Events from the year 1872 in the United States.

Incumbents

Federal government

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" ! Governors and lieutenant governors

Governors

• Governor of Alabama: Robert B. Lindsay (Democratic) (until November 17), David P. Lewis (Republican) (starting November 17) • Governor of Arkansas: Ozra Amander Hadley (Republican) • Governor of California: Newton Booth (Republican) • Governor of Connecticut: Marshall Jewell (Republican) • Governor of Delaware: James Ponder (Democratic) • Governor of Florida: Harrison Reed (Republican) • Governor of Georgia: Benjamin Conley (Republican) (until January 12), James M. Smith (Democratic) (starting January 12) • Governor of Illinois: John M. Palmer (Republican) • Governor of Indiana: Conrad Baker (Republican) • Governor of Iowa: Samuel Merrill (Republican) (until January 11), Cyrus C. Carpenter (Republican) (starting January 11) • Governor of Kansas: James M. Harvey (Republican) • Governor of Kentucky: Preston H. Leslie (Democratic) • Governor of Louisiana: Henry C. Warmoth (Republican) (until December 29), P. B. S. Pinchback (Republican) (starting December 29) • Governor of Maine: Sidney Perham (Republican) • Governor of Maryland: Oden Bowie (Democratic) (until January 10), William Pinkney Whyte (Democratic) (starting January 10) • Governor of Massachusetts: William Claflin (Republican) (until January 4), William B. Washburn (Republican) (starting January 4) • Governor of Michigan: Henry P. Baldwin (Republican) • Governor of Minnesota: Horace Austin (Republican) • Governor of Mississippi: Ridgley C. Powers (Republican) • Governor of Missouri: B. Gratz Brown (Liberal Republican) • Governor of Nebraska:William H. James (Republican) • Governor of Nevada: Lewis R. Bradley (Democratic) • Governor of New Hampshire: James A. Weston (Democratic) (until June 6), Ezekiel A. Straw (Republican) (starting June 6) • Governor of New Jersey: Theodore Fitz Randolph (Democratic) (until January 16), Joel Parker (Democratic) (starting January 16) • Governor of New York: John Thompson Hoffman (Democratic) (until end of December 31) • Governor of North Carolina: Tod Robinson Caldwell (Republican) • Governor of Ohio: Rutherford B. Hayes (Republican) (until January 8), Edward F. Noyes (Republican) (starting January 8) • Governor of Oregon: La Fayette Grover (Democratic) • Governor of Pennsylvania: John W. Geary (Republican) • Governor of Rhode Island: Seth Padelford (Republican) • Governor of South Carolina: Robert Kingston Scott (Republican) (until December 7), Franklin I. Moses, Jr. (Republican) (starting December 7) • Governor of Tennessee: John C. Brown (Democratic) • Governor of Texas: Edmund J. Davis (Republican) • Governor of Vermont: John W. Stewart (Republican) (until October 3), Julius Converse (Republican) (starting October 3) • Governor of Virginia: Gilbert Carlton Walker (Democratic) • Governor of West Virginia: John J. Jacob (Democratic)/(Independent) • Governor of Wisconsin: Lucius Fairchild (Republican) (until January 1), Cadwallader C. Washburn (Republican) (starting January 1)

Lieutenant governors

• Lieutenant Governor of Alabama: Edward H. Moren (Democratic) (until November 17), Alexander McKinstry (Republican) (starting November 17) • Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas: vacant • Lieutenant Governor of California: William Holden (Democratic) (until month and day unknown), Romualdo Pacheco (Republican) (starting month and day unknown) • Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut: Julius Hotchkiss (Democratic) (until month and day unknown), Morris Tyler (Republican) (starting month and day unknown) • Lieutenant Governor of Florida: vacant (until month and day unknown), Samuel T. Day (Republican) (starting month and day unknown) • Lieutenant Governor of Illinois: John Dougherty (Republican) • Lieutenant Governor of Indiana: William Cumback (Republican) • Lieutenant Governor of Iowa: Madison Miner Walden (Republican) (until month and day unknown), Henry C. Bulis (Republican) (starting month and day unknown) • Lieutenant Governor of Kansas: Peter Percival Elder (Republican) • Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky: John G. Carlisle (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana: Oscar J. Dunn (Republican) (until November 22), P. B. S. Pinchback (Republican) (starting November 22) • Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts: Joseph Tucker (political party unknown) • Lieutenant Governor of Michigan: Morgan Bates (Republican) • Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota: William H. Yale (political party unknown) • Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi: Alexander K. Davis (Republican) • Lieutenant Governor of Missouri: Joseph J. Gravely (Liberal Republican) (until April 28), vacant (starting April 28) • Lieutenant Governor of Nevada: James S. Slingerland (political party unknown) (until January 2), Frank Denver (political party unknown) (starting January 2) • Lieutenant Governor of New York: Allen C. Beach (Democratic) (until end of December 31) • Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina: vacant • Lieutenant Governor of Ohio: John C. Lee (Republican) (until January 8), Jacob Mueller (Republican) (starting January 8) • Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island: Pardon Stevens (political party unknown) (until month and day unknown), Charles Cutler (political party unknown) (starting month and day unknown) • Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina: Alonzo J. Ransier (Republican) (until December 7), Richard Howell Gleaves (Republican) (starting December 7) • Lieutenant Governor of Tennessee: John C. Vaughn (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Texas: vacant • Lieutenant Governor of Vermont: George N. Dale (Republican) (until October 3), Russell S. Taft (Republican) (starting October 3) • Lieutenant Governor of Virginia: John Lawrence Marye, Jr. (Conservative) • Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin: Thaddeus C. Pound (Republican) (until January 1), Milton H. Pettit (Republican) (starting January 1)

Events

Ongoing

Births

Deaths