District of Maine: Henry Dearborn

Among the appointees was a 38-year-old veteran, who played a 

central role in both the American Revolution and the early years of 

the nation. Born on February 23, 1751, in North Hampton, NH,

Henry Dearborn began his career as a doctor. However, when the 

news of the battles of Lexington and Concord reached him, 

Dearborn quickly raised a militia unit and proceeded to the 

outskirts of Boston, MA.8 Beginning with the Battle of Bunker Hill

on June 17, 1775, Dearborn participated in some the most critical 

battles of the American Revolution and ended the war with the 

rank of colonel. At the 

conclusion of the war, Dearborn 

moved to Maine, where he 

continued to build upon his 

military achievements and ingratiate himself with the local 

community.9 By the fall of 1789, he was a major general in 

the local militia and President Washington’s appointee as 

Maine’s first U.S. marshal. 

With his appointment as a U.S. marshal, President 

Washington charged Dearborn with leading the enumeration 

of the District of Maine for the 1790 Census. Unlike some of 

the other 1790 census returns, Dearborn’s 1790 returns do 

not provide a clear date for when he and his deputies 

completed their enumeration of Maine’s population.10

Dearborn personally counted the population of 23 towns in 

three different countries. Based on the extant 1790 Census 

schedules, it appears as through Dearborn was the only U.S. marshal to emphasize his personal 

role as both the primary overseer and an enumerator of the 1790 Census as he was the only 

one who noted in the final report which counties he personally enumerated.11

 

8

“History - The First Generation of United States Marshals/The First Marshal of Maine: Henry Dearborn,” U.S. 

marshals Service, last estimated release October 11, 2019, 

https://www.usmarshals.gov/history/firstmarshals/dearborn.htm. (Accessed October 7, 2019). 

9 History - The First Generation of United States Marshals/The First Marshal of Maine: Henry Dearborn,” 

10 “Maine”. Return of the whole number of persons within the several districts of the United States: according to 

"An act providing for the enumeration of the inhabitants of the United States," passed March the first, one 

thousand seven hundred and ninety-one, pg. 21. PDF. Retrieved from 

https://www.census.gov/content/census/en/library/publications/1793/dec/number-of-persons.html. (Accessed 

October 7, 2019). 

11 "Assistant marshals for the state [Maine]: 1790," in Heads of Families/1790/A Century of Population Growth 

Maine, New Hampshire, & Vermont (Washington, D.C,: Government Printing Office, 1908), 1:10.

On this map of New England from 

1776, Maine is known as the “Eastern 

Part of Massachusetts”. Maine would 

not become a state, until March 15, 

1820. 

Courtesy of the Library of Congress

Portrait of Henry Dearborn 

1796-97 

Courtesy of Independence 

National Historical Park
Although they did not share any borders, Maine was still considered a part of Massachusetts 

and did not attain statehood until the Missouri Compromise in 1820. Therefore, the 96,540 

people counted in the 1790 Census went towards Massachusetts’ total for apportionment. 

Today, Maine is still the fourth largest state in New England with a total population of 

1,338,404 people.12 13 

After the census, Dearborn continued serving as a U.S. marshal for 

three more years, and as a public servant for another three decades. 

During that time, Dearborn served as a U.S. Representative for 

Massachusetts (1793-1797), President Thomas Jefferson’s Secretary of 

War (1801-1809), the commanding American general in the 

northeastern theater of the War of 1812 (January 27, 1812- July 6, 

1813), and the United States’ Minister to Portugal (1822-1824).14 15

Ultimately, Dearborn permanently retired from a life of public service 

in 1824 and spent the rest of his life at his home in Roxbury, MA, where 

he died on June 6, 1829.16 Today, Dearborn, MI, named in Henry 

Dearborn’s honor, is the ninth largest city in Michigan with a 

population of 94,333 people.17

 

12 “Maine”. Return of the whole number of persons within the several districts of the United States: according to 

"An act providing for the enumeration of the inhabitants of the United States," passed March the first, one 

thousand seven hundred and ninety-one., pg. 19-21. 

13 “QuickFacts: Maine,” U.S. Census Bureau, last estimated release July 1, 2018, 

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/ME. (Accessed October 7, 2019). 

14 “Henry Dearborn,” National Park Service, last estimated release June 17, 2015, 

https://www.nps.gov/people/henry-dearborn.htm. (Accessed October 7, 2019).

15 History - The First Generation of United States marshals/The First marshal of Maine: Henry Dearborn.”

16 Ibid.

17 “QuickFacts: Dearborn, Michigan,” U.S. Census Bureau, last estimated release July 1, 2018, 

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/dearborncitymichigan. (Accessed October 7, 2019). 

A copy of a 1790 Census 

schedule with Henry Dearborn’s 

name at the bottom.

Courtesy of Heads of 

Families/1790/A Century of 

Population Growth, Maine, New 

Hampshire, & Vermont.