John Constable (1728-1785)

He was born in Dublin and became a Surgeon with the British Army. In 1754, he was posted to Montreal and may have been present at the Battle of Quebec. After the war, he resigned his commission in the British army and settled at Schenectady, New York, where he was commissioned by Governor Cadwallader Colden as a Lieutenant and Surgeon in the 1st New York Regiment. The Constables lived in a log house on Washington Avenue, owned slaves, and became close friends with Sir William Johnson. On the outbreak of Revolution, he chose to side with the Patriots and joined the American army, caring for wounded soldiers. When his own health failed, he moved to New York City, living on Broad Street near their eldest son, William, who became one of New York's most eminent merchants. He and his wife were the parents of six children.