Birthdays
Isaac Cook
Turns 48 on this date
David G. Eshleman
Turns 45 on this date
Reuben Eaton Fenton
Turns 42 on this date
Stephen Foster
Turns 35 on this date
Daniel Chevilette Govan
Turns 32 on this date
Nathaniel Hawthorne
Turns 57 on this date
George Latimer
Turns 42 on this date
William Porcher Miles
Turns 39 on this date
James Johnston Pettigrew
Turns 33 on this date
Events
| Education/Culture | Britain's National Rifle Association holds its annual Shooting Competition on Wimbledon Common | 07/04/1861 |
| Lawmaking/Litigating | The 37th Congress opens in Washington, DC | 07/04/1861 |
| Science/Technology | The Great Comet of 1861 visible to the naked eye over North America and Europe |
06/30/1861 to 08/15/1861 |
Documents
| Executive record | Abraham Lincoln, Message to the Congress in Special Session, July 4, 1861 | 07/04/1861 |
| Newspaper | Boston (MA) Advertiser, “The Attacks Upon General Scott,” July 4, 1861 | 07/04/1861 |
| Diary | Entry by Kate Stone, July 4, 1861 | 07/04/1861 |
| Letter | James Colwell to Ann Colwell, July 4, 1861 | 07/04/1861 |