John Tayler (July 4, 1742 – March 19, 1829) was a merchant and politician. He served nine years as
Lieutenant Governor of New York, four months acting as the sixth
Governor of New York, and also in both houses of the
New York State Legislature
The New York State Legislature consists of the two houses that act as the state legislature of the U.S. state of New York: The New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly. The Constitution of New York does not designate an officia ...
.
Life
He was a trader, farmer, and shopkeeper in
Albany, New York
Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York C ...
. He married Margarita Van Valkenburgh in 1764.
Tayler was a Patriot during the
Revolutionary War. He was drawn into public service for the Colonies.
He was a member from Albany County in the
New York State Assembly from 1777 to 1779, in 1780–81, and from 1785 to 1787. He was appointed City Recorder (Deputy Mayor) of Albany in 1793, and First Judge of the Albany County Court in 1797. In
1798
Events
January–June
* January – Eli Whitney contracts with the U.S. federal government for 10,000 muskets, which he produces with interchangeable parts.
* January 4 – Constantine Hangerli enters Bucharest, as Prince of ...
, he ran for
U.S. Senator from New York
Below is a list of U.S. senators who have represented the State of New York in the United States Senate since 1789. The date of the start of the tenure is either the first day of the legislative term (Senators who were elected regularly before th ...
, but was defeated by
Federalist James Watson. He served in the
New York State Senate from 1804 to 1813. On January 29, 1811, he was elected
President pro tempore of the State Senate and was Acting Lieutenant Governor,
Lt. Gov. John Broome having died in August 1810. He served until the end of June 1811 when he was succeeded by
DeWitt Clinton who had been elected Lt. Gov. in a
special election
A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...
under the provisions of Article XX of the
New York State Constitution of 1777.
Tayler
was elected Lieutenant Governor in 1813, and re-elected in 1816, on the ticket with
Daniel D. Tompkins
Daniel D. Tompkins (June 21, 1774 – June 11, 1825) was an American politician. He was the fifth governor of New York from 1807 to 1817, and the sixth vice president of the United States from 1817 to 1825.
Born in Scarsdale, New York, Tompkins ...
. After Tompkins' resignation to assume the office of
Vice President of the United States
The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice ...
, Tayler served as Acting Governor from February 24 to June 30, 1817.
Article XVII of the
New York State Constitution of 1777 states "...as often as the seat of government shall become vacant, a wise and descreet freeholder of this State shall be, by ballot, elected governor,..., which elections shall be always held at the times and places of choosing representatives in assembly..." This meant that, whenever a vacancy occurred, the Lt. Gov. did not succeed to the governor's office but administrated the state only until the end of the yearly term of the
New York State Assembly on June 30, the successor being elected in April. This was the only occurrence of a vacancy of the governor's office under this Constitution, and in April 1817
DeWitt Clinton was elected Governor. Tayler was re-elected Lt. Gov. and re-elected in 1820.
The duel between
Alexander Hamilton and
Aaron Burr in 1804 is linked to comments spoken by Hamilton at Tayler's home in Albany, which were related in a letter written by Tayler's son-in-law, Dr.
Charles D. Cooper, which was later published in an Albany newspaper.
Tayler was a
presidential elector
The United States Electoral College is the group of presidential electors required by the Constitution to form every four years for the sole purpose of appointing the president and vice president. Each state and the District of Columbia app ...
in
1828
Events
January–March
* January 4 – Jean Baptiste Gay, vicomte de Martignac succeeds the Comte de Villèle, as Prime Minister of France.
* January 8 – The Democratic Party of the United States is organized.
* January 22 – Arth ...
, voting for
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...
and
John C. Calhoun.
Tayler died on March 19, 1829, in Albany. He was buried in
Albany Rural Cemetery
The Albany Rural Cemetery was established October 7, 1844, in Colonie, New York, United States, just outside the city of Albany, New York. It is renowned as one of the most beautiful, pastoral cemeteries in the U.S., at over . Many historical A ...
in
Menands, New York
Menands is a village in Albany County, New York, United States. The population was 3,990 at the 2010 census. The village is named after Louis Menand. The village lies inside the town of Colonie and borders the northern city line of Albany.
H ...
.
Sources
*
The People of Colonial Albany – John Tayler
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tayler, John
Governors of New York (state)
New York (state) state senators
Members of the New York State Assembly
1742 births
1829 deaths
Lieutenant Governors of New York (state)
Politicians from Albany, New York
Burials at Albany Rural Cemetery
Politicians from New York City
New York (state) Democratic-Republicans
1828 United States presidential electors
Democratic-Republican Party state governors of the United States