Lambert Cadwalader Lambert Cadwalader ( December 1742 – September 13 , 1823 ) was an American merchant and leader in New Jersey and Pennsylvania . He fought in the Revolutionary War , then represented New Jersey in the Continental Congress and the U . S . Congress . Early life . Lambert was born in Trenton , New Jersey , to Doctor Thomas and Hannah ( Lambert ) Cadwalader . By 1750 , his family had returned to Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , where he attended Dr . Allison ' s Academy . Then , in 1757 , he entered the City College ( later the University of Pennsylvania ) , but did not graduate . Instead , he went into business with his brother John . The brothers ' business was a success and they became more active in civic affairs , both in Philadelphia and the wider field of the colony of Pennsylvania . They signed the non - importation agreement in 1765 , to support the boycott of English merchants . Lambert became a particularly outspoken opponent of the Stamp Act and later measures . In 1774 , he has elected to the Provincial Assembly , and , in Philadelphia , he was appointed to the city ' s Committee of Correspondence . Revolutionary years . In 1775 , Lambert returned again to the colonial Assembly . He also advanced in the militia , and was named captain of one of the companies raised in the city . Then , in the spring of 1776 , he played a prominent role in the call for a state Constitutional Convention . He was named as a delegate , but attended only the first few meetings , as military duty called him away . In January 1776 , Cadwalader had been promoted to lieutenant colonel of the 3rd Pennsylvania Regiment of the Continental Army . Late in the summer , he was in New York to aid that city ' s defense . He began work on building the defenses at Fort Washington in August . After the Battle of Brooklyn , he worked with George Washington to set up defenses on the Brooklyn Heights , but they were forced to withdraw to Manhattan on August 30 , because the British had overwhelming numbers . The 3rd Pennsylvania returned to the defense of Fort Washington . At the beginning of the battle for the Fort , on November 15 , Cadwalader was holding the old line on the Harlem Heights . Facing two British regiments , with three more landed to their rear , the Americans were forced to withdraw to the fort . When Colonel Magaw surrendered the fort on the next day , Cadwalader was among those taken prisoner . He was soon released , after giving his parole to British General Howe . Lambert ' s quick release was partly due to the consideration that his father , Dr . Thomas Cadwalader , had shown to General Richard Prescott as a prisoner of war in Philadelphia in 1776 . Early in 1777 , Cadwalader was named colonel and commander of the 4th Pennsylvania Regiment . He declined to take up the assignment because he was on parole and could not serve until exchanged . He was carried on the rolls for almost two years , but a suitable exchange was never arranged . Finally , after officer exchanges broke down , Washington accepted his resignation on January 29 , 1777 . When the British occupied Philadelphia in 1777 , he withdrew to his father ' s property near Trenton , New Jersey . This home , called " Greenwood " , would be his residence for the rest of his life . Later life . In 1784 , New Jersey selected him as a delegate to the Continental Congress . He would serve there for the remaining life of that institution , being returned each year until 1787 . When the new government was established for the United States , Cadwalader was a Federalist in national politics . He was elected to the U . S . Congress twice , in 1788 and 1792 . Cadwalader married late in life ( 1793 ) to Mary McCall , the daughter of Archibald and Judith ( Kemble ) McCall . They had only one child , Thomas McCall Cadwalader ( 1795 – 1873 ) . He died at Greenwood , in Trenton , Mercer County , New Jersey on September 13 , 1823 and is buried in the Friends Burying Ground at Trenton . His son married Maria Charlotte Gouverneur ( 1801 – 1867 ) , whose brother Samuel L . Gouverneur was both nephew and son - in - law to President James Monroe .