← 1778 1777 1776 1779 in the United States → 1780 1781 1782
Decades:	1770s 1780s 1790s
See also:	History of the United States (1776–1789) Timeline of the American Revolution List of years in the United States

Events from the year1779 in the United States.

• President of theSecond Continental Congress:John Jay (until September 28),Samuel Huntington (starting September 28)

• January 22 –American Revolutionary War:Claudius Smith is hanged atGoshen,Orange County, New York for supposed acts of terrorism upon the people of the surrounding communities.
• January 29 – After a second petition for partition from its residents, theNorth Carolina General Assembly abolishesBute County,North Carolina (established 1764) by dividing it and naming the northern portionWarren County (for Revolutionary War heroJoseph Warren) and the southern portionFranklin County (forBenjamin Franklin). The General Assembly also establishesWarrenton (also named for Joseph Warren) to be the county seat of Warren County andLouisburg (named forLouis XVI) to be the county seat of Franklin County.
• February 14
  • British CaptainJames Cook is killed on the Sandwich Islands (later known as theHawaiian Islands) on his third and last voyage.
  • American Revolutionary War:Battle of Kettle Creek – APatriot militia decisively defeats and scatters aLoyalist militia that was on its way to British-controlledAugusta, Georgia.
• February 23–25 –American Revolutionary War:Battle of Vincennes.

• May 10–24 – American Revolutionary War:Chesapeake raid.
• June 1 –American Revolutionary War:Benedict Arnold iscourt-martialed formalfeasance in his treatment of government property.
• June 16 –American Revolutionary War: In support of the U.S.,Spain declares war on England.^{[citation needed]}
• June 18 –American Revolutionary War: In response toIroquois and Loyalist attacks, the U.S. launches theSullivan Expedition with the aim of destroying enemy Iroquois settlements in what is now central New York.

• July 16 –American Revolutionary War:Battle of Stony Point,United States forces led by GeneralAnthony Wayne captureStony Point, New York from British forces.
• July 22 –Battle of Minisink: The Goshen Militia is destroyed byJoseph Brant's forces.
• July 24 –American Revolutionary War: American forces led by CommodoreDudley Saltonstall launch thePenobscot Expedition in what is nowCastine, Maine, resulting in the worst naval defeat in U.S. military history untilPearl Harbor.
• September –Battle of Baton Rouge:Spanish troops underBernardo de Galvez capture the city from the British.
• September 16–October 18 –American Revolutionary War:Siege of Savannah: Franco-American troops make a failed attempt to capture Savannah from the British, suffering heavy casualties.
• September 23 –American Revolution –Battle of Flamborough Head: The American shipBonhomme Richard, commanded byJohn Paul Jones, engages the British shipSerapis.Bonhomme Richard sinks, but her crew captureSerapis.

• October 4 – TheFort Wilson Riot takes place.
• November 2 – The North Carolina General Assembly carves a new county fromDobbs County, North Carolina and names itWayne County in honor of United States GeneralAnthony Wayne.
• December 25 – Fort Nashborough, later to becomeNashville, Tennessee, is founded byJames Robertson.

• American Revolutionary War (1775–1783)

• January 5
  • Stephen Decatur, U.S. Naval commander (died1820)
  • Zebulon Pike, General and explorer (died1813)
• January 23 –Isaac C. Bates, United States Senator from Massachusetts from 1841 till 1845. (died1845)
• April 11 –Oliver Ames Sr., founder of the Ames Shovel Works (died1863)
• August 1 –Francis Scott Key, author ofThe Star Spangled Banner (died1843)
• August 6 –Henry M. Ridgely, United States Senator from Delaware from 1827 till 1829. (died1847)
• September 18 –Joseph Story, Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1811 till 1845. (died1845)
• October –Henry W. Edwards, United States Senator from Connecticut from 1823 till 1838. (died 1847)
• Date unknown –George Poindexter, Governor of Mississippi in 1819 and from 1820 till 1822 and United States Senator from Mississippi from 1830 till 1835. (died1853)

• James Cook February 14, 1779, Explorer and Navigator

• Timeline of the American Revolution (1760–1789)

• Media related to1779 in the United States at Wikimedia Commons

• 1779 in the United States
• 1770s in the United States
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