Peter Silvester | |
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| Member of theNew York State Assembly fromColumbia County | |
| In office July 1, 1802 – June 30, 1806 | |
| Preceded by | District Created |
| Succeeded by | John Kortz |
| Member of theNew York Senate from the Middle District district | |
| In office July 1, 1796 – June 30, 1800 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromNew York's 5th district | |
| In office March 4, 1789 – March 3, 1793 | |
| Preceded by | District Created |
| Succeeded by | Theodorus Bailey |
| Member of theNew York State Assembly fromColumbia County | |
| In office July 1, 1787 – June 30, 1788 | |
| Preceded by | District Created |
| Succeeded by | John Kortz |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1734 (1734) |
| Died | October 15, 1808(1808-10-15) (aged 73–74) Kinderhook, New York, U.S. |
| Party | Federalist |
| Spouse | Jane Van Schaack |
| Children | Francis Silvester |
| Profession | Lawyer,Politician |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Battles/wars | Revolutionary War |
Peter Silvester (1734 – October 15, 1808) was an American politician who was a member of theUnited States House of Representatives fromNew York, and a prominentFederalist attorney in Kinderhook.[1] He was a mentor toMartin Van Buren, the8th President of theUnited States and was the grandfather of New York RepresentativePeter Henry Silvester.[2]
Peter Silvester was born in 1734 atShelter Island in theProvince of New York (just off the eastern coast ofLong Island). Silvester was probably descended fromNathaniel Sylvester (1610-1680),[3] an Anglo-Dutch sugar merchant and the first European settler of Shelter Island.[4]
Silvester completed preparatory studies, studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1763, and practiced inAlbany, New York.[2] He owned slaves.[5]
In 1763, he began employment as the attorney forSir William Johnson (1715–1774) in Albany.[4] Johnson had commanded theIroquois and New York colonial militia forces during theFrench and Indian War, the North American theatre of theSeven Years' War (1754–1763) in Europe. His role in the British victory at theBattle of Lake George in 1755 earned him a baronetcy and hiscapture of Fort Niagara from the French in 1759 brought him additional renown. Johnson served as the British Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the northern district from 1756 until his death in 1774, working to keep American Indians allied with the British.[6] In letters to Johnson, Silvester wrote that he met with Witham Marsh concerning wrongs committed by Indians. Silvester was subsequently appointed "clerk of the peace."[4]
In 1767, he moved to the Van Schaack estate in Kinderhook, and began his practice of law as the first attorney in Kinderhook.[7] Among the students who began the study of law in his office were:Peter van Schaack (1747-1832); Francis Silvester (1767-1845), his son; andMartin Van Buren (1782–1862), who later became the8th President of theUnited States.[8]
Van Buren began his legal training with Silvester and his son Francis in 1796, before Van Buren had reached the age of 14.[1] When Van Buren first began his legal studies, he often presented an unkempt appearance in rough, homespun clothing.[9] It was the Silvesters who suggested that Van Buren could improve his professional prospects by dressing fashionably and taking care in how he appeared in public; he heeded the advice and patterned his clothing, appearance, bearing and conduct after theirs.[10][11] After six years under the Silvesters, the elder Silvester and Democratic-Republican political figureJohn Peter Van Ness suggested that Van Buren's political leanings made it a good idea for him to complete his education with a Democratic-Republican attorney. Van Buren accepted their advice and spent a final year of apprenticeship in theNew York City office of John Van Ness's brotherWilliam P. Van Ness, a political lieutenant ofAaron Burr.[12]
During theAmerican Revolutionary War (1775–1783), Silvester backed thepatriot cause and held a variety of positions in New York including: member of theAlbany Common Council in 1772, member of the Committee of Safety in 1774, and a member of theFirst andSecond Provincial Congresses in 1775 and 1776.[2]
His wife's family, theVan Schaacks, wereLoyalists, and some historians have suggested that Silvester's in-laws may have influenced him to take a reduced role as the Revolution progressed.
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He was appointedjudge of the court of common pleas ofColumbia County, New York in 1786, and served until 1789. He was a regent of theUniversity of the State of New York from 1787 to 1808.[4]
From July 1, 1787 to June 30, 1788, Silvester served in the11th New York State Legislature as a member of theNew York State Assembly fromColumbia County, the first year that Columbia County was represented.[2]
After serving in the New York State Assembly, Silvester was elected to theFirst andSecond United States Congresses as a Pro-Administration (Federalist) candidate. He served in the United States Congress from March 4, 1789 to March 3, 1793.[2]
After his time in Congress, Silvester was elected to a four-year term as a member of theNew York State Senate, serving from 1796 to 1800 in the20th,21st,22nd, and23rd New York State Legislature. After his service in the Senate, he returned to serve again in the Assembly from 1803 (26th Legislature), and again in 1804 (28th Legislature), 1805 (29th Legislature) until June 30, 1806. He retired from public life after his last term in the Legislature.[2]
On August 16, 1764, he married Jannetje "Jane" Van Schaack, daughter of Cornelius Van Schaack (1705-1776) and Lydia Van Dyck. Cornelius Van Schaack owned a large estate inKinderhook, New York. Jane was the elder sister ofPeter van Schaack, who married the daughter ofHenry Cruger, a wealthy New York merchant.[4] Together they had:
Silvester was a warden ofSt. Peters Church in Albany in 1773, and was listed as a vestryman in the Church's charter of incorporation, granted byKing George III on April 25, 1769.[7]
Silvester resided in Kinderhook, where he died on October 15, 1808, aged about 74 years.[13] He was interred in the "Old Van Schaack Cemetery", over which the Kinderhook Reformed Dutch Church and Cemetery were built in 1814.[14] The exact location of his grave is not known.[15]
TheSS Peter Silvester, anAmerican merchant marineship built for theUnited States Maritime Commission in service from 1942 to 1945 was named for Peter Silvester.[16]
John L.B. Silvester.
Peter Henry Silvester.
martin van buren studied law william van ness.
This article incorporatespublic domain material fromBiographical Directory of the United States Congress.Federal government of the United States.| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| New district | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromNew York's 5th congressional district 1789–1793 | Succeeded by |
