Events January–March January 6 – Abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison founds the New-England Anti-Slavery Society. January 13 – The Christmas Rebellion of slaves is brought to an end in Jamaica, after the island's white planters organize militias and the British Army sends companies of the 84th regiment to enforce martial law. More than 300 of the slave rebels will be publicly hanged for their part in the destruction. February 6 – The Swan River Colony is renamed Western Australia. February 9 – The Florida Legislative Council grants a city charter for Jacksonville, Florida. February 12 Ecuador annexes the Galápagos Islands. A cholera epidemic in London claims at least 3,000 lives; the contagion spreads to France and North America later this year. February 28 – Charles Darwin and the crew of arrive at South America for the first time. March 24 – In Hiram, Ohio, a group of men beat, tar and feather Mormon leader Joseph Smith. April–June April 6 – The Black Hawk War begins in the United States. May 7 – The Treaty of London creates an independent Kingdom of Greece. Otto of Wittelsbach, Prince of Bavaria, is chosen King; thus begins the history of modern Greece. May 10 – The Egyptians, aided by Maronites, seize Acre from the Ottoman Empire after a 7-month siege. May 11 – Greece is recognized as a sovereign nation; the Treaty of Constantinople ends the Greek War of Independence in July. May 16 – Juan Godoy discovers the rich silver outcrops of Chañarcillo sparking the Chilean silver rush. May 30 The Hambacher Fest, a demonstration for civil liberties and national unity in Germany, ends with no result. The Rideau Canal in eastern Ontario (Canada) is opened. June 5–6 – The June Rebellion in France, anti-monarchist riots led chiefly by students, breaks out in Paris. June 7 – The Reform Act becomes law in the United Kingdom, expanding the franchise. June 9 – The Strasburg Rail Road is incorporated by the Pennsylvania State Legislature, making it the oldest continuously operating railroad in the Western Hemisphere. July–September July 1 – Global conglomerate Jardine Matheson is founded in Canton (modern day Guangzhou) in Qing dynasty China by Scottish merchants. July 2 – André-Michel Guerry presents his Essay on moral statistics of France to the French Academy of Sciences, a significant step in the founding of empirical social science. July 4 – Durham University is founded in the