What happened this day in history May 15

What are the important events that happened on May 15? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.

May 15: Facts & Myths About This Day

May 15 is the 135th day of the year 2025 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 230 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Thursday.

Under the Julian calendar, this day is May 2, 2025 – a Thursday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?

When this day started, 1,747,267,200 seconds has elapsed since midnight of January 1, 1970 – the Unix epoch.

Strange as it may, if we name this day after a polygon then it will be called ‘hectatriacontapentagon’ day.

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Taurus is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Emerald is the modern birthstone for this month. Sapphire is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.

According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 278 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year.

The ancient Maya civilization believes that the end of the world will happen on December 21, 2012. There are now 4,528 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.

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May 15 Historical Events

  • 1648
    The Treaty of Westphalia signed.
  • 1817
    Opening of the first private mental health hospital in the United States, the Asylum for the Relief of Persons Deprived of the Use of Their Reason (now Friends Hospital) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
  • 1829
    The Aaronic Priesthood is restored to Joseph Smith Jr. and Oliver Cowdery, prior to the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
  • 1836
    Francis Baily observes “Baily’s beads” during an annular eclipse.
  • 1905
    Las Vegas, Nevada, is founded when 110 acre, in what later would become downtown, are auctioned off.
  • 1911
    In Standard Oil Co. of New Jersey v. United States, the United States Supreme Court declares Standard Oil to be an “unreasonable” monopoly under the Sherman Antitrust Act and orders the company to be broken up.
  • 1928
    Mickey Mouse premiered in his first cartoon, Plane Crazy
  • 1945
    World War II: The final skirmish in Europe is fought near Prevalje, Slovenia.
  • 1987
    The Soviet Union launches the Polyus prototype orbital weapons platform. It fails to reach orbit.
  • 2008
    California becomes the second U.S. state after Massachusetts in 2004 to legalize same-sex marriage after the state’s own Supreme Court rules a previous ban unconstitutional.

Who were born on May 15?

  • 1720
    Maximilian Hell, Slovakian astronomer (d. 1792)
  • 1862
    Arthur Schnitzler, Austrian dramatist (d. 1931)
  • 1890
    Katherine Anne Porter, American author (d. 1980)
  • 1936
    Ralph Steadman, British cartoonist
  • 1938
    Diane Nash, American Civil Rights Movement figure
  • 1941
    K.T. Oslin, American musician
  • 1947
    Graeham Goble, Australian musician and record producer (Little River Band)
  • 1959
    Kaokor Galaxy, Thai boxer
  • 1961
    Melle Mel, American musician
  • 1970
    Ronald de Boer, Dutch football player

Who died on May 15?

  • 1585
    Niwa Nagahide, Japanese warlord (b. 1535)
  • 1886
    Emily Dickinson, American poet (b. 1830)
  • 1924
    Paul-Henri-Benjamin d'Estournelles de Constant, French diplomat, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1852)
  • 1940
    Menno ter Braak, Dutch author and polemicist (b. 1902)
  • 1956
    Austin Osman Spare, British artist and magician (b. 1886)
  • 1967
    Edward Hopper, American painter (b. 1882)
  • 1978
    Sir Robert Menzies, twelfth Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1894)
  • 1991
    Andreas Floer, German mathematician (b. 1956)
  • 1995
    Eric Porter, British actor (b. 1928)
  • 2008
    Tommy Burns, Scottish footballer (b. 1956)

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