Peter Gansevoort was an officer in the Continental Army during the American Revolution. He took part in the invasion of Canada and commanded Fort Stanwix (renamed Fort Schuyler), defending it against a British attack in August of 1777. This selection from Peter Gansevoort, Jr.'s military papers, 1754-1818, document his career as an officer in the Albany militia and the Continental Army, as well as the commander of the United States Army's Northern Department. The bulk of the documents relate to Gansevoort's service as colonel in command of New York's 3rd Regiment during the Revolution. Subjects of note include intelligence, troop movements, the supply and arming of Continental forces, the siege at Fort Stanwix, the Saratoga Campaign, and the post-Revolution Western Frontier. Documents consist of correspondence, accounts, muster rolls, returns, commissions and commendations.
Biographical/historical: Peter Gansevoort was born in Albany, NY in 1749. The eldest son of Harme Gansevoort, a merchant, brewer, and political figure, and Magdalena Douw, who came from a well-connected Albany family. Gansevoort’s paternal relatives first arrived in New York in 1657, and settled in Albany twenty years later. Peter Gansevoort began his lengthy military career during the American Revolution. Initially joining the Albany militia as a lieutenant, he quickly received a commission as a Major in the Continental Army, in July of 1775, shortly after hostilities broke out. He took part in the invasion of Canada, and precipitously rose through the ranks during 1776, all the way to colonel. He took command of Fort Stanwix (renamed Fort Schuyler) in Rome, New York--built by the British during the Seven Years War, but occupied by Americans during the Revolutionary War--defending it against a British attack in August of 1777. Gansevoort then returned to Albany for a time and married Catherine Van Schaick, on January 12, 1778, before resuming his post at Fort Stanwix. During 1779, Gansevoort and the Third New York Continentals made a lengthy expedition into Indian Country, in central New York. By 1781, Gansevoort was back in Albany, now as a Brigadier General in the colonial militia. With the war over and the peace signed, in 1783, Gansevoort acquired property and a sawmill in a part of Albany County that, in 1791, would be carved out to create Saratoga County. Gansevoort and his wife had five children that lived through infancy, and also lived with eight enslaved people, according to the 1790 census.
During this time, Gansevoort also became involved in public life, serving as a member of the Albany Federal committee that supported ratifying the U.S. Constitution in 1788, as well as being appointed sheriff of Albany in 1790. Having served during the late 1780s as an Indian Agent for the Confederation Congress, Gansevoort was made military agent of the Northern Department by Thomas Jefferson in 1802, and was promoted to Brigadier General in the U.S. Army in 1809. All the while, Gansevoort remained involved in local affairs, serving on the board of directors of the New York State Bank in Albany and the Albany Insurance Company, and as a member of the state Board of Regents. Gansevoort died on July 2, 1812.
Content: This selection from Peter Gansevoort, Jr.'s military papers, 1754-1818, document his career as an officer in the Albany militia and the Continental Army, as well as the commander of the United States Army's Northern Department. The bulk of the documents relate to Gansevoort's service as colonel in command of New York's 3rd Regiment during the Revolution. Subjects of note include intelligence, troop movements, the supply and arming of Continental forces, the siege at Fort Stanwix, the Saratoga Campaign, and the post-Revolution Western Frontier. Documents consist of correspondence, accounts, muster rolls, returns, commissions and commendations. Notable correspondents include Benedict Arnold, George Clinton, Horatio Gates, John Lansing, Jr., Philip Schuyler, Richard Varick, George Washington, and Marinus Willett. Other items of note include documents pertaining military activities of other Gansevoort family members.
