- Dec 6 Joshua Woodrow Sill, American Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Chillicothe, Ohio (d. 1862)
- Dec 10 Alexander Conze, German archaeologist, born in Hanover, Germany (d. 1914)
- Dec 19 Bernice Pauahi Bishop, Hawaiian philanthropist (d. 1884)
- Dec 22 Mark Rutherford [Hale White], English writer, born in Bedford, England (d. 1913)
- Dec 22 Robert Ogden Tyler, Bvt Major General (Union Army), born in Hunter, New York (d. 1874)
- Dec 25 Johann Herbeck, Austrian composer and conductor (conducted premiere of Franz Schubert's "Unfinished" Symphony"), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1877)
- Dec 27 Lucius Fairchild, American politician, diplomat, and Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Kent, Ohio (d. 1896)
- Dec 29 Adam Badeau, American author, Union Army officer, and diplomat, born in New York City (d. 1895)
Greatest Generation
Silent Generation
Baby Boomer
Generation X
Millennial
Generation Z