 Birth | November 4, 1836 40 33 |
 Birth of a sister | Elizabeth Patterson about 1840 (Age 3 years) |
| Birth of a brother | Finley Patterson about 1841 (Age 4 years) |
| Death of a paternal grandmother | Nancy Elizabeth English about 1847 (Age 10 years) |
 Historical Event | Mexican-American War from 1846 to 1848 (Age 9 years)Note: The Mexican-American War was an armed conflict between the United States of America and the United Mexican States from 1846 to 1848 in the wake of the 1845 U.S. annexation of Texas, which Mexico considered part of its territory despite the 1836 Texas Revolution - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican%E2%80%93American_War |
| Death of a paternal grandfather | William “Billy” Patterson about 1849 (Age 12 years) |
| Historical Event | Influenza Epidemic between 1857 and 1859 (Age 20 years)Note: In 1857-1859, there was an extremely severe worldwide outbreak of influenza - http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3884 |
| Historical Event | American Civil War between April 1861 and May 1865 (Age 24 years)Note: In the spring of 1861, tensions between the northern and southern United States over issues including state's right versus federal authority, westward expansion and slavery exploded into the American Civil War - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Civil_War |
| Death of a father | Matthew Patterson October 3, 1865 (Age 28 years) |
| Historical Event | The Alaska Purchase 1867 (Age 30 years)Note: The Alaska Purchase was the purchase of 586,412 square miles of new territory by the United States from the Russian Empire (a bargain at two cents an acre) - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska_Purchase |
| Historical Event | Yellow Fever Epidemic 1867 (Age 30 years)Note: 3,093 perished from yellow fever in New Orleans - http://historyengine.richmond.edu/episodes/view/306 |
| Death of a sister | Sarah Jane Patterson December 1867 (Age 31 years) |
| Historical Event | Transcontinental Railroad completed 1869 (Age 32 years)Note: The First Transcontinental Railroad was a 1,907-mile contiguous railroad line constructed between 1863 and 1869 across the western United States to connect the Pacific coast with the existing Eastern U.S. rail network - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Transcontinental_Railroad |
 Death | October 30, 1870 (Age 33 years) |