View source for Council of Appointment, New York State

The '''Council of Appointment''' (sometimes also '''Council of Appointments''') was a body of the [[Government of New York (state)|Government of New York]] that existed from 1777 to 1822.

==History==
Under the [[New York Constitution]] of 1777, the Council of Appointment consisted of the [[Governor of New York]], who was ''[[ex officio]]'' President of this council but had only a [[casting vote]], and four members of the [[New York State Senate]], one each from the State's senatorial electoral districts. These State senators were elected for a one-year term by the [[New York State Assembly]] and could not be re-elected for the following term.

The Council had the power to appoint all State, county and municipal officials within the state of [[New York (state)|New York]] for which no other means of appointment or election was provided for in the State Constitution. The offices filled by the Council included the [[New York State Comptroller|State Comptroller]], the [[Secretary of State of New York|Secretary of State]], the [[New York State Attorney General|Attorney General]], the [[New York State Engineer and Surveyor|Surveyor General]], the [[New York Court of Chancery|Chancellor]], the justices of the [[New York Supreme Court]], sheriffs, district attorneys, judges, [[New York Surrogate's Court|surrogates]], city and county clerks, mayors (including the [[Mayor of New York City]]), all military officers and many others.

The Council of Appointment had its origins in the fear of too much popular influence in the government. The first New York Constitution was aristocratic and elitist in spirit. As long as the governor alone nominated appointees, he had as much power over the State's [[patronage]] as a medieval king. On the other side, during the long tenure of [[Governor George Clinton]], very rarely an office holder was removed, and the Council only filled vacancies as they occurred by resignation, death, declination of re-appointment, or term limit.

Troubles, however, arose after the [[Federalist Party]] and the [[Democratic-Republican Party]] appeared, and began to alternate as majority in the Assembly. Because of the lack of clarity in the 1777 New York Constitution, the parties struggled over who, exactly, held the power to make nominations and appointments. The constitution stated that the governor would have the "[[Casting vote|casting voice]], but no other vote; and with the [[advice and consent]] of the said council..." The custom arose that the governor made the nominations, and the Council approved, or rejected, them. But when the legislature had a majority of the opposition, they would elect three or four senators and outvote the governor. Governor [[John Jay]], who had drafted the Constitution, asserted that the Council could not propose appointees, only vote for or against the governor's nominees. So when the Council voted down all of his nominees, in his opinion, nobody could be appointed. The question was settled at the [[New York State Constitutional Convention]] of 1801, which amended the Constitution, giving the right of nomination to the governor and each one of the Council members concurrently. This led to an annual scramble for office, especially if the majority in the Assembly changed.

[[Alexander Hamilton]] criticized the Council in his [[Federalist No. 77]].

The council was abolished by the [[New York State Constitutional Convention]] of 1821 and ceased to exist at the end of the year 1822, at which time more than 15,000 offices had been under its control. Under the Constitution of 1821, the State cabinet officers and Supreme Court justices were elected by the State Legislature, and most of the county and local officers were elected in local popular or legislative elections. The governor continued to appoint only a very small number of officers and had the right to make [[recess appointment]]s.

==List of members==

{| class="wikitable"
! width="16%" | Southern D.
! width="16%" | Middle D.
! width="21%" | Eastern D.
! width="21%" | Western D.
! width="16%" | Elected on
|-
|[[John Morin Scott]]
|[[Jesse Woodhull]]
|[[Alexander Webster (New York)|Alexander Webster]]
|[[Abraham Yates, Jr.]]
|September 16, 1777
|-
|[[Jonathan Lawrence]]
|[[Zephaniah Platt]]
|[[Ebenezer Russell]]
|Dirck Wessel Ten Broeck
|October 17, 1778
|-
|[[Isaac Roosevelt (politician)|Isaac Roosevelt]]
|Levi Pawling
|[[Alexander Webster (New York)|Alexander Webster]]
|Rinier Mynderse
|September 11, 1779
|-
| rowspan="2" | Stephen Ward
|[[Ephraim Paine]]<ref>Paine was expelled from the State Senate in March 1781</ref>
|rowspan="2" | [[Ebenezer Russell]]
|rowspan="2" | [[Abraham Ten Broeck]]
|September 11, 1780
|-
|Arthur Parks<ref>Parks was elected in place of Paine. When he took his seat on March 29, all members of the Council, including Parks, protested against his "by-election" for which there seems to have been no legal basis. Nevertheless, the amended Council, with Parks, made the appointments for the remainder of the term.</ref>
|March 23, 1781
|-
|[[Isaac Stoutenburgh]]
|[[Zephaniah Platt]]
|[[Alexander Webster (New York)|Alexander Webster]]
|[[Henry Oothoudt]]
|October 25, 1781
|-
|[[Jonathan Lawrence]]
|[[John Haring]]
|Elkanah Day
|William B. Whiting
|July 22, 1782
|-
|[[Ezra L'Hommedieu]]
|Jacobus Swartwout
|[[Alexander Webster (New York)|Alexander Webster]]
|[[Abraham Yates, Jr.]]
|January 21, 1784
|-
|[[Isaac Roosevelt (politician)|Isaac Roosevelt]]
|Joseph Gasherie
|[[Ebenezer Russell]]
|William B. Whiting
|October 19, 1784
|-
|[[Lewis Morris]]
|[[Jacobus Swartwout]]
|David Hopkins
|[[Philip Schuyler]]
|January 19, 1786
|-
|[[William Floyd]]
|[[John Hathorn]]
|[[Ebenezer Russell]]
|Peter Schuyler
|January 18, 1787
|-
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | John Vanderbilt
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Anthony Hoffman]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | David Hopkins
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Philip Schuyler]]
|January 18, 1788
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Samuel Townsend
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[John Hathorn]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[John Williams (Salem)|John Williams]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Peter Van Ness
|January 2, 1789
|-
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Philip Livingston
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[John Cantine]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Edward Savage<ref>Edward Savage, father of [[John Savage (American politician, born 1779)|John Savage]]</ref>
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Philip Schuyler]]<ref>Schuyler was at this time a [[U.S. Senator from New York]], and lost his seat in the State Senate on January 27 when the State Legislature declared the incompatibility of holding both seats concurrently. Nevertheless, Schuyler retained his seat in the Council of Appointment, claiming that it was not required to hold the seat in the State Senate once elected to the Council. Any mention of the Paine/Parks precedent of 1781 was carefully avoided, but Schuyler was quite right, considering that every time a state senator was elected to the Council during the last year of his term, and was not re-elected, the senatorial term expired on June 30, but the ex-senator continued a member of the Council until January next. See also [[United States Senate election in New York, 1789#Election and aftermath]]</ref>
|January 15, 1790
|-
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Isaac Roosevelt (politician)|Isaac Roosevelt]]
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Thomas Tillotson]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Alexander Webster (New York)|Alexander Webster]]
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Peter Schuyler
|January 14, 1791
|-
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Philip Van Cortlandt]]
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | David Pye
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | William Powers
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Stephen Van Rensselaer]]
|January 14, 1792
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[David Gelston]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Joseph Hasbrouck
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Robert Woodworth (politician)|Robert Woodworth]]
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | John Frey
|January 14, 1793
|-
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Selah Strong
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Reuben Hopkins
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Zina Hitchcock
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Philip Schuyler]]
|January 7, 1794
|-
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Richard Hatfield
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Joseph Hasbrouck
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | William Powers
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Jacobus Van Schoonhoven<ref>Jacobus Van Schoonhoven (1744–1814), merchant, of [[Halfmoon, New York|Half Moon]], state senator 1794–1805</ref>
|January 6, 1795
|-
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Joshua Sands (politician)|Joshua Sands]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Abraham Schenck
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Ebenezer Russell]]
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Michael Myers
|January 7, 1796
|-
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Andrew Onderdonk
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Ambrose Spencer]]
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Leonard Gansevoort]]
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Thomas Morris (New York)|Thomas Morris]]
|January 9, 1797
|-
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Ezra L'Hommedieu]]
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | William Thompson
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Moses Vail
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Joseph White
|January 8, 1798
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[William Denning]]
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Ebenezer Foote<ref>Ebenezer Foote, County Clerk of [[Delaware County, New York|Delaware Co.]] 1797–1801</ref>
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Ebenezer Clark
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | John Frey
|January 4, 1799
|-
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Samuel Haight
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Robert Sands
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[James Gordon (New York)|James Gordon]]
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Thomas R. Gold]]
|January 28, 1800
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[DeWitt Clinton]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Ambrose Spencer]]<ref>Spencer changed sides in 1798</ref>
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | John Sanders
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Robert Roseboom
|November 7, 1800<ref>These members were elected during the special session of the Legislature, but they did not take their seats before the full year of tenure of the previous members had expired. They met for the first time on February 11, 1801, and rejected most of Governor [[John Jay]]'s nominations, among them eight different Federalist nominees for Sheriff of [[Dutchess County, New York|Dutchess County]]. They met again on February 18, and appointed a Democratic-Republican as Sheriff of Dutchess Co. The Council met again on February 24. At this meeting, Gov. Jay refused to put the question on the Council members' nominees, and the members refused to vote on the Governor's nominees. Thus deadlocked, the Council adjourned and were not convened again by Gov. Jay. who instead submitted the question of the right of nomination to the State Legislature which called a [[New York Constitution#Constitutional Convention 1801|constitutional convention]] to clear up the point. The Council met again on August 8, called by Governor [[George Clinton (vice president)|George Clinton]], and for the remainder of their term, proceeded to make a clean sweep, removing almost all Federalists from office. The constitutional convention met in October, and gave the right to nominate appointees to the Governor and the members of the Council concurrently.</ref>
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Benjamin Huntting
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[James W. Wilkin]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Edward Savage
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Lemuel Chipman
|January 30, 1802
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Ebenezer Purdy<ref>Ebenezer Purdy, of [[Salem, New York|Salem]], state senator 1801–06, resigned March 16, 1806, before his expulsion because of bribery was voted upon</ref>
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | John C. Hogeboom
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Jacobus Van Schoonhoven<ref>In 1796, [[Saratoga County, New York|Saratoga Co.]] was re-apportioned from the Western to the Eastern District.</ref>
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Jacob Snell
|February 8, 1803
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[John Broome (politician)|John Broome]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Abraham Adriance
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Thomas Tredwell]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Caleb Hyde
|February 7, 1804
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | John Schenck
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Joshua H. Brett
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Stephen Thorn
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Jedediah Peck]]
|January 29, 1805
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[DeWitt Clinton]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Robert Johnson
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Adam Comstock
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Henry Huntington
|January 31, 1806<ref>At this time the Democratic-Republican Party was split in two factions, the Lewisites (supporters of Gov. [[Morgan Lewis (governor)|Morgan Lewis]]) and Clintonians (led by of DeWitt Clinton). This Council had a Clintonian majority, and removed most of the Lewisite incumbents.</ref> 
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Thomas Thomas
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | James Burt
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Edward Savage
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[John Nicholas (congressman)|John Nicholas]]
|January 29, 1807<ref>This Council had a Lewisite majority and removed most of the Clintonian incumbents.</ref>
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Benjamin Coe
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Peter C. Adams
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | John Veeder
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Nathan Smith
|January 29, 1808<ref>This Council had a Clintonian majority, and removed again the Lewisite incumbents.</ref>
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Jonathan Ward (New York)|Jonathan Ward]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | James G. Graham
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Isaac Kellogg
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Alexander Rea
|January 27, 1809
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Israel Carll
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Robert Williams<ref>Williams had been elected as a Democratic-Republican, but changed sides right after his election to the Council of Appointment. At this time, there was a Federalist majority in the Assembly, but all State senators from the Southern and the Middle Districts were Democratic-Republicans. Thus the Federalist assemblymen had to choose two of their opponents and, because of the casting vote of Gov. [[Daniel D. Tompkins]], could not have had a majority in the Council but, aided by Williams, the Council removed most of the Democratic-Republican incumbents. Among others, the Surrogate of [[Dutchess County, New York|Dutchess Co.]], [[James Tallmadge, Jr.]], was removed, and Williams's son-in-law [[Thomas J. Oakley]] appointed instead.</ref>
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Daniel Paris
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Amos Hall
|January 31, 1810
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Benjamin Coe
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[James W. Wilkin]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | John McLean
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Philetus Swift]]
|January 30, 1811
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | William W. Gilbert
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Johannes Bruyn
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Henry Yates, Jr.<ref>Henry Yates, Jr., brother of [[Joseph C. Yates]]</ref>
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Francis A. Bloodgood
|February 1, 1812
|-
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Peter W. Radcliff<ref>Peter W. Radcliff, brother of [[Jacob Radcliff]]</ref>
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[James W. Wilkin]]
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | John Stearns
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Jonas Platt]]
|January 12, 1813
|-
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Elbert H. Jones
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Morgan Lewis (governor)|Morgan Lewis]]
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | Samuel Stewart
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Henry A. Townsend
|January 25, 1814
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Jonathan Dayton
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Lucas Conrad Elmendorf|Lucas Elmendorf]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Ruggles Hubbard
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Farrand Stranahan]]
|February 1, 1815
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Darius Crosby]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[William Ross (speaker)|William Ross]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Perley Keyes]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Archibald S. Clarke]]
|February 5, 1816
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Walter Bowne]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | John Noyes
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | John I. Prendergast
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Henry Bloom
|February 2, 1817
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Peter R. Livingston]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Jabez Delano Hammond|Jabez D. Hammond]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Henry Yates, Jr.
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Henry Seymour (Commissioner)|Henry Seymour]]
|January 31, 1818
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Stephen Barnum
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[William Ross (speaker)|William Ross]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | George Rosecrantz
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Stephen Bates
|February 3, 1819
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | John D. Ditmis
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | John Lounsbery
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Levi Adams
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Ephraim Hart (NY politician)|Ephraim Hart]]
|January 11, 1820
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Walter Bowne]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[John T. More]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Roger Skinner]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[David Ellicott Evans|David E. Evans]]
|November 8, 1820
|-
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | John Townsend
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Charles E. Dudley]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Benjamin Mooers]]
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | Perry G. Childs
|January 10, 1822

==Sources==
*[https://books.google.com/books?id=E3sFAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA939 ''The New York Civil List''] compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (pages 99f; Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858)
*[https://books.google.com/books?id=bu8SPTyhrF8C&pg=PA1 ''The History of Political Parties in the State of New-York, from the Ratification of the Federal Constitution to 1840''] by [[Jabez D. Hammond]] (4th ed., Vol. 1, H. & E. Phinney, [[Cooperstown, New York|Cooperstown]], 1846)

==See also==
*[[Council of Revision]]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Council Of Appointment}}
[[Category:Legal history of New York (state)]]
[[Category:1777 establishments in New York (state)]]
[[Category:1822 disestablishments in the United States]]
[[Category:Defunct state agencies of New York (state)]]
[[Category:History of the United States (1789–1849)]]