Stephen Delancey (colonial administrator)


Stephen de Lancey was Chief Justice of the Bahamas and Governor of Tobago.

Early life

De Lancey was the son of Major-General Oliver De Lancey, Sr. and Phila Franks, whose Ashkenazi Jewish parents had emigrated from London in the early eighteenth century. His paternal grandfather was Etienne de Lancey, also known as Stephen Delancey, and his brother was Oliver deLancey, a British Army officer.

Career

De Lancey was a lawyer who served as the Clerk of the city and county of Albany, New York in 1765. He was also a Lieutenant-colonel of the 1st New Jersey loyal volunteers in 1782. In 1786, he was a member of the Nova Scotia Council and served as Chief Justice of the Bahamas from 1790 to 1797. From 1797 until his death in 1798, he was the Governor of Tobago.

Personal life

Stephen de Lancey was married to Cornelia Barclay. She was the daughter of the Rev. Henry Barclay, Rector of Trinity Church, New York. Together, they were the parents of two children:
Delancey died on 6 December 1798 in Portsmouth, New Hampshire while serving as Governor of Tobago.