Birthdays
John Minor Botts
Turns 57 on this date
Waldo Porter Johnson
Turns 42 on this date
George Washington Lee
Turns 27 on this date
Samuel Preston Moore
Turns 46 on this date
Samuel Wesley Scrivener
Turns 35 on this date
Benjamin Franklin Stringfellow
Turns 43 on this date
Cornelius Van Cleef
Turns 60 on this date
Elijah Ward
Turns 43 on this date
David Flavell Woods
Turns 22 on this date
Events
| Crime/Disasters | California Senator David Broderick dies of a wound received in a duel three days earlier over slavery in the state | 09/16/1859 |
| Science/Technology | David Livingstone discovers Lake Nyasa in central Africa | 09/16/1859 |
| Business/Industry | National Agricultural Fair in Chicago, Illinois |
09/12/1859 to 09/17/1859 |
Documents
| Speech | Abraham Lincoln, Speech at Columbus, Ohio, September 16, 1859 | 09/16/1859 |
| Newspaper | Chicago (IL) Press and Tribune, “Greeley as an Orator,” September 16, 1859 | 09/16/1859 |