- Jan 10 Karl Freiherr von Müffling, Prussian field marshal, dies at 75
- Jan 12 Johan Herman Koekkoek, painter, dies at 72
- Jan 17 Thomas Lincoln, American farmer, carpenter, and father President Abraham Lincoln, dies at 73
- Jan 19 Esteban EcheverrÃa, Argentine writer (b. 1805)
- Jan 21 (Gustav) Albert Lortzing, German Spieloper composer and actor (Zar und Zimmerman), dies at 49
- Jan 24 Gaspare Luigi Pacifico Spontini, Italian opera composer and conductor (La Vestale), dies at 76
John James Audubon
Jan 27 John James Audubon, American ornithologist and painter (The Birds Of America), dies at 65
- Jan 27 Karl Moser, German composer, dies at 77