Year 1882: Fun Facts, Trivia, and History

This quick read presents a mix of fun facts, trivia, and history events from the year 1882. Discover the year’s top news stories, most influential people, historic firsts, sports facts, retail prices, entertainment trivia, and much more.

Take a journey through history in just minutes.

1. President of the United States: Chester A. Arthur (R-New York)
2. Vice President: Vacant
3. Chief Justice of the Supreme Court: Morrison Waite (Ohio)
4. Speaker of the House of Representatives: J. Warren Keifer (R-Ohio)
5. In 1882, the 47th U.S. Congress was in session. The House had a Republican majority, but the Senate was “evenly divided” for the first time in history, “with no vice president to break ties for most of this term.”
6. Unemployment rate: Between 4% and 4.6% (During the 1880s, no state or federal agencies compiled “accurate tallies” of America’s unemployment rate. Only “rough estimates” of the U.S. jobless rate were available.)
7. Inflation rate: 0.00%
8. $100.00 in 1882 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $3,264.90 today. The U.S. dollar had “an average inflation rate of 2.45% per year” between 1882 and 2026, “producing a cumulative price increase of 3,164.90%.” In other words, a U.S. dollar today buys about 3.063% of what it could purchase back in 1882.
9. It’s worth noting that the U.S. dollar has lost 97% of its value since 1882.
10. $1.00 in 1882 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $32.65 today.
11. $10.00 in 1882 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $326.49 today.
12. As mentioned above, $100.00 in 1882 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $3,264.90 today.
13. Consumer price index (CPI): 10.200
14. The cost of a first-class stamp was three cents.
15. American companies and brands established in 1882 included the Andrew Jergens Company (a skin and hair care product company); Dow Jones & Company (a publishing firm); Fulton Financial Corporation (a regional financial services holding company); Ingersoll Watch Company (a mail order business); J. H. Williams Tool Group (a hand tool manufacturer); and McCrory Stores (a five-and-dime store chain).
16. In 1882, the average life expectancy at birth in the U.S. was 42 to 45 years because of a high infant mortality rate. Americans who survived childhood often lived into their 50s, 60s, and even 70s.
17. On January 15, America’s first ski club was formed in Berlin, New Hampshire.
18. On February 3, circus owner P. T. Barnum purchased Jumbo, his world-famous elephant.
19. On February 6, the Knights of Columbus, “the world’s largest Catholic fraternal service organization,” was established in New Haven, Connecticut.
20. During March and April, around 1.5 billion dead tilefish were found from the Delaware Bay, located between the states of Delaware and New Jersey, all the way north to Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The phenomenon was “likely due to a storm that introduced unusually cold water into their Gulf Stream habitat.”
21. On March 3, the New York Steam Company began to distribute steam to buildings in lower Manhattan, “pioneering the first commercial district heating system.”
22. On March 25, the world’s “first public demonstration of pancake making was held at a New York City department store.”
23. On April 3, Jesse James, one of America’s most famous criminals, was shot to death by fellow gang member Bob Ford.
24. On April 15, Sir Henry Cole, a British inventor and civil servant, passed away. In 1843, he created the idea of sending greeting cards during the Christmas season.
25. On April 29, Werner von Siemens tested the "Elektromote"—the forerunner of the trolleybus—in Berlin.
26. On May 6, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, halting Chinese immigration to the United States.
27. On May 16, Apollo was the winning horse at the eighth Kentucky Derby.
28. On May 20, the world première of Henrik Ibsen's controversial play, Ghosts, took place at the Aurora Turner Hall in Chicago.
29. On May 23, six inches of snow fell in eastern Iowa.
30. On June 2, the English language première of Henrik Ibsen's play, A Doll's House, took place in Milwaukee.
31. On June 6, Henry Seely of New York City received the first U.S. patent for an electric iron.
32. On June 16, hailstones weighing 1.75 pounds apiece fell in Dubuque, Iowa.
33. On July 14, John Ringo, the “famous gun-fighting gentleman,” was found dead in Turkey Creek Canyon, Arizona.
34. On September 5, the Central Labor Union “organized the first Labor Day holiday in New York City, featuring a parade of over 10,000 workers and a large picnic at Wendel's Elm Park, the city's largest park at the time, along with several speakers.”
35. On October 6, at the first World Series baseball game, the Cincinnati Red Stockings (American Association) defeated the Chicago White Stockings (National League), 4-0, at the Bank Street Grounds in Cincinnati.
36. On November 14, William H. Bonney, better known as Billy the Kid, a notorious American outlaw and gunfighter, was shot to death by the gunslinger Frank “Buckskin” Leslie in Tombstone, Arizona.
37. On December 22, Edward H. Johnson, the vice president of Thomas Edison's electric company, created the first electric Christmas tree lights and “displayed the walnut-sized bulbs on a large Christmas tree at his home in New York.”
38. Key fiction books published in 1882 included George Bernard Shaw’s Cashel Byron's Profession, Robert Louis Stevenson’s New Arabian Nights, and Walter Besant’s The Revolt of Man.
39. American author Mark Twain published The Prince and the Pauper, his first attempt at historical fiction.
40. Famous people born in 1882 were A. A. Milne (children’s author), Franklin D. Roosevelt (U.S. president), and Virginia Woolf (novelist).
41. Famous people who died in 1882 included Charles Darwin (biologist), Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (poet), and Ralph Waldo Emerson (philosopher).
42. In 1882 as well, the words “ace in the hole,” “bacteriology,” “batten down the hatches,” “cathouse,” “clockwise,” “cowboy hat,” “dog tag,” “free ride,” “funny business,” “giveaway,” “GOP,” “health food,” “housemother,” “Knight of Columbus," “legal pad,” “prenuptial agreement,” “prerecorded,” “recliner,” “skyscraper,” “summer camp,” “starship,” “time zone,” “title insurance,” “upper respiratory tract,” "vaccinate," “variety show,” “V-neck,” and “winery” all appeared in print for the first time.
43. Beans: 13 cents a quart
44. Brown sugar: 10 cents a pound
45. Butter: 35 cents a pound
46. Cheese: 18 cents a pound
47. Coal: $7.84 a ton
48. Corned beef: 10 cents a pound
49. Cornmeal: Four cents a pound
50. Cotton flannel: 16 cents a yard
51. Eggs: 40 cents a dozen
52. Fresh pork: 13 cents a pound
53. Granulated sugar: 11 cents a pound
54. Lard: 15 cents a pound
55. Men’s heavy boots: $3.19 a pair
56. Milk: Six cents a quart
57. Mutton chops: 18 cents a pound
58. New Orleans molasses: 67 cents a gallon
59. Potatoes: $1.26 a bushel
60. Puerto Rico molasses: 63 cents a gallon
61. Rice: 10 cents a pound
62. Roasted coffee: 29 cents a pound
63. Roasting beef: 17 cents a pound
64. Rye flour: Five cents a pound
65. Salted pork: 13 cents a pound
66. Smoked ham: 15 cents a pound
67. Soup beef: Six cents a pound
68. Starch: Nine cents a pound
69. Syrup: 77 cents a gallon
70. Wheat flour: $8.57 a barrel

References:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1882_in_the_United_States
2. https://www.officialdata.org/us/inflation/1882
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:American_companies_established_in_1882
4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1882_in_literature
5. https://www.famousbirthdays.com/year/1882.html
6. https://www.famousbirthdays.com/deceased/1882.html
7. https://www.merriam-webster.com/time-traveler/1882
8. https://www.foodreference.com/html/html/food-history-1880.html
9. https://www.history.com/a-year-in-history/1882
10. https://www.onthisday.com/events/date/1882

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