Jacob Radcliff

Jacob Radcliff
50th and 53rd Mayor of New York City
In office February 13, 1810 – 1811
Preceded by	DeWitt Clinton
Succeeded by	DeWitt Clinton
In office July 10, 1815 – 1818
Preceded by	John Ferguson
Succeeded by	Cadwallader D. Colden
Personal details
Born	April 20, 1764 Rhinebeck, New York
Died	May 6, 1844 (aged 80) Troy, New York
Political party	Federalist
Spouse(s)	Juliana Smith
Alma mater	Princeton University
Occupation	Lawyer
Signature

Jacob Radcliff or Radclift (April 20, 1764 – May 6, 1844) was Mayor of New York City from 1810 to 1811, and from 1815 to 1818.

Life

He was born on April 20, 1764, in Rhinebeck, Dutchess County, New York. He graduated from Princeton University in 1783 and practiced law under Egbert Benson, the first New York Attorney General. He was admitted to the bar in 1786, and about the same time, he married Juliana Smith, the daughter of Cotton Mather Smith and granddaughter of Cotton Mather.^[1] While practicing law in Poughkeepsie, he was a member of the New York State Assembly (Dutchess Co.) in 1795. He was appointed Assistant Attorney General on February 23, 1796.

On December 27, 1798, he became a justice of the New York Supreme Court. In this position he helped revise the state's laws. He resigned from the bench in 1804, and practiced chancery law in Brooklyn. When the Federalist Party gained the majority in 1810, Radcliff was appointed mayor of New York City. When the War of 1812 divided the Federalist party, Radcliff aligned with the Tammany Society, which was poised to gain a majority in state politics. Grand Sachem of Tammany Hall John Ferguson became mayor in 1815 but resigned to take the appointment of Surveyor of the Port of New York. Radcliff was chosen as his replacement.

He died in Troy, New York on May 6, 1844.^[2]

Notes

1. Tuckerman, Bayard (1915). A sketch of the Cotton Smith family of Sharon, Connecticut: with genealogical notes. Boston.
2. New York Evening Post, Death Notice, Jacob Radcliff, May 7, 1844