John Rutherfurd
A portrait of Rutherfurd byGeorge Catlin,c. 1820
United States Senator fromNew Jersey
In office March 4, 1791 – December 5, 1798
Preceded by	Jonathan Elmer
Succeeded by	Franklin Davenport
Member of theNew Jersey General Assembly
In office 1789–1790
Personal details
Born	(1760-09-20)September 20, 1760 New York City,New York,British America
Died	February 23, 1840(1840-02-23) (aged 79) New Jersey, U.S.
Party	Federalist
Spouse	Helena Morris ​ (m. 1782)​
Children	8
Parent(s)	Walter Rutherfurd Mary Alexander
Relatives	Lewis Morris (father-in-law) Lewis Morris Rutherfurd (grandson) John Rutherfurd (uncle)
Signature

John Rutherfurd (September 20, 1760 – February 23, 1840) was an American politician and land surveyor. He representedNew Jersey in theUnited States Senate from 1791 to 1798.^[1]

Rutherfurd was born on September 20, 1760, inNew York City toWalter Rutherfurd (1723–1804) and Catherine Alexander (1727–1801), daughter ofJames Alexander andMary Spratt Provoost. His father Walter, a veteran of theBritish Army, was a hostage of thePatriots during theRevolutionary War while John was a teenager. Rutherfurd attended the College of New Jersey, which is nowPrinceton University, where he studied law.^[1]

His sister, Mary Rutherfurd, was married to Maj. Gen.Matthew Clarkson. His maternal uncle was William Alexander (1726–1783), also known asLord Stirling. Rutherfurd was also related toGilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 4th Baronet (1751–1814),William Eden, 1st Baron Auckland (1745–1814),John Elliott (1732–1808), Governor of Newfoundland,Arthur St. Clair (1736–1818), a General and territorial Governor of Ohio. His paternal uncle wasJohn Rutherfurd, an MP who was killed atFort Ticonderoga during theBattle of Carillon, and was the father ofJohn Rutherfurd, also an MP for Roxburghshire.^[2]

After graduating from the College of New Jersey, Rutherfurd practiced law inNew York City for several years. In 1787, he moved to a farm nearGreen Township, New Jersey, inSussex County, New Jersey. After a boundary for the new county was drawn in 1824, his former holdings straddled Sussex andWarren counties.

In 1788, he entered politics, serving in theNew Jersey General Assembly until 1790. He was then elected as aFederalist to theUnited States Senate fromNew Jersey and served in the Senate from 1791 to 1798.^[1] Rutherfurd was the only senator to vote against theFirst Militia Act of 1792,^[3] and one of two senators to vote against theEleventh Amendment to the United States Constitution.^[4]

After serving in the United States Senate, Rutherfurd then retired from politics, but continued to undertake several important projects during the rest of his life. He was one of the three Commissioners who laid outthe plans for the Manhattan street grid north of14th Street from 1807 to 1811. Around 1816 he investigated the building of a possiblecanal connecting theDelaware,Raritan andHudson rivers. Finally, from 1827 to 1833, he helped settle New Jersey's boundaries withNew York andPennsylvania.

In 1782, he married Helena Magdalena Morris (1762–1840), daughter of CongressmanLewis Morris, and remained married to her until his death in 1840, with Helena dying shortly after him. Together, they had eight children, including:^[5]

• Mary Rutherfurd (1784–1868), who did not marry and served as the executor of her Rutherfurd's estate.^[6]
• Robert Walter Rutherfurd (1788–1852), a member of theNew Jersey State Legislature, who married Sabina Elliott Morris (1789–1857), his first cousin.^[6]
• Helena Rutherfurd (1790–1873), who marriedPeter Gerard Stuyvesant (1778–1847), the 2x-great grandson ofPeter Stuyvesant and one of the wealthiest New Yorkers in his lifetime.^[7]
• Louisa Morris Rutherfurd (1792–1857), who died unmarried.^[6]
• Anna Rutherfurd (1794–1852), who married Dr. John Watts (1786–1834), a son of Robert Watts (son ofJohn Watts) and Mary (née Alexander) Watts (daughter ofWilliam Alexander, Lord Stirling).^[8]

In 1808, Rutherfurd moved with his family to a farm on the banks of thePassaic River near what is nowRutherford, New Jersey. He lived at this place for the rest of his life, naming it "Edgerston", and died there.

Rutherfurd's grandson through his son Robert, wasLewis Morris Rutherfurd (1816–1892), a pioneeringastrophotographer who took the first telescopic photographs of the moon and sun, as well as many stars and planets.

The borough ofRutherford, New Jersey, was named at least in part after John Rutherfurd, who had owned much of the land during his life. However, the spelling was changed due to the fame of PresidentRutherford B. Hayes who was President of the United States during the 1870s when the town was created.^[9][10]

• United States Congress."John Rutherfurd (id: R000550)".Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.

• Guide to the John Rutherfurd Papers, 1726-1835

• 1760 births
• 1840 deaths
• American surveyors
• Federalist Party United States senators from New Jersey
• Members of the New Jersey General Assembly
• Morris family (Morrisania and New Jersey)
• New Jersey Federalists
• People from Rutherford, New Jersey
• People from the Province of New York
• Politicians from New York City
• Politicians from Sussex County, New Jersey
• Princeton University alumni
• Pro-Administration Party United States senators from New Jersey
• Rutherfurd family
• 18th-century United States senators
• 18th-century members of the New Jersey Legislature

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from May 2021