Ebenezer Elmer (August 23, 1752 – October 18, 1843) was an American physician, Revolutionary War officer, and Democratic-Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from New Jersey. He was born in Cedarville, Cumberland County, New Jersey, on August 23, 1752. Elmer pursued an academic course in his youth and subsequently studied medicine, first in his native region and then in professional practice. He began his medical career in Cedarville, where he established himself as a physician before the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War.
During the Revolutionary War, Elmer served in the Continental Army in a succession of posts reflecting both military and medical responsibilities. He held the ranks of ensign and lieutenant and later served as a surgeon’s mate and regimental surgeon, providing medical care to soldiers during the conflict. Following the war, he resumed his medical practice and relocated to Bridgeton, New Jersey, where he practiced medicine from 1783 to 1789. His experience as both a line officer and medical officer in the Continental Army later contributed to his standing in New Jersey public life and in veteran and patriotic circles.
Elmer entered state politics soon after the war. He was a member of the New Jersey General Assembly from 1789 to 1795, representing his region in the lower house of the state legislature. During this period he rose to positions of leadership, serving as speaker of the General Assembly in 1791 and again in 1795. Parallel to his legislative work, he was active in the Society of the Cincinnati, an organization of officers of the Continental Army. He was admitted as an original member of The Society of the Cincinnati in the State of New Jersey and served as the New Jersey Society’s first assistant treasurer. In later years he became president of the New Jersey Society of the Cincinnati, a post he held until his death, by which time he was the last surviving original member of that state society.
On the national stage, Elmer was elected as a member of the Republican Party, then known as the Democratic-Republican Party, representing New Jersey in the United States House of Representatives. He was elected to the Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth Congresses and served three consecutive terms from March 4, 1801, to March 3, 1807. His service in Congress occurred during a significant period in American history, encompassing the early years of the Jeffersonian era, in which he participated in the legislative process and represented the interests of his New Jersey constituents. Not renominated by the Republicans in 1806, he was placed on a combined ticket by the Federalists, but this effort was unsuccessful, and his congressional service concluded at the end of the Ninth Congress. His tenure in the House linked him to a prominent political family: his older brother, Jonathan Elmer, and his son, Lucius Elmer, also served as members of the United States House of Representatives.
After leaving Congress, Elmer continued to play a prominent role in New Jersey public affairs. He served in the New Jersey Legislative Council, the upper house of the state legislature and a predecessor of the modern State Senate, in 1807, and was chosen vice president of that body. He also held important federal and educational posts in his home region. Elmer was appointed collector of customs at Bridgeton in 1808 and served in that capacity until his resignation in 1817. He was reappointed collector in 1822 and again served until 1832, when he resigned a second time. In addition, he was vice president of Burlington College from 1808 to 1817 and again from 1822 to 1832, reflecting his engagement with educational and civic institutions in New Jersey.
Elmer’s military involvement continued into the early nineteenth century. During the War of 1812 he served in the New Jersey militia, holding the positions of adjutant general of the New Jersey Militia and brigadier general of the Cumberland brigade. In these roles he was responsible for the organization, training, and readiness of militia forces from his region, drawing on his earlier Revolutionary War experience to contribute to the state’s defense during the conflict with Great Britain.
In his later years, Elmer gradually withdrew from active public life. After his final resignation as collector of customs in 1832 and the conclusion of his long service with Burlington College and the Society of the Cincinnati, he lived in retirement in Bridgeton. He died there on October 18, 1843. Ebenezer Elmer was interred in the Old Broad Street Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Bridgeton, New Jersey. His long career as a physician, soldier, legislator, and public official, together with the congressional service of his brother Jonathan Elmer and his son Lucius Elmer, established the Elmer family as a notable political and civic presence in early New Jersey and national history.
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