John Isaac De Graff (October 2, 1783 – July 26, 1848) was an American businessman and politician who served two non-consecutive term as a

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 ...

from

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 * ...

1827 to 1829, and again from 1837 to 1839.

Biography

De Graff was born in

Schenectady, New York Schenectady ( ) is a City (New York), city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the United States Census 2020, 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-most populo ...

, the son of

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 ...

veteran Judge Isaac DeGraff and Susanna Van Epps, and he attended the common schools and the Schenectady Academy, a school operated by Schenectady's

Dutch Reformed Church The Dutch Reformed Church (, , abbreviated NHK ) was the largest Christian denomination in the Netherlands from the onset of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century until 1930. It was the traditional denomination of the Dutch royal famil ...

. He engaged in mercantile pursuits and banking in Schenectady, and his firm prospered, maintaining offices in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. He was also a successful real estate investor and landlord, and owned several houses, farms, commercial buildings and pastures in and around Schenectady.

Militia

In the early 1800s De Graff served in the militia, and was appointed an

Ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...

in the Schenectady regiment commanded by Jacob Swits. He attended

Union College Union College is a Private university, private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York, United States. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the s ...

in 1811, and was a member of

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States. It was founded in 1776 at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, ...

War of 1812

He played a key role in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

by lending the government money to use in equipping a naval fleet. He pledged both private funds and his personal credit to the amount of $100,000 (about $1.1 million in 2015), and with this financing

Thomas Macdonough Thomas Macdonough, Jr. (December 31, 1783 – November 10, 1825) was a United States Navy officer noted for his roles in the First Barbary War and the War of 1812. He was the son of a revolutionary officer, Thomas Macdonough, Sr. who lived near ...

was able to build and outfit the ships he used to defeat the British at the

Battle of Plattsburgh The Battle of Plattsburgh, also known as the Battle of Lake Champlain, ended the final British invasion of the northern states of the United States during the War of 1812. Two British forces, an army under Lieutenant General Sir George Prévos ...

. Due to the depreciation of the treasury notes with which he was repaid, De Graff lost about $30,000 (about $330,000 in 2015) in aiding the war effort.

Political career

De Graff was elected as a Jacksonian to the Twentieth Congress (March 4, 1827 – March 3, 1829). He served as mayor of Schenectady from 1832 to 1835 and again from 1836 to 1837. In 1834 De Graff became the first popularly elected Mayor, because prior holders of the office had been appointed by the city council. In 1837 De Graff was one of the incorporators of the Schenectady Lyceum and Academy, a boarding school for boys, and he served on its original board of trustees. As Mayor he oversaw the setting aside of land for and construction of a school for

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

s, and as President of Schenectady's school trustees in the 1840s he included details on Schenectady's African School in his annual report to the state superintendent of common schools. De Graff was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

to the Twenty-fifth Congress (March 4, 1837 – March 3, 1839). He was not a candidate for renomination, and declined appointment as

Secretary of the Treasury The United States secretary of the treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States. The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal a ...

in the administration of

Martin Van Buren Martin Van Buren ( ; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was the eighth president of the United States, serving from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as Attorney General o ...

. He resumed his business activities, and was interested in the building of the Mohawk & Hudson Railroad, of which he was the first President. In 1840 De Graff was a candidate for the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...

. He appeared to be defeated on election day, but contested the results. He presented evidence to support his charge that the ballots of Schenectady's second ward had been tampered with, and that the fraud was sufficient to have affected the outcome, but the Assembly voted to seat Theodore W. Sanders, the Whig nominee. He again served as mayor of Schenectady from 1842 to 1843 and 1845 to 1846.

Later career and death

He engaged in banking and business ventures until his death. He never married, and he died in Schenectady on July 26, 1848. He was interred in Vale Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:De Graff, John Isaac 1783 births 1848 deaths American militia officers People from New York (state) in the War of 1812 Jacksonian members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Mayors of Schenectady, New York 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives