Thomas McCall Cadwalader

Thomas McCall Cadwalader was born on September 11, 1795, on the family estate known as Greenwood in Trenton, New Jersey. His parents were Lambert Cadwalader and Mary McCall. Through his mother, he was a descendant of the Schuyler and Van Cortlandt families, with ancestors including Stephanus Van Cortlandt and Gertrude Schuyler. He was an only child, as his brother died in childhood. His cousin Elizabeth Cadwalader (1774–1824) was married to his uncle, Archibald McCall (1767–1843). Several of his cousins once removed entered military service, continuing family military traditions. Cadwalader attended Princeton University and studied law but chose to pursue a career in the military.

His military career began with his appointment as deputy adjutant-general of the New Jersey militia on June 2, 1830. On April 10, 1833, he was appointed aide-de-camp to Elias P. Seeley with the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was promoted to brigadier general on July 30, 1842. In 1856, Cadwalader traveled to Europe to assess military modernization efforts in the United States. He retired from active military service on January 26, 1858, and was later awarded an honorary brevet promotion to major general.

On December 27, 1831, Cadwalader married Maria Charlotte Gouverneur, daughter of Nicholas Gouverneur. Maria's family had notable connections; her aunt Elizabeth Kortright had married U.S. President James Monroe, and her brother Samuel Laurence Gouverneur married Monroe's daughter. The marriage produced several children:

- Emily Cadwalader (1834–1892), who married William Henry Rawle on October 17, 1869, following the death of his first wife.

- Mary Cadwalader (1835–1914), who married physician Silas Weir Mitchell on June 23, 1875.

- John Lambert Cadwalader (1836–1914), who became a partner in the law firm Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft.

- Richard McCall Cadwalader (1839–1918), a Princeton graduate of 1860 and Harvard Law School alumnus of 1863, who married Christine Biddle in 1873.

- Maria Cadwalader (circa 1841–1921), who married John Hone in 1880; he was the grandson of Commodore Matthew Perry and a great-grandnephew of Philip Hone.

Thomas McCall Cadwalader passed away on October 22, 1873, and was interred in the Friends Burying Ground in Trenton, New Jersey. His descendants include his grandson Richard McCall Cadwalader, who married Emily Margaretta Roebling, and Gouverneur Cadwalader. Through his daughter Maria, he was the grandfather of Hester Gouverneur Hone-Bartol.