What occupations did John Van Ness Yates and John Vernon Henry share?
John Van Ness Yates John Van Ness Yates (December 1779 – January 10, 1839) was a New York lawyer, Democratic-Republican politician, and Secretary of State from 1818 to 1826. He was born in Albany to Robert Yates, a prominent Anti-Federalist attorney and jurist. He became a lawyer after clerking in the office of John Vernon Henry. He held a number of offices in Albany, and was one of the first trustees of the Albany United Presbyterian Church. He was a captain of a light infantry company in 1806, master in chancery in 1808, recorder of the city 1809-1816, and New York Secretary of State 1818-1826. He co-authored "History of the State of New-York: Including Its Aboriginal and Colonial Annals" (1826). He was buried in Albany Rural Cemetery.
Nathaniel Hale Pryor Nathaniel Hale Pryor (1772–1831) served as Sergeant in the Lewis and Clark Expedition. He was born in Virginia and was a cousin of fellow expedition member Charles Floyd. His family moved to Kentucky when he was eleven. He was married in 1798 to Peggy Patton, though the marriage may have ended before he joined the expedition on October 20, 1803, in Clarksville, Indiana; he was one of the "nine young men from Kentucky" who joined the Corps. Pryor was made sergeant in 1804, and led the First Squad of six privates. Lewis and Clark considered Pryor "a man of character and ability." In June, 1804 he presided over a court martial of privates John Collins and Hugh Hall, accused of theft of whiskey and drinking on duty; the men were found guilty and sentenced to a flogging.