Churchill Caldom Cambreleng (October 24, 1786 – April 30, 1862) was an American businessman and politician from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * ...

. He is notable for his service in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from 1821 to 1839, including terms as chairman of several high-profile committees. In addition, he served as U.S. Minister to Russia from 1840 to 1841.

Life

C. C. Cambreleng was born in

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

Beaufort County, North Carolina Beaufort County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,652. Its county seat is Washington. The county was founded in 1705 as Pamptecough Precinct. Originally included in Bath Co ...

on October 24, 1786, the son of Stephen Cambreleng and Ann (Patten) Cambreleng. He attended school in

New Bern, North Carolina New Bern, formerly called Newbern, is a city in Craven County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 29,524, which had risen to an estimated 29,994 as of 2019. It is the county seat of Craven County and ...

, and moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

in 1802. Intending to begin a career as a businessman, Cambreleng worked as a clerk in a mercantile counting room. In 1806 he moved to

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts B ...

, where he was the chief clerk for a merchant with interests in the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...

. After the death of his employer, Cambreleng intended to pursue a business opportunity in

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

. He then returned to New York City, where he was employed by

John Jacob Astor John Jacob Astor (born Johann Jakob Astor; July 17, 1763 – March 29, 1848) was a German-American businessman, merchant, real estate mogul, and investor who made his fortune mainly in a fur trade monopoly, by smuggling opium into China, and ...

. Cambreleng traveled throughout Europe and

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

while handling commercial opportunities for himself and Astor, and he eventually became wealthy as a result of his business success. Cambreleng was elected as a

Democratic-Republican The Democratic-Republican Party, known at the time as the Republican Party and also referred to as the Jeffersonian Republican Party among other names, was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the ear ...

to the 17th, and was re-elected as a Crawford Democratic-Republican to the 18th, as a Jacksonian to the

19th 19 (nineteen) is the natural number following 18 and preceding 20. It is a prime number. Mathematics 19 is the eighth prime number, and forms a sexy prime with 13, a twin prime with 17, and a cousin prime with 23. It is the third full re ...

20th 20 (twenty; Roman numeral XX) is the natural number following 19 and preceding 21. A group of twenty units may also be referred to as a score. In mathematics *20 is a pronic number. *20 is a tetrahedral number as 1, 4, 10, 20. *20 is the ba ...

21st 21 (twenty-one) is the natural number following 20 and preceding 22. The current century is the 21st century AD, under the Gregorian calendar. In mathematics 21 is: * a composite number, its proper divisors being 1, 3 and 7, and a defici ...

, 22nd, 23rd and 24th, and as a Democrat to the

25th United States Congress The 25th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 18 ...

, holding office from December 3, 1821 to March 3, 1839. He was Chairman of the Commerce Committee (20th to 22nd Congresses), Foreign Affairs Committee (23rd Congress) and Ways and Means Committee (24th and 25th Congresses). Upon its incorporation in 1831, he became the first President of the

Saratoga and Schenectady Railroad The Saratoga and Schenectady Railroad was incorporated on February 16, 1831. The founders were Henry Walton, John Clarke, William A. Langworthy, John H. Steele, Miles Beach, Gideon W. Davison, and Rockwell Putnam. The line was opened from Schene ...

. President

Martin Van Buren Martin Van Buren ( ; nl, Maarten van Buren; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was an American lawyer and statesman who served as the eighth president of the United States from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party, he ...

appointed him United States Minister to Russia in 1840 and he served until 1841. He was a delegate from Suffolk County to the

New York State Constitutional Convention The Constitution of the State of New York establishes the structure of the government of the State of New York, and enumerates the basic rights of the citizens of New York. Like most state constitutions in the United States, New York's constituti ...

of 1846. He attended the

1848 Democratic National Convention The 1848 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention that met from Monday May 22 to Thursday May 25 in Baltimore, Maryland. It was held to nominate the Democratic Party's candidates for President and Vice president in ...

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...

as a Barnburner but withdrew with his faction, and participated in the nomination of Van Buren as the candidate of the

Free Soil Party The Free Soil Party was a short-lived coalition political party in the United States active from 1848 to 1854, when it merged into the Republican Party. The party was largely focused on the single issue of opposing the expansion of slavery int ...

. Later he rejoined the Democrats and supported

Franklin Pierce Franklin Pierce (November 23, 1804October 8, 1869) was the 14th president of the United States, serving from 1853 to 1857. He was a northern Democrat who believed that the abolitionist movement was a fundamental threat to the nation's unit ...

for president in 1852.

Death and burial

Cambreleng died in West Neck,

Suffolk County, New York Suffolk County () is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of New York. It is mainly located on the eastern end of Long Island, but also includes several smaller islands. According to the 2020 United States census, the county's populatio ...

on April 30, 1862. He was buried at Brooklyn's

Green-Wood Cemetery Green-Wood Cemetery is a cemetery in the western portion of Brooklyn, New York City. The cemetery is located between South Slope/ Greenwood Heights, Park Slope, Windsor Terrace, Borough Park, Kensington, and Sunset Park, and lies several ...

, Section 73, Lot 4150.

Family

In 1835, Cambreleng married Phebe Glover, the daughter of New York City merchant John J. Glover. They remained married until Cambreleng's death, and had no children.

References

Sources

Books

* * * *

Internet

Magazines

External links

*
House Ways and Means Committee
at NC Gen Web {{DEFAULTSORT:Cambreleng, Churchill Caldom 1786 births 1862 deaths Ambassadors of the United States to Russia People from Washington, North Carolina New York (state) Democratic-Republicans Politicians from New York City 19th-century American railroad executives People from Huntington, New York New York (state) Free Soilers Burials at Green-Wood Cemetery Politicians from New Bern, North Carolina 19th-century American diplomats Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives Jacksonian members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) 19th-century American politicians