Henry Dearborn
Portrait of Henry Dearborn byGilbert Stuart, 1812
5thUnited States Secretary of War
In office March 5, 1801 – March 4, 1809
President	Thomas Jefferson
Preceded by	Samuel Dexter
Succeeded by	William Eustis
7thUnited States Minister to Portugal
In office August 16, 1822 – June 30, 1824
President	James Monroe
Preceded by	John Graham
Succeeded by	Thomas L. L. Brent
10thSenior Officer of the United States Army
In office January 27, 1812 – June 15, 1815
President	James Madison
Preceded by	James Wilkinson
Succeeded by	Jacob Brown
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts
In office March 4, 1793 – March 3, 1797 Serving with Peleg Wadsworth andGeorge Thatcher (1793–95)
Preceded by	Theodore Sedgwick
Succeeded by	Isaac Parker
Constituency	4th district (1793–95) 12th district (1795–97)
Personal details
Born	(1751-02-23)February 23, 1751 North Hampton,New Hampshire,British America
Died	June 6, 1829(1829-06-06) (aged 78) Roxbury,Massachusetts,U.S.
Political party	Anti-Administration (Before 1792) Democratic-Republican (1792–1829)
Spouse(s)	Mary Bartlett ​ ​ (m. 1771; died 1778)​ Dorcas Osgood Marble ​ ​ (m. 1780; died 1810)​ Sarah Bowdoin ​ ​ (m. 1813; died 1826)​
Signature
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	Continental Army U.S. Army
Years of service	1775–1783 1812–1815
Rank	Colonel Major General
Battles/wars	American Revolutionary War Battle of Bunker Hill Invasion of Quebec Battle of Quebec Battles of Saratoga Valley Forge Battle of Monmouth Sullivan Expedition Battle of Newtown Siege of Yorktown War of 1812 Battle of Lacolle Mills Battle of York Battle of Fort George

Henry Dearborn (February 23, 1751 – June 6, 1829) was an American military officer and politician. In theRevolutionary War, he served underBenedict Arnold in hisexpedition to Quebec, of which his journal provides an important record. After being captured and exchanged, he served inGeorge Washington'sContinental Army. He was present at theBritish surrender atYorktown. Dearborn served on GeneralGeorge Washington's staff in Virginia.

He served asSecretary of War under PresidentThomas Jefferson, from 1801 to 1809, and served as a commanding general in theWar of 1812. In later life, his criticism of GeneralIsrael Putnam's performance at theBattle of Bunker Hill caused a majorcontroversy.Fort Dearborn andDearborn Park in Illinois,Dearborn County, Indiana, andDearborn, Michigan, were named in his honor.^[1][2]

Henry Dearborn was born February 23, 1751, to Simon Dearborn and Sarah Marston inNorth Hampton in theProvince of New Hampshire. He was descended from Godfrey Dearborn, fromExeter in England, who came to theMassachusetts Bay Colony in 1639. Godfrey Dearborn settled first atExeter, New Hampshire, and soon after atHampton, where four successive generations of his descendants lived. Henry spent much of his youth inEpping, where he attended public schools. He grew up as an athletic boy, notably strong and a champion wrestler.^[3] He studied medicine under Dr. Hall Jackson ofPortsmouth and opened a practice on the square inNottingham, New Hampshire, in 1772.^[4]

Dearborn was married three times: to Mary Bartlett in 1771, to Dorcas (Osgood) Marble in 1780, and to Sarah Bowdoin, widow ofJames Bowdoin, in 1813.Henry Alexander Scammell Dearborn was his son by his second wife.^[1]

When fighting in theAmerican Revolutionary War began, Dearborn fought with the Continental Army as a captain in the1st and3rd New Hampshire Regiments; he soon rose to the rank oflieutenant colonel. He was appointed DeputyQuartermaster General in July 1781 and served on George Washington's staff while inVirginia.^[5] At age twenty-three, he organized and led a local militia troop of sixty men to theBoston area, where he fought on June 17, 1775, at theBattle of Bunker Hill as a captain in ColonelJohn Stark's 1st New Hampshire Regiment.^[6][7] During the battle, Dearborn observed that "Not an officer or soldier of the continental troops engaged was in uniform, but were in the plain and ordinary dress of citizens; nor was there an officer on horseback."^[8][a] Dearborn years later would accuseIsrael Putnam of failing his duty during that battle, resulting in what has since been known as theDearborn-Putnam controversy.^[9]

Dearborn volunteered to serve under ColonelBenedict Arnold in September 1775, during the difficultAmerican expedition to Quebec. Later Dearborn would record in his Revolutionary War journal their overall situation and condition: "We were small indeed to think of entering a place likeQuebec. But being now almost out of provisions we were sure to die if we attempted to return back and we could be in no worse situation if we proceeded on our rout."^[10]

On the final leg of the march, Dearborn was taken seriously ill with fever, forcing him to remain behind in a cottage on theChaudière River. Later he rejoined the combined forces of Arnold and Gen.Richard Montgomery in time to take part in the assault on Quebec.^[b][4] Dearborn's journal is an important record for that campaign. During the march he andAaron Burr became companions.^[11] Along with a number of other officers, Dearborn was captured on December 31, 1775, during theBattle of Quebec, and detained for a year.^[12][13] He was released onparole in May 1776, but he was not exchanged until March 1777.^[1]

After fighting atTiconderoga in July 1777, Dearborn was appointedmajor in theregiment commanded byAlexander Scammell.

In September 1777, he took part in theSaratoga campaign againstBurgoyne atFreeman's Farm. The first battle was largely fought by troops fromNew Hampshire, Dearborn's home state. The New Hampshire brigade under GeneralPoor and a detachment of infantry under Major Dearborn, numbering about three hundred, along with detachments of other militia, andWhitcomb's Rangers, co-operated with Morgan in the repulse ofFraser's attack.^[14] The cautious GeneralHoratio Gates reluctantly ordered a reconnaissance force consisting ofDaniel Morgan's Provisional Rifle Corps and Dearborn's light infantry to scout out theBemis Heights area.^[12] Gates later noted Dearborn's marked ability as a soldier and officer in his report. Thereafter Dearborn joined GeneralGeorge Washington's mainContinental Army atValley Forge,Pennsylvania, as a lieutenant colonel, where he spent the winter of 1777–1778.^[4]

Dearborn fought at theBattle of Monmouth inNew Jersey in 1778, following the British evacuation ofPhiladelphia to retreat to concentrate atNew York City, in the final major battle of theNorthern Theatre, and in the summer of 1779 he accompanied Major GeneralJohn Sullivan on theSullivan Expedition against theIroquois in upstateNew York^[12] and in theBattle of Newtown against the Six Nations, thereafter laying waste to theGenesee Valley and the various regions around theFinger Lakes.^[4]

During the winter of 1778–1779, he was encamped at what is nowPutnam Memorial State Park inRedding, Connecticut. Dearborn rejoined General Washington's staff in 1781 as deputy quartermaster general and commanded the 1st New Hampshire at thesiege of Yorktown with the rank of colonel^[15] and was present whenCornwallis surrendered in October of that year.^[12]

In June 1783, Dearborn received his discharge from the Continental Army and settled inGardiner, Maine, where he became Major General of the Maine militia. Washington appointed him marshal of theDistrict of Maine. Dearborn served in theU.S. House of Representatives from the District of Maine, 1793 to 1797.^[12][c] He was an original member of the New HampshireSociety of the Cincinnati.^[16][17]

During the American Revolution Dearborn maintained six separate journals where he recorded the various campaigns, battles, and other notable events from his point of experience. HisRevolutionary War journals of Henry Dearborn, 1775-1783, have provided historians of early American history with valuable first-hand information from the perspective of an officer who was engaged in the various battles and surrounding events. His journals were first published in 1939 by theCaxton Club of Chicago and were edited from the original manuscripts by historians Lloyd A. Brown andHoward Henry Peckham; the publication includes a biographical essay of Dearborn by Hermon D. Smith. The six journals are enumerated as follows:

Dearborn also wroteAn Account of the Battle of Bunker Hill. Various scholars have cited the short work as being culturally important and greatly contributing to the knowledge base of early American history.^[19]

Dearborn was commissioned as abrigadier general in theMassachusetts Militia in 1787 and was promoted tomajor general in 1789. The same year he was appointed as the firstU.S. Marshal for theDistrict of Maine under the new Constitution of 1787 byPresident Washington. He represented this district as aDemocratic-Republican in theThird andFourth Congresses from 1793 to 1797, when he lost re-election toIsaac Parker. Dearborn attempted to return to his former congressional seat in 1798^[20] and 1800,^[21] losing both times toSilas Lee, who had succeeded Parker after one term.

In 1801, third PresidentThomas Jefferson appointed DearbornSecretary of War, a post he held for eight years until March 7, 1809. Dearborn advised Jefferson in matters of military personnel when Jefferson was formulating theMilitary Peace Establishment Act in 1800-01, which outlined a new set of laws and limits for the military and also led to the founding of a national military academy atWest Point.^[22] In April 1801, Dearborn askedGeorge Baron, an Englishman who was Dearborn's friend from Maine, to be the mathematics instructor at the academy. Dearborn also offered the superintendency of the school toJonathan Williams,^[d] who had translated into English some European treatises on artillery and fortification.^[23]

During the 1801 and 1802 period, Dearborn and Jefferson corresponded frequently, discussing various political and military matters. Notable among them was Dearborn's report of May 12, 1801 on the War Department,^[23] and his recommendation for "designating the boundary line between the United States, and the adjacentBritish possessions, in such manner as may prevent any disputes in future..."^[24]

During his tenure, he helped Jefferson form a policy onNative Americans, the goal being to establish a western boundary by procuring lands along theMississippi River.^[25]

In 1805, while events in theBurr conspiracy were beginning to unfold,Aaron Burr andLouisiana Territory governorJames Wilkinson were allegedly planning war with Mexico, with the aim of establishing a secessionist state in the Southwest in the process.^[e] Hoping to incite war with Spain, Wilkinson in a letter to Secretary of War Dearborn urged him to attack WesternSpanish Florida fromBaton Rouge. Prompted by prevailing rumors of war, Dearborn ordered him to send threecompanies of troops toFort Adams inWestern Florida as a precaution.^[f] The prospect of war in turn was used by Wilkinson to justify sending an exploratory military expedition into the Southwest to find a route that would be used to supply a war effort at the U.S.-Spanish-Mexican border.^[26][g] In May, Dearborn ordered Wilkinson to the Orleans territory, directing his general to "repel any invasion of the United States east of theSabine River or north or west of the bounds of what has been called West Florida..." Dearborn further maintained that any such movements across these borders would constitute "an actual invasion of our territorial rights". This was the opportunity both Burr and Wilkinson were hoping for, thinking that Spanish officials were on edge over the prospect of confrontation with the U.S. and could easily be provoked into war.^[27] When Wilkinson, however, had asked Dearborn to send an exploratory military expedition into the Southwest, Dearborn replied that, "you, Burr, etc., are becoming too intimate ... keep every suspicious person at arm's length."^[h] At this time Dearborn also warned his top general that "your name has very frequently been mentioned with Burr's." Shortly thereafter Burr was arrested fortreason.^[29]

Dearborn was appointed collector of theport of Boston by PresidentJames Madison in March 1809,^[30] a position he held until January 27, 1812, when he was appointed as theCommanding General of the United States Army.^[2]

During theWar of 1812, while President Madison was urgingFederalists to join in "united support" against Britain in a war they were given little reason to cooperate in, he gave Henry Dearborn senior command of the northeast sector which ranged from theNiagara River to theNew England coast. Dearborn had favor with Madison as a Revolutionary War veteran who rose to the rank ofcolonel and for serving as Secretary of War under President Jefferson,^[31] and especially for helping Jefferson draft the Military Peace Establishment Act, which served to remove many Federalist officers from the ranks of the military. Subsequently, Madison's choice for commanding general of the northeast theater was not well received by most Federalists.^[32][i] At age 61, however, Dearborn was now overweight, slow and insecure, and he found it difficult to inspire confidence among the men under his command. In March he suffered a minor injury from a fall, and it is suggested that Dearborn took his time recovering. When the war broke out he spent even more time in Boston, fearing, as did Vice PresidentElbridge Gerry, that the Federalists were once again plotting a northeastern secession^[j] and ready to install a"Hanoverian"-like monarchy in opposition to them.^[32]

Needing to present Congress with reports of progress, Secretary of WarWilliam Eustis urged Dearborn to promptly embark forAlbany and plan and make preparations for an invasion ofMontreal in Canada. Dearborn maintained, however, that he must first get to New England and secure the militia for defending the New England coast, which would free up the regular troops of the region for thecoming campaign against Canada, and before the Federalists effected an open revolt there. After disputes with New England's several Federalist governors, who refused to supply the militia for coastal defense, Dearborn reluctantly left New England for Albany with regular troops in late July, leaving the coast almost defenseless against British coastal attacks.^[34][k]

On August 9, while GeneralWilliam Hull was expecting a diversionary attack by Dearborn in the Niagara area, the latter was still at his headquarters atGreenbush, just outside of Albany, and was having great difficulty amassing troops for the coming offensive in Canada. At this timeGeorge Prévost had sent British ColonelEdward Baynes to negotiate a temporaryarmistice with Dearborn. Dearborn learned thatLord Liverpool was giving the American government time to respond. Lacking the means to adequately engage the British in Canada, Dearborn was not eager for battle, welcomed the delay, and rushed news of the armistice to Madison for approval. In the meantime Dearborn gave orders to GeneralVan Rensselaer to avoid any engagements along the Niagara. The truce, however, was short-lived when on August 15 Madison repudiated Dearborn's agreement and orders were issued to renew the offensive.^[34][35]

Dearborn prepared plans for simultaneous assaults onMontreal,Kingston,Fort Niagara, andAmherstburg, but the execution was imperfect. A half-hearted advance intoLower Canada in November 1812 simply collapsed after a very minor engagement at theBattle of Lacolle Mills. Some scholars believe that Dearborn also did not move quickly enough to provide sufficient troops to defendDetroit. Hull, without firing a shot, surrendered the city to British GeneralIsaac Brock.^[l] Hull wascourt-martialed and sentenced to death, but the sentence was commuted. Dearborn headed the court martial.^[36]

On April 27, 1813, American forces onLake Ontario under Dearborn and CommodoreIsaac Chauncey gained success at theBattle of York, occupying the town for several days and capturing many guns and stores. Thereafter the American army was transported across the lake in Chauncey's ships to Fort Niagara. Dearborn assembled 4,500 troops at Fort Niagara and planned to attackFort George next, and entrusted the attack to ColonelWinfield Scott,^[37] but his army required rest and reorganization. No preparations had been made to accommodate the troops at Fort Niagara, and they suffered considerable shortages and privations for several days.^[38]

Although Dearborn had minor successes at thecapture of York (nowToronto) on April 27, 1813, and at thecapture of Fort George on May 27, 1813, his command was, for the most part, ineffective. He was recalled from the frontier on July 6, 1813, and reassigned to an administrative command inNew York City,^[39] and married his third wife, Sarah Bowdoin.^[1]

Dearborn was honorably discharged from the Army on June 15, 1815.^[40]

Dearborn was an original member of theSociety of the Cincinnati,^[41] and was elected a member of theAmerican Antiquarian Society in 1816, now the oldest historical society in the United States.^[42]

Dearborn ran forGovernor of Massachusetts in 1818 against incumbentJohn Brooks. Because Dearborn was aDemocratic-Republican in a predominantly Federalist state, he needed favorable press to help his campaign. Subsequently, Dearborn accepted an offer from Charles Miner, the editor ofThe Port Folio, a Philadelphia political magazine, asking him to verify and edit a British soldier's map depicting the Battle of Bunker Hill. Dearborn saw this as a chance to win public favor and seized the opportunity.^[43] However, his efforts backfired when he also wrote a "correct account" of the battle in the article, which was reprinted in 1818, accusingIsrael Putnam of inaction and cowardly leadership during the battle, which sparked a major and long-lasting controversy among veterans of the war and various historians.^[9][44]

On March 1, 1815, PresidentJames Madison nominated Dearborn for reappointment as Secretary of War,^[when?] but the Senate rejected the nomination, and in the face of fierce criticism over Dearborn's performance during the War of 1812, Madison withdrew the nomination.^[2][45] Dearborn was later appointedMinister Plenipotentiary to Portugal by PresidentJames Monroe, serving from May 7, 1822, until June 30, 1824, when, by his own request, he was recalled.^[2]

He retired to his home inRoxbury, Massachusetts, where he died in 1829. He is interred inForest Hills Cemetery inJamaica Plain (outside of Boston at the time; annexed to the city in 1874).^[1]

Lewis and Clark, appointed by Thomas Jefferson, named theDearborn River in west-centralMontana after Dearborn in 1803.Dearborn County, Indiana;Dearborn, Michigan; andDearborn, Missouri, were also named for him, as wasFort Dearborn inChicago, which in turn was the namesake forDearborn Street, a major street in downtown Chicago. There was also a Fort Dearborn inAdams County, Mississippi, in the early 1800s (seeLeonard Covington).

Augusta, Maine, was so renamed after Henry's daughter, Augusta Dearborn, in August 1797.

A U.S. military armory, initially named "Mount Dearborn", was planned in the early 1800s to be built on an island near the confluence of theCatawba andWateree rivers, adjacent toGreat Falls, South Carolina. The facility was never constructed, but the island name stuck, and after the town was founded in 1905, its main thoroughfare was named Dearborn Street.

DuringWorld War II, a coastal defense fort namedFort Dearborn was established in Henry Dearborn's home state ofNew Hampshire, to guard the approaches toPortsmouth.

General Dearborn's son,Henry A. S. Dearborn, was a U.S. congressman representingMassachusetts's 10th congressional district from 1831 to 1833.

• List of American Revolutionary War battles
• New Hampshire historical marker no. 85: Nottingham – Chartered 1722
• Unsuccessful nominations to the Cabinet of the United States

• Johnson, Allen;Malone, Dumas (Eds.) (1930).Dictionary of American Biography, Feb. 23, 1751 - Jun. 6, 1829, Vol. V. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York.
• Dearborn, Henry; Putnam, Daniel (1818).An Account of the Battle of Bunker's Hill. Munroe & Francis, Boston.
• Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-2005: The Continental Congress, September 5, 1774, to October 21, 1788. Government Printing Office. 2005.ISBN 9780160731761.
• Cray, Robert E. (2001).Bunker Hill Refought: Memory Wars and Partisan Conflicts, 1775-1825(PDF). Historical Journal of Massachusetts. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on May 5, 2016. RetrievedApril 14, 2016.
• Dearborn, Henry;Peckham, Howard Henry (2009).Revolutionary War Journals of Henry Dearborn, 1775-1783. Heritage Books, 282 pages.ISBN 9780788401244.e-Book
• Daughan, George C. (2011).1812, The Navy's War. Perseus Books, New York, 491 pages.ISBN 9780465028085.
• Elting, John R. (1991).Amateurs, to Arms! A Military History of the War of 1812. DaCapo Press.ISBN 0-306-80653-3.
• Fredriksen, John C. (1999).American Military Leaders. ABC-CLIO.ISBN 9781576070017.
• Green (2009).The Guns of Independence: The Siege of Yorktown, 1781. Savas Beatie.ISBN 9781932714685.
• Hickey, Donald R. (1989).The War of 1812, The Forgotten Conflict. University of Illinois Press, 454 pages.ISBN 9780252078378.
• McDonald, Forrest (2004).Thomas Jefferson's Military Academy: Founding West Point. University of Virginia Press.ISBN 9780813922980.
• Philbrick, Nathaniel (2013).Bunker Hill: A City, A Siege, A Revolution. Penguin Books, 416 pages.ISBN 9781101622704.
• Purcell, Sarah J. (2010).Sealed with Blood: War, Sacrifice, and Memory in Revolutionary America. University of Pennsylvania Press.ISBN 9780812203028.,pages covering account
• Proceedings of the General Society of the Cincinnati, 1784-1884, Volume 1. Society of the Cincinnati, Philadelphia. 1887.
• Stewart, David O. (2011).American Emperor: Aaron Burr's challenge to Jefferson's America. Simon & Schuster, 411 pages.ISBN 9781439160329.
• Taylor, Alan (2010).The Civil War of 1812. Alfred A Knopf, New York, 623 pages.ISBN 9780679776734.
• Wheelan, Joseph (2005).Jefferson's Vendetta. Carroll and Graf Publishers, New York, 344 pages.ISBN 9780786714377.
• Willey, George Franklyn (1903).State Builders: An Illustrated Historical and Biographical Record of the State of New Hampshire. State Builders Publishing, Manchester, NH.

Website sources

• "Dearborn, H.A.S. (Henry Alexander Scammell), 1783-1851". New York Public library. RetrievedApril 13, 2016.
• "Dearborn's 5 December 1801 letter to Jefferson". U.S. National Archives. 1801. RetrievedDecember 30, 2019.
• "Henry Dearborn's Report on the War Department, [12 May 1801]". U.S. National Archives. 1801.
• "Thomas Jefferson to the Senate, 25 March 1802". U.S. National Archives. RetrievedMarch 23, 2016.
• "DEARBORN, Henry, (1751 - 1829)". U.S. Congress. RetrievedMarch 26, 2012.
• "Henry Dearborn". U.S. Army Center of Military History. Archived fromthe original on December 12, 2007. RetrievedMarch 26, 2016.
• "Henry Dearborn (Physiognotrace)". Thomas Jefferson Foundation. RetrievedMarch 25, 2016.
• DiLorenzo, Thomas J. (1998)."Yankee Confederates". RetrievedMarch 29, 2016.
• "Bunker Hill Monument and Memory". Journal of the American Revolution. June 18, 2013. RetrievedApril 15, 2016.

• Dale, Ronald J. (2001).The Invasion of Canada: Battles of the War of 1812. James Lorimer & Company, 96 pages.ISBN 9781550287387.
• Frothingham, Richard (1890).Battle of Bunker Hill. Little, Brown & Company, 136 pages. —eBook
• Livingston, William Farrand (1901).Israel Putnam: Pioneer, Ranger, and Major-general, 1718-1790. G. P. Putnam's Sons. —eBook
• Tarbox, Increase Niles (1876).Life of Israel Putnam. Lockwood, Brooks & Company, Boston. —eBook
• Winsor, Justin (1887).Narrative and Critical History of America, Volume 6. Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 777 pages. —eBook

Wikimedia Commons has media related toHenry Dearborn.

• The Society of the Cincinnati
• The American Revolution Institute
• Letters from Henry Dearborn, to Washington, Adams, Jefferson, etc.
• Bell, William Gardner (2005)."Henry Dearborn".Commanding Generals and Chiefs of Staff: Portraits and Biographical Sketchs.United States Army Center of Military History. pp. 72–73. Archived fromthe original on April 10, 2021. RetrievedSeptember 12, 2021.
• George LaBarre Galleries: Henry Dearborn autographed as President, Republican Institution Certificate dated 1821.
• Works by Henry Dearborn atProject Gutenberg

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