John Evert Van Alen (1749February 27, 1807) was an American

surveyor Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. A land surveying professional is ca ...

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...

, and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

from the U.S. state of

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 served as a

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member of 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 house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

Early life

Van Alen was born in Kinderhook in the

Province of New York The Province of New York (1664–1776) was a British proprietary colony and later royal colony on the northeast coast of North America. As one of the Middle Colonies, New York achieved independence and worked with the others to found the Uni ...

, the son of Adam and Mary Van Alen. After completing his studies he became a farmer. He moved to Defreestville and continued to farm, also serving in local offices including justice of the peace. He also became involved in civil engineering and surveying. During the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

he served as a private in the 7th Regiment (Abraham Van Alstyne's) of the Albany County Militia. In 1790, he surveyed the town of Greenbush where he later operated a general store.

Political career

He held various political office in New York, and was assistant judge for

Rensselaer County Rensselaer County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 161,130. Its county seat is Troy. The county is named in honor of the family of Kiliaen van Rensselaer, the original Dutch owner of the la ...

in 1791. He was elected from New York's newly created 7th congressional district in 1793 and was reelected twice, serving in Congress from March 4, 1793 to March 3, 1799. He then served as a member of the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assem ...

in 1800 and 1801.

Death and legacy

Van Alen died in Defreestville on February 27, 1807, and is interred in Bloomingrove Rural Cemetery in

North Greenbush, New York North Greenbush is a town in Rensselaer County, New York, United States. North Greenbush is located in the western part of the county. The population was 13,292 at the 2020 census. The town has three main hamlets, Wynantskill in the northeaster ...

. Van Alen owned slaves. According to the terms of his 1793 will, he bequeathed to his wife "my negro girl named Dinah." To his nephew Evert Van Alen, he bequeathed "my negro boy named Tom." In addition, Van Alen provided for the

manumission Manumission, or enfranchisement, is the act of freeing enslaved people by their enslavers. Different approaches to manumission were developed, each specific to the time and place of a particular society. Historian Verene Shepherd states that t ...

of "my negro man named Gus, and my negro woman named Mol" immediately after the remarriage of his wife or his wife's death, whichever came first. The

John Evert Van Alen House John Evert Van Alen House is a historic home located at Defreestville in Rensselaer County, New York. The house was built between 1793 and 1794 and is a two-story, five-bay wide, room and a half deep, frame dwelling with a two-story, three-bay ...

, constructed while he was sitting in Congress at

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, is extant in Defreestville, and was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 2004.

Family life

Van Alen married Anne Freyermoet in 1771. They had one child, Evert, a nephew whom they adopted.

References

External links

*
North Greenbush Notes: John Evert Van Alen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Alen, John E. 1749 births 1807 deaths People from Kinderhook, New York John Evert American people of Dutch descent Pro-Administration Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Members of the New York State Assembly New York (state) state court judges American surveyors People from Rensselaer County, New York New York (state) militiamen in the American Revolution Burials in New York (state) Members of the United States House of Representatives who owned slaves