American soldier, born in Detroit, MI, on the 13th of April 1782; died in Washington on the 25th of June 1841. He entered the army, and at the beginning of the War of 1812 held the commission of lieutenant-colonel of engineers, and in 1813 served as colonel at Niagara and Fort George; was promoted brigadier-general of volunteers in 1814, on September 11th of which year he repulsed a superior force under General Prevost at Plattsburg on Lake Champlain, and was made major-general for his conduct. After the war he remained in the army as colonel of engineers, and in 1828 became major-general and commander-in-chief of the army. During the Florida war in 1835 he was in the field for a short time. He published A Treatise on Martial Law (1809) and A Treatise on the Practice of Court-Martials (1840). A Memoir of Alexander Macomb was written by G. H. Richards (1833).—His son, William Henry Macomb, born in Detroit, June 16, 1818, entered the navy in 1834, became commander in 1862, captain in 1866, and commodore in 1870. He was distinguished for courage and good judgment. He died in Philadelphia on the 12th of August 1872.
