Charles DeWitt (April 27, 1727 – August 27, 1787) was an American statesman and

miller A miller is a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents ...

from the U.S. state of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. He served as a delegate to the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislature, legislative bodies, with some executive function, for the Thirteen Colonies of British America, Great Britain in North America, and the newly declared United States before, during, and after ...

Early life

DeWitt was born in

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

, the eldest son of Johannes DeWitt and Mary (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Brodhead) DeWitt. Among his siblings was brother Andries J. DeWitt, who married Blandina Elmendorf Ten Eyck (parents of Jenneke (née DeWitt) Bruyn and grandparents of

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

Andrew DeWitt Bruyn). He was a first cousin once removed of

Charles Clinton Col. Charles Clinton (1690 – 19 November 1773) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and politician in colonial America. A colonel of the French and Indian War, he was the father of General James Clinton and George Clinton, and the grandfather of DeWit ...

DeWitt Clinton DeWitt Clinton (March 2, 1769February 11, 1828) was an American politician and Naturalism (philosophy), naturalist. He served as a United States Senate, United States senator, as the mayor of New York City, and as the sixth governor of New York. ...

, George Clinton, Jr. and Jacob Hasbrouck DeWitt. DeWitt attended school in Kingston and pursued

classical studies Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek and Roman literature and their original languages ...

. He helped his family operate a flour mill in Greenkill (in what is now Rosendale, New York). The first mill at the site was built by Mattys Mattysen Van Keuren in 1677. Van Keuren had no children and when he died the mill was passed on to his nephew, who was a DeWitt.

Career

He was first elected to the

New York General Assembly The General Assembly of New York, commonly known internationally as the New York General Assembly, and domestically simply as General Assembly, was the Parliamentary sovereignty, supreme Legislature, legislative body of the Province of New York d ...

to represent

Ulster County Ulster County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. It is situated along the Hudson River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 181,851. The county seat is Kingston. The county is named after the Irish province of Ulster. The count ...

in 1768. He was returned to that seat in every election until the Assembly was replaced in the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

by a Provisional Congress for the colony in 1775. That year he was one of the members who voted to approve the work of the

. As the revolution drew near, and the Ulster militia was expanded, he was named Colonel of the 2nd Ulster Militia regiment on December 21, 1775. DeWitt served in the

New York Provincial Congress The New York Provincial Congress (1775–1777) was a revolutionary provisional government formed by colonists in 1775, during the American Revolution, as a pro-American alternative to the more conservative New York General Assembly, and as a repla ...

from 1775 to 1777 while continuing his militia duties. In the New York Provincial Congress he served on the committee that drafted the state's first constitution. He also served on the Committee of Safety. After active warfare slowed, he was elected to the New York Assembly under the new government. He served in the assembly from 1781 to 1785 and 1785–1787. The assembly sent him as a delegate to the

in 1781 and 1784. DeWitt supplied a great deal of flour to the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...

from his grist mill on the Greenkill.

Personal life

On December 20, 1754, DeWitt was married to Blandina DuBois (1731–1765) in Hurley. She was the daughter of Gerrit DuBois and Margaret Elemendorf, and was a great-granddaughter of Louis DuBois, a

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

who was one of the earliest settlers and founders of

New Paltz, New York New Paltz () is an incorporated U.S. town in Ulster County, New York. The population was 14,407 at the 2020 census. The town is located in the southeastern part of the county and is south of Kingston. New Paltz contains a village, also with ...

. Together, the couple had five children: * Johannes "John" Charles DeWitt (1755–1833), who served as the Town of Hurley supervisor for three different terms (1788-1793, 1796–1797, 1807–1808); he married Cornelia Kantein in 1778. * Margrietje "Margaret" DeWitt (1758–1827), who married Johannes Bruyn (1750–1814), a New York Assemblymen from Ulster County, a

presidential elector In the United States, the Electoral College is the group of presidential electors that is formed every four years for the sole purpose of voting for the president and vice president in the presidential election. This process is described in ...

for New York, and a member of

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, while the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term l ...

who was the son of Jacobus Bruyn. * Maria DeWitt (1760–1798), who married Jacobus "James" Hasbrouck in Kingston in 1783. * Gerret DeWitt (1762–1846), who married Catharine Ten Eyck (1765–1840), a daughter of Matthew Ten Eyck and Cornelia (née Wynkoop) Ten Eyck, in 1786. * Ann DeWitt He died on August 27, 1787, in Kingston and is interred in the Dutch Reformed Cemetery in

Hurley, New York Hurley is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Ulster County, New York, Ulster County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 6,178 at the 2020 census.US Census Bureau, Hurley town, Ulster County, New York ...

. He wrote his will on July 7, 1776, as he prepared to set out for the defense of

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. He left the mill to his son Gerret, who expanded it in 1806, and the water-powered mill would continue in operation until 1922.

Descendants

DeWitt's grandson, Charles G. DeWitt, served in the

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a bicameral legislature, including a lower body, the U.S. House of Representatives, and an upper body, the U.S. Senate. They both ...

. Another grandson, Charles DeWitt Bruyn (1784–1849), was a New York Assemblymen from Sullivan and Ulster counties from 1821 to 1822. His great-grandson, Matthew Pawling DeWitt, served as Hurley Town Supervisor from 1856 to 1857, and Matthew's son (Charles's great-great-grandson), Christopher Newkirk DeWitt, served in this position from 1880 to 1886 and 1896–1899. Another great-great-grandson, Matthew TenEyck DeWitt, was Hurley Supervisor on multiple occasions (1910-1911, 1914–1915, 1924–1927, and 1933–1935, his death). Another great-grandson was David M. De Witt.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:DeWitt, Charles 1727 births 1787 deaths Continental Congressmen from New York (state) Members of the New York General Assembly Members of the New York Provincial Assembly Members of the New York Provincial Congress Members of the New York State Assembly Politicians from Kingston, New York American politicians of Dutch descent People from Rosendale, New York People from Hurley, New York De Witt family Millers 18th-century members of the New York State Legislature