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Cornelia
Van Cortlandt Schuyler
Cornelia Van Cortlandt was born in 1698 - the daughter of Manhattan magnate Stephanus Van Cortlandt and Albany native Geertruy Schuyler. She grew up in New York City to inherit one of the foremost fortunes in the province.
Even
at the late age of twenty-five, Cornelia would be
a coveted match for the son of any elite New York
family. In 1723, she married Johannes Schuyler, Jr.
in the New York City Dutch church. He was the son
of a one-time mayor of Albany and heir to one of
the premier estates in the upriver region. The new
couple resided in Albany where she gave birth to
at least ten children.
As
the wife of a prominent merchant and civic leader,
Cornelia lived an advantaged life that was augmented
by her own inherited lands on Van Cortlandt Manor
and in New York City. With her children, she was
a frequent visitor in Westchester and also maintained
a house on Manhattan.
While
her husband was serving as mayor of Albany, he became
ill and died in November 1741. She was left an extensive
estate and the responsiblity of caring for and educating
five almost grown children. For many years, she
conducted business in the manner of her late husband
from the Schuyler family home which, by the mid-1750s,
she shared with her oldest son Philip.
Cornelia
Van Cortlandt Schuyler died at home in October 1762
at age sixty-four. She had outlived her husband by
more than twenty years. Their family bible was closed
with a commentary on her death. It read: "Lovable were they in their lives. The Lord grant them salvation in their death."
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Notes: The
life of Cornelia Van Cortlandt Schuyler is CAP
biography number 6662. This profile is derived chiefly
from community-based resources and from demographics
compiled in Christoph's Schuyler Genealogy.
Her
will was filed in November 1758. It specified her
land on Cortland Manor and in New York City.
By Stefan Bielinski, Colonial Albany Social History Project [http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/albany]
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