History of Little Britain, (Orange County) New York United States of America

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George Clinton, statesman, was born in Little Britain, N.Y., July 26, 1739; fourth son of Col. Charles and Elizabeth (Denniston) Clinton. He joined a privateer that was fitted out at Newburg to prey upon French commerce, and on his return from the cruise was commissioned lieutenant in his father's regiment and accompanied it on the expedition against Fort Frontenac. When the war closed he studied law and was made clerk of common pleas and surveyor of New Windsor, succeeding his brother James, who in turn had succeeded his father to the office. In 1768 he was elected a member of the state assembly, where he made himself conspicuous in defending the cause of the colonies as opposed to the demands of the crown. The provincial convention of April 22, 1775, elected him a delegate to the 2nd Continental congress, which assembled in Philadelphia May 10, 1775. He took his seat May 15 and advocated the Declaration of Independence. Restricted by the instructions of the New York delegates, he voted for the measure at the meeting of the provisional congress at White Plains, N.Y., July 8, 1776, but did not sign the document with the New York delegation on July 15, as he had meanwhile been ordered by General Washington to take the field as general of militia, in view of a threatened movement by the British army through the Highlands. He was a deputy to the provisional congress which framed the state constitution, and on March 25, 1777, was commissioned brigadier-general in the continental army, and commander of all the Hudson river hosts. With his brother, Gen. James Clinton, he made the gallant defence of Forts Clinton and Montgomery, Oct. 6, 1777. He escaped with his garrison across the river, reached New Britain, and while reorganizing his little army captured a spy who carried a dispatch designed for General Burgoyne concealed in a silver bullet. This the spy undertook to destroy by swallowing the bullet, but was detected in the act and the bullet with the dispatch was captured. It gave information to Burgoyne of speedy reinforcement and its proper delivery would possibly have prevented his surrender on the 17th, to General Gates. Upon the adoption of a state constitution, April 20, 1777, General Clinton was elected governor and held the office by successive re-elections until 1795. He served the state both as a civil and military leader with great acceptance. Besides his defence of the Hudson river he saved the settlers of the Mohawk valley from the combined Tory and Indian marauders under Johnson, Brant and Cornplanter; defended the rights of New York against the occupation of territory by the settlers of the New Hampshire grants; and concluded a lasting treaty of peace with the Indians. When Shay's rebellion of 1787 threatened the welfare of the commonwealth of Massachusetts, he led his militia against the insurgents. In the presidential election of 1,789 he received three electoral votes. He opposed the right of the Federal government to collect and retain impost through the port of New York, as being a measure toward centralization and destroying the sovereignty of the state. He refused to summon the state legislature at the request of congress, in 1786, and opposed the adoption of the Federal constitution, as originally framed, although he presided at the state convention in 1788 which ratified it. His action greatly offended the Federalists and they used every effort to defeat him. In the presidential election of 1792 he received from the Republican party, of which he was the founder, fifty electoral votes and John Adams received seventy-seven. He declined to run for governor in 1794, was named as a presidential candidate in 1796, receiving seven electoral votes, and in 1801 was induced, largely through the Tammany society of New York, to become the Republican candidate for governor, and defeated Stephen Van Rensselaer, receiving nearly 4000 majority. He antagonized his own party in refusing to remove officials for party reasons and was censured by his council, especially by his nephew, DeWitt Clinton, and by Ambrose Spencer. In 1804, under the amended constitution, he was vice-presidential candidate with Thomas Jefferson for president, and they received 162 of the 176 electoral votes. He was re-elected vice-president in 1808, on the ticket with James Madison, receiving 113 electoral votes and six for president; and as president of the senate in the 12th congress he cast the vote that prevented the re-charter of the United States bank. He was married to Cornelia Tappan of Kingston, N.Y., and his son, George Clinton, Jr., was a graduate of Columbia college in the class of 1793 and a representative in the 9th and 10th congresses. Mr. Clinton died while in office, at Washington, D. C., April 20, 1812.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

History of Little Britain, (Orange County) New York

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