Births on April 17

Herms Niel, German soldier, trombonist, and composer (d. 1954)

Ferdinand Friedrich Hermann Nielebock (17 April 1888 – 16 July 1954), known as Herms Niel, was a German composer of military songs and marches.

16 May

Electric power transmission
Nikola Tesla delivers a lecture describing the equipment which will allow efficient generation and use of alternating currents to transmit electric power over long distances.
31 Aug

Jack the Ripper
Mary Ann Nichols is murdered. She is the first of Jack the Ripper's confirmed victims.
4 Sep

Kodak
George Eastman registers the trademark Kodak and receives a patent for his camera that uses roll film.
8 Sep

Annie Chapman
In London, the body of Jack the Ripper's second murder victim, Annie Chapman, is found.
30 Sep

Elizabeth Stride
Jack the Ripper kills his third and fourth victims, Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddowes.