Year 1841: Fun Facts, Trivia, and History

This quick read presents a mix of fun facts, trivia, and history events from the year 1841. Discover the year’s top news stories, most influential people, historic firsts, noteworthy inventions, famous birthdays and deaths, retail prices, sports trivia, and much more.

Take a journey through history in just minutes.

1. President of the United States: Martin Van Buren (D-New York)—Until March 4
2. President of the United States: William Henry Harrison (W-Ohio)—From March 4 to April 4, when he died of pneumonia.
3. President of the United States: John Tyler (W/I-Virginia)—Starting on April 4
4. Vice President: Richard M. Johnson (D-Kentucky)—Until March 4
5. Vice President: John Tyler (W-Virginia)—From March 4 to April 4
6. Vice President: Vacant after April 4
7. Chief Justice of the Supreme Court: Roger B. Taney (Maryland)
8. Speaker of the House of Representatives: Robert M. T. Hunter (W-Virginia)—Until March 4
9. Speaker of the House of Representatives: John White (W-Kentucky)—Starting on May 31
10. The 26th U.S. Congress was in session until March 4, when the 27th U.S. Congress convened. Both chambers had a Whig majority.
11. Inflation rate: 0.00%
12. Consumer price index (CPI): 8.700
13. $100.00 in 1841 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $3,827.82 today. The U.S. dollar had “an average inflation rate of 1.99% per year” between 1841 and 2026, “producing a cumulative price increase of 3,727.82%.” In other words, a U.S. dollar today buys about 2.612% of what it could purchase back in 1841.
14. It’s worth noting that the U.S. dollar has lost 97% of its value since 1841.
15. American companies founded in 1841 included Dun & Bradstreet (a data analytics company), Jordan Marsh (a department store chain), Norton Lilly International (a shipping agency), and Ward Line (a shipping company).
16. In 1841, there were 26 U.S. states. In order of admission to the Union, they were Delaware (1787), Pennsylvania (1787), New Jersey (1787), Georgia (1788), Connecticut (1788), Massachusetts (1788), Maryland (1788), South Carolina (1788), New Hampshire (1788), Virginia (1788), New York (1788), North Carolina (1789), Rhode Island (1790), Vermont (1791), Kentucky (1792), Tennessee (1796), Ohio (1803), Louisiana (1837), Indiana (1816), Mississippi (1817), Illinois (1818), Alabama (1819), Maine (1820), Missouri (1821), Arkansas (1836), and Michigan (1837).
17. In 1841, the most populous U.S. states were New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia, and Tennessee. The most populated cities were New York, Baltimore, New Orleans, Philadelphia, and Boston.
18. According to 1840 U.S. Census data, Philadelphia was America’s fourth-largest city with a population of 93,665. However, 29 municipalities that are now part of the City of Philadelphia were enumerated in 1840 as separate boroughs, districts, and townships. They included Bridesburg Borough, Frankford Borough, Germantown Township, the Kensington District, Manayunk Borough, the Moyamensing District, the Northern Liberties District, Passyunk Township, Roxborough Township, the Southwark District, the Spring Garden District, and West Philadelphia Borough. Through the 1854 Act of Consolidation, all 29 of these municipalities were incorporated into the “newly expanded” City of Philadelphia.
19. Farmers comprised about 69% of the American labor force, and farming practices in the U.S. varied by region. For example, the Northeast focused on “diversified agriculture” to support growing urban areas like Boston, New York, and Philadelphia. On the other hand, the South “experienced a boom in cotton production fueled by the cotton gin and slave labor.”
20. On January 14, Juliet Corson, a leader in American cookery education during the latter half of the 19th century, was born. In addition to establishing the New York Cooking School in 1876, she wrote numerous articles and cookbooks, including the Cooking Manual (1877), Twenty-five Cent Dinners for Families of Six (1878), and Miss Corson's Practical American Cookery (1886).
21. On January 20, China ceded Hong Kong Island to the British.
22. On January 26, Hong Kong became a sovereign territory of Great Britain. On that day, “British naval forces landed at Possession Point on Hong Kong Island and raised the Union Jack.”
23. On March 9, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled “that the enslaved Africans who seized control of the Amistad slave ship had been illegally forced into slavery and thus are free under American law.”
24. On March 12, Orlando Jones of Middlesex, England, received a U.S. patent for cornstarch.
25. On April 4, U.S. President William Henry Harrison died in office from pneumonia.
26. On April 10, American newspaper editor and publisher Horace Greeley launched the first issue of the New-York Tribune.
27. On April 20, Edgar Allan Poe's short story, The Murders in the Rue Morgue, appeared in Graham's Magazine and later became known as the “first significant work” of detective fiction.
28. On April 24, inventor and engineer Squire Temple of Utica, New York, received a U.S. patent for an iron truss bridge.
29. On May 15, under the command of Captain John Bartleson and 21-year-old John Bidwell, America’s first pioneer wagon train left Independence, Missouri, on “a 1,730-mile journey” to Califonia. On November 4, 1841, Bartleson and Bidwell, along with 34 pioneers, arrived in California. Their historic journey paved the way for westward expansion.
30. On June 24, Fordham University, originally known as St. John's College, opened in the Bronx, New York.
31. On July 5, Thomas Cook opened the world’s first travel agency in England.
32. On July 17, journalist Henry Mayhew and wood engraver Ebenezer Landells launched Punch, or The London Charivari, a weekly magazine that combined “sharp political satire and social commentary.” After “periods of circulation decline,” Punch folded in 2002.
33. On July 28, Mary Rogers—known as the "Beautiful Cigar Girl”—was found murdered in New York City. The tragic event inspired Edgar Allan Poe to write the short story, The Mystery of Marie Rogêt, as a sequel to The Murders in the Rue Morgue.
34. On August 21, inventor John Hampton received a U.S. patent for the Venetian blind.
35. On September 9, Tom Hyer became America’s first heavyweight boxing champion after beating George McChester in 101 rounds (two hours and 55 minutes) at Caldwell's Landing, New York.
36. On November 16, Napoleon E. Guerin of New York City received a U.S. patent for the first life preserver made of cork.
37. On December 31, Alabama became the first U.S. state to enact “a dental practice act.” However, the law was “largely unenforced” over the course of time.
38. In 1841, Father Lucien Galtier, a French Catholic priest, renamed the village of Pig's Eye in Minnesota as St. Paul.
39. Favorite baby names for boys in 1841 were Arthur, Benjamin, Eli, George, Henry, James, John, Joseph, Thomas, and William. Popular baby names for girls were Ada, Alice, Amelia, Charlotte, Clara, Cora, Elizabeth, Emma, Jane, and Lucy.
40. In 1841, the average life expectancy at birth in the United States was about 41 years for a white male and around 43 years for a white female. During the 1800s, if an individual survived to age 10, their remaining life expectancy would jump considerably, and they could often expect to live into their 50s, 60s, or even 70s.
41. In terms of religious affiliation, over 90% of Americans were Protestant, and major Protestant denominations included Baptists, Methodists, and Presbyterians.
42. Key fiction works published in 1841 were Catherine Crowe’s The Adventures of Susan Hopley, Charles Dickens’ Master Humphrey's Clock, and James Fenimore Cooper’s The Deerslayer.
43. Notable nonfiction published during the year included Edgar Allan Poe’s A Few Words on Secret Writing and Thomas Carlyle’s On Heroes, Hero-Worship, and The Heroic in History.
44. Famous people born in 1841 were Antonin Dvorak (a Czech composer), Lester Frank Ward (an American botanist), Patrick William Riordan (San Francisco’s archbishop from 1884 to 1914), Pierre-Auguste Renoir (a French painter), and William Collins Whitney (an American businessman).
45. Notable people who died in 1841 included Catherine McAuley (an Irish-Catholic nun who established the Sisters of Mercy), Nicolas Appert (a French inventor who created airtight food preservation), and William Henry Harrison (the ninth U.S. president).
46. In 1841 as well, the words “Americana,” “Bermuda onion,” “billionaire,” “central bank,” “conifer,” “cornflower,” “cuspid,” “decimal system,” “diagnose,” “either-or,” “get by,” “goatee,” “hanky-panky,” “hard core,” “head-to-head,” “inheritance tax,” “Middle America,” “photographer,” “right wing,” “shindig,” “student body,” “tundra,” “upper respiratory,” “vegetarian,” and “vernacularism” all appeared in print for the first time.
47. 18 eggs: Around 18 cents
48. Fresh beef: About five cents a pound
49. One bushel of apples: Around 37½ cents
50. One bushel of potatoes: About 50 cents
51. One pound of butter: Around 20 cents
52. One ton of coal for home heating: About $1.00
53. Two pounds of ham: Around 25 cents
54. Two pounds of sugar: About 30 cents
55. Washboard: Around 37 cents

References:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1841_in_the_United_States
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:American_companies_established_in_1841
3. https://www.onthisday.com/events/date/1841
4. https://www.foodreference.com/html/html/food-timeline-1836.html
5. https://www.officialdata.org/us/inflation/1841
6. https://www.merriam-webster.com/time-traveler/1841
7. https://www.famousbirthdays.com/deceased/1841.html
8. https://www.famousbirthdays.com/year/1841.html
9. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1841_in_literature
10. https://www.history.com/a-year-in-history/1841

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