John Jay: Founding Father Of The United States
John Jay, a Founding Father of the United States, served the new nation in both law and diplomacy. He held the position of the first chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court as well as a variety of other top government positions. The New York native drafted the state’s first constitution in 1777 and the following year was chosen president of the Continental Congress. He then became U.S. minister to Spain, helping to broker the 1783 Treaty of Paris that ended the Revolutionary War. Jay was appointed the Supreme Court’s chief justice in 1789 and established important judicial precedents. He settled major grievances with Great Britain with the 1794 Jay Treaty, and served as governor of New York for six years before retiring from public office.
Augustus Jay, his paternal grandfather, established the Jay family’s existence in America. Augustus Jay, unable to stay in France, settled in New York. He, with a superior marriage and a growing mercantile business, soon created a powerful foundation for his descendants . John Jay’s maternal family was of solid Dutch American background; they had become prominent and quite wealthy as well. Jacobus Van Cortlandt, his maternal grandfather, served New York City twice as its mayor. Like Augustus Jay, his son Peter was a merchant. Peter and his wife, Mary Van Cortlandt, had ten children, seven of them surviving into adulthood. John Jay was born on December 12, 1745, in New York. He was the eighth child to the wealthy merchant’s family. After John’s birth, his family left Manhattan. In order to provide a more wholesome environment for the raising of the Jay children, his family moved to Rye, New York.
In his early years, Jay was considered to have uncommon intellectual ability. He was educated by private tutors. Later in the late summer of 1760, Jay entered King’s College, now known as Columbia University. He graduated in 1764 and became a law clerk in the office of Benjamin Kissam. In 1768, Jay was admitted to the New York Bar., where
Augustus Jay, his paternal grandfather, established the Jay family’s existence in America. Augustus Jay, unable to stay in France, settled in New York. He, with a superior marriage and a growing mercantile business, soon created a powerful foundation for his descendants . John Jay’s maternal family was of solid Dutch American background; they had become prominent and quite wealthy as well. Jacobus Van Cortlandt, his maternal grandfather, served New York City twice as its mayor. Like Augustus Jay, his son Peter was a merchant. Peter and his wife, Mary Van Cortlandt, had ten children, seven of them surviving into adulthood. John Jay was born on December 12, 1745, in New York. He was the eighth child to the wealthy merchant’s family. After John’s birth, his family left Manhattan. In order to provide a more wholesome environment for the raising of the Jay children, his family moved to Rye, New York.
In his early years, Jay was considered to have uncommon intellectual ability. He was educated by private tutors. Later in the late summer of 1760, Jay entered King’s College, now known as Columbia University. He graduated in 1764 and became a law clerk in the office of Benjamin Kissam. In 1768, Jay was admitted to the New York Bar., where