About the day » Wednesday May 15, 1861Calender converter

• Alida Johanna Hopman, Sloten, Noord-Holland, Nederland († 1945)
• Adriana van der Vliet, Andel, Noord-Brabant, The Netherlands († 1937)
• Abe Tigchelaar, Harlingen († 1928)
• Anna Catharina Schmitz, Fresenburg, Lathen († 1867)
• Albert Katoen, Harlingen († 1934)
• Andries Hendriks Schadenberg, Haulerwijk, gem. Ooststellingwerf, Friesland, Nederland
• Alberts Garrelts TRAUERNICHT, ,GERMANY,Ostersander,Hanover († 1928)
• Aaltje van den Heuvel, Vianen, Utrecht, Nederland († 1947)
• Aaltje Kranendonk, Poortugaal, Zuid-Holland, Nederland
• (Stillborn) VAN DER HEIDE, Tytsjerksteradiel Friesland Netherlands († 1861)

• Cornelia Arijsd van der Pligt (70), 's-Gravendeel, Zuid Holland, Netherlands
• Adrien Trimpeneers (77), Velm, België
• "Félix" Joseph Xavier de Gourcy-Serainchamps (58), château de Mianoye, Assesse, Belgique
• Bertus BULSING (0), Haskerland(Friesland)
• Anna Maria Possemiers (78), Niel, 2845, Antwerpen, Belgium
• Cornelia Arijsd Van Der PLIGT (71), 's-Gravendeel
• Barendina Catharina Buijtendijk (35), Amsterdam
• Aaltje Loenhorst (55), Lunteren, Ede, Gelderland, Netherlands
• Aaltje BELDER (23), Westmaas
• Aaltje van de Loenhorst (55), Lunteren

• 1848 » Viktor Vasnetsov, Russian painter and illustrator († 1926)
• 1854 » Ioannis Psycharis, Ukrainian-French philologist and author († 1929)
• 1856 » L. Frank Baum, American novelist († 1919)
• 1856 » Matthias Zurbriggen, Swiss mountaineer († 1917)
• 1857 » Williamina Fleming, Scottish-American astronomer and academic († 1911)
• 1859 » Pierre Curie, French physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate († 1906)
• 1862 » Arthur Schnitzler, Austrian author and playwright († 1931)
• 1863 » Frank Hornby, English businessman and politician, invented Meccano († 1936)
• 1869 » John Storey, Australian politician, 20th Premier of New South Wales († 1921)
• 1869 » Paul Probst, Swiss target shooter († 1945)

• 1845 » Braulio Carrillo Colina, Costa Rican lawyer and politician, Head of State of Costa Rica (b. 1800)
• 1879 » Gottfried Semper, German architect and educator, designed the Semper Opera House (b. 1803)
• 1886 » Emily Dickinson, American poet and author (b. 1830)
• 1914 » Ida Freund, Austrian-born chemist and educator (b. 1863)
• 1919 » Hasan Tahsin, Turkish journalist (b. 1888)
• 1924 » Paul-Henri-Benjamin d'Estournelles de Constant, French diplomat and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1852)
• 1926 » Joseph James Fletcher, Australian biologist (b. 1850)
• 1928 » Umegatani Tōtarō I, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 15th Yokozuna (b. 1845)
• 1935 » Kazimir Malevich, Ukrainian-Russian painter and theoretician (b. 1878)
• 1937 » Philip Snowden, 1st Viscount Snowden, English politician, Chancellor of the Exchequer (b. 1864)

• Koning Willem III (Huis van Oranje-Nassau) was from 1849 till 1890 sovereign of the Netherlands (also known as Koninkrijk der Nederlanden)
• From February 23, 1860 till March 14, 1861 the Netherlands had a cabinet Van Hall - Van Heemstra with the prime ministers Mr. F.A. baron Van Hall (conservatief-liberaal) and Mr. S. baron Van Heemstra (liberaal).
• From March 14, 1861 till January 31, 1862 the Netherlands had a cabinet Van Zuijlen van Nijevelt - Loudon with the prime ministers Mr. J.P.P. baron Van Zuijlen van Nijevelt (conservatief-liberaal) and Mr. J. Loudon (liberaal).
• The Netherlands had about 3.6 million citizens.
• January 1 » Liberal forces supporting Benito Juárez enter Mexico City.
• January 29 » Kansas is admitted as the 34th U.S. state.
• March 11 » American Civil War: The Constitution of the Confederate States of America is adopted.
• May 13 » The Great Comet of 1861 is discovered by John Tebbutt of Windsor, New South Wales, Australia.
• July 16 » American Civil War: At the order of President Abraham Lincoln, Union troops begin a 25-mile march into Virginia for what will become the First Battle of Bull Run, the first major land battle of the war.
• November 8 » American Civil War: The "Trent Affair": The USSSan Jacinto stops the British mail ship Trent and arrests two Confederate envoys, sparking a diplomatic crisis between the UK and US.

The temperature on May 15, 1861 was about 12.4 °C. The air pressure was 2 kgf/m² and came mainly from the north-northeast. The airpressure was 77 cm mercury. The atmospheric humidity was 61%.