Born in
Shekomeko, New York, Bockee attended the public schools and graduated from
Union College in 1803. He studied law in
Poughkeepsie, was admitted to the bar in 1806, and practiced in Poughkeepsie until 1815, when he returned to Shekomeko to engage in agricultural pursuits. He married Martha Oakley and they had six children, Catharine Jerusha, Mary, Jesse Oakley, Alexander Phoenix, Isaac Smith, and Phoenix. ==Political career ==