Civil War CDV Union General Chalres Van Wyck 56th York Infantry
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:143196 |
Condition as seen. "Charles Henry Van Wyck was born in Poughkeepsie, New York on May 10, 1824, the son of Theodore C. and Elizabeth Mason Van Wyck. He received a law degree from Rutgers College at the age of 18 and remained in the east for some time in the legal profession. He served in the 36th, 37th, 40th and 41st US Congresses from New York 10th district and also served as a Colonel in the 56th NY Volunteers during the Civil War. In 1865, he was appointed brevet Br...igadier General. The 56th Regiment served in the Peninsular Campaign, participating in such battles as Williamsburg and Fair Oaks, and was also engaged in battles at Honey Hill, Deveaux Neck, Kingsville, and Dingle Mill.
Van Wyck married Kate Brodhead on September 15, 1869 in Washington, D.C. He had an interest in land development in Nebraska Territory and belonged to an investment firm (all members of the Van Wyck family) that preempted land in Nebraska as early as 1857. The bulk of the Van Wyck estate in Nebraska lay in Otoe County near Wyoming. However, Van Wyck also owned land in Thayer and Fillmore Counties. In 1874 he moved to Nebraska permanently and settled in Otoe County. He served in the Nebraska Constitutional Convention in 1875; as state senator from 1876-1880; and as U.S. Senator from 1881-1887, elected on the Republican ticket. He violently opposed the interests of the large corporations and railroads. This attitude led to his defeat in 1886 by A.S. Paddock. He changed his party affiliation to Populist, ran and was defeated for the office of Governor in 1892. After this defeat he left the political scene and moved to Washington, D.C. where he died on October 24, 1895."Charles Henry Van Wyck (May 10, 1824 – October 24, 1895) was a Representative from New York, a Senator from Nebraska, and a Union Army brigadier general in the American Civil War.
Contents1 Early life and political career1.1 Assassination attempt2 Civil War3 Postbellum career4 Gallery5 See also6 References7 Other sources8 External linksEarly life and political careerVan Wyck was born in Poughkeepsie, New York. He was a distant cousin of Robert Anderson Van Wyck and Augustus Van Wyck; their common ancestors were Theodorus Van Wyck (1668-1753) and his wife Margretia Brinckerhoff Van Wyck.[1] He completed preparatory studies and graduated from Rutgers College, New Brunswick, New Jersey, in 1843. Van Wyck studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1847 and commenced the practice of law. He then moved to Bloomingburg, New York, where he was a district attorney 1850-1856.
Van Wyck was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as a Republican from New York to the Thirty-sixth and Thirty-seventh Congresses (March 4, 1859 – March 3, 1863). He served as chairman, Committee on Mileage (Thirty-sixth Congress) and on the Committee on Revolutionary Pensions (Thirty-seventh Congress).
Assassination attemptVan Wyck delivered a harsh anti-slavery speech on the House floor on March 7, 1860, which denounced the Southern states for the "crime against the laws of God and nature."[2] The speech was widely reported. On February 22, 1861, Van Wyck was assaulted near the United States Capitol by three men in an assassination attempt, an attack which was reported as related to the prior year's speech.[3] Van Wyck fought off the attack, surviving only because a notebook and copy of the Congressional Globe which he had kept in the breast pocket of his coat had blocked the blade of a Bowie knife.[3] The three men fled and were never identified. This was also the same night as an alleged attempt was made to assassinate president-elect Abraham Lincoln in Baltimore, Maryland.[3]
Civil WarVan Wyck entered the Union Army as colonel of the 56th New York Volunteer Infantry and commanded it during the American Civil War. Part of the Army of the Potomac during the Peninsula Campaign, Van Wyck was wounded in the knee at the Battle of Fair Oaks. Much of the war was then spent in South Carolina taking part in the Siege of Charleston Harbor and the Battle of Honey Hill. He was brevetted brigadier general for services during the war.[4]
Postbellum careerVan Wyck was elected to the Fortieth Congress (March 4, 1867 – March 3, 1869); successfully contested the election of George Woodward Greene to the Forty-first Congress and served from February 17, 1870 to March 3, 1871.
He moved to Nebraska in 1874, where he settled on a farm in Otoe County, and engaged in agricultural pursuits. Van Wyck was a delegate to the State constitutional convention in 1875. He was elected to the State senate 1877, 1879, 1881. That year, he was elected as a Republican to the United States Senate from Nebraska and served from March 4, 1881 to March 3, 1887. He served as chairman, Committee on the Mississippi River and Its Tributaries (Forty-seventh Congress) and on the Committee on the Improvement of the Mississippi River and Tributaries (Forty-eighth and Forty-ninth Congresses). Van Wyck was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection. In 1892, he was an unsuccessful Populist candidate for Governor of Nebraska. Van Wyck then retired from political life and active business pursuits. He died in Washington, D.C., and was interred in Milford Cemetery, Milford, Pennsylvania.
Van Wyck married Kate Brodhead on September 15, 1869 in Washington, D.C. He had an interest in land development in Nebraska Territory and belonged to an investment firm (all members of the Van Wyck family) that preempted land in Nebraska as early as 1857. The bulk of the Van Wyck estate in Nebraska lay in Otoe County near Wyoming. However, Van Wyck also owned land in Thayer and Fillmore Counties. In 1874 he moved to Nebraska permanently and settled in Otoe County. He served in the Nebraska Constitutional Convention in 1875; as state senator from 1876-1880; and as U.S. Senator from 1881-1887, elected on the Republican ticket. He violently opposed the interests of the large corporations and railroads. This attitude led to his defeat in 1886 by A.S. Paddock. He changed his party affiliation to Populist, ran and was defeated for the office of Governor in 1892. After this defeat he left the political scene and moved to Washington, D.C. where he died on October 24, 1895."Charles Henry Van Wyck (May 10, 1824 – October 24, 1895) was a Representative from New York, a Senator from Nebraska, and a Union Army brigadier general in the American Civil War.
Contents1 Early life and political career1.1 Assassination attempt2 Civil War3 Postbellum career4 Gallery5 See also6 References7 Other sources8 External linksEarly life and political careerVan Wyck was born in Poughkeepsie, New York. He was a distant cousin of Robert Anderson Van Wyck and Augustus Van Wyck; their common ancestors were Theodorus Van Wyck (1668-1753) and his wife Margretia Brinckerhoff Van Wyck.[1] He completed preparatory studies and graduated from Rutgers College, New Brunswick, New Jersey, in 1843. Van Wyck studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1847 and commenced the practice of law. He then moved to Bloomingburg, New York, where he was a district attorney 1850-1856.
Van Wyck was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as a Republican from New York to the Thirty-sixth and Thirty-seventh Congresses (March 4, 1859 – March 3, 1863). He served as chairman, Committee on Mileage (Thirty-sixth Congress) and on the Committee on Revolutionary Pensions (Thirty-seventh Congress).
Assassination attemptVan Wyck delivered a harsh anti-slavery speech on the House floor on March 7, 1860, which denounced the Southern states for the "crime against the laws of God and nature."[2] The speech was widely reported. On February 22, 1861, Van Wyck was assaulted near the United States Capitol by three men in an assassination attempt, an attack which was reported as related to the prior year's speech.[3] Van Wyck fought off the attack, surviving only because a notebook and copy of the Congressional Globe which he had kept in the breast pocket of his coat had blocked the blade of a Bowie knife.[3] The three men fled and were never identified. This was also the same night as an alleged attempt was made to assassinate president-elect Abraham Lincoln in Baltimore, Maryland.[3]
Civil WarVan Wyck entered the Union Army as colonel of the 56th New York Volunteer Infantry and commanded it during the American Civil War. Part of the Army of the Potomac during the Peninsula Campaign, Van Wyck was wounded in the knee at the Battle of Fair Oaks. Much of the war was then spent in South Carolina taking part in the Siege of Charleston Harbor and the Battle of Honey Hill. He was brevetted brigadier general for services during the war.[4]
Postbellum careerVan Wyck was elected to the Fortieth Congress (March 4, 1867 – March 3, 1869); successfully contested the election of George Woodward Greene to the Forty-first Congress and served from February 17, 1870 to March 3, 1871.
He moved to Nebraska in 1874, where he settled on a farm in Otoe County, and engaged in agricultural pursuits. Van Wyck was a delegate to the State constitutional convention in 1875. He was elected to the State senate 1877, 1879, 1881. That year, he was elected as a Republican to the United States Senate from Nebraska and served from March 4, 1881 to March 3, 1887. He served as chairman, Committee on the Mississippi River and Its Tributaries (Forty-seventh Congress) and on the Committee on the Improvement of the Mississippi River and Tributaries (Forty-eighth and Forty-ninth Congresses). Van Wyck was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection. In 1892, he was an unsuccessful Populist candidate for Governor of Nebraska. Van Wyck then retired from political life and active business pursuits. He died in Washington, D.C., and was interred in Milford Cemetery, Milford, Pennsylvania.
