Peter H. Silvester

Peter Henry Silvester
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from 's New York's 11th district
In office
March 4, 1847 – March 3, 1851
Preceded by John F. Collin
Succeeded by Josiah Sutherland
Personal details
Born February 17, 1807
Kinderhook, New York
Died November 29, 1882 (aged 75)
Kinderhook, New York
Political party Whig
Spouse(s) Catherine Susan Bronk
Relations Peter Silvester (grandfather)
Children Francis Silvester
John L.B. Silvester
Parents Francis Silvester
Lydia Van Schaack
Education Kinderhook Academy
Alma mater Union College
Profession Lawyer, Politician

Peter Henry Silvester (February 17, 1807 – November 29, 1882) was a U.S. Representative from New York in the 30th and 31st United States Congress. Silvester was the grandson of prominent attorney and former U.S. Congressmen, Peter Silvester.

Early life

Silvester was born on February 17, 1807 in Kinderhook, New York. He was the son of Francis Silvester (1767-1845) and Lydia Van Schaack, a niece of Peter van Schaack and a descendant of the Schuyler family.[1] He was the grandson of Peter Silvester (1734–1808) and his wife, Jane Van Schaack. Silvester attended Kinderhook Academy, and graduated from Union College, Schenectady, New York, in 1827. He studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1830 and practiced in Coxsackie, New York.[2]

Career

He was originally a member of the Democratic-Republican Party, and joined the National Republicans and then the Whigs.[2]

Silvester was elected as a Whig to the Thirtieth and Thirty-first Congresses (March 4, 1847 – March 3, 1851). He did not run for reelection in 1850 and resumed practicing law. Like most Whigs, Silvester became a Republican when the party was organized in the mid-1850s. In 1860 he was an unsuccessful candidate for the U.S. House, losing narrowly to John B. Steele.[2]

Personal life

Silvester married Catherine Susan Bronk (died 1858), the daughter of John Leonard Bronk and Alida Conine, and born in Coxsackie. She attended Troy Seminary in Troy New York. Her father was a lawyer and Columbia College graduate.[3] Together, Silvester and Bronk had four children, of which two survived to adulthood:[3]

Silvester later retired to one of his farms in Coxsackie, where he lived until his death on November 29, 1882. He was interred in Kinderhook Cemetery, along with his family.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Miller, Peyton Farrell (1904). A Group of Great Lawyers of Columbia County, New York. Priv. print. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 United States. Congress. Joint Committee on Printing (2005). Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-2005: The Continental Congress, September 5, 1774, to October 21, 1788, and the Congress of the United States, from the First Through the One Hundred Eighth Congresses, March 4, 1789, to January 3, 2005, Inclusive. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office. p. 1912. ISBN 9780160731761. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  3. 1 2 Fairbanks, Mary J. Mason (1898). Emma Willard and Her Pupils: Or, Fifty Years of Troy Female Seminary, 1822-1872. New York: Mrs. R. Sage. Retrieved 20 April 2016.

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress website http://bioguide.congress.gov.

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by
John F. Collin		 Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from New York's 11th congressional district
March 4, 1847–March 3, 1851 		Succeeded by
Josiah Sutherland

Catgeory:Schuyler family

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