- Aug 13 Johnny Mullagh, Australian cricket all-rounder (Aboriginal tour of England 1868), born in Harrow, Australia (d. 1891)
- Aug 17 Luis Nicolau Fagunde Varela, Brazilian romantic poet (Cântico do Calvário, born in Rio Claro, Brazil (d. 1875)
- Aug 18 Robert Williams Buchanan, Scottish, poet, dramatist and novelist, born in Caverswall, Staffordshire, England. (d. 1901)
- Aug 18 William Halford, American naval officer and Medal of Honor recipient who survived 31 days at sea in a small boat to seek help for the shipwrecked USS Saginaw, born in Gloucestershire, England (d. 1919)
- Aug 25 Emil Theodor Kocher, Swiss surgeon, Thyroid specialist (Nobel 1909), born in Bern, Switzerland (d. 1917)
- Aug 28 Louis Le Prince, French artist and original inventor of the motion picture camera sometimes called "the father of cinematography", born in Metz, France (d. 1890)
Greatest Generation
Silent Generation
Baby Boomer
Generation X
Millennial
Generation Z