Edward Jessup

Edward Jessup (December 24, 1735 – February 3, 1816), together with his brother Ebenezer Jessup (July 1739 – 1818), was a large landowner in present-day New York State before the American Revolution, and later a soldier and political figure in Upper Canada, now the present-day Canadian province of Ontario, Canada.

Early life

Edward Jessup was born in Stamford, Fairfield County, Connecticut Colony, British North America, British Empire, on December 24, 1735, and moved with his family, to Dutchess County, New York, in 1744.

French and Indian War

In 1759, during the French and Indian War, Edward Jessup served as a Captain in the New York Militia under the leadership of British general Jeffery Amherst in the Lake Champlain region at the Battle of Ticonderoga. Following the war, in 1764, he moved with his brother, Ebenezer, to Albany County, New York, where they established a community, known as Jessup's Landing, on the Hudson River. Jessup was a recipient of a large land grant, from the British Crown, in the Adirondacks, around 500,000 acres (2,000 km2). In addition, in 1771, the Jessup brothers purchased 1,150,000 acres (4,700 km2) in Hamilton County, New York from the Mohawk people in the "Totten and Crossfield Purchase" for three pence an acre. The "Jessup River" and associated "Jessup River Wild Forest" in Hamilton County are named after the Jessup brothers.

American Revolutionary War

In 1776, with other loyalists from this area, they joined Sir John Johnson's regiment, later forming their own corps, known as the King's Loyal Americans. They fought with Lieutenant General John Burgoyne at Saratoga and both brothers were taken prisoner. They were paroled and allowed to return to Quebec.