May 15th All Events |
Read about how to open files in Open File Database. |
| May 15th, 2008 (May 15 2008) | Event | California becomes the second U.S. state after Massachusetts in 2004 to legalize same-sex marriage after the state s own Supreme Court rules a previous ban unconstitutional. | |
| May 15th, 2008 (May 15 2008) | Death | Alexander Courage, composer of original Star Trek theme (born in 1919) | |
| May 15th, 2008 (May 15 2008) | Death | Tommy Burns, Scottish footballer (born in 1956) | |
| May 15th, 2008 (May 15 2008) | Death | Robert Dunlop, Northern Irish motorcycle racer, younger brother of Joey Dunlop (born in 1960) | |
| May 15th, 2007 (May 15 2007) | Death | Jerry Falwell, American evangelist (born in 1933) | |
| May 15th, 2007 (May 15 2007) | Death | Yolanda King, American actress and activist, daughter of Martin Luther King, Jr. (born in 1955) | Martin Luther Quotes |
| May 15th, 2005 (May 15 2005) | Death | Alan B. Gold, Quebec Chief Justice (born in 1917) | |
| May 15th, 2003 (May 15 2003) | Death | June Carter Cash, American musician and singer (born in 1929) | |
| May 15th, 2003 (May 15 2003) | Death | George Francis, British gangster (born in 1940) | |
| May 15th, 1998 (May 15 1998) | Death | Earl Manigault, American basketball player (born in 1944) | |
| May 15th, 1997 (May 15 1997) | Event | The United States government acknowledges the existence of the "Secret War" in Laos and dedicates the Laos Memorial in honor of Hmong and other "Secret War" veterans. | |
| May 15th, 1996 (May 15 1996) | Death | Charles B. Fulton, American jurist (born in 1910) | |
| May 15th, 1995 (May 15 1995) | Birth | Ksenia Sitnik, Belarusian singer | |
| May 15th, 1995 (May 15 1995) | Death | Eric Porter, British actor (born in 1928) | |
| May 15th, 1994 (May 15 1994) | Death | Gilbert Roland, Mexican actor (born in 1905) | |
| May 15th, 1993 (May 15 1993) | Death | Salah Ahmed Ibrahim, Sudanese writer, poet, and diplomat (born in 1933) | |
| May 15th, 1992 (May 15 1992) | Death | Jovy Marcelo, Filipino race car driver (born in 1965) | |
| May 15th, 1991 (May 15 1991) | Event | Edith Cresson becomes France s first female prime minister. | |
| May 15th, 1991 (May 15 1991) | Death | Andreas Floer, German mathematician (born in 1956) | |
| May 15th, 1991 (May 15 1991) | Death | Ronald Lacey, English actor (born in 1935) | |
| May 15th, 1990 (May 15 1990) | Event | Portrait of Doctor Gachet by Vincent van Gogh is sold for a record $82.5 million, the most expensive painting at the time. | Vincent Van Gogh Quotes |
| May 15th, 1990 (May 15 1990) | Birth | Joe Mattock, English football player | |
| May 15th, 1989 (May 15 1989) | Death | Johnny Green, American songwriter (born in 1908) | |
| May 15th, 1988 (May 15 1988) | Event | Soviet war in Afghanistan: After more than eight years of fighting, the Red Army begins its withdrawal from Afghanistan. | |
| May 15th, 1987 (May 15 1987) | Event | The Soviet Union launches the Polyus prototype orbital weapons platform. It fails to reach orbit. | |
| May 15th, 1987 (May 15 1987) | Birth | Ersan Ilyasova, Turkish basketball player | |
| May 15th, 1987 (May 15 1987) | Birth | Jennylyn Mercado, Filipina actress and singer | |
| May 15th, 1987 (May 15 1987) | Birth | Andrew "Andy" Murray, Scottish tennis player | |
| May 15th, 1986 (May 15 1986) | Birth | Matias Fernandez, Chilean footballer | |
| May 15th, 1986 (May 15 1986) | Birth | Adam Moffat, Scottish football player | |
| May 15th, 1986 (May 15 1986) | Death | Theodore White, American writer (born in 1915) | |
| May 15th, 1986 (May 15 1986) | Death | Elio de Angelis, Italian race car driver (born in 1958) | |
| May 15th, 1985 (May 15 1985) | Birth | Cristiane, Brazilian footballer | |
| May 15th, 1984 (May 15 1984) | Birth | Sergio Jimenez, Brazilian racing driver | |
| May 15th, 1984 (May 15 1984) | Death | Francis Schaeffer, American theologian, philosopher, and pastor (born in 1912) | Philo Quotes |
| May 15th, 1983 (May 15 1983) | Birth | Devin Bronson, American guitarist (Avril Lavigne) | Avril Lavigne Quotes |
| May 15th, 1982 (May 15 1982) | Birth | Alex Breckenridge, American actress | |
| May 15th, 1982 (May 15 1982) | Birth | Veronica Campbell, Jamaican athlete | |
| May 15th, 1982 (May 15 1982) | Birth | Segundo Castillo, Ecuadorian footballer | |
| May 15th, 1982 (May 15 1982) | Birth | Tatsuya Fujiwara, Japanese actor | |
| May 15th, 1982 (May 15 1982) | Birth | Jessica Sutta, American dancer, singer and actress (The Pussycat Dolls) | |
| May 15th, 1982 (May 15 1982) | Death | Gordon Smiley, American race car driver (born in 1946) | |
| May 15th, 1981 (May 15 1981) | Birth | Patrice Evra, French-Senegalese footballer | |
| May 15th, 1981 (May 15 1981) | Birth | Justin Morneau, Canadian baseball player | |
| May 15th, 1981 (May 15 1981) | Birth | Zara Phillips, British royal and eventer | |
| May 15th, 1981 (May 15 1981) | Birth | Jamie-Lynn Sigler, American actress | |
| May 15th, 1980 (May 15 1980) | Birth | Josh Beckett, American baseball player | |
| May 15th, 1980 (May 15 1980) | Birth | Rocky Marquette, American actor | |
| May 15th, 1978 (May 15 1978) | Birth | Amy Chow, American gymnast | |
| May 15th, 1978 (May 15 1978) | Birth | Dwayne DeRosario, Canadian footballer | |
| May 15th, 1978 (May 15 1978) | Birth | Caroline Dhavernas, Canadian actress | Caroline Dhavernas Quotes |
| May 15th, 1978 (May 15 1978) | Birth | Edu, Brazilian footballer | |
| May 15th, 1978 (May 15 1978) | Birth | David Krumholtz, American actor | |
| May 15th, 1978 (May 15 1978) | Birth | Krissy Taylor, American model (died in 1995) | |
| May 15th, 1978 (May 15 1978) | Death | Sir Robert Menzies, twelfth Prime Minister of Australia (born in 1894) | |
| May 15th, 1976 (May 15 1976) | Birth | Adolfo Bautista, Mexican footballer | |
| May 15th, 1976 (May 15 1976) | Birth | Torraye Braggs, American basketball player | |
| May 15th, 1976 (May 15 1976) | Birth | Jacek Krzynowek, Polish footballer | |
| May 15th, 1976 (May 15 1976) | Birth | Ryan Leaf, American football player | |
| May 15th, 1976 (May 15 1976) | Birth | Tyler Walker, baseball player | |
| May 15th, 1975 (May 15 1975) | Birth | Ray Lewis, American football player | |
| May 15th, 1974 (May 15 1974) | Birth | Vassilis Kikilias, Greek basketball player | |
| May 15th, 1974 (May 15 1974) | Birth | Ahmet Zappa, American musician | |
| May 15th, 1973 (May 15 1973) | Birth | Pedro Reyes, Mexican engineer | |
| May 15th, 1972 (May 15 1972) | Event | The island of Okinawa, under U.S. military governance since its conquest in 1945, reverts to Japanese control. | |
| May 15th, 1972 (May 15 1972) | Event | In Laurel, Maryland, Arthur Bremer shoots and paralyzes Alabama Governor George Wallace while he is campaigning to be become President. | |
| May 15th, 1972 (May 15 1972) | Birth | David Charvet, French actor | |
| May 15th, 1971 (May 15 1971) | Birth | Phil Pfister, American strength athlete | |
| May 15th, 1971 (May 15 1971) | Death | Tyrone Guthrie, English director, producer, and writer (born in 1900) | |
| May 15th, 1970 (May 15 1970) | Event | President Richard Nixon appoints Anna Mae Hays and Elizabeth P. Hoisington the first female United States Army Generals. | |
| May 15th, 1970 (May 15 1970) | Event | Philip Lafayette Gibbs and James Earl Green are killed at Jackson State University by police during student protests. | |
| May 15th, 1970 (May 15 1970) | Birth | Martin Rossiter, Welsh Musician | |
| May 15th, 1970 (May 15 1970) | Birth | Frank de Boer, Dutch football player | |
| May 15th, 1970 (May 15 1970) | Birth | Ronald de Boer, Dutch football player | |
| May 15th, 1970 (May 15 1970) | Birth | Desmond Howard, American football player | |
| May 15th, 1970 (May 15 1970) | Birth | Rod Smith, American football player | |
| May 15th, 1969 (May 15 1969) | Birth | Hideki Irabu, Japanese baseball player | |
| May 15th, 1969 (May 15 1969) | Birth | Emmitt Smith, American football player | |
| May 15th, 1969 (May 15 1969) | Birth | Asalah Nasri, Syrian singer | |
| May 15th, 1968 (May 15 1968) | Birth | Cecilia Malmstrom, Swedish politician | |
| May 15th, 1968 (May 15 1968) | Birth | Seth Putnam, American musician | |
| May 15th, 1967 (May 15 1967) | Birth | Madhuri Dixit, Indian actress | |
| May 15th, 1967 (May 15 1967) | Birth | John Smoltz, baseball player | |
| May 15th, 1967 (May 15 1967) | Death | Edward Hopper, American painter (born in 1882) | Edward Hopper Quotes |
| May 15th, 1966 (May 15 1966) | Birth | Pete Wiggs, English musician (Saint Etienne) | |
| May 15th, 1965 (May 15 1965) | Birth | Rai, Brazilian footballer | |
| May 15th, 1964 (May 15 1964) | Death | Vladko Macek, Kingdom of Yugoslavia deputy prime minister (born in 1879) | |
| May 15th, 1963 (May 15 1963) | Event | Project Mercury: The launch of the final Mercury mission, Mercury-Atlas 9 with astronaut L. Gordon Cooper on boardied in He becomes the first American to spend more than a day in space. | |
| May 15th, 1961 (May 15 1961) | Birth | Katrin Cartlidge, British actress (died in 2002) | |
| May 15th, 1961 (May 15 1961) | Birth | Melle Mel, American musician | |
| May 15th, 1960 (May 15 1960) | Event | The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 4. | |
| May 15th, 1960 (May 15 1960) | Birth | Rob Bowman, American film director | |
| May 15th, 1959 (May 15 1959) | Birth | Andrew Eldritch, English singer and songwriter (The Sisters of Mercy) | |
| May 15th, 1959 (May 15 1959) | Birth | Kaokor Galaxy, Thai boxer | |
| May 15th, 1959 (May 15 1959) | Birth | Luis Perez-Sala, Spanish racing driver | |
| May 15th, 1958 (May 15 1958) | Event | The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 3. | |
| May 15th, 1958 (May 15 1958) | Birth | Ron Simmons, American professional wrestler | |
| May 15th, 1957 (May 15 1957) | Event | At Malden Island in the Pacific, Britain tests its first hydrogen bomb in Operation Grapple. The device fails to detonate properly. | |
| May 15th, 1957 (May 15 1957) | Birth | Juan Jose Ibarretxe, Basque Lehendakari (Prime Minister) | |
| May 15th, 1957 (May 15 1957) | Birth | Kevin Von Erich, American professional wrestler | |
| May 15th, 1956 (May 15 1956) | Birth | Dan Patrick, American sportscaster | |
| May 15th, 1956 (May 15 1956) | Death | Austin Osman Spare, English magician (born in 1886) | |
| May 15th, 1955 (May 15 1955) | Event | The Austrian Independence Treaty is signed. | |
| May 15th, 1955 (May 15 1955) | Event | The first ascent of Makalu, the world s fifth highest mountain. | |
| May 15th, 1955 (May 15 1955) | Birth | Lee Horsley, American actor | |
| May 15th, 1954 (May 15 1954) | Birth | Robert P. Harrison, American thinker | |
| May 15th, 1954 (May 15 1954) | Death | William March, American writer (born in 1893) | William March Quotes |
| May 15th, 1953 (May 15 1953) | Birth | George Brett, American baseball player | |
| May 15th, 1953 (May 15 1953) | Birth | Mike Oldfield, English composer | |
| May 15th, 1952 (May 15 1952) | Birth | Chazz Palminteri, American actor, writer and director | |
| May 15th, 1951 (May 15 1951) | Event | The Polish cultural attache in Paris, Czeslaw Milosz, asks the French government for political asylum. | |
| May 15th, 1951 (May 15 1951) | Birth | Frank Wilczek, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate | |
| May 15th, 1950 (May 15 1950) | Birth | Nicholas Hammond, American actor | |
| May 15th, 1948 (May 15 1948) | Event | Egypt, Transjordan, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia attack Israel. | |
| May 15th, 1948 (May 15 1948) | Birth | Brian Eno, English musician and record producer | |
| May 15th, 1948 (May 15 1948) | Birth | Kathleen Sebelius, American politician, governor of Kansas | |
| May 15th, 1948 (May 15 1948) | Birth | Yutaka Enatsu, Japanese professional baseball pitcher | |
| May 15th, 1948 (May 15 1948) | Death | Edward Flanagan, American priest and founder of Boys Town (born in 1886) | |
| May 15th, 1947 (May 15 1947) | Birth | Graeham Goble, Australian musician, singer/songwriter, and record producer (co-founding member of Little River Band) | |
| May 15th, 1945 (May 15 1945) | Event | World War II: The final skirmish in Europe is fought near Prevalje, Slovenia. | |
| May 15th, 1945 (May 15 1945) | Birth | Lasse Berghagen, Swedish singer | |
| May 15th, 1945 (May 15 1945) | Birth | Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza, heir to the Portuguese crown | |
| May 15th, 1945 (May 15 1945) | Death | Charles Williams, UK writer (born in 1886) | |
| May 15th, 1944 (May 15 1944) | Birth | Ulrich Beck, German sociologist | |
| May 15th, 1944 (May 15 1944) | Birth | Bill Alter, Missouri State Senator | |
| May 15th, 1943 (May 15 1943) | Event | Joseph Stalin dissolves the Comintern (or Third International). | Joseph Stalin Quotes |
| May 15th, 1942 (May 15 1942) | Event | World War II: in the United States, a bill creating the Women s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) is signed into law. | |
| May 15th, 1942 (May 15 1942) | Birth | Jusuf Kalla, vice- president of Indonesia and Chairman of the Golkar Party. | |
| May 15th, 1942 (May 15 1942) | Birth | Doug Lowe, 35th Premier of Tasmania | |
| May 15th, 1941 (May 15 1941) | Event | Baseball player Joe DiMaggio of the New York Yankees starts his record-breaking 56-game hitting streak. | |
| May 15th, 1941 (May 15 1941) | Birth | K.T. Oslin, American musician | |
| May 15th, 1940 (May 15 1940) | Event | World War II: After fierce fighting, the poorly trained and equipped Dutch troops surrender to Germany, marking the beginning of five years of occupation. | |
| May 15th, 1940 (May 15 1940) | Event | McDonald s opens its first restaurant in San Bernardino, California. | |
| May 15th, 1940 (May 15 1940) | Birth | Lainie Kazan, American actress and singer | |
| May 15th, 1940 (May 15 1940) | Birth | Don Nelson, American basketball coach, currently of the Golden State Warriors | |
| May 15th, 1940 (May 15 1940) | Death | Menno ter Braak, Dutch author and polemicist (born in 1902) | |
| May 15th, 1939 (May 15 1939) | Birth | Dorothy Shirley, British athlete | |
| May 15th, 1938 (May 15 1938) | Birth | Mireille Darc, French actress | |
| May 15th, 1938 (May 15 1938) | Birth | Lenny Welch, American singer | |
| May 15th, 1937 (May 15 1937) | Birth | Madeleine Albright, U.S. Secretary of State | |
| May 15th, 1937 (May 15 1937) | Birth | Trini Lopez, American musician | |
| May 15th, 1937 (May 15 1937) | Death | Phillip Snowden, British politician (born in 1864) | |
| May 15th, 1936 (May 15 1936) | Event | Amy Johnson arrives back in England after a record-breaking return flight to Cape Town | |
| May 15th, 1936 (May 15 1936) | Birth | Anna Maria Alberghetti, Italian-born actress | |
| May 15th, 1936 (May 15 1936) | Birth | Wavy Gravy, American clown and activist | |
| May 15th, 1936 (May 15 1936) | Birth | Ralph Steadman, British cartoonist | |
| May 15th, 1936 (May 15 1936) | Birth | Paul Zindel, American writer (died in 2003) | |
| May 15th, 1935 (May 15 1935) | Event | The Moscow Metro is opened to public. | |
| May 15th, 1935 (May 15 1935) | Birth | Utah Phillips, American labor organizer and folk singer | |
| May 15th, 1935 (May 15 1935) | Death | Kazimir Malevich, Polish/Ukrainian artist (born in 1878) | |
| May 15th, 1934 (May 15 1934) | Event | Karlis Ulmanis establishes an authoritarian government in Latvia. | |
| May 15th, 1932 (May 15 1932) | Event | The May 15 Incident: in an attempted Coup d etat, the Prime Minister of Japan Inukai Tsuyoshi is killed. | |
| May 15th, 1931 (May 15 1931) | Birth | Ken Venturi, American golfer | Ken Venturi Quotes |
| May 15th, 1930 (May 15 1930) | Birth | Jasper Johns, American painter | |
| May 15th, 1929 (May 15 1929) | Event | A fire at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio kills 123. | |
| May 15th, 1926 (May 15 1926) | Birth | Anthony Shaffer, English playwright (died in 2001) | |
| May 15th, 1926 (May 15 1926) | Birth | Peter Shaffer, English playwright | Peter Shaffer Quotes |
| May 15th, 1924 (May 15 1924) | Birth | Maria Koepcke, ornithologist (died in 1971) | |
| May 15th, 1924 (May 15 1924) | Death | Paul-Henri-Benjamin d Estournelles de Constant, French diplomat, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (born in 1852) | |
| May 15th, 1923 (May 15 1923) | Birth | Richard Avedon, American photographer (died in 2004) | |
| May 15th, 1923 (May 15 1923) | Birth | John Lanchbery, English composer (died in 2003) | |
| May 15th, 1923 (May 15 1923) | Birth | Johnny Walker, Indian actor (died in 2003) | |
| May 15th, 1922 (May 15 1922) | Birth | Jakucho Setouchi, Japanese writer and Buddhist nun | |
| May 15th, 1920 (May 15 1920) | Event | Council of Lithuania adjourns as the newly elected Constituent Assembly of Lithuania meets for the first time in Kaunas. | |
| May 15th, 1919 (May 15 1919) | Event | The Winnipeg General Strike begins. By 11:00 a.m., almost the whole working population of Winnipeg, Manitoba had walked off the job. | |
| May 15th, 1919 (May 15 1919) | Event | Greek invasion of Izmir. During the invasion, the Greek army kills or wounds 350 Turks. The responsible are punished by the Greek Commander Aristides Stergiades. Hasan Tahsin fires the first shot of the Turkish War of Independence. | |
| May 15th, 1918 (May 15 1918) | Event | The Finnish Civil War ends. | |
| May 15th, 1918 (May 15 1918) | Birth | Eddy Arnold, American country music singer (died in 2008) | |
| May 15th, 1918 (May 15 1918) | Birth | Joseph Wiseman, Canadian actor | |
| May 15th, 1915 (May 15 1915) | Birth | Hilda Bernstein, English-born South African author, artist, and activist (died in 2006) | |
| May 15th, 1915 (May 15 1915) | Birth | Mario Monicelli, Italian director and screenwriter | |
| May 15th, 1915 (May 15 1915) | Birth | Paul Samuelson, American economist, Nobel Prize laureate | |
| May 15th, 1915 (May 15 1915) | Birth | Gus Viseur, French button accordionist (died in 1974) | |
| May 15th, 1914 (May 15 1914) | Event | Bolivia becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty. | |
| May 15th, 1914 (May 15 1914) | Birth | Turk Broda, ice hockey goaltender (died in 1972) | |
| May 15th, 1914 (May 15 1914) | Birth | Tenzing Norgay, (adopted birthdate) Nepalese Sherpa who accompanied Edmund Hillary to the top of Mount Everest (died in 1986) | Edmund Hillary Quotes |
| May 15th, 1912 (May 15 1912) | Birth | Arthur Berger, American composer (died in 2003) | Ric Berger Quotes |
| May 15th, 1911 (May 15 1911) | Event | The United States Supreme Court declares Standard Oil to be an "unreasonable" monopoly under the Sherman Antitrust Act and orders the company to be broken up. | |
| May 15th, 1911 (May 15 1911) | Event | The Georgios Averof cruiser is bought by Greece. | |
| May 15th, 1911 (May 15 1911) | Birth | Max Frisch, Swiss author (died in 1991) | |
| May 15th, 1911 (May 15 1911) | Birth | Herta Oberheuser, Nazi doctor (died in 1978) | |
| May 15th, 1910 (May 15 1910) | Event | The last time a major earthquake happened on the Elsinore Fault Zone. | |
| May 15th, 1910 (May 15 1910) | Birth | Constance Cummings, British actress (died in 2005) | |
| May 15th, 1909 (May 15 1909) | Birth | James Mason, English actor (died in 1984) | |
| May 15th, 1907 (May 15 1907) | Birth | Sukhdev Thapar, Indian freedom fighter (died in 1931) | |
| May 15th, 1905 (May 15 1905) | Event | Las Vegas, Nevada, is founded when 110 acres (0.4 km?), in what later would become downtown, are auctioned off. | |
| May 15th, 1905 (May 15 1905) | Birth | Joseph Cotten, American actor (died in 1994) | |
| May 15th, 1903 (May 15 1903) | Birth | Maria Reiche, German-born mathematician and archaeologist (died in 1998) | |
| May 15th, 1902 (May 15 1902) | Birth | Richard J. Daley, Mayor of Chicago (died in 1976) | Richard J. Daley Quotes |
| May 15th, 1901 (May 15 1901) | Birth | Luis Monti, Argentine-Italian footballer (died in 1983) | |
| May 15th, 1899 (May 15 1899) | Birth | Jean-Etienne Valluy, French general (died in 1970) | |
| May 15th, 1898 (May 15 1898) | Birth | Arletty, French model and actress (died in 1992) | |
| May 15th, 1897 (May 15 1897) | Event | The Greek army retreats with heavy losses in the Greco-Turkish War. | |
| May 15th, 1895 (May 15 1895) | Birth | William D. Byron, U.S. Congressman (died in 1941) | |
| May 15th, 1892 (May 15 1892) | Birth | Jimmy Wilde, boxer (died in 1969) | |
| May 15th, 1891 (May 15 1891) | Event | Rerum Novarum, the first document of the Catholic Social Teaching tradition, is published by Pope Leo XIII. | |
| May 15th, 1891 (May 15 1891) | Birth | Mikhail Bulgakov, Russian writer (died in 1940) | Mikhail Bulgakov Quotes |
| May 15th, 1891 (May 15 1891) | Birth | Fritz Feigl, Austria-born chemist (died in 1971) | |
| May 15th, 1890 (May 15 1890) | Birth | Katherine Anne Porter, American author (died in 1980) | |
| May 15th, 1886 (May 15 1886) | Death | Emily Dickinson, American poet (born in 1830) | Emily Dickinson Quotes |
| May 15th, 1879 (May 15 1879) | Death | Gottfried Semper, German architect (born in 1803) | |
| May 15th, 1869 (May 15 1869) | Event | Woman s suffrage: in New York, Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton form the National Woman s Suffrage Association. | Susan B. Anthony Quotes |
| May 15th, 1864 (May 15 1864) | Event | American Civil War: Battle of Resaca, Georgia ends. | |
| May 15th, 1864 (May 15 1864) | Event | American Civil War: Battle of New Market, Virginia - students from the Virginia Military Institute fight alongside the Confederate Army to force Union General Franz Sigel out of the Shenandoah Valley. | |
| May 15th, 1862 (May 15 1862) | Event | President Abraham Lincoln signs a bill into law creating the United States Bureau of Agriculture. it is later renamed the United States Department of Agriculture. | Abraham Lincoln Quotes |
| May 15th, 1862 (May 15 1862) | Birth | Arthur Schnitzler, Austrian dramatist and narrator (died in 1931) | |
| May 15th, 1859 (May 15 1859) | Birth | Pierre Curie, French physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (died in 1906) | |
| May 15th, 1858 (May 15 1858) | Event | Opening of the present Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London. | |
| May 15th, 1857 (May 15 1857) | Birth | Williamina Fleming, Scottish-born astronomer (died in 1911) | |
| May 15th, 1856 (May 15 1856) | Birth | L. Frank Baum, American author (died in 1919) | L. Frank Baum Quotes |
| May 15th, 1851 (May 15 1851) | Event | Rama IV is crowned King of Thailand. | |
| May 15th, 1849 (May 15 1849) | Event | Troops of the Two Sicilies take Palermo and crush the republican government of Sicily. | |
| May 15th, 1848 (May 15 1848) | Birth | Viktor Vasnetsov, Russian painter (died in 1926) | |
| May 15th, 1836 (May 15 1836) | Event | Francis Baily observes "Baily s beads" during an annular eclipse. | |
| May 15th, 1817 (May 15 1817) | Event | Opening of the first private mental health hospital in the United States, the Asylum for the Relief of Persons Deprived of the Use of Their Reason (now Friends Hospital) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. | |
| May 15th, 1817 (May 15 1817) | Birth | Debendranath Tagore, Indian religious reformer (died in 1905) | |
| May 15th, 1811 (May 15 1811) | Event | Paraguay declares independence from Spain. | |
| May 15th, 1800 (May 15 1800) | Event | George III survives two assassination attempts in one day. | |
| May 15th, 1796 (May 15 1796) | Event | First Coalition: Napoleon enters Milan in triumph. | |
| May 15th, 1793 (May 15 1793) | Event | Diego Marin Aguilera flies a glider for "about 360 meters", at a height of 5-6 meters, during one of the first attempted flights. | |
| May 15th, 1792 (May 15 1792) | Event | War of the First Coalition: France declares war on Kingdom of Sardinia. | |
| May 15th, 1791 (May 15 1791) | Event | Maximilien Robespierre proposes the Self-denying Ordinance. | Maximilien Robespierre Quotes |
| May 15th, 1786 (May 15 1786) | Birth | General Dimitris Plapoutas, a Revolutionary in the Greek War of Independence (died in 1864) | |
| May 15th, 1782 (May 15 1782) | Death | Marquis of Pombal, Prime Minister of Portugal (born in 1699) | |
| May 15th, 1776 (May 15 1776) | Event | American Revolution: the Virginia Convention instructs its Continental Congress delegation to propose a resolution of independence from Great Britain, paving the way for the United States Declaration of Independence. | |
| May 15th, 1773 (May 15 1773) | Birth | Prince Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, Austrian statesman (died in 1859) | |
| May 15th, 1773 (May 15 1773) | Death | Alban Butler, English Catholic priest and writer (born in 1710) | |
| May 15th, 1760 (May 15 1760) | Death | Alaungpaya, King of Burma (born in 1711) | |
| May 15th, 1756 (May 15 1756) | Event | The Seven Years War begins when England declares war on France. | |
| May 15th, 1749 (May 15 1749) | Birth | Levi Lincoln, Sr., American revolutionary, statesman, politician, and acting Governor of Massachusetts (died in 1820) | |
| May 15th, 1740 (May 15 1740) | Death | Ephraim Chambers, English encyclopaedist (born in 1680) | |
| May 15th, 1720 (May 15 1720) | Birth | Maximilian Hell, Slovakian astronomer (died in 1792) | |
| May 15th, 1718 (May 15 1718) | Event | James Puckle, a London lawyer, patents the world s first machine gun. | |
| May 15th, 1714 (May 15 1714) | Death | Roger Elliott, British general and Governor of Gibraltar | |
| May 15th, 1701 (May 15 1701) | Event | The War of the Spanish Succession begins. | |
| May 15th, 1699 (May 15 1699) | Death | Edward Petre, English Jesuit and privy councilor (born in 1631) | |
| May 15th, 1698 (May 15 1698) | Death | Marie Champmesle, French actress (born in 1642) | |
| May 15th, 1634 (May 15 1634) | Death | Hendrick Avercamp, Dutch painter (born in 1585) | |
| May 15th, 1618 (May 15 1618) | Event | Johannes Kepler confirms his previously rejected discovery of the third law of planetary motion (he first discovered it on March 8 but soon rejected the idea after some initial calculations were made). | |
| May 15th, 1609 (May 15 1609) | Death | Giovanni Croce, Italian composer (born in 1557) | |
| May 15th, 1608 (May 15 1608) | Birth | Rene Goupil, French Catholic missionary (Canadian Martyrs) (died in 1642) | |
| May 15th, 1602 (May 15 1602) | Event | Bartholomew Gosnold becomes the first European to see Cape Cod. | |
| May 15th, 1591 (May 15 1591) | Death | Dmitry Ivanovich, Tsarevich (born in 1582) | |
| May 15th, 1585 (May 15 1585) | Death | Niwa Nagahide, Japanese warlord (born in 1535) | |
| May 15th, 1567 (May 15 1567) | Event | Mary Queen of Scots marries James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell, her third husband. | |
| May 15th, 1567 (May 15 1567) | Birth | (baptism) Claudio Monteverdi, Italian composer (died in 1643) | |
| May 15th, 1525 (May 15 1525) | Event | The battle of Frankenhausen ends the Peasants War. | |
| May 15th, 1514 (May 15 1514) | Event | Jodocus Badius Ascensius publishes Christiern Pedersen s Latin version of Saxo s Gesta Danorum, the oldest known version of that work. | |
| May 15th, 1470 (May 15 1470) | Death | Charles VIII of Sweden (born in 1409) | |
| May 15th, 1381 (May 15 1381) | Death | Eppelein von Gailingen, German robber baron | |
| May 15th, 1252 (May 15 1252) | Event | Pope Innocent IV issues the papal bull ad exstirpanda, which authorizes, but also limits, the torture of heretics in the Medieval Inquisition. | |
| May 15th, 1174 (May 15 1174) | Death | Nur ad-Din, ruler of Syria (born in 1118) | |
| May 15th, 1157 (May 15 1157) | Death | Yury Dolgoruky, Russian prince | |
| May 15th, 1036 (May 15 1036) | Death | Emperor Go-Ichijo of Japan (born in 1008) | |
| May 15th, 0913 (May 15 0913) | Death | Hatto I, Archbishop of Mainz | |
