Events from the year 1899 in the United States.
Incumbents
Federal government
President: William McKinley (R-Ohio) Vice President: Garret Hobart (R-New Jersey) (until November 21), vacant (starting November 21) Chief Justice: Melville Fuller (Illinois) Speaker of the House of Representatives: Thomas Brackett Reed (R-Maine) (until March 4), David B. Henderson (R-Iowa) (starting December 4) Congress: 55th (until March 4), 56th (starting March 4)
Events
January
January 1 – Queens and Staten Island merge with New York City. January 10 – The Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity is founded at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, Illinois. January 17 – The United States takes possession of Wake Island.
February
February 4 – The Philippine–American War begins as hostilities break out in Manila. February 6 – Spanish–American War: A peace treaty between the United States and Spain is ratified by the United States Senate. February 10 – Spanish–American War: The U.S. receives the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico as a result of the Treaty of Paris. February 12–14 – Great Blizzard of 1899: Freezing temperatures and snow extend well south into North America, including southern Florida. It is the latest in a series of disasters to Florida's citrus industry. February 14 – Voting machines are approved by the U.S. Congress for use in federal elections.
March
March 2 – In Washington state, Mount Rainier National Park is established. March 24 – George Dewey is made Admiral of the Navy.
April
April 13 – Tahoe National Forest is established in California. April 15 – Students at the University of California, Berkeley steal the Stanford Axe from Stanford University yell leaders following a baseball game, thus establishing the Axe as a symbol of the rivalry between the schools.
May
May 31 – The launch of the Harriman Alaska Expedition.
June
June 7 – Temperance movement crusader Carrie Nation enters a saloon in Kiowa, Kansas, and proceeds to destroy all the alcoholic beverages with rocks. June 12 – New Richmond Tornado: A tornado completely destroys the town of New Richmond, Wisconsin, killing 117 people and injuring more than 200. June 25 – Three Denver, Colorado newspapers publish a story (later proved to be a fabrication) that the Chinese government under the Guangxu Emperor is going to demolish the Great Wall of China. June 30 – Mile-a-Minute Murphy earns his famous nickname this day, after he becomes the first man to ride a bicycle for one mile in under a minute on Long Island.
July
July 17 – America's first juvenile court is established in Chicago. July 19 – The Newsboys Strike takes place when the Newsies of New York City go on strike (strike lasts until August 2). July 30 – The Harriman Alaska Expedition ends successfully.
August
August 3 – The John Marshall Law School is founded in Chicago, Illinois. August 10 – Major Taylor wins the world 1-mile professional cycling championship in Montreal, securing his place as the first African American world champion in any sport. August 17 – A hurricane makes landfall in North Carolina's Outer Banks, completely destroying the town of Diamond City.
September
September 6 – Open Door Policy is a term in foreign affairs initially used to refer to the United States policy established in the late-nineteenth century and the early-twentieth century, as enunciated in Secretary of State John Hay's Open Door Note, September 14 – Henry H. Bliss becomes the first person to be killed by a motor vehicle in the United States. Upon disembarking from a streetcar in New York City, an electric-powered taxicab strikes and crushes him and he dies from his injuries the following morning.
October
October 30 – The Augusta High School Building is completed in Augusta, Kentucky; Augusta Methodist College shuts down.
November
November 4 – The Alpha Sigma Tau sorority is founded in Ypsilanti, Michigan. November 8 – The Bronx Zoo opens in New York City. November 21 – Vice President Garret Hobart dies of heart failure.
December
December 2 – Philippine–American War – Battle of Tirad Pass: ("The Filipino Thermopylae") General Gregorio del Pilar and his troops are able to guard the retreat of Philippine President Emilio Aguinaldo before being wiped out. December 25 – The 6.7 San Jacinto earthquake shook the Inland Empire area of Southern California with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), causing six deaths and $50,000 in damage.