Jacob Radcliff

Jacob Radcliff (April 20, 1764 Rhinebeck, New York – May 20, 1842 Troy, New York) was Mayor of New York City from 1810 to 1811 and from 1815 to 1818.

Radcliff graduated from Nassau Hall, Princeton in 1783 and practiced law under Egbert Benson, the first Attorney General of New York. He was admitted to the bar in 1786, and about the same time, he married Juliana Smith, the daughter of Cotton Mather Smith and granddaughter of Cotton Mather. While practicing law in Poughkeepsie, he served in the Dutchess County Assembly during the session of 1794 to 1795. He was appointed Assistant Attorney General on February 23, 1796. On December 27, 1798, he became a justice of the New York Supreme Court. In this position he helped revise the state's laws. He resigned his post in 1804 to practice chancery law in Brooklyn. When the Federalist party gained the majority in 1810, Radcliff was appointed mayor of New York City. When the War of 1812 divided the Federalist party, Radcliff aligned with the Tammany Society, which was poised to gain a majority in state politics. Grand Sachem of Tammany Hall John Ferguson became mayor in 1815 but resigned to take the appointment of Surveyor of the Port of New York. Radcliff was chosen as his replacement.