TIMELINER

History's most surprising connections

Who Was Alive in 1854

40 of 328 historical figures were alive in 1854

Jacob Grimm
Jacob GrimmAge 69
1785–1863 · Literature
Grimm's Fairy Tales
Michael Faraday
Michael FaradayAge 63
1791–1867 · Science & Invention
Electromagnetic induction
Charles Babbage
Charles BabbageAge 63
1791–1871 · Science & Invention
Father of the computer, designed the Analytical Engine
Victor Hugo
Victor HugoAge 52
1802–1885 · Literature
Les Misérables, The Hunchback of Notre-Dame
Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian AndersenAge 49
1805–1875 · Literature
The Little Mermaid, fairy tales
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham LincolnAge 45
1809–1865 · Politics & Leadership
16th US President, ended slavery
Charles Darwin
Charles DarwinAge 45
1809–1882 · Science & Invention
Theory of evolution by natural selection
Charles Dickens
Charles DickensAge 42
1812–1870 · Literature
A Tale of Two Cities, Oliver Twist
Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe VerdiAge 41
1813–1901 · Music
La Traviata, Aida — operatic master
Richard Wagner
Richard WagnerAge 41
1813–1883 · Music
Ring Cycle, revolutionary opera
Otto von Bismarck
Otto von BismarckAge 39
1815–1898 · Politics & Leadership
Unified Germany, the Iron Chancellor
Frederick Douglass
Frederick DouglassAge 36
1818–1895 · Activism & Social Change
Abolitionist, orator, writer
Karl Marx
Karl MarxAge 36
1818–1883 · Philosophy & Thought
Das Kapital, Communist Manifesto
Herman Melville
Herman MelvilleAge 35
1819–1891 · Literature
Moby-Dick
Queen Victoria
Queen VictoriaAge 35
1819–1901 · Politics & Leadership
Longest-reigning British monarch of her era
Walt Whitman
Walt WhitmanAge 35
1819–1892 · Literature
Leaves of Grass, father of free verse
Susan B. Anthony
Susan B. AnthonyAge 34
1820–1906 · Activism & Social Change
Women's suffrage pioneer
Florence Nightingale
Florence NightingaleAge 34
1820–1910 · Activism & Social Change
Founder of modern nursing
Fyodor Dostoevsky
Fyodor DostoevskyAge 33
1821–1881 · Literature
Crime and Punishment, The Brothers Karamazov
Harriet Tubman
Harriet TubmanAge 32
1822–1913 · Activism & Social Change
Underground Railroad conductor
Louis Pasteur
Louis PasteurAge 32
1822–1895 · Science & Invention
Germ theory, pasteurization
Gregor Mendel
Gregor MendelAge 32
1822–1884 · Science & Invention
Father of genetics
Jules Verne
Jules VerneAge 26
1828–1905 · Literature
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Leo Tolstoy
Leo TolstoyAge 26
1828–1910 · Literature
War and Peace, Anna Karenina
Emily Dickinson
Emily DickinsonAge 24
1830–1886 · Literature
Reclusive poetic genius
Sitting Bull
Sitting BullAge 23
1831–1890 · Politics & Leadership
Lakota leader who defeated Custer at Little Bighorn
Alfred Nobel
Alfred NobelAge 21
1833–1896 · Science & Invention
Invented dynamite, founded Nobel Prizes
Dmitri Mendeleev
Dmitri MendeleevAge 20
1834–1907 · Science & Invention
Created the periodic table of elements
Mark Twain
Mark TwainAge 19
1835–1910 · Literature
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew CarnegieAge 19
1835–1919 · Business & Industry
Steel magnate, philanthropist
John D. Rockefeller
John D. RockefellerAge 15
1839–1937 · Business & Industry
Oil tycoon, richest American ever
Claude Monet
Claude MonetAge 14
1840–1926 · Art
Water Lilies, father of Impressionism
Pyotr Tchaikovsky
Pyotr TchaikovskyAge 14
1840–1893 · Music
Swan Lake, The Nutcracker
Pierre-Auguste Renoir
Pierre-Auguste RenoirAge 13
1841–1919 · Art
Impressionist painter of joyful scenes
Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich NietzscheAge 10
1844–1900 · Philosophy & Thought
"God is dead," Beyond Good and Evil
Thomas Edison
Thomas EdisonAge 7
1847–1931 · Science & Invention
Light bulb, phonograph, 1000+ patents
Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham BellAge 7
1847–1922 · Science & Invention
Invented the telephone
Antoni Gaudí
Antoni GaudíAge 2
1852–1926 · Art
Sagrada Família architect
Vincent van Gogh
Vincent van GoghAge 1
1853–1890 · Art
Starry Night, post-Impressionist icon
Oscar Wilde
Oscar WildeAge 0
1854–1900 · Literature
The Picture of Dorian Gray, wit and charm
← 1853 1855 →