WHAT ALL HAPPENED FEBRUARY TO DECEMBER 1847
Find out what all happened February to December 1847

The first group of rescuers reaches the Donner Party. (19. February 1847)

Mexican–American War: The Battle of Buena Vista – 5,000 American troops defeat 15,000 Mexicans. (22. February 1847)

Mexican–American War: the Battle of Chapultepec begins. (12. September 1847)

Henry David Thoreau leaves Walden Pond and moves in with Ralph Waldo Emerson and his family in Concord, Massachusetts. (6. September 1847)

Mexican–American War: The first large-scale amphibious assault in U.S. history is launched in the Siege of Veracruz. (9. March 1847)

The accidental shooting of a Māori by an English sailor results in the opening of the Wanganui Campaign of the New Zealand land wars. (16. April 1847)

Stephen Foster's song "Oh! Susanna" is first performed at a saloon in Pittsburgh. (11. September 1847)

Mexican–American War: Battle of Buena Vista – In Mexico, American troops under future president General Zachary Taylor defeat Mexican General Antonio López de Santa Anna. (23. February 1847)

Liberia declares its independence. (26. July 1847)

The state of Michigan formally abolishes capital punishment. (1. March 1847)

The Sonderbund is defeated by the joint forces of other Swiss cantons under General Guillaume-Henri Dufour. (29. November 1847)

Mexican–American War: Six teenage military cadets known as Niños Héroes die defending Chapultepec Castle in the Battle of Chapultepec. American troops under General Winfield Scott capture Mexico City in the Mexican–American War. (13. September 1847)

After 17 months of travel, Brigham Young leads 148 Mormon pioneers into Salt Lake Valley, resulting in the establishment of Salt Lake City. Celebrations of this event include the Pioneer Day Utah state holiday and the Days of '47 Parade. (24. July 1847)

Mexican–American War: United States forces led by General Winfield Scott take Veracruz after a siege. (29. March 1847)

The passenger ship Stephen Whitney is wrecked in thick fog off the southern coast of Ireland, killing 92 of the 110 on board. The disaster results in the construction of the Fastnet Rock lighthouse. (10. November 1847)

The second Canadian railway line, the Montreal and Lachine Railway, is opened. (19. November 1847)

The last survivors of the Donner Party are out of the wilderness. (25. April 1847)

Jefferson Davis is elected to the U.S. senate, his first political post. (5. December 1847)

Birkenhead Park, the first civic public park, is opened in Birkenhead. (5. April 1847)

Sir James Young Simpson, a British physician, discovers the anaesthetic properties of chloroform. (4. November 1847)