1880s1886

The 1880s denotes the decade from 1880 to 1889. It was a period of rapid industrialization, urbanization, and imperial expansion in Europe, North America, and many other regions. Advances in electricity, transport, and communications accompanied shifts in labor, commerce, and governance.

In geopolitics, the decade featured significant events: the assassination of Tsar Alexander II in 1881, leading to the accession of Alexander III; the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 in the United States; the Berlin Conference of 1884–85 regulating European colonization in Africa; the Krakatoa eruption in 1883 with worldwide climatic effects; and rising labor activism culminating in the Haymarket affair in 1886.

Within the year 1886, notable milestones included the dedication of the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor on October 28; Karl Benz receiving the patent for the Patent-Motorwagen, an early automobile; and the founding of the American Federation of Labor by Samuel Gompers in December.

Technological and cultural shifts continued during the decade, with expanding electric lighting and power networks, the spread of rail and telegraph networks, and ongoing urban growth. The era contributed to the modernization of industry and society and shaped political and social reform movements as globalization intensified.