1870s Facts for Kids

Millennium:	2nd millennium
Centuries:	18th century – 19th century – 20th century
Decades:	1840s 1850s 1860s – 1870s – 1880s 1890s 1900s
Years:	1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879
Categories:	Births – Deaths – Architecture Establishments – Disestablishments

Events

The invention of the telephone (1876) by Alexander Graham Bell.
The light bulb was invented.
The phonograph is invented in 1877 by Thomas Edison.
Ludwig Boltzmann's statistical definition of thermodynamic entropy
Franco-Prussian War (1870–1871) results in the collapse of the Second French Empire and in the formation of both the French Third Republic and the German Empire
Continuing expansion of the British Empire; beginning of the New Imperialism
Bulgaria and Romania declare independence following the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)
In the United States, continuation of post-Civil War reconstruction until its conclusion under President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1877

From left to right, clockwise: Conflict erupts between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia leading to the Franco-Prussian War in 1870; a fire in Chicago kills approximately 300 people and leaves about another 100,000 people homeless in 1871; Claude Monet's Impression, Sunrise is recognized as the source of inspiration for the Impressionist movement; The U.S. Army is defeated by Arapaho, Lakota and Northern Cheyenne tribes during the Battle of the Little Bighorn in 1876; Nicolaus Otto patents the first commercial four-stroke internal combustion engine; Queen Victoria is recognized as the “Empress of India” in the Royal Titles Act 1876; Emirate of Afghanistan forces defend against British Raj invaders in the Second Anglo-Afghan War; British Empire and Zulu Kingdom fighters engage in combat during the Anglo-Zulu War.
Franco-Prussian War
Photograph of Edison with his phonograph, taken by Mathew Brady in 1877
The first version of the light bulb was invented by Thomas Edison in 1879