Pig War (1859)

Historical eventJune 151859

Pig War (1859)

Ambiguity in the Oregon Treaty leads to the "Northwestern Boundary Dispute" between American and British/Canadian settlers.

Everything on June 15Original source

In context

When
Wednesday, June 15 1859167 years ago
Category
Historical eventA dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
Era
19th century · 1850s
Recorded from
Wikipedia “On this day” feed

Russia, Greece and some other countries used the Julian calendar into the early 20th century, so local records may show a date up to 13 days earlier.

At a glance

Dates: From 1859.

What happened

The Pig War was a confrontation in 1859 between the United States and the United Kingdom over the British–U.S. border in the San Juan Islands, between Vancouver Island and the Washington Territory. The Pig War, so called because it was triggered by the shooting of a pig, is also called the Pig Episode, the Pig and Potato War, the San Juan Boundary Dispute, and the Northwestern Boundary Dispute. Despite being referred to as a "war", there were no human casualties on either side, only a pig.

June 15 through the years

Other entries on the same calendar day, in order.

  1. 1859Pig War (1859)
  2. 1977Death and funeral of Francisco Franco
  3. 1978Hussein of Jordan
  4. 1988Ariane 4
  5. 1991Mount Pinatubo
  6. 19911991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo
  7. 1992Supreme Court of the United States
  8. 19951995 Aigio earthquake
  9. 1996The Troubles
  10. 2006George W. Bush
  11. 2013June 2013 Quetta attacks

Also in 1859

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  • August 27Edwin DrakeEdwin Drake successfully drilled for oil in Titusville, Pennsylvania, resulting in the Pennsylvania oil rush, the first oil boom in the U…
  • November 15Evangelos ZappasSponsored by Greek businessman Evangelos Zappas, the first modern revival of the Olympic Games took place in Athens.
  • March 2Great Slave AuctionThe Great Slave Auction, the largest single sale of slaves in U.S. history, with more than 400 people sold, began in Georgia.
  • September 1Carrington EventA powerful solar flare caused a coronal mass ejection that struck Earth a few hours later, generating the most intense geomagnetic storm…
  • February 16Musical noteThe French government passed a law setting the musical note A4 to a frequency of 435 hertz, in the first attempt to standardize concert p…
  • November 24Charles DarwinBritish naturalist Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species was first published, and sold out its initial print run on the first day.
  • February 17Cochinchina campaignCochinchina campaign: French Navy forces captured the Citadel of Saigon, defended by 1,000 Vietnamese soldiers of the Nguyễn dynasty.

Everything we record for 1859 →

Sources

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“Pig War (1859)”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/event/pig-war-1859-1859-june-15, accessed October 27, 2026.

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Questions about this entry

When did Pig War (1859) happen?

June 15 1859 — 167 years ago, on a Wednesday.

Where does this text come from?

Wikipedia “On this day” feed. Summaries are short adaptations that link back to the source, not reprints.

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