Year 1801: Fun Facts, Trivia, and History

This quick read is a mix of fun facts, trivia, and historical events from the year 1801. Discover the year’s top news stories, most influential people, historic firsts, famous births and deaths, U.S. economic data, entertainment trivia, and much more.

Take a journey through history in just minutes.

1. President of the United States: John Adams (Federalist Party—Massachusetts)—Until March 4
2. President of the United States: Thomas Jefferson (Democratic-Republican Party—Virginia)—Beginning on March 4
3. Vice President: Thomas Jefferson (Democratic-Republican Party—Virginia)—Until March 4
4. Vice President: Aaron Burr (Democratic-Republican Party—New York)—Beginning on March 4
5. Chief Justice of the Supreme Court: John Marshall (Virginia)
6. Speaker of the House of Representatives: Theodore Sedgwick (Federalist Party—Massachusetts)—Until March 4
7. Speaker of the House of Representatives: Nathaniel Macon (Democratic-Republican Party—North Carolina)—Beginning on December 7
8. The 6th U.S. Congress was in session until March 4. On that date, the 7th U.S. Congress convened, and both chambers had a Democratic-Republican majority.
9. Inflation rate: 0.79%
10. $100.00 in 1801 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $2,622.20 today. The U.S. dollar had “an average inflation rate of 1.46% per year” between 1801 and 2026, “producing a cumulative price increase of 2,522.20%.” In other words, a U.S. dollar today buys about 3.814% of what it could purchase back in 1801.
11. It’s worth noting that the U.S. dollar has lost 96% of its value since 1801.
12. $1.00 in 1801 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $26.22 today.
13. $10.00 in 1801 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $262.22 today.
14. As mentioned above, $100.00 in 1801 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $2,622.20 today.
15. Finally, $1,000.00 in 1801 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $26,222.05 today.
16. Consumer price index (CPI): 12.700
17. In 1801, there were 16 U.S. states. In order of admission to the Union, they were Delaware (1787), Pennsylvania (1787), New Jersey (1787), Georgia (1788), Connecticut (1788), Massachusetts (1788), Maryland (1788), South Carolina (1788), New Hampshire (1788), Virginia (1788), New York (1788), North Carolina (1789), Rhode Island (1790), Vermont (1791), Kentucky (1792), and Tennessee (1796). (It’s worth noting that no new states were admitted to the Union during 1801.)
18. The most populated states were Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, South Carolina, and Massachusetts.
19. The most populous cities were New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Boston, and Charleston, South Carolina.
20. American companies established in 1801 included Crane Currency, a Dalton, Massachusetts-based company that “supplies central banks with design services, currency papers, and banknote printing services as well as anti-counterfeiting technology.”
21. On January 1, Giuseppe Piazzi, an Italian monk, discovered the dwarf planet Ceres.
22. On January 10, William Henry Harrison became the first governor of the Indiana Territory.
23. On February 17, Thomas Jefferson was elected as the third president of the United States.
24. On March 4, Thomas Jefferson became the first U.S. president to be inaugurated in Washington, DC.
25. On July 20, Elisha Brown, Jr. “pressed” a 1,235-pound cheese ball at his farm in Massachusetts. It was later shipped to Washington, DC, and presented to President Thomas Jefferson as a gift.
26. On August 12, John Cadbury, the founder of the Cadbury Chocolate Company, was born in Birmingham, England.
27. On November 9, American inventor and entrepreneur Gail Borden was born in Norwich, New York. In 1853, he created the “first commercial process for sweetening and condensing milk” and received a U.S. patent for the process in 1856.
28. On November 16, the first edition of the New York Evening Post was published.
29. On December 24, British inventor Richard Trevithick took seven of his friends for a test ride on his “Puffing Devil,” or “Puffer,” “the [world’s] first steam-powered passenger vehicle.”
30. Key fiction books published in 1801 included Elizabeth Helme’s St. Margaret’s Cave and Sophia King’s The Fatal Secret.
31. A noteworthy non-fiction work published in 1801 was essayist Elizabeth Hamilton’s Letters on the Elementary Principles of Education.
32. British children’s writer Priscilla Wakefield published The Juvenile Travellers: Containing the Remarks of a Family during a Tour through the Principal States and Kingdoms of Europe.
33. Famous people born in 1801 included Bringham Young (religious leader), John Batman (explorer), and Thierry Hermès (entrepreneur).
34. Famous and infamous people who died in 1801 included Benedict Arnold (a traitor during the American Revolutionary War) and Novalis (a German poet).
35. In 1801 as well, the words “analytic geometry,” “backfire,” “billion,” “box seat,” “canary yellow,” “cardinal number,” “caretaker,” “catnap,” “circuit judge,” “cure-all,” “dog whistle,” “downpour,” “federalize,” “hopscotch,” “medicine man,” “pajama,” “pajamas,” “schoolchild,” “self-engrossed,” “shell out,” “shortbread,” “silver spoon,” “tightrope,” “tonsillitis,” and “vital signs” all appeared in print for the first time.
36. 20 pounds of venison: 67 cents
37. 100 apple trees: $6.67
38. 100 fresh shad: $4.44
39. 100 pounds of hay: 40 cents
40. Four bushels of rye: $2.67
41. Nine pounds of beef: 60 cents
42. One-half bushel of beans: 53 cents
43. One-half bushel of corn: 24 cents
44. One bushel of buckwheat: 40 cents
45. One bushel of oats: 33 cents
46. One bushel of potatoes: 50 cents
47. One bushel of salt: $2.40
48. One bushel of wheat: $1.33
49. One dozen pigeons: 13 cents
50. One pound of butter: 13 cents
51. One pound of tobacco: 13 cents
52. One quart of soap: Seven cents
53. Six bushels of turnips: $1.20
54. Six pounds of pork: 40 cents
55. Three and one-half pounds of cheese: 47 cents
56. Three bushels of ashes: 27 cents
57. Three deerskins: $3.47
58. Three pounds of flax: 40 cents
59. Two pounds of bread: 13 cents
60. Two yards of tow cloth: 80 cents

References:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1801_in_the_United_States
2. https://www.officialdata.org/us/inflation/1801
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1801_in_literature
4. https://www.famousbirthdays.com/year/1801.html
5. https://www.famousbirthdays.com/deceased/1801.html
6. https://www.merriam-webster.com/time-traveler/1801
7. https://www.onthisday.com/events/date/1801
8. https://www.foodreference.com/html/html/yearonlytimeline1800-1899.html
9. https://www.history.com/a-year-in-history/1801
10. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/december-24/richard-trevithick-introduces-his-puffing-devil

Disclaimer: In writing and editing this article, Gregory DeVictor has made every effort to ensure historical accuracy and not to mislead his audience. In addition, the contents of this article, including text, graphics, and captions, are for general informational purposes only.

© 2026 Gregory DeVictor