aboard the horse Montrose, won the 13th Kentucky Derby.
26. On May 14, the cornerstone for Stanford University in northern California was laid.
27. On May 17, African American inventor Dennis W. Shorter was issued a U.S. patent for a livestock feed rack.
28. On June 9, Jim McLaughlin, aboard the horse Hanover, won the 21st Belmont Stakes.
29. On June 28, the Philadelphia Phillies won the most “lopsided shutout” in their franchise history, 24-0, by defeating the Indianapolis Hoosiers at the Seventh Street Ballpark in Indianapolis, Indiana.
30. On July 6, fifteen-year-old Lottie Dod of Great Britain became the youngest-ever Wimbledon champion.
31. On July 10, the Grand Hotel summer resort opened on Mackinac Island, Michigan. Rates were $3.00 to $5.00 per night.
32. In August, the U.S. National Institutes of Health was founded as the one-room Laboratory of Hygiene at the Marine Hospital in Staten Island, New York.
33. On August 2, Chester A. Hodge of Beloit, Wisconsin, received a U.S. patent for “spur rowel” barbed wire.
34. On October 3, Florida A&M University was established in Tallahassee, Florida.
35. On October 14, Pomona College was founded in Claremont, California.
36. On November 2, American baseball legend Connie Mack (Philadelphia Athletics) married Margaret Hogan.
37. On November 9, Anna Mary Robertson (Grandma Moses) married Thomas Salmon Moses.
38. In 1887, a 12-foot, 676-pound sturgeon was caught in the Fraser River, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
39. American inventor and industrialist Don Eugene Felt received a U.S. patent for the Comptometer, the first “accurate” adding machine.
40. British paper manufacturer John Dickenson introduced paper napkins at his company's annual dinner.
41. Key literary works published during 1887: Anna Bowman Dodd’s The Republic of the Future, Arthur Conan Doyle’s A Study in Scarlet, Emile Zola’s La Terre (The Earth), Jules Verne’s The Flight to France, Marie Corelli’s Thelma, Thomas Hardy’s The Woodlanders, and W. H. Hudson’s A Crystal Age
42. America’s most beloved songs included Angels Without Wings, Away in a Manger, Calvary, Comrades, and Ti! Hi! Tiddelly Hi!
43. Famous people born during 1887 included Arthur Rubenstein (pianist), Boris Karloff (movie actor), Conrad Hilton (entrepreneur), Eddie Collins (baseball player), Georgia O’Keeffe (painter), James Norman Hall (novelist), Joe Jackson (baseball player), Marcus Garvey (civil rights leader), Sophie Tucker (stage actress), and Walter Johnson (baseball player).
44. Notable people who died in 1887 included Alexander Borodin (composer), Dorothea Dix (civil rights leader), Emma Lazarus (poet), Henry Ward Beecher (religious leader), and Jenny Lind (opera singer).
45. In 1887 as well, the words “adhesive tape,” “all-American,” “baby blue eyes,” “department store,” “expiration date,” “helicopter,” “major league,” “malted milk,” “medicine show,” “polo shirt,” “radio,” “sick pay,” “Statue of Liberty,” “sub-zero,” and “sunny-side up” all appeared in print for the first time.
46. Beans: About 13 cents a quart
47. Butter: Around 35 cents a pound
48. Coal for home heating: About $7.84 a ton
49. Cornmeal: Around four cents a pound
50. Eggs: About 40 cents a dozen
51. Lard: Around 15 cents a pound
52. New Orleans molasses: About 67 cents a gallon
53. Potatoes: Around $1.26 a bushel
54. Roasted coffee: About 29 cents a pound
55. Roasting beef: Around 17 cents a pound
56. Smoked ham: About 15 cents a pound
57. Soup beef: Around six cents a pound
58. Starch: About nine cents a pound
59. Syrup: Around 77 cents a gallon
60. Wheat flour: About $8.57 a barrel

References:

1. https://www.foodreference.com/html/html/food-history-1885.html
2. https://www.merriam-webster.com/time-traveler/1887
3. https://www.infoplease.com/history/world/1800-1899-ad-world-history
4. https://www.onthisday.com/weddings/date/1887
5. https://www.famousbirthdays.com/year/1887.html
6. https://www.famousbirthdays.com/deceased/1887.html
7. https://www.onthisday.com/events/date/1887
8. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1887_in_the_United_States

Disclaimer: In writing and editing this article, Gregory DeVictor has made every effort to ensure historical accuracy and not to mislead his audience. In addition, the contents of this article, including text, graphics, and captions, are for general informational purposes only.

© 2026 Gregory DeVictor