Samuel van Leer

Captain Samuel Van Leer (January 7, 1747 – October 15, 1825) was a military officer from Pennsylvania who served as a captain in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War and as a lieutenant in the Chester County Light Horse Volunteers from 1781 to 1785. After his retirement from the military, he owned the Reading Furnace ironworks. He was a member of the influential Van Leer family. His father Bernardhus Van Leer was an early settler of the Province of Pennsylvania. He married the sister of American Revolutionary War General Anthony Wayne. His son Isaac Van Leer was a U.S. Congressman. Early life Van Leer was born in 1747 in Marple Township, Province of Pennsylvania, British America to Mary (Branson) and Bernardhus Van Leer. His maternal grandfather is William Branson who was an ironworks pioneer and owned the historical home Warrenpoint. In 1770, Samuel married Hannah Wayne, daughter to Isaac Wayne and sister to Anthony Wayne.