Famous People Who Died In 1818

Abigail Adams was the closest advisor and wife of the second president of the United States, John Adams. She is credited with influencing John Adams in many ways as the latter often sought the advice of his wife. Adams feature prominently in musicals, films, and TV series that discuss her husband. She has been portrayed by actresses like Laura Linney.

Alexandre Pétion was a Haitian political leader best remembered for his service as the first President of Haiti from 9 March 1807 until his death on 29 March 1818. Today, Alexandre Pétion is revered as one of the founding fathers of Haiti.

British lawyer and legal reformer Samuel Romilly is best remembered for bringing about significant reforms in the English criminal law. Known for is campaigns against capital punishment for minor offenses, he was also knighted for his achievements. Unfortunately, distressed at his wife’s death, he committed suicide later.

Best known for his classic The Swiss Family Robinson, originally written in German, Swiss author and pastor Johann David Wyss was apparently inspired by Defoe's Robinson Crusoe and decided to write a tale for his sons. The book was later edited and illustrated by 2 of his sons.

Though Czech composer Leopold Koželuch had planned to study law, he later switched his focus to music. He began his career as a piano instructor and later rose to be one of the finest composers of ballet and operas. He also served as a court composer in Vienna.

A noted painter and printmaker of the Japanese Tokugawa period, Shiba Kōkan began his career with traditional Japanese and Chinese style of painting and woodwork before coming under the influence of Western realistic painting. Eventually he introduced the Western style of oil painting and copperplate engraving in Japan, illustrating Nicolaus Copernicus’ heliocentric theory of the solar system through his art.

Johan Gottlieb Gahn was a Swedish metallurgist and chemist best remembered for discovering manganese in 1774. He is also credited with introducing improvements in copper smelting. In 1784, Johan Gottlieb Gahn was inducted into the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

Jean-Baptist-Point Du Sable is considered the first permanent non-Indigenous settler of the area that would later become known as Chicago, Illinois. He was of African descent and married to a Native American woman. He established a prosperous trading settlement and traded around the Great Lakes and in the Illinois Country. He is recognized as the "Founder of Chicago." 

Irish-American sniper of the American Revolutionary War, Timothy Murphy was the man who inspired John Brick's novel The Rifleman. He is best remembered for his bravery at the Second Battle of Saratoga, in which he killed two British generals, aiming at them from a tree.

François-Joseph Bélanger was a French decorator and architect. A popular exponent of the Neoclassic style, Bélanger held an important position within the Menus Plaisirs du Roi, overseeing its decorations and designs. François-Joseph Bélanger was also in charge of the coronation coach of Louis XVI and the funeral preparations for Louis XV.

Remembered as Monk Lewis, because of his iconic Gothic novel The Monk, English novelist Matthew Lewis initially worked for the British embassy in the Netherlands. The owner of a huge fortune in Jamaica, he made a voyage to the place to supervise his slaves but died of yellow fever on the voyage back.