Historical Events
- Aug 1 San Francisco Methodists establish 1st black church, Zion Methodist
- Aug 3 America's first intercollegiate sporting event takes place as the Harvard heavyweight rowing crew beats Yale by 2 lengths over 2 miles on Lake Winnipesaukee, New Hampshire
- Aug 13 Steamer "Atlantic" crossing Lake Erie from Buffalo to Detroit collides with a fishing boat, sinks with 250 aboard
- Aug 21 Tlingit Indians destroy Fort Selkirk, Yukon Territory.
Famous Birthdays
- Aug 8 Barend Barendse, Dutch actor and director (Heilig recht), born in Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands (d. 1935)
- Aug 12 Fr. Michael J. McGivney, Irish-American Catholic priest, and founder the Knights of Columbus fraternal organization, born in Waterbury, Connecticut (d. 1890)
- Aug 21 Benedetto Junck, Italian composer, born in Turin, Italy (d. 1903)
- Aug 22 Alfredo Oriani, Italian writer (Political Struggle in Italy), born in Faenza, Italy (d. 1909)
- Aug 23 Arnold Toynbee, English economic historian and social reformer, born in London (d. 1883)
- Aug 23 Clímaco Calderón, President of Colombia for one day in 1882, born in Santa Rosa de Viterbo, Colombia (d. 1913)
- Aug 30 Jacobus Henricus van't Hoff, Dutch physical chemist (Nobel 1901), born in Rotterdam, Netherlands (d. 1911)
- Aug 31 Joris Helleputte, Belgian Catholic minister, born in Ghent, Belgium (d. 1925)
Famous Deaths
- Aug 5 František Ladislav Čelakovský, Czech linguist, poet (national anthem, folk song), and Slavist, dies at 53
- Aug 11 Nicolaas Plomp, Dutch architect (Strugle), dies at 70
- Aug 14 Margaret Taylor, wife of Zachary Taylor and 1st lady of the United States (1849-50), dies at 63
- Aug 15 Johan Gadolin, Finnish chemist (discovered yttrium), dies at 92
Greatest Generation
Silent Generation
Baby Boomer
Generation X
Millennial
Generation Z