Timothy Upham (September 9, 1783 – November 2, 1855) was an American soldier in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

. At the

Siege of Fort Erie The siege of Fort Erie, also known as the Battle of Erie, from 4 August to 21 September 1814, was one of the last engagements of the War of 1812, between British and American forces. It took place during the Niagara campaign, and the Americans s ...

he led the regiment under his command on a mission to rescue General

Miller A miller is a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalent ...

Biography

Upham's father was Reverend Timothy Upham of

Deerfield, New Hampshire Deerfield is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 4,855 at the 2020 census, up from 4,280 at the 2010 census. Deerfield is the location of the annual Deerfield Fair. History Deerfield was originally pa ...

. His mother was Hannah, the daughter of Reverend Nathaniel Gookin of North Hampton. Timothy Upham moved to Portsmouth, New Hampshire in 1807, and opened a store on Market Street. In June 1811, Governor

John Langdon John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

appointed Upham as one of his aides, with the rank of lieutenant colonel. Upham continued in business as a merchant until 1812, when, in anticipation of a war with Great Britain, he was commissioned as major of the 11th U.S. Infantry on March 12. In June he was appointed by the new Governor

William Plumer William Plumer (June 25, 1759December 22, 1850) was an American lawyer, Baptist lay preacher, and politician from Epping, New Hampshire. He is most notable for his service as a Federalist in the United States Senate (1802–1807), and the sevent ...

to command the detachment of troops from

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...

ordered to garrison

Fort McClary Fort McClary is a former defensive fortification of the United States military located along the southern coast at Kittery Point, Maine at the mouth of the Piscataqua River. It was used throughout the 19th century to protect approaches to the harb ...

. In September, Upham joined his regiment at Plattsburgh, New York. Then on January 15, 1813, he was ordered to

Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropo ...

as superintendent of the recruiting district of Maine. In the spring he was promoted to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the 21st Regiment, which was assigned to join Major General James Wilkinson's army in an attack on

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

. The campaign ended with the American defeat in the

Battle of Crysler's Farm The Battle of Crysler's Farm, also known as the Battle of Crysler's Field, was fought on 11 November 1813, during the War of 1812 (the name ''Chrysler's Farm'' is sometimes used for the engagement, but ''Crysler'' is the proper spelling). A Brit ...

on 11 November 1813. However, elements of the 21st Regiment and Upham in particular were credited with meritorious action in that affair.Lossing, Benson J., ''Pictorial field-book of the War of 1812,'' New York: Harper & Brothers, 1869. During the

in 1814, Upham and his regiment were sent by special order of General

Jacob Brown Jacob Jennings Brown (May 9, 1775 – February 24, 1828) was known for his victories as an American army officer in the War of 1812, where he reached the rank of general. His successes on the northern border during that war made him a national ...

on a mission to rescue General

. At the close of this campaign, his health impaired, Colonel Upham was reassigned to recruiting service. At the close of the war Upham resigned his commission and was honorably discharged on June 15, 1815. In 1816 he was appointed Collector of Customs at Portsmouth, and he continued in that office for thirteen years. In 1819, he was appointed

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

of the 1st Brigade, 1st Division New Hampshire Militia, and in 1820 was promoted to

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

of the Division upon the resignation of General

Clement Storer Clement Storer (September 20, 1760November 21, 1830) was a United States representative and Senator from New Hampshire. Born in Kennebunk in Massachusetts Bay's Province of Maine, he completed preparatory studies, studied medicine in Portsmout ...

. This office he resigned in 1823. After leaving the Custom House in 1829, Upham again entered upon commercial pursuits. In 1830 he made an unsuccessful bid for the office of Governor of the State of New Hampshire, running on the Republican Party ticket and losing to Matthew Harvey. In the course of the campaign, an opposition newspaper accused Upham of misappropriating customs funds. Upham sued the publishers for libel; but after a lengthy trial, the jury was unable to find a verdict. In 1841 he was appointed Navy Agent at Portsmouth by President Harrison. He soon resigned this office, and in 1845 removed to Charlestown, Massachusetts. His business pursuits were unsuccessful and, suffering poor health, Upham retired from active business. Timothy Upham died in Charlestown on 2 November 1855.''Farmer's Cabinet'' (Amherst, N.H.), 8 November 1855, p. 2. His remains were returned to Portsmouth where they were interred in the Proprietors Burying Ground.

References

* Powell, William Henry, ''List of officers of the army of the United States from 1779 to 1900'', L. R. Hamersly & co., 1900. * Heitman, Francis Bernard, ''Historical register of the United States Army: from its organization, September 29, 1789, to September 29, 1889'', The National Tribune, 1890. * Wilson, James Grant and Fiske, John, ''Appleton's Cyclopædia of American Biography'', Volume 6, D. Appleton and company, 1889. * Herringshaw, Thomas William, ''Herringshaw's National Library of American Biography: Contains Thirty-five Thousand Biographies of the Acknowledged Leaders of Life and Thought of the United States; Illustrated with Three Thousand Vignette Portraits'', Volume 4, American Publishers' Association, 1914. * Foster, Joseph, ''The soldiers' memorial. Portsmouth, N.H., 1893-1921: Storer Post, No. 1, Department of New Hampshire, Grand Army of the Republic, Portsmouth, N.H., with record of presentation of flags and portraits by the post to the city. 1890 and 1891 '', Grand Army of the Republic. Dept. of New Hampshire Storer Post, No. 1 (Portsmouth), 1893. {{DEFAULTSORT:Upham, Timothy American militia generals United States Army personnel of the War of 1812 1783 births 1855 deaths United States Army officers