Samuel F. B. Morse sends the first successful telegraph message between Baltimore and Washington. James Knox Polk is elected President of the United States. The Mexican-American War begins. Sewing machine is patented by Elias Howe. 1847 Liberia becomes an independent republic in Africa.
Gold is discovered in California.
The Mexican-American War ends. Zachary Taylor is elected President of the United States. William and Frederick Langenheim acquire the American rights to Talbot's calotype process. Mathew Brady begins publication of his Gallery of Illustrious Americans. Two American photography journals begin, the Daguerreian Art Journal and the Photographic Art Journal.