Historical Events
- May 1 Spanish Catholic missionaries establish Mission San Antonio de Valero (now known as Alamo), the fist of several settlements in what is now San Antonio, Texas
- May 7 The city of New Orleans is founded by French explorer Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville
- May 15 James Puckle, a London lawyer, patents world's 1st machine gun
Famous Birthdays
- May 16 Maria Gaetana Agnesi, Italian mathematician (d. 1799)
- May 17 Robert Darcy, 4th Earl of Holderness, English diplomat and politician (d. 1778)
- May 23 William Hunter, Scottish anatomist and physician, born in East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire, Scotland (d. 1783)
- May 30 Wills Hill, 1st Marquess of Downshire, British politician, born in Fairford, Gloucestershire (d. 1793)
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