Events from the year 1805 in the United States.
Incumbents
Federal government
A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a political union, union of partially federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a #Federal governments, federal government (federalism) ...
*
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*'' Præsident ...
:
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...
(
DR-
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
)
*
Vice President
A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...
:
::
Aaron Burr
Aaron Burr Jr. (February 6, 1756 – September 14, 1836) was an American politician, businessman, lawyer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third vice president of the United States from 1801 to 1805 d ...
(
DR-
New York) (until March 4)
::
George Clinton (
DR-
New York) (starting March 4)
*
Chief Justice:
John Marshall
John Marshall (September 24, 1755July 6, 1835) was an American statesman, jurist, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth chief justice of the United States from 1801 until his death in 1835. He remai ...
(
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
)
*
Speaker of the House of Representatives:
Nathaniel Macon
Nathaniel Macon (December 17, 1757June 29, 1837) was an American politician who represented North Carolina in both houses of United States Congress, Congress. He was the fifth Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, speaker of the ...
(
DR-
North Carolina
North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
)
*
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
:
8th
Eighth is ordinal form of the number eight.
Eighth may refer to:
* One eighth, , a fraction, one of eight equal parts of a whole
* Eighth note (quaver), a musical note played for half the value of a quarter note (crotchet)
* Octave, an interval b ...
(until March 4),
9th (starting March 4)
Events

* January 11 –
Michigan Territory
The Territory of Michigan was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 30, 1805, until January 26, 1837, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Michigan. Detroit ...
is created.
* February 11 –
Jean Baptiste Charbonneau
Jean Baptiste Charbonneau (February 11, 1805 – May 16, 1866), sometimes known in childhood as Pompey or Little Pomp, was an American explorer, guide, Animal trapping, fur trapper, trader, military scout during the Mexican–American War, ''alcal ...
, son of
Sacagawea, is born with
Meriwether Lewis
Meriwether Lewis (August 18, 1774 – October 11, 1809) was an American explorer, soldier, politician, and public administrator, best known for his role as the leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery, with ...
aiding in the baby's delivery.
* February 15 –
Harmony Society formally established in the U.S. at
Harmony, Pennsylvania
Harmony is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Butler County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 890 at the 2010 census. It is located approximately north of Pittsburgh.
Geography
Harmony is located in southwestern Butler County ...
.
* March 1 – Justice
Samuel Chase
Samuel Chase (April 17, 1741 – June 19, 1811) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father of the United States, signer of the Continental Association and United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of Maryla ...
is
acquitted of impeachment charges by the U.S. Senate.
* March 3 –
Louisiana Territory
The Territory of Louisiana or Louisiana Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 4, 1805, until June 4, 1812, when it was renamed the Missouri Territory. The territory was formed out of t ...
is created.
* March 4 –
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...
is
sworn in for a second term as
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
, and
George Clinton is sworn in as
Vice President of the United States
The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the Executive branch of the United States government, executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks f ...
.
* April 7 – The
Lewis and Clark Expedition
The Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery Expedition, was the United States expedition to cross the newly acquired western portion of the country after the Louisiana Purchase. The Corps of Discovery was a select gro ...
departs
Fort Mandan
Fort Mandan was the name of the encampment which the Lewis and Clark Expedition built for wintering over in 1804–1805. The encampment was located on the Missouri River approximately from the site of present-day Washburn, North Dakota, which de ...
, beginning their journey to the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
.
* April 27 –
Battle of Derne
The Battle of Derna at Derna, Cyrenaica, was a military engagement in April–May 1805 of a mercenary army recruited and led by United States Marines under the command of U.S. Army Lieutenant William Eaton, diplomatic Consul to Tripoli, and ...
:
United States Marines
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the Marines, maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expedi ...
and
Berbers
Berbers, or the Berber peoples, also known as Amazigh or Imazighen, are a diverse grouping of distinct ethnic groups indigenous to North Africa who predate the arrival of Arab migrations to the Maghreb, Arabs in the Maghreb. Their main connec ...
attack the
Tripolitan city of
Derna (The "Shores of Tripoli").
* June 4 – The
First Barbary War
The First Barbary War (1801–1805), also known as the Tripolitan War and the Barbary Coast War, was a conflict during the 1801–1815 Barbary Wars, in which the United States fought against Ottoman Tripolitania. Tripolitania had declared war ...
ends between Tripoli and the United States of America.
* June 11 –
Detroit
Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
burns to the ground; most of the city is destroyed.
* June 13 –
Lewis and Clark Expedition
The Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery Expedition, was the United States expedition to cross the newly acquired western portion of the country after the Louisiana Purchase. The Corps of Discovery was a select gro ...
: Scouting ahead of the expedition, Meriwether Lewis and four companions sight the
Great Falls of the Missouri River, confirming they are heading in the right direction.
* June 30 –
Michigan Territory
The Territory of Michigan was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 30, 1805, until January 26, 1837, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Michigan. Detroit ...
is effective.
* July 4 –
Louisiana Territory
The Territory of Louisiana or Louisiana Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 4, 1805, until June 4, 1812, when it was renamed the Missouri Territory. The territory was formed out of t ...
is effective.
* October 18 –
Lewis and Clark Expedition
The Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery Expedition, was the United States expedition to cross the newly acquired western portion of the country after the Louisiana Purchase. The Corps of Discovery was a select gro ...
:
William Clark
William Clark (August 1, 1770 – September 1, 1838) was an American explorer, soldier, Indian agent, and territorial governor. A native of Virginia, he grew up in pre-statehood Kentucky before later settling in what became the state of Misso ...
sights
Mount Hood
Mount Hood, also known as Wy'east, is an active stratovolcano in the Cascade Range and is a member of the Cascade Volcanic Arc. It was formed by a subduction zone on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast and rests in the Pacific N ...
through the fog, some 45 miles (72 km) away.
* November 7 – The
Lewis and Clark Expedition
The Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery Expedition, was the United States expedition to cross the newly acquired western portion of the country after the Louisiana Purchase. The Corps of Discovery was a select gro ...
arrives at the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
.
Undated
*
Boston Gleaning Circle, a female literary organization, is established.
Ongoing
*
First Barbary War
The First Barbary War (1801–1805), also known as the Tripolitan War and the Barbary Coast War, was a conflict during the 1801–1815 Barbary Wars, in which the United States fought against Ottoman Tripolitania. Tripolitania had declared war ...
(1801–1805)
*
Lewis and Clark Expedition
The Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery Expedition, was the United States expedition to cross the newly acquired western portion of the country after the Louisiana Purchase. The Corps of Discovery was a select gro ...
(1804–1806)
Births
* January 8 –
Orson Hyde
Orson Hyde (January 8, 1805 – November 28, 1878) was a leader in the early Latter Day Saint movement and a member of the first Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He was the president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus ...
, religious leader (died
1878
Events January
* January 5 – Russo-Turkish War: Battle of Shipka Pass IV – Russian and Bulgarian forces defeat the Ottoman Empire.
* January 9 – Umberto I becomes King of Italy.
* January 17 – Russo-Turkish War: ...
)
* February 11 –
Jean Baptiste Charbonneau
Jean Baptiste Charbonneau (February 11, 1805 – May 16, 1866), sometimes known in childhood as Pompey or Little Pomp, was an American explorer, guide, Animal trapping, fur trapper, trader, military scout during the Mexican–American War, ''alcal ...
, son of
Sacagawea, explorer, guide, fur trapper, trader and military scout (died
1866
Events January
* January 1
** Fisk University, a historically black university, is established in Nashville, Tennessee.
** The last issue of the abolitionist magazine '' The Liberator'' is published.
* January 6 – Ottoman troops clash ...
)
* February 18 –
Louis M. Goldsborough, admiral (died
1877
Events January
* January 1 – Queen Victoria is proclaimed Empress of India by the Royal Titles Act 1876, introduced by Benjamin Disraeli, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom .
* January 8 – Great Sioux War of 1876: Batt ...
)
* March 23 –
Sears Cook Walker, mathematician and astronomer (died
1853
Events
January–March
* January 6 –
** Florida Governor Thomas Brown signs legislation that provides public support for the new East Florida Seminary, leading to the establishment of the University of Florida.
**U.S. President-elect ...
)
* June 14 –
Robert Anderson,
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
officer during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
(died
1871 in France)
* June 15 –
William B. Ogden
William Butler Ogden (June 15, 1805 – August 3, 1877) was an American politician and railroad executive who served as the first Mayor of Chicago. He was referred to as "the Astor of Chicago." He was, at one time, the city's richest citizen ...
, Chicago politician and railroad executive (died
1877
Events January
* January 1 – Queen Victoria is proclaimed Empress of India by the Royal Titles Act 1876, introduced by Benjamin Disraeli, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom .
* January 8 – Great Sioux War of 1876: Batt ...
)
* July 10 –
Jacob M. Howard
Jacob Merritt Howard (July 10, 1805 – April 2, 1871) was an American attorney and politician. He was most notable for his service as a U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from the state of Michigan, and his political career spanned the Ame ...
, U.S. Senator from Michigan from 1862 to 1871 (died
1871
Events January–March
* January 3 – Franco-Prussian War: Battle of Bapaume – Prussians win a strategic victory.
* January 18 – Proclamation of the German Empire: The member states of the North German Confederation and the sout ...
)
* September 6 –
Horatio Greenough
Horatio Greenough (September 6, 1805 – December 18, 1852) was an American sculptor best known for his United States government commissions '' The Rescue'' (1837–50) and ''George Washington'' (1840).
Biography
The son of Elizabeth (''née ...
, sculptor (died
1852
Events
January–March
* January 14 – President Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte proclaims a new constitution for the French Second Republic.
* January 15 – Nine men representing various Jewish charitable organizations come to ...
)
* September 19 –
John Stevens Cabot Abbott
John Stevens Cabot Abbott (September 19, 1805June 17, 1877) was an American historian, pastor, and pedagogical writer born in Brunswick, Maine to Jacob and Betsey Abbott.
Early life
He was a brother of Jacob Abbott, and was associated with h ...
, historian, pastor and pedagogical writer (died
1877
Events January
* January 1 – Queen Victoria is proclaimed Empress of India by the Royal Titles Act 1876, introduced by Benjamin Disraeli, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom .
* January 8 – Great Sioux War of 1876: Batt ...
)
* October 9 –
William M. Gwin, U.S. Senator from California from 1850 to 1855 and from 1857 to 1861 (died
1885)
* November 28 –
John Lloyd Stephens
John Lloyd Stephens (November 28, 1805October 13, 1852) was an American explorer, writer, and diplomat. He was a pivotal figure in the rediscovery of Maya civilization throughout Middle America (Americas), Middle America and in the planning of th ...
, traveler, diplomat and Mayanist archaeologist (died
1852
Events
January–March
* January 14 – President Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte proclaims a new constitution for the French Second Republic.
* January 15 – Nine men representing various Jewish charitable organizations come to ...
)
* December 2 –
Cicero Price, commodore (died
1888)
* December 10 –
William Lloyd Garrison
William Lloyd Garrison (December , 1805 – May 24, 1879) was an Abolitionism in the United States, American abolitionist, journalist, and reformism (historical), social reformer. He is best known for his widely read anti-slavery newspaper ''The ...
, abolitionist (died
1879
Events January
* January 1
** The Specie Resumption Act takes effect. The United States Note is valued the same as gold, for the first time since the American Civil War.
** Brahms' Violin Concerto is premiered in Leipzig with Joseph Joachim ...
)
* December 12 –
Henry Wells
Henry Wells (December 12, 1805 – December 10, 1878) was an American businessman important in the history of both the American Express Company and Wells Fargo & Company. Wells worked as a freight agent before joining the express business. Hi ...
, businessman, founder of
Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo & Company is an American multinational financial services company with a significant global presence. The company operates in 35 countries and serves over 70 million customers worldwide. It is a systemically important fi ...
(died
1878
Events January
* January 5 – Russo-Turkish War: Battle of Shipka Pass IV – Russian and Bulgarian forces defeat the Ottoman Empire.
* January 9 – Umberto I becomes King of Italy.
* January 17 – Russo-Turkish War: ...
)
* December 23 –
Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious and political leader and the founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. Publishing the Book of Mormon at the age of 24, Smith attracted tens of thou ...
, religious leader, founder of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...
(died
1844
In the Philippines, 1844 had only 365 days, when Tuesday, December 31 was skipped as Monday, December 30 was immediately followed by Wednesday, January 1, 1845, the next day after. The change also applied to Caroline Islands, Guam, Marian ...
)
Deaths
* January 7 –
Ebenezer Sproat
Ebenezer Sproat (February 9, 1752 – January 7, 1805), surname also spelled Sprout, was an officer of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, a pioneer to the Ohio Country, and one of the founders of Marietta, Ohio, the fir ...
, Continental Army officer, pioneer in the Ohio Country (born
1752
In the British Empire, it was the only year with 355 days (11 days were dropped), as September 3–13 were skipped when the Empire adoption of the Gregorian calendar, adopted the Gregorian calendar.
Events January–March
* January 1 ...
)
* January 9 –
Noble Wimberly Jones
Noble Wimberly Jones (c. 1723 – January 9, 1805) was an American physician and statesman from Savannah, Georgia. A leading Georgia patriot in the American Revolution, he served as a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1781 and 1782.
...
, physician and delegate to the
Continental Congress
The Continental Congress was a series of legislature, legislative bodies, with some executive function, for the Thirteen Colonies of British America, Great Britain in North America, and the newly declared United States before, during, and after ...
in 1781 and 1782 (born c.
1723
Events
January–March
* January 25 – English-born pirate Edward Low intercepts the Portuguese ship ''Nostra Signiora de Victoria''. After the Portuguese captain throws his treasure of 11,000 gold coins into the sea rather th ...
)
* February 4 –
John Sloss Hobart, jurist and politician (born
1738
Events
January–March
* January 1 – At least 664 African slaves drown when the Dutch West Indies Company slave ship ''Leusden'' capsizes and sinks in the Maroni River during its arrival in Surinam. The Dutch crew escapes ...
)
* June 17 –
John Ames, captain in the
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
(born
1738
Events
January–March
* January 1 – At least 664 African slaves drown when the Dutch West Indies Company slave ship ''Leusden'' capsizes and sinks in the Maroni River during its arrival in Surinam. The Dutch crew escapes ...
)
* August 28 –
Christopher Gadsden, statesman (born
1724)
* September 27 –
William Moultrie, general (born
1730
Events
January–March
* January 30 (January 19 O.S.) – At dawn, Emperor Peter II of Russia dies of smallpox, aged 14 in Moscow, on the eve of his projected marriage.
* February 26 (February 15 O.S.) – Anna of Russia ( ...
)
* November –
Robert Alexander, Maryland politician (born c. 1740)
See also
*
Timeline of the Lewis and Clark Expedition
This is the timeline of the Lewis and Clark Expedition through the American West
The Western United States (also called the American West, the Western States, the Far West, the Western territories, and the West) is census regions Unite ...
*
Timeline of United States history (1790–1819)
References
Further reading
* John Lathrop. Effects of Lightning on the House of Capt. Daniel Merry, and Several Other Houses in the Vicinity, on the Evening of the 11th of May 1805. Memoirs of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Vol. 3, No. 1 (1809), pp. 86–91
* William Lattimore to his Constituents, 1805. The American Historical Review, Vol. 29, No. 3 (April, 1924), pp. 506–510
*
W. H. G. Armytage. A Sheffield Quaker in Philadelphia 1804-1806. Pennsylvania History, Vol. 17, No. 3 (1950), pp. 192–205
*
Rollo G. Silver. Belcher & Armstrong Set up Shop: 1805. Studies in Bibliography, Vol. 4, (1951/1952), pp. 201–204
* Dorothy Wollon, Margaret Kinard. Sir Augustus J. Foster and "The Wild Natives of the Woods," 1805-1807. The William and Mary Quarterly, Third Series, Vol. 9, No. 2 (April, 1952), pp. 191–214
* Jerry W. Knudson. The Jeffersonian Assault on the Federalist Judiciary, 1802–1805; Political Forces and Press Reaction. The American Journal of Legal History, Vol. 14, No. 1 (January, 1970), pp. 55–75
* Charles Merrill Mount. Gilbert Stuart in Washington: With a Catalogue of His Portraits Painted between December 1803 and July 1805. Records of the Columbia Historical Society, Washington, D.C., Vol. 71/72, The 48th separately bound book (1971/1972), pp. 81–127
* John W. Wagner. New York City Concert Life, 1801-5. American Music, Vol. 2, No. 2 (Summer, 1984), pp. 53–69
*
Linda K. Kerber. The Paradox of Women's Citizenship in the Early Republic: The Case of Martin vs. Massachusetts, 1805. The American Historical Review, Vol. 97, No. 2 (April, 1992), pp. 349–378
* Trey Berry. The Expedition of William Dunbar and George Hunter along the Ouachita River, 1804-1805. The Arkansas Historical Quarterly, Vol. 62, No. 4, The Louisiana Purchase: Empires, Nations, Communities (Winter, 2003), pp. 386–403
* John Craig Hammond. "They Are Very Much Interested in Obtaining an Unlimited Slavery": Rethinking the Expansion of Slavery in the Louisiana Purchase Territories, 1803-1805. Journal of the Early Republic, Vol. 23, No. 3 (Autumn, 2003), pp. 353–380
External links
*
{{Year in North America, 1805
1800s in the United States
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
Years of the 19th century in the United States