Rensselaer Westerlo (May 6, 1776April 18, 1851) was a

United States representative 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 ...

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 * '' ...

and a member of the

Livingston family The Livingston family of New York is a prominent family that migrated from Scotland to the Dutch Republic, and then to the Province of New York in the 17th century. Descended from the 4th Lord Livingston, its members included signers of the Unite ...

Early life

Rensselaer Westerlo was born on May 6, 1776 at the Van Rensselaer Manor House in Albany 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 ...

. He was the son of Catherine Livingston (1745–1810) and her second husband Eilardus Westerlo (1738–1790). Catherine Livingston was the daughter of

Philip Livingston Philip Livingston (January 15, 1716 – June 12, 1778) was an American merchant and statesman from New York City. He represented New York at the October 1774 First Continental Congress, where he favored imposing economic sanctions upon Great B ...

(1716–1778), and widow of Stephen Van Rensselaer II, and the mother of

Stephen Van Rensselaer Stephen Van Rensselaer III (; November 1, 1764January 26, 1839) was an American landowner, businessman, militia officer, and politician. A graduate of Harvard College, at age 21, Van Rensselaer took control of Rensselaerswyck, his family's mano ...

. Westerlo's sister, Catherine Westerlo, married John Woodworth. Westerlo graduated from Columbia College in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in 1795. He studied law, was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

, and practiced.

Career

Westerlo was active in the militia, and served as an aide to Stephen Van Rensselaer and commander of a cavalry regiment in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

. In 1818 he became commander of New York's 3rd Cavalry Brigade with the rank of Brigadier General. Westerlo was elected as a

Federalist The term ''federalist'' describes several political beliefs around the world. It may also refer to the concept of parties, whose members or supporters called themselves ''Federalists''. History Europe federation In Europe, proponents of de ...

to the

Fifteenth Congress The 15th 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 the Old Brick Capitol in Washington, ...

(March 4, 1817 – March 3, 1819). He was not a candidate for reelection and resumed the practice of law.

Personal life

On May 5, 1805, he married Jane Lansing (1785–1871), daughter of Chancellor

John Lansing Jr. John Ten Eyck Lansing Jr. (January 30, 1754 – vanished December 12, 1829), a Founding Father of the United States, was an Attorney at law, attorney, Judge, jurist, and politician. Born and raised in Albany, New York, Lansing was trained as a ...

Together, they had six children: *Catherine Westerlo (1806–1890) *Elizabeth Van Rensselaer Westerlo (b. 1816) *Cornelia Lansing Westerlo (1826–1876) *Mary Lansing Westerlo (1826–1876) *Eliardus Westerlo (d. 1859) *Joanna Westerlo He died in Albany on April 18, 1851 and was interred at

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 Am ...

References

;Notes ;Sources * *
Van Rensselaer Genealogy and History
' {{DEFAULTSORT:Westerlo, Rensselaer 1776 births 1851 deaths Columbia College (New York) alumni Politicians from Albany, New York American people of Dutch descent Burials at Albany Rural Cemetery Livingston family Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Lansing family