Robert McClellan (NY treasurer)
Encyclopedia
Robert McClellan was an American merchant and politician.
when Robert was still a child. His older brother took him to Albany, New York
where he became a merchant. In 1771, Robert married Jane Williams in Albany, and they had nine children.
At the outbreak of the Revolutionary War in 1775, he supported the revolutionary cause financially. In 1776, he became a member of the Albany Committee of Correspondence
.
Beginning in 1780, he was elected to the Albany City Council, first as assistant, then as alderman
. In 1798, he was appointed New York State Treasurer
, a post he held until his resignation on January 31, 1803, after the discovery of a shortage of $33,000 in the Treasury accounts.
Life
He was a son of Michael McClellan (d. ca. 1757) and Jane Henry McClellan. The family came to New EnglandNew England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
when Robert was still a child. His older brother took him to Albany, New York
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
where he became a merchant. In 1771, Robert married Jane Williams in Albany, and they had nine children.
At the outbreak of the Revolutionary War in 1775, he supported the revolutionary cause financially. In 1776, he became a member of the Albany Committee of Correspondence
Committee of correspondence
The Committees of Correspondence were shadow governments organized by the Patriot leaders of the Thirteen Colonies on the eve of American Revolution. They coordinated responses to Britain and shared their plans; by 1773 they had emerged as shadow governments, superseding the colonial legislature...
.
Beginning in 1780, he was elected to the Albany City Council, first as assistant, then as alderman
Alderman
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by popular vote, or a council...
. In 1798, he was appointed New York State Treasurer
New York State Treasurer
The New York State Treasurer was a state cabinet officer in the State of New York between 1776 and 1926. During the re-organization of the state government under Governor Al Smith, the office was abolished and its responsibilities transferred to the new Department of Audit and Control headed by the...
, a post he held until his resignation on January 31, 1803, after the discovery of a shortage of $33,000 in the Treasury accounts.
Sources
- Political Graveyard (name given as Robert McClallen)
- The New York Civil List compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (page 35; Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858) (Google Books) (name given as Robert McClallen)
- Bio at NYS Museum (name given as Robert Mc Clallan)
- Bio of his wife, at NYS Museum
- http://books.google.com.br/books?id=Gm04AAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=Jenkins+history+political+parties#PPA96,M1 History of Political Parties in the State of New-York by John Stilwell Jenkins (pages 65 and 95f; Alden & Markham, Auburn NY, 1846) (name given as Robert McClellan, and Robert Mc Clellan)
- http://books.google.com/books?id=bpcMAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA112&dq=gerrit+dox&lr=&hl=pt-BR#PPA126,M1 The Annals of Albany by Joel Munsell (giving name as Robert McClellan)