Peter Silvester (1734 – October 15, 1808) was an American politician who was a 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 chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

from New York, and a prominent Federalist attorney in Kinderhook.Brooke, p. 230 He was a mentor to

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 ...

, the 8th President of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

and was the grandfather of New York Representative Peter Henry Silvester.

Early life

Peter Silvester was born in 1734 at Shelter Island 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 U ...

(just off the eastern coast of Long Island). Silvester was probably descended from Nathaniel Sylvester (1610-1680),Jennifer Schuessler
Confronting Slavery at Long Island’s Oldest Estates
''The New York Times'', August 12, 2015 an Anglo-Dutch sugar merchant and the first European settler of Shelter Island. Silvester completed preparatory studies, studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1763, and practiced 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 owned slaves.

Career

Legal practice

In 1763, he began employment as the attorney for Sir William Johnson (1715–1774) in Albany. Johnson had commanded the

Iroquois The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...

and New York colonial militia forces during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

, the North American theatre of the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (175 ...

(1754–1763) in Europe. His role in the British victory at the

Battle of Lake George The Battle of Lake George was fought on 8 September 1755, in the north of the Province of New York. It was part of a campaign by the British to expel the French from North America, in the French and Indian War. On one side were 1,584 French, Can ...

in 1755 earned him a baronetcy and his

capture of Fort Niagara The Capture of Fort Niagara took place late in 1813, during the War of 1812 between the United Kingdom and the United States. The American garrison was taken by surprise, and the fort was captured in a night assault by a select force of Britis ...

from the French in 1759 brought him additional renown. Johnson served as the British Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the northern district from 1756 until his death in 1774, working to keep American Indians allied with the British. In letters to Johnson, Silvester wrote that he met with Witham Marsh concerning wrongs committed by Indians. Silvester was subsequently appointed "clerk of the peace." In 1767, he moved to the Van Schaack estate in Kinderhook, and began his practice of law as the first attorney in Kinderhook. Among the students who began the study of law in his office were:

Peter van Schaack Peter Van Schaack (March 1747 – 17 September 1832) was an American lawyer, born in Kinderhook, New York. He studied law at King's College (later Columbia University); was a successful and well-respected colonial lawyer; collected, revised, and ...

(1747-1832); Francis Silvester (1767-1845), his son; and

(1782–1862), who later became the 8th President of the

. Van Buren began his legal training with Silvester and his son Francis in 1796, before Van Buren had reached the age of 14. When Van Buren first began his legal studies, he often presented an unkempt appearance in rough, homespun clothing. It was the Silvesters who suggested that Van Buren could improve his professional prospects by dressing fashionably and taking care in how he appeared in public; he heeded the advice and patterned his clothing, appearance, bearing and conduct after theirs. After six years under the Silvesters, the elder Silvester and Democratic-Republican political figure

John Peter Van Ness Johannes Petrus "John Peter" Van Ness (November 4, 1769 – March 7, 1846) was an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative from New York from 1801 to 1803 and Mayor of Washington, D.C. from 1830 to 1834. Early life Van Nes ...

suggested that Van Buren's political leanings made it a good idea for him to complete his education with a Democratic-Republican attorney. Van Buren accepted their advice and spent a final year of apprenticeship in the

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 ...

office of John Van Ness's brother William P. Van Ness, a political lieutenant of Aaron Burr.

Revolutionary War

During the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

(1775–1783), Silvester backed the

patriot A patriot is a person with the quality of patriotism. Patriot may also refer to: Political and military groups United States * Patriot (American Revolution), those who supported the cause of independence in the American Revolution * Patriot m ...

cause and held a variety of positions in New York including: member of the Albany Common Council in 1772, member of the Committee of Safety in 1774, and a member of the First and Second Provincial Congresses in 1775 and 1776. His wife's family, the Van Schaacks, were

Loyalists Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cro ...

, and some historians have suggested that Silvester's in-laws may have influenced him to take a reduced role as the Revolution progressed.

Government service

Peter Silvester (New York Congressman) 2

He was appointed judge of the court of common pleas of

Columbia County, New York Columbia County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 61,570. The county seat is Hudson. The name comes from the Latin feminine form of the name of Christopher Columbus, which was at th ...

in 1786, and served until 1789. He was a regent of the

University of the State of New York The University of the State of New York (USNY, ) is the state of New York's governmental umbrella organization for both public and private institutions in New York State. The "university" is not an educational institution: it is, in fact, a lic ...

from 1787 to 1808. From July 1, 1787 to June 30, 1788, Silvester served in the 11th New York State Legislature as a member of the New York State Assembly from Columbia County, the first year that Columbia County was represented. After serving in the New York State Assembly, Silvester was elected to the First and Second United States Congresses as a Pro-Administration ( Federalist) candidate. He served in the United States Congress from March 4, 1789 to March 3, 1793. After his time in Congress, Silvester was elected to a four-year term as a member of the New York State Senate, serving from 1796 to 1800 in the 20th, 21st, 22nd, and 23rd New York State Legislature. After his service in the Senate, he returned to serve again in the Assembly from 1803 ( 26th Legislature), and again in 1804 ( 28th Legislature), 1805 ( 29th Legislature) until June 30, 1806. He retired from public life after his last term in the Legislature.

Personal life

On August 16, 1764, he married Jannetje "Jane" Van Schaack, daughter of Cornelius Van Schaack (1705-1776) and Lydia Van Dyck. Cornelius Van Schaack owned a large estate in

Kinderhook, New York Kinderhook is a town in the northern part of Columbia County, New York, United States. The population was 8,330 at the 2020 census, making it the most populous municipality in Columbia County. The name of the town means "Children's Corner" in the ...

. Jane was the elder sister of

, who married the daughter of

Henry Cruger Henry Cruger Jr. (November 22, 1739April 24, 1827) was an American and British merchant at the time of the American Revolution. He has a unique distinction of having been elected to both the Parliament of Great Britain (MP, 1774–1780, 1784– ...

, a wealthy New York merchant. Together they had: *Francis Silvester (July 22, 1767 - January 31, 1845), who married Lydia Van Vleck Van Schaack, a niece of

and foster daughter of David Van Schaack ** Peter Henry Silvester (1807–1882), who married Catherine Susan Bronk (?-1858) ***Francis Silvester II (November 15, 1833 - December 6, 1903 in

), district attorney and member of the State Constitutional Convention of 1867 ***John L. B. Silvester **Margaret Silvester (1812-1903) Silvester was a warden of St. Peters Church in Albany in 1773, and was listed as a vestryman in the Church's charter of incorporation, granted by

King George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

on April 25, 1769. Silvester resided in Kinderhook, where he died on October 15, 1808, aged about 74 years. He was interred in the "Old Van Schaack Cemetery", over which the Kinderhook Reformed Dutch Church and Cemetery were built in 1814. The exact location of his grave is not known.

Memorials

The ''

SS Peter Silvester SS ''Peter Silvester'', was an American merchant marine ship built for the United States Maritime Commission. She was operated by the Pacific Far East Line under charter with the Maritime Commission and War Shipping Administration. ''Peter Sil ...

'', an American merchant marine

ship A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research, and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished ...

built for the United States Maritime Commission in service from 1942 to 1945 was named for Peter Silvester.

References

Bibliography

*Hamilton, Milton W. ''Sir William Johnson: Colonial American, 1715–1763.'' Port Washington, New York: Kennikat Press, 1976. . The first of what was intended to be a two-volume biography; Hamilton never completed the second. * O'Toole, Fintan. ''White Savage: William Johnson and the Invention of America''. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2005. .

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Silvester, Peter 1734 births 1808 deaths People from Suffolk County, New York People of the Province of New York American people of Dutch descent Episcopalians from New York (state) Pro-Administration Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) New York (state) Federalists Members of the New York Provincial Congress Members of the New York State Assembly New York (state) state senators New York (state) state court judges New York (state) lawyers American lawyers admitted to the practice of law by reading law American slave owners People from Kinderhook, New York Regents of the University of the State of New York Burials in New York (state)