Appreciating a Local Giant of U.S. History

John Jay was only 28 at the time, the youngest by far of the New York delegates.
Good Company: John Jay participated in the Continental Congress.

By Paul D. Rheingold

As we near the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, it is good to recall a 250th anniversary now of the attendance of a local man at the First Continental Congress, which sat in Philadelphia from Sept. 5, 1774 to Oct. 26, 1774.

This was John Jay, who grew up with his parents and siblings in a farmhouse that precedes the present Jay Mansion. I have written elsewhere about Jay as a young lawyer, practicing from 1768 to 1775. Many of the cases he handled, including trials, were in White Plains (Court of Common Pleas).

Jay was selected along with eight other men to represent the State of New York at this first meeting of representatives of the colonies to decide on steps to take in reaction to various unpopular steps that Britain had taken. The Boston Tea Party had only recently occurred.

Jay was only 28 at the time, the youngest by far of the New York delegates and perhaps the youngest of all those attending. At least in part, he was chosen because he had already demonstrated acumen in the handling of cases, and was from a wealthy, respected family. But some contemporary sources suggest that politics were at play.

While he attended the meetings in Philadelphia, both that year and in 1775, Jay had to have his clerks maintain his legal practice, which slipped during these times. However, records show that he did handle trials, both in White Plains and New York City during 1774-1775.

At the Congressional meetings, Jay positioned himself as a proponent of conciliation with the British Parliament. Many of those attending were of a similar viewpoint that some arrangement could be worked out, outnumbering in the first session the radicals from Massachusetts.

The Second Congress met in 1775, and Jay was again a delegate. Now the Revolution loomed. Jay, of course, went on to be the first chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, author of the Jay Treaty, and governor of New York. And, of course, you can catch him in the mural at our post office.

Paul D. Rheingold is a member of the RR250 Revolutionary War Steering Committee and the Rye Historical Society.

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