Johannes A. Ostrander (1761-1840)

Johannes A. Ostrander was a farmer in Schodack, New York. He owned one of the largest farmsteads in the area, "Brookview, Rensselaer County", which was started by his father. He served in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, rising to the rank of Captain.

Biography
He was born on August 8, 1761, on his family's farm in Schodack, New York, the son of Abraham Ostrander (September 8, 1725 - March 31, 1811) and his cousin Elizabeth Ostrander (Baptized March 27, 1732 - September 23, 1823). He was raised on the farm and taught the farming business by his father.

He descended from Dutch settlers who arrived in New Netherland (present day New York) in the 1660s. His father Abraham was the son of Theunis Ostrander (baptized January 16, 1691 - May 1742) and Maritje Suyland. Theunis Ostrander was the son of Pieter Pieterzen Van Oostrander (later anglicized Ostrander) (May 11, 1653 - 1739) and Rebecca Traphagen (June 10, 1662 - unknown). Pieter Pieterzen Ostrander is acknowledged as the family progenitor.

Upon his 16th birthday, (the minimum military age at the time), he signed on as an Orderly Sergeant in the local regiment of the newly formed Continental Army, and soon progressed through the ranks, being the son of a landowner and a competent soldier. He was promoted to the ranks of Lieutenant, then Captain, and served until the end of the Revolution. He anglicized his name to John A. Ostrander during the war, and was referred to by this name alternatively throughout his life.

He married Sarah Campbell (May 4, 1775 - March 20, 1848) and had several children.

His exact date of death is unknown, but he was interred on his farm in a family plot which no longer is extant. The headstone (along with those of his wife and parents) was moved to the South Schodack Cemetery and are maintained there by the city.