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Famous People Born in 1837

  • Jan 2 Mily Balakirev, Russian pianist and composer (Islamej, Tamara), born in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia (d. 1910)
  • Jan 12 Adolf Jensen, German pianist, composer, and teacher, born in Königsberg, Prussian (now Kaliningrad, Russia) (d. 1879)
  • Jan 12 Carlos Troyer, American composer, born in Frankfurt, German Confederation (d. 1920)
  • Jan 16 James Phillip Simms, Brigadier General (Confederate Army), (d. 1887)
  • Jan 19 William Williams Keen, American physician (1st American brain surgeon), born in Philadelphia, Pennslyvania (d. 1932)
  • Jan 20 David Josiah Brewer, U.S. Supreme Court Justice (d. 1910)
  • Jan 23 Amanda Smith, American former slave, singer and evangelist, born in Long Green, Maryland (d. 1915)
  • Feb 5 Dwight Lyman Moody, American evangelist (Moody Church), born in Northfield, Massachusetts (d. 1899)
  • Feb 7 James Murray, Scottish lexicographer and philologist (Oxford English Dictionary), born in Denholm, Scotland (d. 1915)
  • Feb 9 José Burgos, Filipino Catholic priest (advocated for greater Filipino self-determination), born in Vigan, Philippines (d. 1872)
  • Feb 13 Valentin Zubiaurre, Spanish composer (Ferdinand Set), and educator, born in Garay, Biscay, Spain (d. 1914)
  • Feb 17 Francis Jay Herron, American Major General (Union Army), born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (d. 1902)
  • Feb 17 Samuel van Houten, Dutch politician and philosopher (child labor laws), born in Groningen, Netherlands (d. 1930)
  • Feb 24 Rosalía de Castro, Santiago de Compostela Galician writer and poet ('Séculos Escuros') (d. 1885)
  • Feb 26 Charles Woeste, Belgian count, Minister of Justice, born in Brussels, Belgium (d. 1922)
  • Mar 1 Andrew Strath, Scottish golfer (British Open 1865), born in St. Andrews, Fife (d. 1868)
  • Mar 1 Ion Creanga, Moldovian-born Romanian fairy tale author (Amintiti the Copilarie), born in Humulești, Principality of Moldavia (d. 1889)
  • Mar 1 William Dean Howells, American novelist, critic and editor (Atlantic), born in Martinsville, Ohio (d. 1920)

Henry Draper (1837-1882)

Mar 7 American astronomer (Moon, Orion Nebula), born in Prince Edward County, Virginia

  • Mar 12 Alexandre Guilmant, French organist (La Trinitié, 1871-901), composer and pedagogue (Schola Cantorum, 1894-1911), born in Meudon, France (d. 1911)
  • Mar 14 Charles Ammi Cutter, American librarian (Expansive classification), born in Boston, Massachusetts (d. 1903)

Grover Cleveland (1837-1908)

Mar 18 22nd and 24th US President (1885-89, 1893-97), born in Caldwell, New Jersey

  • Mar 19 Robert Daniel Johnston, Brigadier General (Confederate Army), (d. 1919)
  • Mar 24 Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders and son of Leopold I, born in Royal Castle of Laeken, Belgium (d. 1905)
  • Mar 31 Robert Ross McBurney, Irish-born American 1st paid secretary of the YMCA (NYC), born in Ireland (d. 1898)
  • Apr 3 John Burroughs, American writer and nature enthusiast (Burroughs Medal namesake), born in Delaware County, New York (d. 1921)
  • Apr 5 Algernon Charles Swinburne, English poet (Atalanta in Calydon), born in London, England (d. 1909) [1]
  • Apr 7 Anderson Abbott, Canadian physician and writer (first Canadian-born black doctor), born in Toronto, Canada (d. 1913)
  • Apr 10 Forceythe Willson, American poet (The Old Sergeant), born in Little Genesee, New York (d. 1867)
  • Apr 11 Elmer E. Ellsworth, American soldier who was the 1st Union officer killed in the American Civil War, born in Malta, New York (d. 1861)
  • Apr 15 Horace Porter, American Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania (d. 1921)

J. P. Morgan (1837-1913)

Apr 17 American financier and banker (General Electric; US Steel; AT&T), born in Hartford, Connecticut

  • Apr 21 Fredrik Bajer, Danish politician, feminist and pacifist politician (Nobel 1908), born in Næstved, Denmark (d. 1922)
  • Apr 24 Friedrich von Holstein, German civil servant (head of the political department of the German Foreign Office), born in Schwedt, Brandenburg, Germany (d. 1909)
  • Apr 25 William Charles Levey, Irish conductor and composer, born in Dublin, Ireland (d. 1894)
  • Apr 29 Georges Boulanger, French general and politician, born in Rennes, Ille-et-Vilaine, France (d. 1891)
  • Apr 30 Alfred R. Gaul, English composer, born in Nottingham, England (d. 1913)
  • May 2 Henry Martyn Robert, American soldier and parliamentarian (Robert's Rules of Order), born in Robertville, South Carolina (d. 1923)

Adam Opel (1837-1895)

May 9 German automobile manufacturer (founded Adam Opel AG), born in Rüsselsheim, Hesse, Prussia

  • May 10 Pinckney Benton Stewart Pinchback, American politician and publisher (1st African American governor - Governor of Louisiana (R) 1872-73), born in Macon, Georgia (d. 1921)
  • May 23 James Sanks Brisbin, American educator, lawyer, and Brevet Major General (Union Army), born in Boalsburg, Pennsylvania (d. 1892)
  • May 23 Józef Wieniawski, Polish pianist, composer, conductor and teacher, born in Lublin, Poland (d. 1912)

Wild Bill Hickok (1837-1876)

May 27 American cowboy and scout, born in Troy Grove, Illinois

  • May 27 Ivan Kramskoi, Russian painter and art critic, born in Ostrogozhsk, Voronezh Governorate, Russian Empire (d. 1887)
  • May 27 Robert Hoke, American Major General (Confederate Army), born in Lincolnton, North Carolina (d. 1912)
  • May 28 George Ashlin, Irish architect noted for his work on churches and cathedrals, born in County Cork, Ireland (d. 1921)
  • May 28 Tony Pastor, American vaudeville performer, born in Manhattan, New York (d. 1908)
  • May 29 Alexander de Savornin Lohman, Dutch minister and party leader (CHU), born in Groningen, Netherlands (d. 1924)
  • May 29 Luca Fumagalli, Italian pianist and composer (Luigi XI), born in Inzago, Lombardo-Venetian Kingdom, Austrian Empire (d. 1908)
  • May 31 Ernest Daudet, French journalist and writer (White Terror), born in Nîmes, France (d. 1921)
  • May 31 Stephen Dodson Ramseur, American general and the youngest West Pointer to be Major General, born in Lincolnton, North Carolina (d. 1864)
  • May 31 William Henry Fitzhugh Lee, American Major General (Confederate Army), born in Arlington House, Virginia (d. 1891)
  • Jun 7 Alois Hitler, father of Adolf Hitler, born in Strones, Waldviertel, Austrian Empire (d. 1903)
  • Jun 8 Jan Kleczyński Sr., Polish painist and composer, born in Janiewicze, Russian Empire (d. 1895)
  • Jun 8 Moritz Heyne, German germanist (Beowulf), born in Weissenfels, Germany (d. 1906)
  • Jun 16 Eli Long, American Bvt Major General (Union Army), born in Woodford County, Kentucky (d. 1903)
  • Jun 17 Strong Vincent, American army officer (died famously at Little Round Top during the Battle of Gettysburg), born in Waterford, Pennsylvania (d. 1863)

Paul Morphy (1837-1884)

Jun 22 American chess player considered the greatest of his era (1857-61), born in New Orleans, Louisiana

  • Jun 23 Ernest Guiraud, French opera composer (Piccolino; Sylvie), arranger (Bizet), and teacher, born in New Orleans, Louisiana (d. 1892)
  • Jun 26 Martin Davis Hardin II, American Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Jacksonville, Illinois (d. 1923)
  • Jun 26 Victor Girardey, Brigadier General (Confederate Army), born in Lauw, France (d. 1864)
  • Jul 6 Władysław Żeleński, Polish organist and composer, born in Grodkowice, Congress Poland (d. 1921)
  • Jul 11 Paul Lacombe, French composer, born in Carcassonne, France (d. 1927)
  • Jul 15 Stephanie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, German-born Queen of Portugal (1858-59), born in Krauchenwies Castle, Sigmaringen (d. 1859)
  • Jul 18 Vasil Levski, Bulgarian revolutionary hero, born in Karlovo, Rumelia, Bulgaria (d. 1873)
  • Jul 20 Hans Sommer, German theatre composer, born in Brunswick (d. 1922)
  • Jul 28 Christian Barnekow, Danish composer, born in Luz-Saint-Sauveur, France (d. 1913)
  • Jul 30 Elon John Farnsworth, American Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Green Oak, Michigan (d. 1863)
  • Jul 31 William Quantrill, American guerrilla leader in the Confederate Army who led Quantrill's Raiders in the Lawrence Massacre, born in Canal Dover, Ohio (d. 1865)
  • Aug 11 Marie François Sadi Carnot, President of France (1887-94), born in Limoges, France (d. 1894)
  • Aug 16 Emile A. H. Seipgens, Dutch priest, writer and beer brewer, born in Roermond, Netherlands (d. 1837)
  • Aug 24 Theodore Dubois, French composer, born in Rosnay, Marne, France (d. 1924)
  • Aug 27 Heinrich Urban, German violinist, composer, and teacher of Wanda Landowska and Ignace Jan Paderewski, born in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia (now Germany) (d. 1901)
  • Aug 30 Ellen Lewis Herndon Arthur, US 1st Lady (1881-85), born in Culpeper Court House, Virginia (d. 1880)
  • Sep 2 James Harrison Wilson, American topographic engineer and Major General (Union Army), born in Shawneetown, Illinois (d. 1925)
  • Sep 7 Olive Oatman, American (as a teen captured and released by Native Americans), born in La Harpe, Illinois (d. 1903)
  • Sep 14 Nikolai Bugaev, Russian mathematician, born in Georgia, Russian Empire (d. 1903)
  • Sep 15 Leo van Gheluwe, Belgian composer, born in Wannegem-Lede, East Flanders (d. 1914)
  • Sep 16 Pedro V, King of Portugal (1853-61), known as "The Hopeful", born at Necessidades Palace, Lisbon, Portugal (d. 1861)
  • Sep 18 Aires de Ornelas e Vasconcelos, Portuguese Roman Catholic Archbishop of Goa, born in Funchal, Madeira, Portugal (d. 1880)
  • Sep 19 Adolf Sonnenfeld, Polish violinist and composer, born in Wrocław, Poland (d. 1914)
  • Oct 8 Otto Winter-Hjelm, Norwegian musician and composer, born in Oslo, Norway (d. 1931)
  • Oct 14 Ellison Capers, American Brigadier General (Confederate Army), born in Charleston, South Carolina (d. 1908)
  • Oct 16 John Francis Barnett, British composer, born in London (d. 1916)
  • Oct 18 Friedrich Wilhelm Mengelberg, German-Dutch sculptor and architect of church interiors, born in Cologne (d. 1919)
  • Oct 26 James Lawlor Kieran, Irish-American Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Mountbellew, County Galway (d. 1869)
  • Oct 28 Tokugawa Yoshinobu, 15th and last shōgun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, born in Edo, Japan (d. 1913)

Abraham Kuyper (1837-1920)

Oct 29 Prime Minister of the Netherlands (1901-05), born in Maassluis, Netherlands

  • Oct 29 Harriet Powers, African-American slave and quilt maker (Bible Quilt 1886), born in Clarke County, Georgia (d. 1910)
  • Nov 2 Émile Bayard, French artist and illustrator, born in La Ferté-sous-Jouarre, Seine-et-Marne, France (d. (1891)
  • Nov 9 Alfred Holmes, English violinist and composer, born in London, England (d. 1876)
  • Nov 9 Gerrit Jan van Heek, Dutch textile manufacturer and politician, born in Enschede, Netherlands (d. 1915)
  • Nov 13 James T. Rapier, African-American politician, born in Florence, Alabama (d. 1883)
  • Nov 17 David Capriles, Curacaos director of psychiatry of Monte Christo, Curacao (d. 1902)
  • Nov 17 Willem Coenen, Dutch composer and pianist, born in Rotterdam (d. 1918)
  • Nov 20 Lewis Waterman, American insurance agent and inventor of an improved fountain pen, born in Decatur, New York (d. 1901) [1]

Johannes van der Waals (1837-1923)

Nov 23 Dutch physicist (Nobel 1910, Liquid and Gas States), born in Leiden, Netherlands

John Wesley Hyatt (1837-1920)

Nov 28 American inventor who simplified the production of celluloid, born in Starkey, New York

  • Dec 2 Charles Garrison Harker, American Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Swedesboro, New Jersey (d. 1864)
  • Dec 9 Émile Waldteufel [Charles Émile Lévy], French pianist and composer (Estudiantina; Les Patineurs - The Skaters' Waltz), born in Strasbourg, France (d. 1915)
  • Dec 14 William Wells, American businessman, politician, and Brevet Major General (Union Army), born in Waterbury, Vermont (d. 1892)
  • Dec 18 Adolf Daens, Flemish priest, politician and founder of the Daensist movement, born in Aalst, Belgium (d. 1907)
  • Dec 19 John Carpenter Carter, Brigadier General (Confederate Army), (d. 1864)
  • Dec 24 Empress Elisabeth of Austria, born in Munich, Germany (d. 1898)
  • Dec 25 Cosima Liszt, Austrian wife of composer Richard Wagner (founded Bayreuth Festival together), daughter of Franz Liszt and Marie d'Agoult, born in Bellagio, Lombardy, Austrian Empire (d. 1930)

George Dewey (1837-1917)

Dec 26 American admiral, naval hero in Battle of Manila Bay, born in Montpelier, Vermont

  • Dec 26 Morgan Bulkeley, American politician (US Senator - Connecticut 1905-11) and Baseball HOF administrator (NL President 1876), born in East Haddam, Connecticut (d. 1922)
  • Dec 28 Benjamin Johnson Lang, American conductor and composer, born in Salem, Massachusetts (d. 1909)