James I. Van Alen
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from New York's 8th district
In office
March 4, 1807 – March 3, 1809
Preceded byHenry W. Livingston
Succeeded byJohn Thompson
Member of the New York State Assembly from Columbia County
In office
July 1, 1803 – June 30, 1804
Serving with Benjamin Birdsall, Stephen Miller, Samuel Ten Broeck
Preceded bySamuel Edmonds, Aaron Kellogg, Moncrief Livingston, Peter Silvester
Succeeded byMoncrief Livingston, Peter Silvester, William W. Van Ness, Jason Warner
Surrogate Judge of Columbia County, New York
In office
1815–1822
Preceded byJames Vanderpoel
Succeeded byAbraham A. Van Buren
In office
1804–1808
Preceded byWilliam W. Van Ness
Succeeded byMartin Van Buren
Town Clerk of Kinderhook, New York
In office
1797–1801
Preceded byAbraham Van Buren
Succeeded byElihu Gridley
Personal details
Born
James Isaac Van Alen

(1772-12-31)December 31, 1772
Kinderhook, Province of New York, British America
DiedMay 18, 1822(1822-05-18) (aged 49)
Kinderhook, New York, U.S.
Resting placeKinderhook Cemetery, Kinderhook, New York
Political partyDemocratic-Republican
Parent(s)Johannes Van Alen
Maria Hoes
RelativesMartin Van Buren (half-brother)
ProfessionAttorney

James Isaac Van Alen (December 31, 1772 – May 18, 1822) was an American politician from Kinderhook, New York. A Democratic-Republican, he served as a United States representative, a member of the New York State Assembly, and Surrogate Judge of Columbia County, New York. Van Alen was the elder half brother and law partner of U.S. President Martin Van Buren.

Early life

Baptism record, James I. Van Alen. "James" is the Anglicized version of the Dutch "Jacobus."

Van Alen was born in Kinderhook, New York on December 31, 1772,[1] the son of Johannes Van Alen (1744–1773) and Marytje Goes (or Hoes) Van Alen (1748–1817).[2] On January 1, 1773, he was christened Jacobus Van Alen at Kinderhook's Dutch Reformed Church.[3] He had two siblings, Marytje (or Maria) Van Alen and John Isaac Van Alen.[4] After the death of his father, his mother married Abraham Van Buren in 1776.[4][5] His mother had five more children with Van Buren including Dirckie "Derike" Van Buren, Jannetje (called "Hannah" or "Jane") Van Buren, future U.S. President Martin Van Buren, Lawrence Van Buren, and Abraham Van Buren Jr.[6]

Van Alen attended the common schools, studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1794.[7]

Career

After being admitted to the bar in New York, he practiced in Kinderhook, later practicing in partnership with Martin Van Buren.[7] From 1797 to 1801 he was Kinderhook's Town Clerk.[8][9][10] Van Alen was also involved in various businesses, including serving as secretary of the board of directors for the Chatham Turnpike Corporation.[11]

New York Evening Post note on Van Alen's successor as surrogate. September 19, 1822.

He was a member of the State constitutional convention of 1801,[12] and was a justice of the peace from 1801 to 1804.[13] He was a member of the New York State Assembly in 1804.[14] Van Alen was surrogate judge of Columbia County from 1804 to 1808.[15]

U.S. Congress

Van Alen was elected to the 10th Congress as a Democratic-Republican, succeeding Henry W. Livingston and holding office from March 4, 1807, to March 3, 1809.[16][17] He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1808 and John Thompson replaced him in the House.[18]

Later career

Death Notice, James I. Van Alen. Albany Argus (Albany, NY), May 21, 1822.

He later returned to the surrogate judge's position, serving from 1815 until his death.[19] He was succeeded by his half-brother, Abraham A. Van Buren.[19]

Personal life

Van Alen never married or had children.[1] He died in Kinderhook on May 18, 1822,[1] and was buried at Kinderhook Cemetery.[20]

References

  1. 1 2 3 The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record. Vol. 82–83. New York, NY: New York Genealogical and Biographical Society. 1951. p. 148.
  2. ↑ Irelan, John Robert (1887). History of the Life, Administration and Times of Martin Van Buren. Chicago, IL: Fairbanks and Palmer Publishing Company. pp. 10–11.
  3. ↑ "Jacobus Van Alen Baptism, U.S. Dutch Reformed Church Vital Records, 1660-1926". Ancestry.com. Dutch Reformed Church, Kinderhook, NY. January 1, 1773. Note: His name appears in records variously as Jacobus Van Alen, James I. Van Alen and James J. Van Alen. Variations on given names were not unusual in upstate New York in the 1700s and 1800s, as Dutch names were Anglicized. For example, Martin Van Buren was baptized as Maarten.
  4. 1 2 "Dutch Reformed Church Records in Selected States, 1639-1989: Kinderhook Dutch Reformed Church Baptism Entry, Marytje Van Alen". Ancestry.com. Provo, UT: Ancestry.com, LLC. August 20, 1768.
  5. ↑ The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record. Vol. 82–83. New York, NY: New York Genealogical and Biographical Society. 1951. p. 148.
  6. ↑ Cole, Donald B. (1984). Martin van Buren and the American Political System. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. p. 11. ISBN 978-1-4008-5361-8 – via Google Books.
  7. 1 2 Mackenzie, William Lyon (1846). The Life and Times of Martin Van Buren: The Correspondence of His Friends, Family and Pupils. Boston, MA: Cooke & Co. p. 21.
  8. ↑ Terry, R. M. (1885). Civil list of Columbia County and Official Handbook, 1786-1886. Hudson, NY: J. W. Prentiss, printer. p. 113.
  9. ↑ Wilson, James Grant (1898). The Presidents of the United States 1789–1897. D. Appleton and Company. pp. 169–170.
  10. ↑ Shepard, Edward Morse (1896). American Statesman: Martin Van Buren. Houghton, Mifflin and Company. p. 44.
  11. ↑ Van Alen, James I. (January 14, 1805). "Meeting Notice, Chatham Turnpike Corporation". The Pittsfield Sun. Pittsfield, MA. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ Lincoln, Charles Zebina (1906). The Constitutional History of New York, Volume 1. Rochester, NY: Lawyers Co-Operative Publishing Company. p. 608. ISBN 9781404751897.
  13. ↑ Mosley, Charles; Brogan, Hugh (1993). American Presidential Families. Gloucestershire, UK: Alan Sutton. p. 314. ISBN 978-0-02-897305-0.
  14. ↑ Journal of the Assembly of the State of New York. Albany, NY: New York State Legislature. 1804. p. 3.
  15. ↑ Terry, R. M. (1885). Civil List of Columbia County and Official Handbook, 1786-1886. Hudson, NY: J. W. Prentiss. p. 48.
  16. ↑ Columbia County at the End of the Century. Hudson, NY: Record Printing and Publishing. 1900. p. 122.
  17. ↑ Collier, Edward Augustus (1914). A History of Old Kinderhook from Aboriginal Days to the Present Time. New York, NY: G. P. Putnam's Sons. p. 414.
  18. ↑ "VAN ALEN, James Isaac - Biographical Information". bioguide.congress.gov. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
  19. 1 2 Terry, R. M. (1885). Civil List of Columbia County and Official Handbook, 1786-1886. Hudson, NY: J. W. Prentiss. p. 48.
  20. ↑ Irelan, John Robert (1887). History of the Life, Administration and Times of Martin Van Buren. Chicago, IL: Fairbanks and Palmer Publishing Company. p. 605.
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