Wikipedia:Selected anniversaries/May 1
May 1: Easter in Eastern Christianity (2005); Beltane in Ireland and Scotland; May Day in various countries.
- 1776 - The Order of the Illuminati, a secret society, was founded in Bavaria, Germany.
- 1840 - The Penny Black, the first official adhesive postage stamp, was issued in the United Kingdom.
- 1893 - The World Columbian Exposition, a World's Fair to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus, opened in Chicago, United States.
- 1941 - Citizen Kane, a widely acclaimed film by Orson Welles, premiered.
- 1960 - In India, the state of Bombay was partitioned into Gujarat and Maharashtra along linguistic lines.