Frederick Frelinghuysen

Frederick Frelinghuysen (April 13, 1753 – April 13, 1804) was an American lawyer, soldier, and senator from New Jersey. A graduate of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University), Frederick went on to become an officer during the American Revolutionary War. In addition, he served as a delegate to the Continental Congress. He was a United States senator from New Jersey from 1793 until 1796, and served as the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey in 1801.

Early life He was born at the Old Dutch Parsonage near Somerville in the Province of New Jersey to John Frelinghuysen and Dinah Van Berg of Amsterdam. His father, John, was the son of the immigrant minister Theodorus Jacobus Frelinghuysen, the progenitor of the Frelinghuysen family in New Jersey.

He graduated from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) in 1770, and was the sole instructor at Queen's College, New Brunswick (now Rutgers University) from 1771 to 1774. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1774, practicing law in Somerset County, New Jersey. He was commissioned major general in the New Jersey militia in 1794, during the Whiskey Rebellion.

Personal life He married Gertrude Schenck (1753–1794), the daughter of Helena Magdalena Van Liew and Hendrick (Henry) Joahnnes Schenck. Together, they had five children:

General John Frelinghuysen (1776–1833) Maria Frelinghuysen (1778–1832) Theodore Frelinghuysen (1787–1862), a lawyer and New Jersey politician Frederick Frelinghuysen (1788–1820) Catharine Frelinghuysen (1790-1865)

After his first wife Gertrude's death in 1794, Frederick Sr. married Ann Yard (1764–1839).

Frelinghuysen died in Millstone, New Jersey, on April 13, 1804, his 51st birthday, and was buried at the Weston Burying Ground on the border of Manville, New Jersey and Bound Brook, New Jersey. His tombstone reads as follows:

Descendants Among his other descendants are Frederick Theodore Frelinghuysen, U.S. Senator and Secretary of State; Joseph Sherman Frelinghuysen, US Senator from New Jersey; Peter Frelinghuysen, Jr., New Jersey Congressman; and Rodney Frelinghuysen, New Jersey Congressman.