James Whitney Wilkin

James Whitney Wilkin (March 19, 1762 – February 23, 1845) was an American lawyer, soldier, and politician from New York who served in the United States House of Representatives as a member of the Republican (Democratic-Republican) Party. He was born in Wallkill, New York, on March 19, 1762, in a part of the town that was then in Orange County but is now within Ulster County. As a young man, he served in the Revolutionary War, participating in the struggle for American independence that shaped his subsequent public career.

After the war, Wilkin pursued higher education and attended the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University), from which he graduated in 1785. Following his graduation, he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1788. He established his legal practice in Goshen, New York, in Orange County, where he became a prominent attorney. His legal career provided the foundation for his entry into public life and state politics.

Wilkin’s political career began in the New York State Legislature. He was elected to the New York State Assembly in 1796, and later returned to that body in 1808 and again for the 1808–1809 term. During the 1808–1809 session he served as Speaker of the Assembly, presiding over the chamber at a time of growing political complexity in the early republic. He also served in the New York State Senate from 1801 to 1804 and again from 1811 to 1814, representing his region in the upper house of the state legislature. In addition, he was a member of the powerful Council of Appointment in 1802, 1811, and 1813, participating in the selection of numerous state and local officeholders. Alongside his civil offices, Wilkin entered the New York State militia and rose through successive grades to the rank of major general, reflecting his continued engagement with military affairs after the Revolution. In 1813 he was an unsuccessful candidate for United States Senator from New York.

Wilkin’s national legislative service came as a member of the Republican Party representing New York in the United States House of Representatives. He was elected as a Democratic-Republican to the Fourteenth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Representative Jonathan Fisk and took his seat on December 4, 1815. He was subsequently re-elected to the Fifteenth Congress and served two full terms in the House, remaining in office until March 3, 1819. His service in Congress occurred during a significant period in American history, in the aftermath of the War of 1812 and during the early years of what became known as the “Era of Good Feelings.” In this context, Wilkin contributed to the legislative process, participated in the democratic governance of the young republic, and represented the interests of his New York constituents in national deliberations.

After leaving Congress in 1819, Wilkin continued to hold important local offices in Orange County. He served as County Clerk of Orange County from 1819 to 1821, overseeing official records and legal documentation, and later served for several years as County Treasurer, managing the county’s financial affairs. That same year, 1819, his grandson Alexander Wilkin—who would later distinguish himself as a soldier in his own right—was born, marking the continuation of a family tradition of public and military service.

James Whitney Wilkin spent his later years in Goshen, New York, where he had long practiced law and been a leading figure in local and state affairs. He died there on February 23, 1845. He was buried in Slate Hill Cemetery in Goshen, Orange County, New York, closing a life that spanned from the Revolutionary era through the formative decades of the United States and encompassed service as a soldier, lawyer, legislator, and local official.