Stephen De Lancey
{{For|others with the same name|Stephen Delancey (disambiguation)}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=January 2023}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Stephen De Lancey
| image =
| caption =
| office = Member of the General Assembly of Nova Scotia for the Town of Annapolis
| term_start = 1784
| term_end = 1786
| predecessor = Obadiah Wheelock
| successor = James De Lancey
| birth_date = December 1738
| birth_place = West Farms, Province of New York, British America
| death_date = {{death date and age|1809|05|01|1738|12|01}}
| death_place = Annapolis, Nova Scotia, Canada
| occupation =
| party =
| parents = Peter DeLancey
Elizabeth Colden
| spouse = Esther Rynderts
| children = 3
| relations = James De Lancey (brother)
Alice De Lancey Izard (sister)
Thomas Barclay (brother-in-law)
James De Lancey (uncle)
Etienne de Lancey (grandfather)
Cadwallader Colden (grandfather)
}}
Stephen De LanceyHis surname also appears in some sources as de Lancey, DeLancey or Delancey. (December 1738 – May 1809) was a lawyer and political figure in New York state and Nova Scotia. He represented Annapolis Township in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1784 to 1789.{{cite book |last=Elliott |first=Shirley B. |author-link= |date=1984 |chapter= |title=The Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia, 1758-1983: a biographical directory |url=https://0-nsleg--edeposit-gov-ns-ca.legcat.gov.ns.ca/deposit/b10537582.pdf |location=Halifax |publisher=Province of Nova Scotia |page=253&50 |isbn=0-88871-050-X}}
Early life
He was born in West Farms, New York, the eldest son of Peter DeLancey (1705–1770) and Elizabeth (née Colden) DeLancey. His sister, Susan DeLancey (1754–1837), was married to Thomas Henry Barclay (1753–1830), a lawyer who became one of the United Empire Loyalists in Nova Scotia and served in the colony's government.{{cite DCB |last=Tulloch |first=Judith |title=Barclay, Thomas Henry |volume=6 |url=http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/barclay_thomas_henry_6E.html}}
His paternal grandparents were Etienne de Lancey and Anne van Cortlandt (1676–1724), herself the third child of Gertrude Schuyler (born 1654) and Stephanus van Cortlandt (1643–1700), the Chief Justice of the Province of New York.{{cite web|title=Loyalist, Col. James Delancey UE, born 1746 or 1747, died 1804.|url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Loyalist%2C+Col.+James+Delancey+UE%2C+born+1746+or+1747%2C+died+1804.-a0452881450|website=www.thefreelibrary.com|publisher=2016 United Empire Loyalists' Association 02 Nov. 2017 {{!}} The Free Library|accessdate=2 November 2017}} Both his uncle, James DeLancey (1703–1760), and maternal grandfather, Cadwallader Colden (1688–1776), served as Colonial Governors of New York.{{cite book|last1=Ketchum|first1=Richard M.|title=Divided Loyalties: How the American Revolution Came to New York|date=2002|publisher=Macmillan|isbn=9780805061192|page=374|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EsQWBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA374|accessdate=2 November 2017|language=en}}
Career
He studied law and later moved to Albany. From 1765 to 1766, he served as clerk for the city and county of Albany. In 1770, he was named a masters in the provincial chancery court. He was elected to the Albany committee of correspondence in 1775.{{cite book|last1=Lamb|first1=Martha Joanna|last2=Harrison|first2=Mrs Burton|title=History of the City of New York: Its Origin, Rise, and Progress|date=1896|publisher=A. S. Barnes|page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofcityofn01lamb/page/532 532]|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofcityofn01lamb|accessdate=2 November 2017|language=en}}
=Nova Scotia=
In 1776, because of his loyalist sympathies, he was stripped of his posts and deported to Hartford, Connecticut.{{cite web|last1=Calnek|first1=W. A.|title=History of the County of Annapolis, Nova Scotia : Including Old Port Royal & Acadia|url=http://www.ourroots.ca/e/toc.aspx?id=727|website=ourroots.ca|accessdate=2 November 2017|date=1999|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070624170956/http://www.ourroots.ca/e/toc.aspx?id=727|archivedate=24 June 2007}} In 1783, he moved to Nova Scotia with his family. He was first elected to the provincial assembly in a by-election held in 1783, taking the seat on November 16, 1784, and was elected again in 1785. There is a website{{cite web|last1=Bielinski|first1=Stefan|title=Stephen De Lancey|url=http://exhibitions.nysm.nysed.gov//albany/bios/d/stdl.html|website=exhibitions.nysm.nysed.gov|publisher=New York State Museum|accessdate=2 November 2017}} claiming that in 1786, he was named to the province's Council, however he does not appear in a list of their members. A more reliable source reports that he was appointed to office in the Bahamas, and his seat was declared vacant April 6, 1789. His brother James won a by-election to replace him in the provincial assembly, and he took the seat on February 26, 1790. James was indeed named a member of the Council on June 6, 1794, and this may be the source of confusion.
Personal life
De Lancey was married to Esther Rynderts of Albany.{{cite book|last1=New York State|title=Documents relative to the colonial history of the state of New York, procured by J.R. Brodhead, ed. by E.B. O'Callaghan|date=1857|page=480|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LS4OAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA480|accessdate=2 November 2017|language=en}}{{cite book|last1=Brodhead|first1=John Romeyn|title=Documents Relating to the Colonial History of the State of New York|date=1861|publisher=Weed, Parsons, Printers|page=547|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XVUOAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA547|accessdate=2 November 2017|language=en}} Together, they were the parents of three children:{{cite book|last1=Holgate|first1=Jerome Bonaparte|title=American Genealogy: Being a History of Some of the Early Settlers of North America and Their Descendants, from Their First Emigration to the Present Time ...|date=1851|publisher=J. Munsell|page=118|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VUNnAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA118|accessdate=2 November 2017|language=en}}
- Elizabeth De Lancey
- Mary De Lancey
- Cadwallader De Lancey
References
{{reflist|30em}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:De Lancey, Stephen}}
Category:Canadian people of Dutch descent
Category:18th-century members of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly
Category:People from the Province of New York
Category:Politicians from the Bronx
Category:Loyalists in the American Revolution from New York (state)