Representative Martin Gerretsen Schuneman

Martin Gerretsen Schuneman (February 10, 1764 – February 21, 1827) was a United States representative from New York and a prominent local official and businessman in the Hudson River valley during the early years of the American republic. He was born in Catskill, in what was then Albany County, New York, and was educated by his father, who was a clergyman. Contemporary town histories and local recollections emphasize that Schuneman was widely known in upstate New York not only for his public service but also for his imposing physique; he was reported to be six feet three inches tall and to weigh nearly 300 pounds, a stature that made him a conspicuous figure in his community.

Schuneman came of age in the post-Revolutionary period, when Catskill and the surrounding region were developing rapidly as commercial and agricultural centers along the Hudson River. Benefiting from his education at home and from his family’s standing in the community, he entered local business and public life at a relatively young age. His early experience in commerce and local affairs helped establish him as one of the leading citizens of Catskill and the neighboring settlements.

By the early 1790s, Schuneman had become deeply involved in both business and local governance. In 1792 he was appointed a justice of the peace for Albany County, which at that time still included Catskill before subsequent county reorganizations. In this capacity he handled minor civil and criminal matters and contributed to the administration of local justice in a period when formal legal institutions were still developing in rural New York. Alongside his public duties, he operated a successful general store that served the needs of local residents and travelers. He also owned an inn in Madison—now known as Leeds—as well as gristmills and other business ventures, reflecting the diversified economic activity typical of entrepreneurial figures in early upstate New York.

Schuneman’s prominence in Catskill led to a series of important local and state offices. He served as Catskill’s town supervisor in 1797, 1799, and 1802, a role that placed him at the head of town government and made him responsible for overseeing local finances and administration. At the state level, he was elected a member of the New York State Assembly from 1798 to 1800, at a time when Catskill was still part of Ulster County. When Greene County was created out of portions of Albany and Ulster Counties, Schuneman continued to play a significant role in shaping the new county’s political life. In 1801 he was a delegate from the newly formed Greene County to the New York State constitutional convention, which considered revisions to the state’s governing framework in the early nineteenth century. He subsequently represented a Greene County district in the State Assembly in 1802, further consolidating his position as a leading Democratic-Republican figure in the region.

Building on this record of local and state service, Schuneman was elected as a Democratic-Republican to the Ninth Congress. He served as a United States representative from New York from March 4, 1805, to March 3, 1807. His tenure in Congress coincided with the administration of President Thomas Jefferson and a period marked by debates over trade restrictions, relations with European powers, and the ongoing development of federal institutions. Although detailed records of his individual legislative activities are limited, his election as a Democratic-Republican placed him within the dominant political coalition of the era, which generally favored agrarian interests, limited federal government, and support for westward expansion.

After completing his single term in the House of Representatives, Schuneman returned to Catskill and resumed his former business pursuits. He continued to be identified with the commercial and civic life of the community, maintaining his interests in retail trade, hospitality, and milling operations in and around Madison (Leeds) and Catskill. His combination of public service and private enterprise was characteristic of many early nineteenth-century local leaders, who often moved between business and politics in shaping the development of their towns and counties.

Martin Gerretsen Schuneman died in Catskill on February 21, 1827. He was buried at the Old Cemetery in Leeds, near the community where he had conducted much of his business and where his inn and other enterprises had stood. His career as a merchant, local official, state legislator, constitutional convention delegate, and member of Congress illustrates the role of regional leaders in the political and economic consolidation of New York during the early national period.