1812

Events from the year **1812 in the United States**. War of 1812 begins.

* Vice President: George Clinton (DR-NY) (until April 20), *vacant* (starting April 20)
* Chief Justice: John Marshall (VA)
* Speaker of the House of Representatives: Henry Clay (DR-KY)
* Congress: 12th

Governors
* Governor of Connecticut: Roger Griswold (Federalist) (until October 25), John Cotton Smith (Federalist) (starting October 25)
* Governor of Delaware: Joseph Haslet (Democratic-Republican)
* Governor of Georgia: David Brydie Mitchell (Democratic-Republican)
* Governor of Kentucky: Charles Scott (Democratic-Republican) (until August 24), Isaac Shelby (Democratic-Republican) (starting August 24)
* Governor of Louisiana: William C. C. Claiborne (Democratic-Republican) (starting April 30)
* Governor of Maryland: Robert Bowie (Democratic-Republican) (until November 25), Levin Winder (Federalist) (starting November 25)
* Governor of Massachusetts: Elbridge Gerry (Democratic-Republican) (until March 4), Caleb Strong (Federalist) (starting March 4)
* Governor of New Hampshire: John Langdon (Democratic-Republican) (until June 5), William Plumer (Democratic-Republican) (starting June 5)
* Governor of New Jersey: Joseph Bloomfield (Democratic-Republican) (until October 29), Aaron Ogden (Federalist) (starting October 29)
* Governor of New York: Daniel D. Tompkins (Democratic-Republican)
* Governor of North Carolina: William Hawkins (Democratic-Republican)
* Governor of Ohio: Return J. Meigs, Jr. (Democratic-Republican)
* Governor of Pennsylvania: Simon Snyder (Democratic-Republican)
* Governor of Rhode Island: William Jones (Federalist)
* Governor of South Carolina: Henry Middleton (Democratic-Republican) (until December 10), Joseph Alston (Democratic-Republican) (starting December 10)
* Governor of Tennessee: Willie Blount (Democratic-Republican)
* Governor of Vermont: Jonas Galusha (Democratic-Republican)
* Governor of Virginia: Peyton Randolph (Democratic-Republican) (until January 3), James Barbour (Democratic-Republican) (starting January 3)

Lieutenant Governors
* Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut: John Cotton Smith (Federalist)
* Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky: Gabriel Slaughter (Democratic-Republican) (until month and day unknown), Richard Hickman (political party unknown) (starting month and day unknown)
* Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts: William Gray (political party unknown) (until month and day unknown), William Phillips, Jr. (political party unknown) (starting month and day unknown)
* Lieutenant Governor of New York: DeWitt Clinton (Democratic-Republican)
* Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island: Simeon Martin (political party unknown)
* Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina: Samuel Farrow (Democratic-Republican) (until December 10), Eldred Simkins (Democratic-Republican) (starting December 10)
* Lieutenant Governor of Vermont: Paul Brigham (Democratic-Republican)

## Events

### January - March

* January 1 – *The New England Journal of Medicine* is first published in Boston by Dr John Collins Warren as the *New England Journal of Medicine and Surgery and the Collateral Branches of Medical Science*.
* January 10 – *New Orleans*, the first steamship on the Mississippi River, arrives in its namesake city, completing its maiden voyage.
* February 2 – Russia establishes a fur trading colony at Fort Ross, California.
* February 7 – The last of four major New Madrid earthquakes strike New Madrid, Missouri, with an estimated moment magnitude of over 8.
* March 26 – The *Boston Gazette* prints a political cartoon coining the term "Gerrymander" after former Massachusetts Governor Elbridge Gerry's approval (on February 11) of legislation creating oddly shaped electoral districts designed to help incumbents win re-election.

### April - June

* April 4 – U.S. President James Madison enacts a 90-day embargo on trade with the United Kingdom.
* April 20 – George Clinton, Vice President of the United States, dies in office.
* April 30 – Louisiana admitted becomes the 18th U.S. state.
* May 8 - Hail to the Chief is published as the presidential anthem of the United States.
* June 1 – War of 1812: U.S. President James Madison asks the U.S. Congress to declare war on Great Britain.
* June 4 – Following Louisiana's admittance as a U.S. state, the territory created by that name is renamed the Missouri Territory.
* June 18 – The War of 1812 begins between the United States and the British Empire.
* June 22 – 1812 Baltimore riots begins.
* June 26 – War of 1812: Occurrence at Carleton Island.

### July - September

* July 2 – War of 1812: Capture of the Cuyahoga Packet.
* July 12
	+ Americans invade Canada at Windsor, Upper Canada.
	+ War of 1812: Hull's Campaign on the Detroit River begins.
* July 16 – War of 1812: Battle of River Canard.
* July 17 – War of 1812: Capture of Fort Mackinac.
* July 19 – War of 1812: First Battle of Sacket's Harbor.
* July 28 – 1812 Baltimore riots ends.
* August 5 – War of 1812: Tecumseh's Indian force ambushes Thomas Van Horne's 200 Americans at Battle of Brownstone Creek, causing them to flee and retreat.
* August 7 – 130 Filibusters of the Gutiérrez–Magee Expedition cross from Louisiana into Spanish Texas, soon after they capture the town of Nacogdoches.
* August 8 – War of 1812: Hull's Campaign on the Detroit River ends.
* August 9 – War of 1812: Battle of Maguaga.
* August 15 – War of 1812: Battle of Fort Dearborn – Potawatomi warriors overrun the U.S. fort in Illinois Territory.
* August 16 – War of 1812: American General William Hull surrenders Fort Detroit without a fight to the British Army.
* August 19 – War of 1812: USS *Constitution* vs HMS *Guerriere*: USS *Constitution* defeats the British frigate HMS *Guerriere* off the coast of Nova Scotia. The British shot is said to have bounced off *Constitution'*s sides, earning her the nickname "Old Ironsides".
* September 3 – War of 1812: Massacre at Pigeon Roost.
* September 4 – War of 1812: Siege of Fort Harrison begins.
* September 5 – War of 1812: First siege of Fort Madison begins.
* September 6 – War of 1812: Siege of Fort Wayne.
* September 12 – War of 1812: First siege of Fort Madison ends.
* September 13 – Gutiérrez–Magee Expedition: The Expedition, having since grown to 300 men, captures the town of Santísima Trinidad de Salcedo.
* September 15 – War of 1812: Siege of Fort Harrison ends.
* September 21 – War of 1812: Raid on Gananoque.

### October - December

* October 1 – The capital of Pennsylvania is permanently moved from Lancaster to Harrisburg.
* October 9 – War of 1812: American naval forces under Lieutenant Jesse Duncan Elliott capture two British warships, HMS *Detroit* and HMS *Caledonia*.
* October 13 – War of 1812: Battle of Queenston Heights: As part of the Niagara campaign in Upper Canada, United States forces under General Stephen Van Rensselaer are repulsed from invading Canada by British and native troops led by Sir Isaac Brock (although he dies during the battle).
* October 18 – War of 1812: Capture of HMS Frolic.
* October 23 – War of 1812: Skirmishes at Akwesasne and French Mills begins.
* October 25 – War of 1812: Capture of HMS Macedonian.
* November 5 – James Madison defeats DeWitt Clinton in the U.S. presidential election.
* November 13 – Gutiérrez-Magee Expedition: Manuel María de Salcedo, the governor of Spanish Texas, begins a four month long siege of Presidio La Bahia near Goliad. The siege continues until February 19, 1813.
* November 190 – War of 1812: Destruction of Prophetstown.
* November 20 – War of 1812: Battle of Lacolle Mills.
* November 22 – War of 1812: Battle of Wild Cat Creek.
* November 23 – War of 1812: Skirmishes at Akwesasne and French Mills ends.
* November 29 – War of 1812: Battle of Frenchman's Creek.
* December 7 – Missouri Territory is effective.
* December 17 – War of 1812: Battle of the Mississinewa begins.
* December 18 – War of 1812: Battle of the Mississinewa ends.
* December 29 – War of 1812: USS *Constitution* defeats the British frigate HMS *Java* off the coast of Brazil.

## Memoriam

* April 20 – George Clinton, 4th Vice President of the United States from 1805 to 1812 (aged 72; Washington, DC, USA)
* May 12 – Martha Ballard, diarist and midwife (aged 77; Augusta, MA (Now ME), USA)
* June 17 – Jean La Lime, Victim of "the first murder in Chicago"; killed by John Kinzie (aged 53; Upper Canada)
* December 20 – Sacagawea, Shoshone interpreter and guide on the Lewis and Clark Expedition (aged 24; Kenel, MO Territory (Now SD), USA)
* December 24 – George Beck, artist and poet (aged 63; Lexington, KY, USA)
* December 26 – Joel Barlow, poet (aged 58; Żarnowiec, Duchy of Warsaw (Now Poland))