George W. Schuyler

George Washington Schuyler (February 2, 1810 – February 1, 1888) was an American businessman, author, politician and member of the prominent Schuyler family.[1]

George W. Schuyler
Member of the New York State Assembly from Tompkins Co.
In office January 1, 1875 – December 31, 1875
Preceded by	William S. Bostwick
Succeeded by	Samuel D. Halliday
New York State Treasurer
In office January 1, 1864 – December 31, 1865
Governor	Horatio Seymour Reuben Fenton
Preceded by	William B. Lewis
Succeeded by	Joseph Howland
Personal details
Born	George Washington Schuyler February 2, 1810 Stillwater, New York
Died	February 1, 1888 (aged 77) Ithaca, New York
Political party	Free Soil Liberal Republicans Democrat
Spouse(s)	Matilda Scribner
Children	Eugene Schuyler Evelyn Schuyler Schaeffer Martha Schuyler Grant Walter S. Schuyler Kate Bleecker Schuyler
Parents	John Harmanus Schuyler Annatje Fort
Alma mater	New York University

Early life

George Washington Schuyler was born on February 2, 1810 in Stillwater, New York, which is located in Saratoga County, New York. His parents were Annatje (née Fort) Schuyler (1770–1851) and John Harmanus Schuyler (1763–1846), the private secretary of John Barker Church. His siblings included: Henry Ten Broeck Schuyler, Phillip Church Schuyler, Catherine Angelica Schuyler (wife of Nicholas Bleecker), and Rebecca Sarah Margaret Schuyler.[2]

His paternal grandparents were Harmanus Schuyler (a son of Nicholas Schuyler and Elsie (née Wendell) Schuyler) and Christina Ten Broeck (a daughter of Samuel Ten Broeck and Maria (née Van Rensselaer) Ten Broeck).[2]

His family moved to Ithaca, N.Y., in 1811. There he worked on the family farm, and attended the public schools. At age sixteen, he began to work at a drugstore and learned this trade. In 1834, he enrolled at New York University and graduated in 1837.

Career

After graduating from New York University in 1837, he returned to Ithaca, N.Y., and opened his own drugstore.

In 1848, he entered politics as a Free Soiler, and was Trustee of the Village of Ithaca for two years. In 1855, he was among the founders of the Republican Party in Tompkins County. He was a delegate to the 1860 and 1864 Republican National Conventions.

He was elected New York State Treasurer in 1863, besting the incumbent William B. Lewis with 314,303 votes to Lewis' 284,618.[3] Schuyler, who was elected on the Union ticket nominated by the Republicans and War Democrats, served from 1864 to 1865. He was appointed by Governor Reuben Fenton as the Superintendent of the New York State Banking Department from 1866 to 1871.[4]

New York State Assembly

In 1872, he joined the Liberal Republicans, and later became a Democrat. He was a candidate against John H. Selkreg for the New York State Senate in 1873 and 1875, but was defeated both times. In 1874, he was elected as a member of the New York State Assembly, representing Tompkins Co., in 98th New York State Legislature.

After serving in the Assembly, he was appointed by Governor Samuel J. Tilden as Auditor of the Canal Department,[5] a position he held for nearly five years.[4][6]

Schuyler served as a Trustee of Cornell University from its foundation, and Treasurer from 1868 to 1874.[7] In 1885, he published Colonial New York: Philip Schuyler and His Family (Charles Scribner's Sons; 2 volumes), a valuable resource of Dutch origins, history and genealogy in the Albany region.[8][9]

Personal life

Schuyler was married to Matilda Scribner (1809–1898), the daughter of Uriah Rogers Scribner and Martha Scribner. Matilda was a half-sister to Charles Scribner (1821–1871), the founder of Charles Scribner's Sons. Together, they were the parents of:

• Eugene Schuyler (1840–1890), a writer and diplomat.[4][10]
• Martha Schuyler (1842-1922), who married Chauncey Lewis Grant, Jr. (1834-1887)
• Evelyn Schuyler (1846–1942), who married Charles Ashmead Schaeffer (1843–1898).
• Walter S. Schuyler (1850-1932), who married Mary Miller Gardiner, later Elizabeth Stanton. Graduated West Point in 1870; participated in Indian campaigns as aide to Gen. George Crook in Arizona and Bighorn and Yellowstone expedition. At Battle of Rosebud and starvation Horsemeat March to Slim Buttes. Numerous other postings. In 1909 became first Commander of U.S. Army Pacific Command (Military District of Hawaii), retiring in 1913 as brigadier general.
• Kate Bleecker Schuyler (1853–1859), who died young.

Schuyler died on February 1, 1888 in Ithaca. After his death, his widow married Isaac Remsen Lane (d. 1910).[11][12]

References

Notes

1. Krout, John A. (1935). "Schuyler, George Washington". In Malone, Dumas (ed.). Dictionary of American Biography. 16 (Robert-Seward). New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. pp. 472–473. Retrieved August 1, 2018 – via Internet Archive.
2. Miller, Thomas Condit; Maxwell, Hu (1913). West Virginia and Its People. Lewis Historical Publishing Company. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
3. "The State Election". The New York Times. December 5, 1863. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
4. "GEORGE W. SCHUYLER ILL.; SICK WITH A BRAIN TROUBLE AND NOT EXPECTED TO LIVE". The New York Times. 8 November 1885. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
5. "WORK OF THE LEGISLATURE. PASSAGE OF THE BERGH BILL—DEBATE ON THE GRAY NUNS ACT—THE NOMINATION OF GEORGE W. SCHUYLER FOR CANAL AUDITOR THROWN OUT. BUSINESS IN THE SENATE. EXECUTIVE SESSION OF THE SENATE". The New York Times. 27 January 1876. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
6. "THE CANAL FRAUDS. | THE MOWRY CONTRACT THE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S ANSWER A GENERAL DENIAL". The New York Times. 30 August 1876. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
7. "CORNELL UNIVERSITY.; HONORARY DEGREES NOT TO BE CONFERRED IN FUTURE". The New York Times. 28 October 1886. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
8. Schuyler, George W. (1885). Colonial New York: Philip Schuyler and His Family. First. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. Retrieved August 1, 2018 – via Internet Archive.; Schuyler, George W. (1885). Colonial New York: Philip Schuyler and His Family. Second. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. Retrieved August 1, 2018 – via Internet Archive.
9. Van Rensselaer, M. (2 November 1895). "New Crailo Manor House". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
10. "MR. SCHUYLER'S HEALTH BETTER". The New York Times. 10 November 1885. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
11. "Obituary 1 -- LANE". The New York Times. 12 April 1910. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
12. "GEORGE W. SCHUYLER ILL. Sick With A Brain Trouble And Not Expected To Live" (PDF). The New York Times. November 8, 1885. Retrieved 6 December 2019.

Sources

• George W. Schuyler at Political Graveyard
• Life Sketches of State Officers, Senators, and Members of Assembly in the State of New York in 1867 by S. R. Harlow and H. H. Boone (page 59; Weed, Parsons & Co., Albany NY, 1867)

External links

• Works by or about George W. Schuyler at Internet Archive