Full text of "Famous families of New York; historical and biographical sketches of families which in successive generations have been identified with the development of the nation"

See other formats

:^HK

,^\

^S-

,^ FAMOUS FAMILIES

V OF

^^ NEW YORK

cal and Biographical

"hes of Families

which
^^^sive generations

Robert Lwi^^iqntified wilh the

First Lord fi^Jhe MatiMf thp IVlJinOn

MAMM

SONS

•-.■x>*- ^W^

%-^.

iN(5!Si

^^^

1666^

FAMOUS FAMILIES

NEW YORK

Historical and Biographical

Sketches of Families
which
in successive generations
have been Identified with the
Development of the NaCion

BY
MARGHERITAARUNAHAMM

ILLUSTRATED

VOL II

=1=5^

G. P. PUTNAM S SONS

NEW YORK LONDON

e I

ffi

Ube ftnlcherbocltet ^xitt, Vew JBott

CONTENTS

PAGE

XXll. — Livingston i

XXIIl.— Morris 19

XXIV— Osgood 39

XXV. — Potter 49

XXVI.— Rapalje 61

XXVII.— Remsen 71

XXVIII.— Renwick 81

XXIX. — Roosevelt 93

XXX, — Rutgers 103

XXXI.— Schermerhorn 115

XXXII. — Schuyler 125

XXXIII.— Smith 139

XXXIV.— Stuyvesant 149

XXXV.— Tappen 161

XXXVI.— Van Buren 171

XXXVII.— Van Cortlandt 183

XXXVIII.— Van CoTT 195

XXXIX.— Vanderbilt 203

XL. — Van Rensselaer 213

XLI.— Van Siclen 225

XLII. — Wendell 237

VOL. 11.

Ill

ILLUSTRATIONS

Robert Livingston

First Lord of the Manor

Judge Robert R. Livingston ....

From the original portrait

Mrs. Robert R. Livingston (Margaret Beekman)

From the original portrait

Rev. Dr. John H. Livingston .

Maturin Livingston ....

From a miniature

Mrs. Maturin Livingston (Margaret Lewis)

From a miniature

Lewis Morris

Signer of the Declaration of Independence

Robert Hunter Morris ....

Governor of Pennsylvania, 1754

" Old Morrisania," New York

Gouverneur Morris's residence

Mrs. Lewis Morris IIL (Katrintje Staats)
Richard Morris ....

Chief Justice under the Crown

Frances Ludium ....

Wife of Robert Morris

Lewis Gouverneur Morris

From a steel engraving by Samuel Sartain

Samuel Osgood ....

From the painting by J. Trumbull

Rev. Dr. Samuel Osgood

From a steel engraving

Frontispiece

ID
10

14
16

28
30

34
40

miudtratiotid

Mrs. Samuel Osgood 4^

From the painting by J. Trumbull

Bishop Alonzo Potter 50

From a painting

Maria Nott 5^

Wife of Bishop Alonzo Potter

Clarkson N. Potter 56

From a photograph

Jacob Rapalje 62

From a steel engraving

The Rapalje Family Bible, in possession of Henry S. Rapalje,

Esq 66

Title-page of the Rapalje Family Bible and page showing

family records 66

The Rapalje Estate, 35th Street and North River ... 68

Redrawn from an old print

George Rapalje 70

From a photograph in possession of Henry S. Rapalje, Esq.

The Remsen Farmhouse 76

From an old print

Bedford Corners in 1776 76

From a print in Valentine's Manual j i8i;8

Professor James Renwick 82

From an oil painting owned by Mrs. James Renwick

Grace Church, Broadway 86

St. Patrick's Cathedral, Fifth Avenue 88

Mrs. William Rhinelander Renwick (Eliza S. Crosby) . . 90

From a miniature owned by Edmund Abdy Hurry, Esq.

William Rhinelander Renwick 90

From a miniature owned by Edmund Abdy Hurry, Esq.

Jean Jeffrey 92

From a picture in the possession of Edmund Abdy Hun-y, Esq.

Theodore Roosevelt 94

From a photograph by Rockwood

Isaac Roosevelt 98

From an India ink drawing in the Emmett Collection, Lenox Library

miustratlons vii

The Administration Building

Roosevelt Hospital

Colonel Henry Rutgers

From a steel engraving

The Old Rutgers Mansion, New York, 1768 .

From a print in Valentine's Matiual

The Old " Glebe House," Woodbury, Conn.

(At the time of the Revolution it was the home of the Rev, John Rutgers Marshall)

The Rutgers House, Rutgers Place ....

Between Jefferson and Clinton Streets
From a print in Valentine's Manual, 1858

The Schermerhorn Residence, 84th Street and East River

From a print in Valentine's Manual, 1866

General Philip Schuyler

From the painting by Trumbull

Philip Jeremiah Schuyler

From an oil painting

Mrs. Philip Jeremiah Schuyler (Mary Anna Sawyer) .

From an oil painting

Philip Schuyler

Fiom a miniature

Grace Hunter

Wife of Philip Schuyler
From a miniature

PAGE

100

104

108

I 12
I 12

120
126

128
128
132
132

Louise Lee Schuyler 134

The Interior of the Schuyler House on 31st Street . .134
Philip Schuyler 136

From a painting by R. M. Stagg

The Schuyler Home "Nevis," at Tarrytown on the Hudson . 136
William Smith 140

Justice of the Supreme Court

William Smith 144

Chief Justice of New York and of Canada
From a steel engraving

Peter Stuyvesant 150

After an engraving of the picture owned by the N. Y. Historical Society

VllI

miustrations

The Residence of Nicholas W. Stuyvesant .

Which slood in 8th Street, between First and Second Avenues
From a print in Valentine's Manual, 1857

Frederick D. Tappen

From a photograpli

Martin Van Buren

From a steel engraving

Pierre Van Cortlandt

From the painting by J. W. Jarvis

Cornelius Vanderbilt

From a steel engraving

William H. Vanderbilt

From a steel engraving

The Obelisk in Central Park ....

Brought from Egypt by Wm. H. Vanderbilt

Residence of the late Cornelius Vanderbilt, 57th Street and
Fifth Avenue

Kiliaen Van Rensselaer ....

First Lord of the Manor

Margaret Schuyler ....

Wife of Stephen Van Rensselaer 111.

Philip Van Rensselaer ....

Mayor of Albany

Maria Van Cortlandt ....

Wife of Kiliaen Van Rensselaer, the Fourth Patroon

Anna Van Wely

Second wife of Kiliaen Van Rensselaer, the First Patroon

Stephen Van Rensselaer ill. .

Patroon of the Manor of Van Rensselaerwyck
Major-General of the United States Army

Cornelia Paterson

Second wife of Stephen Van Rensselaer 111.
From a miniature

The Old Van Siclen House in Ghent, Belgium

Built about 1 338, and still standing

-^\

■\^-1

r>.^

Xivingston

XXII

LIVINGSTON

"ffELIGlOUS zeal and persecution were
powerful factors in the settlement of
the New Netherlands, as of New Eng-
land. With the Dutch colonists went
Huguenots, seeking that freedom in
the New World which was denied to
them in the Old, and British indepen-
dents who could not adapt them-
selves to the conditions of life then
existing in England and Scotland.
Settlers of this type exert a more po-
tent influence than do such as emi-
grate from motives of gain, glory, or power. The intensity of their
moral and intellectual life reacts upon their social environment,
causing them, it may be said, to become either martyrs or
monarchs.

Running through the agricultural and commercial fabric of
Dutch life in America, were strong threads of religious devotion
and heroism. They modified their surroundings and imparted
their force and tendencies to whatever came within the circle of
their influence.

Fanaticism caused the exile of the Rev. John Livingston, a
Scotch clergyman of remarkable ability. Like other non-conform-
ists, he went to Holland, where he became a noted preacher. His
family tree runs back to 1124 a.d. During the five centuries

4 Xlvlnoston

between that time and the exile, they were Lords Livingston and
Earls of Linlithgow. They were among the noblest families of
Scotland, and for generations were in the front rank of the court-
iers at Holyrood. The distinguished divine had, therefore, the
strongest social influence and position when he began his sacred
calling anew in the Netherlands. There he became acquainted
with the merchant princes of the time, among them Kiliaen Van
Rensselaer, the First Patroon. The New Netherlands were a fre-
quent subject of conversation in the society wherein these men
moved, and those who were far-sighted perceived the future im-
portance of the fertile territories in America. None took a livelier
interest than the Scotch minister, who made no less than two un-
successful attempts to emigrate.

What the father was unable to do, the son, Robert [1654],

achieved. Provided with strong letters of introduction, and well

acquainted with many of the foremost Dutchmen al-

Robert, '

First Lord of ready in the New Netherlands, he sailed from Green-
the Manor ^^^^ ^^^jj ^g^ ^^^^^ bound for Charlcstowu, in New

England, and arrived in New Amsterdam about 1674. He was a
well-educated man, and had a fair knowledge of surveying and
certain useful arts. He worked hard from the day of landing,
saved all he could, and in a few years seems to have accumulated
a large amount of money. At the end of five years, he married,
July 9, 1679, Alida, nee Schuyler, the widow of Dr. Nicolaus Van
Rensselaer. The union proved a happy one. The issue was four
sons and two daughters. In 1686, Robert obtained from Governor
Dongan a patent of Livingston Manor, which consisted of one
hundred and sixty thousand acres of fertile country on the Hud-
son River, halfway between New York and Albany, and opposite
the Catskills. It seems curious that the cost of this magnificent
estate amounted to not more than two hundred dollars worth of
merchandise, including blankets, shirts, stockings, axes, adzes,
paint, scissors, jack-knives, and pocket looking-glasses.

He led a busy life, attending to his great domain and serving
in many offices of honor and trust. The records show that he
was a secretary to the Albany Commissary, Town Clerk and

XlviiiQSton 5

Town Collector, Secretary of Indian Affairs, member of the Coun-
cil, member of the General Assembly (1709-171 1), and Speaker of
the General Assembly (1718). He bestowed great care upon the
education of his children, and lived to see several of them occupy
high places in the community. He loved adventure, and was
noted, even among the Indians, for his skill in hunting. In 1694,
he made a trip across the ocean, and was wrecked on the coast of
Portugal. He displayed great fortitude during the disaster, and
was instrumental in saving several lives. A thoroughly pious
man, he saw in his preservation the answer to his prayers, and
commemorated his escape, family tradition says, by making an
appropriate change in the family escutcheon. For the ancient
crest of a demi-savage, he substituted the figure of a ship in dis-
tress. This will account for the fact that both coats-of-arms are
found in the family records.

During the latter part of his life, he built a church near his
Manor House, now known as Linlithgow — a tomb within its
portals. Here his body was laid away. The building, in the
course of years, decayed and was torn down. Upon this site his
descendants have erected a memorial church, and over the tomb
have placed a tablet in honor of the founder of their race in the
United States.

The four sons of the first " Lord " were worthy of their father.
The oldest, John, embraced a military career, and rose to be a
colonel in the Connecticut militia. He married twice, his first wife
being the only daughter of Governor Winthrop of Connecticut,
and his second, Elizabeth Knight. As he left no issue, and as he
died before his father (in London, 1717), the title of "Lord" as
well as the oldest son's share of the family estate went Phmpthe
to Philip, who was born in 1686. The latter, dis- Pnnceiy
satisfied with farming, turned his attention to commercial life,
and, owing to his great wealth as well as to his natural ability,
became, if not the greatest, at least one of the great merchants of
his period. He married Katherine Van Brugh, by whom he had
six sons and two daughters. In the latter half of his life he
became famous for his hospitality. He kept his three houses, in

6 Olivinoston

New York, Clermont, and Albany, always open to his friends and
acquaintances, and gave entertainment for man and beast to whom-
soever called. To him was applied the term "The Princely
Livingston." He did not allow private business to engross his
attention to the neglect of public duties. He served as Town
Clerk, Secretary of Indian Affairs, and member of the Legislative
Council.

The third son, Robert, was the most cultured and intellectual,
if not the ablest, of the generation. He received a collegiate
Robert of cducatiou in Scotland, and studied law at the Temple in
Clermont London, wherc he won high praise for his legal acumen.
Upon his return to the New World, he opened a law office at
Albany, where he soon built up a lucrative practice. It was about
this time that he surprised a burglar who was breaking into his
father's house by climbing down the chimney. He seized the
fellow by his legs, hauling him down into the ashes, and fright-
ened him into making a full confession, which included the de-
tails of a plot to rob and murder the white people of the district.
The father was so pleased with his son's courage that he pre-
sented him with a section of the manor land containing thirteen
thousand acres. From this piece of land the young man received
his name, Robert of Clermont, and the place was called for gener-
ations the Lower Manor. He was a member of the General As-
sembly from 171 1 to 1727. He married Miss Howarden.

Gilbert, the fourth son, was the least conspicuous of the four;

he devoted himself to his estate, to reading, and to social duties.

He married Cornelia Beekman, and was the founder of

Gilbert '

the Poughkeepsie branch of the family. From 1728 to
1737, he was a member of the General Assembly.

Margaret, one of the daughters of the founder, made a notable
marriage when she espoused Colonel Samuel Vetch, the first English
Governor of Annapolis. The other daughter, Johanna, married
Cornelius Van Home, a well-to-do property-owner of that time.
Robert "the It would uot be fair, in commenting upon this

Nephew" generation, to omit Robert Livingston, a nephew of the
first "Lord of the Manor," who came to this country in 1684,

livinaston 7

ten years after his uncle. While he did not occupy so large a
place in the public view, nevertheless he and his did much for the
State, and added to the glory of the race.

His wife was Margaretta Schuyler, niece of Alida, his uncle's
wife, by whom he had sons and daughters. Three of his sons
— Peter, John, and James— became prominent in their time.

The third generation made the golden age of the Livingston
family; each of the four branches (Philip, Gilbert, and Robert of
Clermont, of the founder's side, and Robert, the nephew) had
able and vigorous sons, who led lives of the greatest activity and,
in the main, of beneficence. The Philip branch was the most
notable on account of its numbers, there having been no less than
six sons, each of whom rose superior to the average of his time.
Nearly all had daughters of physical, mental, and social charm,
who strengthened the house through marriage. Genealogically,
the head of the family was Robert, the third " Lord of „ .

■' ' Robert, Third

the Manor," son of Philip, who was born in 1708, and Lord of the
died at the good old age of eighty-two. He inherited
his father's business ability, enterprise, and thrift, and increased
the large fortune which he had inherited. He married Mary
Thong, a great-granddaughter of Rip Van Dam, by whom he had
six sons and two daughters. Like nearly all the men of his
family, he served the State for a long time, having been a mem-
ber of the General Assembly, and held minor offices. His three
brothers — Philip, who signed the Declaration of Independence,
Peter Van Brugh, and William, the war-Governor of "New Jersey —
are known as the "Revolutionary trio." Philip [1716] was a
Yale graduate; in 1746, he was referred to as one of the pwiipthe
fifteen collegians in the colony. From college he Signer

went into mercantile life, and became an importer in New York.
He was successful in business, and in 1755 had become a leader
in the commercial world. He took an active part in the politics
of the day; he was one of the seven New York Aldermen in 1754 ;
and thereafter a member of the Provincial Assembly. As early as
1760, he identified himself with the opposition to the methods of
the British Government. He was a prominent correspondent of

8 Xlvlnoeton

Fdmund Burke, and supplied that statesman with much know-
ledge of colonial affairs.

While most of the men, especially the merchants of the time,
were afraid to take part in the questions of the day, Philip never
hesitated. In 1764, he drew up an address to Lieutenant-Governor
Golden, in which he used language so bold as to warrant the
charge of treason. He was a delegate to the " Stamp-Act Gon-
gress" in 170s, and was cordially hated by the Royalists, who
made open war upon him and unseated him when he was elected
to the Assembly. He was unanimously elected a member of the
First Continental Gongress, and remained a member of the House
until his death. On behalf of New York, he signed the Declaration
of Independence; and he has ever since been known as "Philip
the Signer." He also served in the Senate of New York. His
benevolence was great; he gave away seldom less than one third
of his income. He founded the professorship of divinity in Yale,
took part in the organization of the Society Library of New York,
and was one of the founders of Golumbia Gollege. In his time,
Brooklyn was a poor farming country, and not at all popular with
Knickerbocker society. He foresaw its future and purchased con-
siderable land on what is now known as Brooklyn Heights. He
built a mansion at about the present corner of Hicks and Joral-
emon streets, and laid out a fme carriage-road from his estate
to Red Hook Lane. This road is now Livingston Street. In this
mansion Washington held a council of war in August, 1776. in
1770, Philip took part in organizing the Ghamber of Commerce.
Though his family were non-conformists, he manifested a singular
catholicity in religious sentiment, establishing a chair of divinity
in Yale, aiding Golumbia, which was of the Ghurch of England;
contributing to the Presbyterian Ghurch, and aiding liberally in
the construction of the first Methodist church in the United States.
His wife was Christina, daughter of Colonel Ten Broeck.

Peter Van Brugh [1710], was a Yale man of 173 1. As did his
Peter brother, he went to New York and entered upon a

vanBnigh mercantile Career. He built a handsome mansion on the
east side of what is now Hanover Square, whose beautiful gardens

Xlvlnoston 9

extended to the East River. His partner was Lord Stirling, whose
sister he married in 1739. His official services to the State were
long and honorable; he was member of the Provincial Council
and of the Committee of One Hundred, delegate to the First and
Second Provincial Congresses of New York, Treasurer of Congress
(1776), trustee of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton), and
a member of numerous Revolutionary and patriotic organizations.
John Adams spoke of him as "an old man, extremely stanch in
the cause, and very sensible," which, coming from the grim
Massachusetts statesman, was high praise, indeed.

William [1723] was the most picturesque of the six sons.
He was brought up by his maternal grandmother, Sarah Van
Brugh, who seems to have had eccentric ideas as to a wiiiiamthe
boy's education. She did not neglect his book-learn- war-covemor
ing, but made physical development a point. By the time he
was thirteen, he was skilled in horsemanship, woodcraft, fishing,
and agriculture. At fourteen, he was sent into the forest, where
he lived a year among the Mohawks, under the care of a mission-
ary and an Indian chief. He came back with a thorough know-
ledge of the Mohawk language and a master of all the Indian
dances. Sent to Yale, he proved himself the best fighter and best
scholar of his class, which was that of 174 1. He studied law and
became a leader of the bar, with the quaint sobriquet of "the
Presbyterian lawyer." He served in the Provincial Legislature for
three years, and then removed to Elizabethtown, N. J. Here he
built a fine country seat, which in after years became celebrated
as Liberty Hall. Elizabethtown was then said to be in the wilder-
ness; from New York it was at least one day's journey. Never-
theless, so fascinating was the man, and so attractive his four
daughters, that the house was always crowded with visitors.
Among these were Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and other lead-
ing men of that period. William foresaw the Revolution, and
from the first was a fierce and uncompromising patriot. When it
came to nominating a delegate to the Continental Congress, he
was so fearful that the people would send a weak representative
that, it is said, he made a personal canvass of the electors, and

10 Xlvlnoston

only stopped when he found that he was the one candidate who
had been thought of by the people. He was a delegate twice,
serving upon the more important committees. He gave up Con-
gressional life to become a brigadier-general and governor,
holding the latter office until his death. In this double capacity
he was a thorn in the flesh to the British, by whom he was called
the "Don Quixote of the Jerseys." He gave them so much
trouble that they set a price upon him, and induced reckless
adventurers to attempt his kidnapping, as well as to burn his
mansion. Many attempts were made, but all proved failures.
Before three years had gone by, many of the ignorant British
troops believed that the war-Governor was in league with Satan
and had supernatural powers of appearing and disappearing.

In 1777, William recommended in his message to the Assem-
bly the abolition of slavery, and eleven years later he secured the
passage of an act forbidding the importation of slaves into the State.
He had inherited or had obtained many slaves himself, but these
he liberated and helped on as free citizens. His versatility was
notable. He wrote a digest of the laws of New York, several
volumes on law and politics, a long and somewhat heavy poem
entitled " Philosophical Solitude," and many bits of lighter verse,
essays, theses, and pamphlets. In writing about him, President
Timothy D wight, of Yale College, said: "The talents of Governor
Livingston were very various. His imagination was brilliant, his
wit sprightly and pungent, his understanding powerful, his taste
refined, and his conceptions bold and powerful. His views of
political subjects were expansive, clear, and just. Of freedom,
both civil and religious, he was a distinguished champion."

Robert of Clermont had but one son, Robert R. Livingston
[1718]. Upon his father's death he became the owner of the
Robert R., or ^state, which made him one of the wealthy men of
Robert the the colony. Owing partly to his wealth and partly
to his ability, he became a person of much distinction,
and was appointed judge by the English Crown. He is known
as "Judge Robert," to distinguish him from his famous son of the
same name, the Chancellor. Like nearly all of his relatives, he

'~' r—

> ^

Cii

0-1
O

-i— '

bJD

> -c

oi -a

Xlvlngston 1 1

was an ardent patriot, and was elected a delegate to the Colonial
Congress held in New York in 1765, better known as the Stamp
Act Congress. He married Miss Margaret Beekman, daughter of
Colonel Henry Beekman of Rhinebeck. By her he had many chil-
dren, of whom at least three were to become famous in law and
politics. Of Judge Robert, an interesting story is told by a friend.
At a family party in Clermont one evening he was talking with
his father, Robert of Clermont, his son, the future Chancellor, and
his son-in-law. Captain, afterwards General, Richard Montgomery.
The conversation turned upon the relations of the colonies to
Great Britain, and soon became excited. The argument culmi-
nated in a bit of prophecy from the aged head of the house, who
exclaimed: " It is intolerable that a continent like America should
be governed by a little island three thousand miles away. America
must and will be independent. My son, you will not live to see
it; Montgomery, you may; Robert," turning to his grandson,
"you will." The prophecy was fulfilled. Montgomery was
killed at the siege of Quebec, 1775; the son died before independ-
ence was achieved, while the grandson became one of the leaders
of the new republic.

James, son of Robert the nephew, left his country home to
engage in commercial life at New York. He became j^^

an opulent merchant. His wife was Maria Kiersted,
by whom he had issue.

John, his brother, devoted his life to the family estates. He
espoused Catharine Ten Broeck, daughter of General Ten Broeck.
Among their children were three of the most brilliant jamesthe
soldiers of the Revolution. Merchant

The fourth generation produced many eminent men. They
were so numerous that it is difficult to select a few representatives
without being guilty of neglecting others as worthy. Robert, the
third "Lord of the Manor," had five sons, whose names are
familiar to all students: Peter R., Walter, Robert Cambridge, John,
and Henry; and three daughters: Mary, who married James Decare,
Alida, and Catharine. Each of three sons has left long lines of
descent.

1 2 XlvlnGSton

Peter R. was a wealthy landed proprietor in Dutchess County,
Lieut.-Gov. 'ind took a lively part in State affairs. In 1828, he was
Peter R. elected Lieutenant-Governor.

Walter [1740], son of Robert, the third Lord, was an able
lawyer and statesman. His public services were numerous and
Judge valued. Among other positions he held with success

Walter ^g^g ^j^g foilowiug: Member of the Provincial Congress
(1775), Judge for Albany (1777). Member of Congress (1784-5),
Commissioner of the U. S. Treasury (1785). His wife was Cor-
nelia Schuyler, by whom he had issue.

His son, Henry Walter [1768], was graduated from Yale (1786)
and admitted to the New York bar. In 1792, he was appointed
Judge secretary to Minister Gouverneur Morris, and served

Henry w. ^y^Q years at Versaillcs. 1796 saw him Judge of Com-
mon Pleas, and in 1803 and 1805 he was elected to Congress. His
wife was Mary Penn Allen, by whom he had children.

From Robert Cambridge came John Swift [1785], Johnston,
who married his kinswoman Sylvia Livingston, Robert Cambridge
11., Robert Cambridge 111., Robert Cambridge IV., John Griswold,
Johnston 11., Henry W., and Louis.

From John, the last Lord of the Manor, known as John of Oak
Hill, come Herman and Cornelia, who married Clermont Living-
ston. The Oak Hill mansion is now in the possession of John
Henry, a grandson of Herman of Oak Hill.
Lieut.- From Philip come Walter and Edward Philip. The

Governor latter was a leading citizen of Columbia County, who
was elected Lieutenant-Governor in 1830. His descend-
ants included Philip Jr., Henry, and Philip VI.

William, the war-Governor, had one distinguished son,
Brockholst [1757]. He entered Princeton, but left college to go
Lieut.-coionei 'Hto the army, where he rose to be a lieutenant-
Brockhoist colonel. He became private secretary to John Jay,
studied law, and was a member of the New York bar. In 1802, he
was Judge of the New York Supreme Court, and in 1806 was made
a Justice of the United States Supreme Court by President Jeffer-
son. He was married thrice and had many children. His oldest

•' i|

llvlngston 13

son was Hon. Carroll, a merchant and financier, who was grad-
uated from Columbia (1822).

His present representative is Charles Carroll.

Of Gilbert, the most distinguished descendant was his grand-
son, the Rev. John Henry [1746], who was graduated from Yale
in 1762, and took up the study of law. He went as far Reverend
as the limited opportunities of the colonies would per- J°''" "^'"^
mit, and then crossed the sea and entered the University of
Utrecht. Here a change came over his ambition, and after his law
course he took up theology, and received the university degree
and ordination by the Classis of Amsterdam. He returned to
New York in 1770, becoming pastor of the Dutch Church at the
corner of Fulton and William Streets, which office he held until
1810. During this period he was made a professor of theology by
the General Synod, and in 1807 President of Queens, now Rutgers,
College of New Brunswick, N. J. During the Revolution he was
an enthusiastic rebel, and was ready to pray and to fight at all
hours. He was one of the founders of the first missionary society
in New York, Regent of the State University, and in his later
years was universally known as "the father of the Dutch Re-
formed Church in America."

In the fourth generation, the Clermont branch rose to the
head. They seem to have inherited and to have added to the
legal and intellectual talents of their father, "Judge Robert," and
their grandsire, Robert of Clermont. The two greatest were
Robert R., the Chancellor, and Edward, the jurist. chancellor
Robert R. [1746] was graduated from Columbia in Rohen

1764, and studied law under William Smith, the historian, and his
cousin, William Livingston, of New Jersey. After admission to
the bar he became a partner of John Jay. He was a brilliant lawyer,
and was made Recorder of the city of New York, relinquishing
this office, in 1775, to become a delegate to Congress. He was
one of the live who drafted the Declaration of Independence, and
was prevented from signing by being called away to take part in
the Provincial Congress of New York. In 1776, he was a member
of the Provincial Convention which changed the title of the

14 Xivtnoston

colony to the State of New York, and was made a member of the
committee which drew up the first State constitution. He was
made Chancellor, and held that honorable office from 1777 to
1801. From 1781 to 1783 he served as United States Secretary
of Foreign Affairs. He administered the oath of office to George
Washington at the City Hall, which then occupied the site of the
present Sub-Treasury at Wall and Nassau streets. When the
New York Convention adopted the Federal Constitution, he was
its chief advocate.

In 1801, the Government appointed him Minister Plenipoten-
tiary to France, where he negotiated the cession of Louisiana to
the United States as well as the settlement of the French claims.
It was while abroad that he made the acquaintance of Robert
Fulton, with whom he formed a quasi-partnership for the develop-
ment of steam navigation, in which he had already done much
hard work. His capital built the Clermont, the first steamboat in
the New World, which was named after his family home. His
other public services would fill a volume : he was prominent in
the construction of the canal system of New York State, in adjust-
ing the eastern boundary which gave the State of Vermont to the
Union, and in establishing the American Academy of Fine Arts,
which is now the National Academy of Design. He contrib-
uted to agricultural literature and was noted as an authority upon
the subject. So great was his talent as an advocate that Franklin
called him " the Cicero of America." When Congress asked each
State of the Union to place the statues of two of its prominent
citizens in the Capitol, he and George Clinton were selected for
the high honor by the Empire State.

His homestead at Clermont is still in the possession of his
grandson, Clermont.

Edward, the jurist [1764], was graduated from Princeton in
1 78 1, studied law, and was admitted to the bar upon attaining his
majority. He built up a large practice, made quite a fortune in
ten years, and was elected to Congress in 1794, 1796, and 1798.
There was considerable opposition to the policy of Washington's
Cabinet at one time, and among its leaders he, Madison, and

Rev. Dr. John H. Livingston

1Llvln{}0ton 1 5

Gallatin were the foremost. His were the resolutions which
demanded copies of the papers given to John Jay in respect to the
treaty with Great Britain. Washington, backed by the unani-
mous vote of his Cabinet, declined, and for a few days there was
talk of a conflict between the two branches of the Government.
In 1801, the Government made him United States Attorney
for the District of "New York, and the people elected him Mayor.
During his term of office the present City Hall was built, the
front and sides being of white marble, while the back was of
cheap brown-stone, since "it would be out of sight to all the
world."

When the yellow fever broke out in 1803, and all who could
afford it deserted the city, he remained at his post, fighting the
epidemic, and finally contracting the disease. During his illness
he was robbed and almost ruined by his confidential agent and
was compelled to start life anew. He conveyed all his property
to a trustee for the payment of his debts, and on the expiration of
his term of office as mayor went to New Orleans, which was
then an American city, where he opened a law office in order
to retrieve his wealth. With great shrewdness, he accepted land
instead of money for his fees, and thus established the beginnings
of a new fortune.

Finding the law of the new State a confused muddle of English
common law, French code, and Spanish law, he drew up a code of
procedure, of which a part in 1805 was adopted by the Louisiana
Legislature. This was the beginning of the first great code ever
drawn up in an English-speaking community, and in its final form
has been held up to the admiration of the world by the great
jurists of every land, it began a new era in American jurispru-
dence. Edward was sent to Congress three times from Louisiana
and in 1824 finished his civil code, which completed the codifica-
tion of the State law. In 1826, he paid off the last of his debts,
and in 1829 was elected United States Senator from Louisiana. In
183 1, he was made Secretary of State, and in 1833, Minister to
France. A patriot, a statesman, a scholar, and a diplomat, his
claim to a high place will be his record as a jurist.

1 6 Xlvlngston

A brother of Edward, Henry Beekman [1750], raised a com-
pany of soldiers in 177s, and took part in the invasion of Canada.

For his valor he received a sword of honor from Con-
Major-Gen. . r-v1 •!• r' 1 .^1

Henry gress. He was aide to General Philip Schuyler, Colonel

Beekman ^^ ^j^^ p^|^j|.^j^ ^^^ york, aide to Lafayette in Rhode

Island, and an officer at Valley Forge. He served in the War of
1812, where he rose to be a major-general. He married Ann
Home Shippen, with whom he lived happily many years in the
Beekman mansion at Rhinebeck, which he inherited from his
mother.

Among others who have added distinction to the family name
is John William, a descendant of John, the third son of the second
, ^ ,„.„. Lord of the Manor [1804]. His father was Dr. William

John WiUiara *- ^-^

the Admiral Turk, SLirgeon in the United States Navy, and his
mother Eliza Livingston, in 1843, the Legislature sanctioned
his assumption of his mother's name. He entered the navy in
1824, served in the war with the Mediterranean pirates, in the war
of Mexico, and during the great civil conflict. In 1868, he was
commissioned Rear-Admiral, and placed upon the retired list, after
which he made his home in New York City.

Colonel James [1747] was a son of John and grandson of

Robert the nephew. He served in the Revolution, where he

proved a faithful and efficient soldier, to whom Wash-

Col. James

ington expressed his gratification that the post was
in the hands of an officer so devoted as yourself to the cause of
your country." The reference is to Stony Point, and the time the
treason of Benedict Arnold.

With him in the same command, during the first part of
the conflict, were his fearless brothers, Lieutenant -Colonel
Lieut.-coi. Richard and Captain Abraham. A son of the last
Richard named was Captain John P., who served with distinc-
tion in the War of 1812.

Colonel James married Elizabeth Simpson, a belle of Montreal,
Elizabeth by whom he had issue. His daughter Margaret became
cady Stanton tj^g ^jfg ^f j^^jgg D^xniel Cady of New York, and the
child of this union, Elizabeth [1815], became Mrs. Elizabeth

(/5 ^^

5 bc i

C/5

.= E

Xivingston 17

Cady Stanton, the most eminent woman-reformer of the nineteenth
century.

From Robert, the nephew of the first Lord of the Manor,
comes a long and important branch, which includes James, John,
Robert, James II., Maturin, Maturin II., and is represented to-day
by Mrs. Cavendish-Bentinck and Mrs. Ogden Mills.

in point of numbers, the Livingstons are almost unrivalled.
They have been marked by high patriotism, a warm love for
humanity, and a progressive spirit, which at times amounted to
radicalism. Through their blood runs the hereditary Scotch ten-
dency towards strong feelings and forcible action. They have
been characterized by great physical and mental vitality, and,
unlike many successful families, have not borne fruit and then
withered away. The old Scotch character has reappeared in
many ways. They have been strong friends — and strong foes, —
and have never feared to express their convictions or to beard
authority in the cause of right. The clannish spirit has expressed
itself in an intense family feeling, which has caused each to help
all relatives in trouble, and has gone so far as to cause many inter-
marriages. To this feeling may be ascribed the care with which
they have preserved memorials and souvenirs of their ancestors,
and the self-sacrifice displayed whenever called upon to serve the
family, the State, and the nation.

ni!)orri8

.^lii

Viiv'A'^^

Lewis Morris
Signer of the Declaration of Independence

XXIII

MORRIS

^EW YORK has been cosmopolitan
from its first settlement. With the
Knickerbockers, or Dutch, came over
Huguenots and subjects of the British
Crown. These were speedily fol-
lowed by Germans, West Indians,
and New Englanders. To this early
mixing of types and bloods may be
ascribed the characteristics of the
New Yorker which have made him
distinct from the citizen of every
other great metropolis. Just as the
Dutch were made up of people from the various provinces of
Holland, so the British contingent was drawn from the different
types which constitute the population of the United Kingdom.

As if to preserve a spiritual equilibrium, the solid Englishman
was offset by the impetuous Scotchman and the strong and in-
domitable Welshman. To the little principality of Wales, Man-
hattan owes many of its most distinguished citizens. Of these,
the head and front was the Morris family, which for more than
two centuries has been in the foreground of municipal, state, and
national activity. From a genealogical as well as an historical
viewpoint, its career in both the Old World and the New has
been of deep interest. Long before the Land of the Silures had
become an appanage of the British Crown, it took a leading part

22 flDorrts

in the councils of the little nation. Its very name is derived from
Maur-Rhys, the Great Rhys, who was a Prince of Guintland (now
embodied in Monmouthshire) in the latter part of the twelfth
century. Maur is the Cymric for great, and was prefixed to the
name qualified, unlike the Romance practice of suffixing, as ex-
emplified in Charle-Magne. It was not until the seventeenth
century that the present orthography was adopted.

The first Maur-Rhys was one of the conspicuous figures in
British history. He was the neighbor and friend of Strong-Bow,
Earl of Striguill, and, with that reckless warrior, invaded Southern
Ireland, and conquered all the country around Waterford. The
two adventurers might have become great Irish princes, but
Henry 11., their monarch, was a very thrifty and diplomatic char-
acter, who rewarded their prowess by giving them complimentary
letters and titles, but added their conquests to the Crown posses-
sions. The descendants of Maur-Rhys were proud and fierce
warriors in the Plantagenet period, when they enjoyed great pros-
perity. Their star changed in the fifteenth century, during the
wars of York and Lancaster, in which they lost much of their
property, and at one time were in danger of extermination by
political foes. During this period one of their princesses, a woman
of rare beauty, married the Duke of Saxony, from v/hom was
descended the Elector of Saxony.

In the reign of the Stuarts, ill-fortune again overtook them.
They incurred the displeasure of King James, and their estates
were confiscated by his son, Charles 1. At that time the heads
of the house were three brothers, Lewis, William, and Richard.
William, after a vain struggle, determined to emigrate to the New
World. He sold his property, and giving a moiety to his son
John, set sail for the American plantations. He died upon the

. , ■ voyage. His son John was of a more adventurous

Captain John -- '->

disposition. He remained in Wales, trying to regain
his ancestral lands, and when the Civil War broke out, was among
the first to join the Parliamentary army, in which in 1651 he was
a captain, in 1652, he went with a British expedition to Bar-
badoes, which was conquered and added to the British kingdom.

flDorris 23

He received grants of land in the new possessions and increased
his fortune hy marrying an heiress. This was the beginning of
the West-hidian branch of the family.

William's brothers, Lewis and Richard, remained at home.
They also entered the Parliamentary service, the former raising a
regiment at his own expense, from which he gained coionei
the title of colonel. Richard was a captain in this regi- ^^^'*

ment, and afterwards lieutenant-colonel. Notwithstanding the
result of the war, they did not recover their confiscated estates,
Cromwell paying them handsome indemnities instead. captain
The two men were among the bravest of Cromwell's Richard
warriors. Their most famous exploit was the capture of Chep-
stow Castle, which they carried by fire and sword. From this
feat they took as a crest a castle in flames on a rock, with the
motto, Tandem vincitur. The uncles kept up a correspondence
with their nephew John, and upon the latter's advice Lewis
bought an estate in Barbadoes. He still yearned for the excite-
ment of war, and urged Cromwell to attack Spain in the West
Indies. He was apparently unsuccessful, because he sailed for
his plantations as a settler and not a soldier. His action seems
to have been a ruse of some sort, as he had scarcely arrived in his
new home when Cromwell organized an expedition to attack
Hispaniola (now Hayti and San Domingo), and with the an-
nouncement came a commission for Colonel Lewis Morris. For
his gallantry in this little war, the Colonel received many pressing
invitations to return to England, and, just before the Restoration,
had begun to arrange for the voyage. The advent of Charles II.
changed his plans. Instead of returning, he sent post-haste for
his brother Richard, who came out by the next sailing vessel.
Subsequent events showed the wisdom of the course. The two
brothers had made many enemies during the wars, and proceed-
ings had been begun against them, when Richard left home for-
ever. There were many ex-Parliamentarians in Barbadoes, so
that Richard had a hearty welcome when he arrived. Here he
met, wooed, and won Sarah Pole, an heiress and belle. He re-
mained in Barbadoes several years, attending to his brother's estate

24 nDorrl0

and the one he had secured by marriage. The brothers were
dissatisfied with the slow life of the West Indies, and determined
upon a change. In pursuance of this, Richard in 1668 sailed for
New York. He took with him a large amount of money, which
he invested sagaciously in New York and New Jersey real estate
shortly after his arrival.

The New York property consisted of three thousand odd acres
near the Harlem, which he named Bronxland from the River Bronx
lying to its north. This purchase made Richard Morris one of the
largest landed proprietors in Westchester County. In 1671, Rich-
, . „ ,^ ard had a son whom he named Lewis, after the great

Lewis II. the °

Chief Justice Colonel. Captain Richard was very active in public
and Governor ^|-jVjjj.g ^^^^ served upon many bodies during the admin-
istrations of Lovelace, Evertse, and Colve. He died suddenly
about 1675. There must have been a deep love between the two
brothers, because the death disclosed a singular contract between
them to the effect that if Captain Richard died Colonel Lewis
would come on and become a father to the former's child or chil-
dren. The Colonel was true to his word. When the news reached
him of his brother's death, he disposed of most of his estates in
Barbadoes and came on to New York (1676). In October of that
year he invested his wealth in New Jersey property, purchasing
3=i4o acres in East Jersey, which he named Tinton, and another
tract in the same neighborhood. He called the entire territory
Monmouth, and from this name Monmouth County took its title.
It seems quite odd that the English shire which had produced
so many fearless opponents to the British Crown in the days of
Cromwell should give its name to an American county on which
again the British Crown was to meet opposition and defeat. The
first opponents transported the name across the sea, and in the
course of years their descendants renewed the wars of a previous
century.

Colonel Lewis was indefatigable in all business matters. He
attended to his own estate and to that of his nephew, Lewis II.
He served upon the staff of Governor Andros and engaged in
many private enterprises. One of these was the establishment

flDorrls 25

of iron works in New Jersey, which for many years turned out
an excellent grade of pig iron. He died in 1691 without issue,
leaving his great estate to his nephew.

The bluff soldier had a warm heart and took pleasure in
charitable and religious work. His contributions were many, and
when he found that St. Peter's Church in Westchester had no
bell, he presented a handsome one to it, which is still extant.
Upon its lip in ancient lettering is the inscription : " Colonel Lewis
Morris, 1677."

Lewis 11., better known as Lewis the Chief Justice, is one of
the most romantic characters in colonial history. He was a
dreamer and yet sternly practical, a born soldier, and yet a good
business man ; an able judge, but one who never seemed to read
or study precedents ; ambitious, and yet scornful of the opinions
of those in authority ; a fountain of fun and humor, and yet so
vitriolic in his bitterness as to keep his enemies in perpetual sus-
pense ; and, rarest of all, a successful politician, who despised tact
and placating, and depended entirely upon truth and even brus-
querie. His uncle. Colonel Lewis, became his guardian when he
was five years old, and the iron-willed soldier soon found that the
boy was a second edition of himself. They played a game of
cross-purposes which even after two centuries sounds like a bit
of delicious comedy. The uncle secured a tutor, a pious Quaker,
whose ambition was to become an Indian missionary. The boy
objected to the tutor and discharged him. The uncle reinstated
him. The boy attempted to chastise the tutor, and was roundly
flogged by the uncle.

Nothing discouraged, the youngster immediately started a
new plan of campaign. He found out the Quaker's aspirations,
and then studied his habits. He soon learned that the pious
pedagogue was in the habit of praying every day at a stated hour
beneath a certain tree. The boy went there an hour ahead of the
expected time, climbed the tree, and hid himself in the thick foli-
age. As he expected, the teacher appeared, knelt, and, according
to the custom of the times, wrestled with the Lord. Finally,
when he paused for lack of breath, the boy piped out in a

26 flDorrle

simulated voice: " Hugh Copperthwaite ! Hugh Copperthwaite ! "
The simple-minded Quaker answered : " Here am I, Lord. What
wouldst thou with me ? " There was a pause, and then from the
depth of the leaves came the command in the solemn words:
"Go, preach my Gospel to the Mohawks, thou true and faithful
servant ! "

The tutor went back to the house, offered his resignation, and
had packed his trunks for his departure, when the trick was be-
trayed. There was a stormy scene, and the old Colonel adminis-
tered the rod in a way that would have pleased King Solomon.
The next morning there was no boy around the place. The
Colonel gave himself no uneasiness, believing that his nephew
had stayed out over-night in the woods, or had gone to a neigh-
bor's and would be back in a day or two. A week passed with
no news of the youth. Inquiries were instituted, and it was found
that he had run away to Virginia. Here he stayed some time,
and then took ship and went to the West Indies. He earned a
poor subsistence by serving as a scrivener. Even then he wrote
a fine hand, and spelled with an accuracy that was uncommon in
those years. But he tired of the work, and sighed for home. He
managed to get to New York, where the Colonel received him
with open arms. There was a council of war between the two,
which must have been unique. The Colonel confessed that he
could not govern his nephew, and then declared that, as the latter
had to be governed in order to make him a man, the only thing
left was to marry him off as quickly as possible. He accord-
ingly brought about the union of his ward with Isabella, daughter
of Sir James Graham, when the former was but twenty years
of age.

The marriage had the desired effect. Lewis II. became a
serious man and entered upon a public career immediately. He be-
came a member of the Governor's Council and soon afterwards
Judge of the Court of Common Pleas in East Jersey. In 1697, he
added lands to his estate in Bronxland, and the same year erected
it into a Lordship or Manor, called Morrisania. The charter was
very liberal, giving him the right to deodands, wrecks, estrays,

Robert Hunter Morris

Governor of Pennsylvania, i-j'^^

t<i/-^.,il;ii-i7/'if.'>r»-",i^'-J"Sii:>.'*'''/:.''i

" Old Morrisania," New York

Gouverneur Morris's Residence

HDorris 27

flotsam, and jetsam. This charter made the Morris family one of
the tlve which possessed manorial estates in Westchester County.
In 1700, he was made President of the Governor's Council, and two
years afterwards, Governor of New Jersey.

He was elected a member of Cornbury's Council, and while
there became champion of the people's cause against the tyranny
of the Governor. In 1707, he was sent to the General Assembly,
where he was soon the leader of that body. In 1718, he was
made Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of "New York, being the
first native to hold the office. In 1734, he made a voyage to Eng-
land, where he laid the grievances of New York before the Crown.
On his return he advocated the separation of New York from New
Jersey, which was afterwards accomplished. In 1738, New Jersey
became a province or State, with Morris as Governor.

He did not care for the position, but accepted it as a matter of
principle. It involved leaving his beautiful home in Morrisania
and renting a farm near Trenton. His administration was very
successful and was marked by a deep interest in the welfare of the
agricultural and industrial conditions of the commonwealth. He
was one of the creators of the Council of Colonial Governors,
which devised plans of offence and defence against the French and
Indians, and kept a courier service between his State, Pennsyl-
vania, New York, and Connecticut. New Jersey was poor, com-
pared with New York, and to prevent increasing the burden of the
taxpayers, the big-hearted Governor defrayed all these extra ex-
penses, a series of actions in full keeping with what he had done
in preceding years, when he served as Chief Justice without salary.
He was Governor for eight years when he died at the ripe age
of seventy-five.

Almost fifty-five years of his life were passed in public affairs.
The records of the time are filled with odd incidents illustrating
his many-sided character. When they were building Trinity
Church he donated the timber and sent the best logs which' he
could secure, many of them being massive enough for a building
three times the size of the church. He did this, according to
tradition, because the logs were not for man's service, but for the

28 flDorrie

Lord's. The trustees were so pleased with his generous gift that
they voted a square pew to him and his family, which, in the
social code of those days, was the highest compliment that could
be paid to a citizen.

The directions he left as to his funeral were worthy of a Norse
Viking. He desired to be buried at Morrisania in a plain coffin,
without ostentation, and with no funeral sermon; but " neverthe-
less, if any clergyman, no matter the denomination, desired to
make a few remarks over the grave, the privilege should be ac-
corded as he had no objection." Neither, he declared, "did he
wish that any mourning rings or mourning scarfs should be given,
or that any mourning should be worn for him," saying in his will,
"I die when I shall die, and no one ought to mourn because I
do so."

He was an excellent husband and father, and in his wife had
an invaluable partner and helpmeet. There were eight children
by the marriage, two sons and six daughters. The oldest son was
Lewis ill., and the other Robert Hunter. The former succeeded
to the great New York estate of Morrisania, and the latter to the
mansion and lands at Tinton, Monmouth County, N. J. Both of
these estates had been managed with admirable business ability by
the Governor, so that the sons began life much richer than did
their distinguished father.

The third generation continued the achievements of the

second, the two sons proving talented men of affairs. Lewis 111.,

or Lewis, Jr. [1698], entered public life at the age of

Judge Lewis » J L / J) F &

twenty-four, when he became a member of Governor
Burnet's Council. In 1737, he was chosen Speaker of the New
York Provincial Assembly, and was returned to the Twenty-
second, Twenty-third, Twenty-fourth, and Twenty-fifth Provin-
cial Assemblies, closing his service in 1750. A good speaker and
parliamentarian, with an unusual talent for repartee and humor,
he was a commanding personality in the Assembly. He was im-
pulsive, like his father, but, unlike the latter, had rare suavity and
tact. His fame, however, rests upon his judicial rather than upon
his legislative career. He was Judge of the Court of Admiralty,

Mrs. Lewis Morris III.
(Katrintje Staats)

flDorri0 29

which at that time had jurisdiction over New York, New Jersey,
and Connecticut. To the bench he brought great learning and
remarkable dignity. His decisions were sound, and his adminis-
tration of justice reflected credit upon both himself and his court.
There was a grim kind of merriment in his nature, which ex-
pressed itself often in fantastic forms.

At one time he astonished people by an extraordinary head-
dress. Instead of the hat and the bag-wig of the period, he wore
a loon-skin with all its feathers. The bird was of goodly size, and
the massive plumage covered the Judge's head in a way that
aroused attention wherever he went. He wore this queer con-
trivance for a long time, displaying it at social functions as well as
in his office and the chambers of his court. Whether it was in-
tended as a practical satire upon the elaborate hair-dressing of the
fashionables of that age, or whether it was a piece of nonsensical
humor, is undetermined. The judge was twice married, his first
wife being Katrintje Staats, daughter of Dr. Samuel Staats, by
whom he had three sons: Lewis IV. [1726], the signer of the
Declaration of Independence, Staats Long [1728], and Richard
[1730]. His second wife was Sarah Gouverneur, daughter of
Nicholas Gouverneur, by whom he had one son, Gouverneur

[1752].

Robert Hunter, the second son of Lewis II., the Chief Justice,
enjoyed an equally brilliant career. In early manhood he was a
member of the Council, thereafter Chief Justice of New Governor
Jersey, and in 1754 Governor of Pennsylvania. Thus Robert

in two generations the family had filled two guberna-
torial chairs and three high places upon the bench. This is a
record of which they may well be proud. To Robert Hunter,
Franklin refers in friendly terms in his autobiography, throwing a
pleasant side-light upon the Morris character :

"In my journey to Boston this year (1754) I met at New
York our new Governor, Mr. Morris, just arrived from England,
with whom 1 had been before intimately acquainted. Mr. Morris
asked me if I thought he ' must expect as uncomfortable an

30 riDorrls

administration as Governor Hamilton, his predecessor, had had.'
1 said, 'No; you may on the contrary have a very comfortable
one, if you will only take care not to enter into any dispute with
the Assembly.' 'My dear friend,' said he, pleasantly, 'how can
you advise my avoiding disputes ? You know 1 love disputing.
It is one of my greatest pleasures. However, to show the regard
I have for your counsels, 1 promise you I will if possible avoid
them.' He had some reason for loving to dispute, being eloquent
and an acute sophist, and therefore generally successful in argu-
mentative conversation. He had been brought up to it from a
boy, his father, as 1 have heard, accustoming his children to dis-
pute with one another for his diversion while talking at the table
after dinner."

Later on, when Franklin returned to his seat in the Assembly,
he was put on every committee for answering the Governor's
speeches and messages. The communications "on both sides,"
he says, "were sometimes very abusive. I might imagine that,
as he knew I wrote for the Assembly, should we meet, we could
hardly avoid cutting throats; but he was so good-natured a man
that no personal difference between us was occasioned by the
contest, and we often dined together.

"One afternoon in the height of this public quarrel we met in
the street. ' Franklin,' said he, ' you must go home with me and
spend the evening. 1 am to have some company that you will
like,' and taking me by the arm led me to his house, in gay con-
versation after supper he told us jokingly that he much admired
the idea of Sancho Panza, who, when it was proposed to give him
a government, requested it might be a government of blacks, as
then, if he could not agree with his people, he might sell them."

Robert Hunter died in 1764 when dancing at a village party.
The Governor led the dance with the wife of the village clergy-
man, and while bowing to his partner expired without a word or
groan. He never married, and his estate went to his brother.

His code of living was quaintly expressed in a pleasant jingle
which is treasured by the family.

Richard Morris

Chief Justice under the Crown

riDorrls 31

1 am neither high church, nor low church, tory or whig;

No flattering young coxcomb, no formal old prig;

Not eternally talking or silently quaint;

No profligate sinner, no pragmatical saint.

I think freely, 1 own, yet 1 firmly believe,

1 'm not vain of my judgment or pinned on a sleeve.

To lift truth from all rubbish, I '11 do what I can, —

God knows if 1 err I 'm a fallible man.

Any faults of my friends, I would scorn to expose

And detest private scandal, tho' cast on my foes.

When merit appears, though in rags, I 'II respect it;

Will plead virtue's cause should the whole world reject it.

Cool reason I bow to, wherever 't is found,

Rejoice in sound learning with modesty crowned.

To no party I 'm slave; in no squabble 1 '11 join;

Nor damn the opinion opposing my own.

Length of days I desire, yet at my last breath

I hope to betray no mean terrors of death;

While as to the way after death to be trod

I submit to the will of a merciful God.

Lewis IV., or the Signer [1726], was graduated from Yale in
1764, and utilized his education by taking up what we would call
scientific farming. In this field he did much commend- cen. Lewis
able work, applying the latest ideas in European agri- t^e signer
culture and modifying them to suit American conditions. In 1775,
he was sent from New York to the Continental Congress, and, in
1 776, he was one of the immortal fifty-six signers of the Declaration
of Independence. It was after the great debate upon the Declara-
tion, and just before the signing, that he received a letter from his
brother, Staats Morris, who was a general in the British Army,
begging him not to take so rash a step, and to think of the conse-
quences. " Damn the consequences; give me the pen," was the
reply of the impetuous Morris.

He was one of the party when Franklin enunciated a famous
bon mot. A delegate remarked: " Gentlemen, now that we have
signed this document, we must all hang together." Franklin
replied quickly: " Most certainly! if we do not, we shall all hang
separately."

32 flDorris

Lewis served in the field and afterwards was a valued and
industrious member of the New York Legislature, holding office in
1777 and 1778. He was deeply interested in the National Guard,
and rose to the rank of a major-general. He married Mary, daugh-
ter of Jacob Walton. Of his children, five sons served in the army,
three of them making such brilliant records as to receive the thanks
of Congress, and one son served commendably in the navy.

Staats [1728] was educated at Yale, entered the British Army,
and through his powerful family influence attained the rank of
staats, Maj.- major when he was thirty. He married the Duchess
General and of Gordou, who accompauied him to India, where he
distinguished himself at the siege of Pondicherry.
When ordered to repair to America at the breaking out of the
Revolution, he resigned his commission. The British Govern-
ment, respecting his feelings, appointed him major-general, and
detailed him to garrison duty. In 1796, he became a general, and
in the following year was appointed Governor of Quebec. He
died in 1800, without issue.

Richard, the third son of Lewis ill., was graduated from Yale
in 1748 and took up the study of law. He was admitted to the
Richard the bar, where he became known for his wide legal read-
chief Justice jpg jj^ ,^^2, he was made a Judge of the Vice-Admi-
ralty, which position he resigned in 177=) to take up the cause of
the people against the Crown. Governor Tryon, on receiving the
resignation, requested Richard to remain in office until quieter times.
He answered that "he could never sacrifice his principles to his
interests, and that his office was at the Governor's disposal."

In 1776, he was made Judge of the High Court of Admiralty
of New York, but declined the office. Two years afterwards,
he was made Senator from the Southern District, and in the
following year Chief Justice of the New York Supreme
Court. In 1788, he was a member of the State Convention
which ratified the Federal Constitution. In 1790, having reached
the age of sixty, he resigned all his offices and retired to his
estate at Scarsdale, Westchester County, where he passed the
remaining twenty years of his life. He married Sarah Ludlow,

Frances LudlLim

Wife of Robert Morris

HDorria 33

daughter of Henry Ludlow, by whom he had two sons and a
daughter.

Gouverneur [1752], the fourth son of Lewis IIL, was graduated
at King's College (1768), studied law, and was admitted to the
bar in 1771. Here he made a brilliant success. In Gouverneur
177s, he was a delegate to the Provincial Congress and the statesman
signed the Articles of Confederation. During the Revolution he
was employed in many capacities, and in all displayed signal
ability and zeal. He was an active member of the Convention
which framed the Constitution, and was a Commissioner to Eng-
land in 1789. Three years later, he was Minister to France, and
after the expiration of his term spent several years abroad in study
and travel. He became United States Senator in 1800, but served
only three years of the six. In literature, he was almost as suc-
cessful as in law and diplomacy. His writings were numerous
and highly esteemed, if not popular. Taine, the French critic,
said that of all our early statesmen he had the keenest sense of
humor, and Hamilton summed him up: "He was by birth a
native of this country, but by genius an exotic."

Congress paid him the high compliment of assigning to him
the task of delivering the funeral orations over Washington and
Hamilton. The addresses produced a profound impression upon
the American people, and are even to-day placed among the best
examples of American eloquence. He was the second President
of the New York Historical Society, and during the latter part of
his life was a commanding figure in New York society. He mar-
ried Annie Cary Randolph, daughter of Thomas Randolph of
Virginia, a descendant of Pocahontas, by whom he had one son,
Gouverneur II.

The fifth generation reached manhood about the time of the
Revolution, and, as might be expected, was noted for its military
record and prowess. Of its members, probably the

^ General Jacob

most celebrated was General Jacob, son of Lewis the
Signer. He served through the war, and distinguished himself
in many battles. When peace came, in 1783, he retired to private
life, but took a strong part in public affairs. The energy which

34 HDorrls

he had displayed as a soldier was now turned into pacific chan-
nels. The State of New York, recognizing the losses sustained by
Lewis and Richard Morris during the Revolution, in which their
Morrisania property had been well-nigh destroyed, granted the
brothers a tract of land, consisting of three thousand acres, in
Montgomery County, as an indemnity as well as a compliment.
The General was the pioneer of this patent, and established his
home in the very heart of what was then a wilderness. The hard-
ships of pioneering seemed to exert a beneficial influence upon
the stout-hearted General and his wife. They changed the forest
land into magnificent farms, and at the close of long lives they
saw happy towns and villages where before there had been
naught but the Indian and the wild beast. Their union was fruit-
ful, his wife, Mary Cox, bearing him twelve children, nearly
all of whom lived to a ripe old age. When he was over
seventy he married a second time, and was blessed with one
child, a son, A. P. Morris.

Next in importance to General Jacob was Commodore Richard
Valentine, son of Lewis the Signer, an able, energetic, and pro-
gressive officer of the American Navy. He was the

Commodore ° •'

Richard head of a cadet branch, which had many representa-
tives in the next three generations. A third son of
Lewis the Signer was Colonel Lewis, aide-de-camp to General
Colonel Sullivan and General Greene. A fourth was James,
Lewis ^jio v/as a captain in the Revolution, and who married

Helen Van Cortlandt, daughter of Augustus Van Cortlandt.

Of the children of Richard the Chief Justice, the third son
of Lewis III., the best known was Robert of Fordham. He devoted
Robert of his life to the care of his estate in Westchester County,
Fordham ^Lud was Instrumental in effecting many reforms and
improvements in that shire. Two of his children played active
parts in the middle of the nineteenth century, Robert Hunter
and Lewis Gouverneur.

Gouverneur II. [1813], son of Gouverneur, Minister to France,
was noted for his activity in the development of the internal re-
sources of the United States in the first half of the nineteenth

Lewis Gouverneur Morris

From a steel engraving by Samuel Sartain

flDorris 35

century. He was twice married: first to his cousin, Martha
Jefferson Gary, of Virginia, and, second, to his cousin,

■' J < o > y Gouverneur II.

Anna Morris. He left two sons, Gouverneur 111. the
journalist, and Randolph. Gouverneur 111. is represented in the
seventh generation by Gouverneur IV.

In the sixth generation, the Signer was represented by the
three sons of Commodore Richard Valentine: Gerard Walton, who
was graduated from Columbia in 1818, and was for Gerard

many years a leading lawyer in New York; Henry, who waiton
was graduated from Columbia in 1826, and was also a barrister;
and Richard Valentine II.

Robert Hunter II., son of Robert of Fordham, was a member
of the Constitutional Convention of 1848, Recorder and Mayor Robert
Mayor of the city of New York for three terms, and Hunter

Justice of the Supreme Court.

Lewis Gouverneur [1808], son of Robert of Fordham, took up
his father's work, and devoted himself to the development of the
southern port of Westchester County. As early as ^ewis

1838, he began the movement for the deepening and Gouverneur
rectification of the Harlem River, and for the drainage
of the marshes in its neighborhood. He encountered consider-
able opposition from the conservative elements of the district, but
by sheer pluck and indomitable patience carried his plans through
to a triumphant end. His greatest victory has its memorial in
that noble structure, the High Bridge. When it was determined
to bring the Croton water through to New York, the first proposi-
tion was to build a solid structure, which would have rendered
the Harlem unnavigable. Lewis fought the project with all his
strength, and urged an aqueduct along the lines of the present
structure. His plans excited an outburst of protestations upon the
ground of extravagance, corruption, and folly. He even went so
far as to employ force.

When the contractors began driving strong piles which
threatened to close the stream, he studied the laws and found
some precedents whereby he could legally sail a heavily laden
craft through the navigable stream even when this was impeded

36 HDorris

by trespassers. He chartered an unwieldy craft, loaded it in Phila-
delphia with coal, sailed it up the Harlem at flood-tide, and as he
approached the piling refused to drop anchor. The tide made
the vessel an enormous battering ram, which swept away the
works like reeds. He anchored a quarter of a mile above, and
upon the ebb raised the anchors and swept back, demolishing, it
is said, the little of the structure that remained. This was too
much for the contractors. They gave up their attempt, and the
Harlem River was preserved in its integrity. In the fifties, he
wrote a monograph in favor of a ship canal at Spuyten Duyvil.
The project was regarded as visionary at the time, but was
adopted by the United States Government, and made a fact in
the nineties. He was active in the breeding of fine stock, and was
one of the earliest importers of Devonshires, Shorthorns, and
Southdowns. He prospered so well in this enterprise that,
after a few years, he became an exporter, and sent valuable
cargoes to Cuba, Canada, the Western States, and the Sandwich
Islands. He married Emily Lorillard, daughter of Jacob Lorillard,
by whom he had two sons, Fordham Morris, now
living, and Commander Francis, U. S. N., who died
before him.

In the seventh generation, the main line from Lewis the

Signer is well represented by Henry Lewis, son of Henry of

Morrisania. He married Anna R. Russell, daughter of

enry ewis ^^(-|^j|-,^|^ Russcll and Helen Rutherford Watts. He is

a lawyer, a member of many clubs and scientific societies, and a
patron of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and of the American
Museum of Natural History. Lewis the Signer is represented in
the eighth generation by Lewis Spencer and Eleanor R.

The Morris family resembles the old landed gentry of
England. For more than two centuries they have been identified
with great estates on the one side and public affairs on the other.
Few of their long roll have ever touched trade, and only a minority
have cared for the professions. Where they have taken up the
latter, it has almost invariably been the law, and in this they have
attained the highest success. They make magnificent soldiers,

HDorrts 37

and can look back upon an illustrious record in the three great
wars of American history. From the first they have been marked
by studious habits, broad culture, philanthropy, and patriotism.
By marriage, they have become connected with most of the old
families of the State, but, unlike many others, they have not been
swallowed up, but have on the contrary impressed themselves
upon the other bloods. Starting with a single ancestor in Cap-
tain Richard, they have increased in numbers, generation after
generation, until to-day they can point to more than two hundred
living representatives of their name.

®6G00b

Samuel Osgood

From the painting by J. Trumbull

XXIV

OSGOOD

)AMILIES have characters, like indi-
viduals. Some are stationary, others
move from place to place, and a third
type separates and sends its frag-
ments in various directions. Thus,
the famous King family is identified
with many States. Somev^hat simi-
lar to it is the Osgood family, which
for two centuries has been a power
in both Massachusetts and New York.
The founder was Captain John [i 595],
who came to New England about
1635, and settled in the Bay State. In 1639, he was admitted a
freeman of the town of Newbury. Subsequently, he joined the
pioneer party which settled in the virgin forest, cleared c^pt. john
the land, and established the celebrated town of An- ^^^ Founder
dover. He was a religious enthusiast, and devoted all his leisure
time "to the glory of God," to use the quaint language of the
Puritan days. His was the second house to be erected in the little
settlement, and it had hardly been completed before it was utilized
as the church or "meeting-house" of the neighborhood. The
original homestead remained in the possession of the family for
more than two hundred years.

According to his contemporaries, he feared neither the theo-
logical devil nor the red ones who prowled in the neighborhood,

42 ©00005

He went to church with a musket, and whenever Indian condi-
tions looked threatening, he and his sons went about their busi-
ness armed to the teeth. No better type of the God-fearing and
stout-hearted pioneer can be found in the early pages of New
England.

For a century, the family remained in the neighborhood of its
first home. It grew in numbers, wealth, and influence. The
records show them to have been prominent in commercial, agri-
cultural, political, and ecclesiastical affairs. They were farmers,
merchants, and traders, grand-jurymen, town clerks, assessors,
highway commissioners, selectmen, and chairmen and secretaries
of town meetings, deacons, elders, trustees, moderators, and
clergymen. They had high ideals as to public virtue, and were
honest and patriotic to a fault. From the beginning, they set store
upon public education, and gave their children the best instruction
which could be obtained. The sons were sent to Boston, and
afterwards to Cambridge, when Harvard was established; while
the daughters were carefully brought up in the woman's curric-
ulum of New England. To this period belong such characters as
Colonel Isaac, Dr. Henry, Colonel John, the Rev. Thaddeus, the
Rev. Daniel, Captain Isaac, the Rev. David, Dr. Kendall, Captain
Samuel, and Colonel John.

When the agitation began throughout the colonies in favor of
greater liberty and in opposition to the tyrannical features of the
colonial government, it found the Osgoods among the strongest
supporters of popular rights. They were not agitators, but zealots.
They were not to be bribed nor corrupted, because their wealth
rendered them independent and above temptation, and their high
social position made them superior in many respects to the officials
who were sent across the sea from Westminster to govern the
Crown possessions.

Between 1760 and 1776, their name dots the record of the cam-
paign for freedom. In 1765, Captain Peter and Colonel John were
r- . r, . members of a committee which drew up resolutions

Capt. Peter ^

against the Stamp Act and other inequitable imposts.
In 1768, Captain Peter was the leading member of the committee

formed to encourage home manufactures in defiance of the policy
of the Crown and to discourage the importation of all superfluities
from Great Britain. When Captain Peter was asked what were
superfluities, he responded with grim Yankee humor: " Everything
imported from England."

in 1774, the indomitable Captain and Dr. Joseph, his cousin,
were members of the Committee of Safety. Of their record in
the Revolution, naught can be said but praise. They

^ ' Dr. Joseph

did not manifest high military talent, but made up for
this by a patience, discipline, endurance, and stoical courage which
are of equal value in the field of Mars. At least thirty served in
the great struggle, one and all of whom made model soldiers.

In this group of distinguished patriots was Samuel [1748], the
statesman, the founder of the branch in "New York City. He was
graduated from Harvard in 1770, and took up the study coionei
of theology. His health breaking down, he relinquished samueithe
the pulpit for public life. In 1774, he was elected
to the Provincial Congress of Massachusetts. When the British
sent their expeditions to Lexington and Concord in 1775, he
organized a company of minute-men, and fought the redcoats at
both places. The same year he was made major, and in the fall
aide-de-camp to General Ward, with the rank of colonel. His
popularity was so great that a colonelcy of a regiment was offered
to him, but he declined on the ground that there were many
better soldiers than himself who could take the command, and
that he could do more good for his fellow-countrymen as a mem-
ber of the Provincial Congress.

Upon entering that body, he was made a member of the Board
of War, on which he served with signal success for four years. He
then became a Senator and a member of the Continental Congress,
where he remained until 1784. He was again elected, and in 1785
was made a Judge. A few months afterwards, the Federal Govern-
ment appointed him First Commissioner of the United States
Treasury, which he remained until 1789. He was then appointed
Postmaster-General, which post he held until 1791, when he re-
signed because he preferred remaining a private citizen in New

44 ©SQOOD

York City to being a Cabinet officer in Philadelphia, to which city
the national capital was then removed. The people of New York
must have appreciated the compliment thus paid, because they
elected him to the State Legislature (1800-1801-1802), and during
the first two years of that period he was made the Speaker ol the
Assembly. From 1801 to 1803, he was State Supervisor, and from
the last-named year to his death in 181 3 he was the Naval Officer
of the Port of New York.

During the thirty years in which he resided in the metropolis
he was one of its most distinguished citizens. No man had more
at heart the welfare of the community. When the present public-
school system was devised, on the list of the incorporators the
first two names were those of De Witt Clinton and Samuel
Osgood. It may be interesting to know the names of the public-
spirited men to whom the present City of New York is under so
many obligations. In addition to the two mentioned, were Brock-
hoist Livingston, John Murray, Jr., Jacob Morton, Thomas Eddy,
Daniel D. Tompkins, John Pintard, Thomas Pearsall, the Rev.
Dr. Samuel Miller, Joseph Constant, Robert Bowne, Matthew
Clarkson, Archibald Gracie, John McVickar, Charles Wilkes,
Henry Ten Broeck, Gilbert Aspinwall, Valentine Seaman, William
Johnson, William Coit, Matthew Franklin, Adrian Hegeman,
Leonard Bleecker, Benjamin G. Minturn, Thomas Franklin, Samuel
Russell, Samuel Doughty, Alexander Robertson, Samuel Torbert,
John Withington, William Edgar, George TurnbuU, William Boyd,
Jacob Mott, Benjamin Egbert, Thomas Farmer, and Dr. Samuel
Latham Mitchell.

When the New York City Dispensary was founded, he was
one of the first trustees, and in nearly all of the public movements
in the last part of the eighteenth century he was a conspicuous fig-
ure. Beneath the man of affairs was the thinker and the scholar.
Late at night and early in the morning he devoted his time to
studying topics utterly disconnected with the routine of his life.
Among the works which he published were a monograph on
Chronology, a curious study upon Daniel and Revelation, Theology
and Metaphysics, Letters on Episcopacy, and other philosophic,

©SgOOb 45

Biblical, historical, and ecclesiastical topics. He was twice mar-
ried, his first wife being Martha Brandon, who had no issue, and
his second, Maria Bowne Franklin, widow of Walter Franklin,
after whom Franklin Square, "New York City, was named, by
whom he had three daughters. Of these, Martha Brandon
married the French Minister, Edmond C. Genet, from whom
comes the Genet family of New York; Julia married her cousin,
Samuel Osgood, and Susan Maria married Moses Field, and was
the mother of Judge Maunsell B. Field.

Samuel [1812], of the sixth generation, a famous divine, was
graduated from Harvard College (1832), and from the Harvard
Divinity School (1835). After a brief career as an Rev. Dr.
editor, he took a pulpit in Nashua, N. H., and in 1849 ^*'°"^'
accepted the pastorate of the Church of the Messiah in Nev/ York
City, in which place he died in 1880. His life may be divided into
two epochs: twenty years in active clerical labor and eleven in
hard literary work.

His contributions to American literature were numerous and
valuable. Among his chief productions were Studies in Christian
Biography, God with Men, The Hearthstone, Milestones in Our
Life's Journey, Student Life, American Leaves, and an address
before the New York Historical Society upon "Thomas Craw-
ford on Art in America." He translated from the German Her-
man Olshausen's History of the Passion, and De Wette's Human
Life. For four years he was editor of the Christian Inquirer,
while his magazine articles, lectures, college addresses, and crit-
ical studies were more than two hundred in number.

In the seventh generation were several conspicuous members.
Walter Franklin [1791] was educated at Columbia College (1809),
from which he also received the degree of A.M. He inherited a
handsome fortune, of which he took good care. He was promi-
nent in church and social circles, and was connected with several
moneyed institutions. The Rev. Alfred [1807] was a Rev. Alfred,
scholarly and enthusiastic home missionary. Ordained Missionary
in 1835, he took up the onerous life of an evangelist in newly
opened or sparsely peopled districts. For ten years he labored in

46 ©sgoob

Ulster County and adjacent districts in the Catskills, and then, at
the request of the Missionary Board, he went to La Salle, 111.,
where he worked with remarkable success. Besides founding
several churches, he mapped out and planned a settlement upon
the open prairie which grew into the present community of Hope-
town. He married Paulia C. Pelt, by whom he had three children.
Of these, Alfred T., the only son [1844], was prominent in finan-
cial matters. He married Clara Kenyon, by whom he had issue.

The Rev. David [1813] was notable in the Methodist Epis-
copal Church. His eloquence and scholarship have given him an
Reverend enviable celebrity. He was twice married : first, to
David Harriet K. Ladd, and, second, to Maria Carle. His

children were three in number : David L. [1843], Mary M. [1851],
and Harriet K. [1854].

Samuel Stillman, the artist [1808], was for many years prom-
inent in the world of painting. His specialty was portrait-mak-
samueis., ing, aud many of his canvases are treasured in the
Artist great public collections of the country. He married

twice — first, Frances Sargent Locke of Boston, and, second,
Sarah R. Howland of New York. The first wife, Frances, was
the author known by the pen name of " Fanny Forrester." Her
literary talent was developed at an early age, and she wrote sev-
eral fine poems when a mere child. Her contributions to period-
icals were many and attractive. Most of them were collected and
published in book form. Among her works were The Casket of
Fate, A Wreath of Wild Flowers from New England, The Poetry
of Flowers and the Flowers of Poetry, Poems, The Floral Offering,
and Poems. From 1840 to her death the Osgoods resided in New
York, during which time their home was a literary and artistic
centre.

In the eighth generation, the Rev. Howard [183 1] was the
most distinguished. He took sacred orders and settled finally in
Reverend Rochester, wherc he conducted a very successful pas-
Howard torate. He v/as a contributor to the religious press.
He married Caroline Townsend Lawrence of New York, by whom
he had issue.

o -s

be 2

o -^

— bO

o
o

cyo

Q I

©SOOOb 47

In the ninth generation, a conspicuous member is Professor
Herbert Levi. He was graduated from Amherst (1877), where he
took the degree of A.M. in 1880. He entered the Post- professor
Graduate School of Political Science at Columbia Uni- ""^"' l-^'*
versify, where in 1889 he received the degree of Ph.D. He is
an educator by profession, and is now professor of history at
Columbia.

Howard Lawrence [1855], son of the Rev. Howard, was a
lawyer at Rochester, and was identified with the affairs of that
city. He married Catharine Rochester Montgomery, by whom
he has had issue.

The characteristic of the Osgood race has been a strong
religious nature. At the beginning of their career they were
stern, and it may be narrow, Puritans. The pioneers of Massa-
chusetts were tolerant only of themselves and denied to others
the liberty of worship for which they themselves were ready to die.
With the increase of wealth and culture, their natures broadened,,
and their religious conceptions grew more generous. In the
eighteenth century, the leading representatives had departed from
the iron creed of the seventeenth, while in the nineteenth, many
of them belonged to the most liberal faiths.

No family has given a larger number of sons to the pulpit.
There have been so many that the name has a distinctly religious
sound. The tendencies which are involved in this field of spirit-
ual endeavor have shaped the destinies of those who did not
enter the sacred calling. Many Osgoods have been famous in
charities, institutional work, the Red Cross Society, prison reform,
and the management of asylums and hospitals. The wealth and
culture of the race have been expressed by the contingent who
have entered other learned professions. Among them are editors,
poets, playwrights, historians, lawyers, physicians, archaeologists,
pedagogues, and artists. Few seem to have cared for commer-
cial life, and while intensely patriotic, they have not enjoyed the
perpetual clash and struggle which prevail in political life.

Their career in the Empire State has been paralleled by that in
the Bay State. Those who have gone into other commonwealths

48 ©SQOOb

have carried with them their simple modes of living, their culture
and love of learning, and their intense civic and patriotic spirit.
While the family has never been marked by great wealth, high
military genius, or political skill, it has impressed itself upon the
State and nation by its indomitable moral and religious force. It
has been a power for good, from the first pioneer, who wor-
shipped God with his loaded musket in hand, down to the score
of clergymen who are trying to raise the moral standards of
to-day.

potter

Bishop Aloit^o Potter
From a painting

XXV

POTTER

HERE is something heroic about a re-
ligious zealot. The sacrifice of self
upon the altar of an ideal appeals to
the heart, no matter whether the
sacrifice consists of an anchoritic life
of abnegation and suffering, of an
evangelist's career in the dark com-
munities of the world, or of the turbu-
lent existence of the reformer, trying
to arouse his generation to a loftier
manhood. In the early settlement
of New England, these types of men
were numerous and noticeable. What could be more picturesque
than Miles Standish praying with extreme unction for God's bless-
ing upon the heathen redskins, and then sallying forth with the
sword and gun to send as many as he possibly could into the
presence of their Creator ? What dramatic possibilities are bound
up in the experience of Lion Gardiner at Fort Saybrook, where his
day was divided into fragments which were applied to study,
engineering, manual labor, prayer, praise, and taking arms against
"the hellish Indians." No less memorable was the Robert

fierce enthusiasm of Robert Potter, of Warwick, R. 1., t^e Founder
who founded a race which added lustre to American annals.

He came from Coventry, England, which seems to have been
a hotbed of religious zeal, and in his early manhood had evolved a

52 potter

stern and heroic belief which made him a thorn in the flesh to his
neighbors. It is hard for us who enjoy the liberal spirit of the
twentieth century to understand the exact position of the man's
mind concerning affairs spiritual. He has been called a Quaker,
but he certainly had little in common with that meek and long-
suffering sect. Other critics have called him an Antinomian, both
of the Lutheran and Calvinistic varieties, and yet his opinions can-
not be interpreted according to either of those schools of religious
thought. As a matter of fact, he probably was a law unto him-
self Intensely devout, full of enthusiasm and energy, he tried to
live according to his own canons and resented all attempts to
circumscribe his liberty by well-meaning but officious third parties.

He came to the Massachusetts Plantations in 1634, and the same
year was made a freeman under the ancient law. This indicates
that he was a man of education, high intelligence, and some
means. He settled first at Lynn, and thence removed to Rox-
bury. Here he had a violent altercation with the church, in which
he was haled before the courts and compelled to give bonds for
his appearance unless " hee bee with his family removed out ot the
plantation before. " This decorous way of exiling a citizen resulted
in his migrating to Rhode Island, where, with a group of associ-
ates, he bought the tract of land called the Shawomet purchase,
which was christened Warwick, in honor of the Earl of that name
who had espoused their cause during their quarrels with Massa-
chusetts. Although Rhode Island was exceedingly liberal com-
pared with Massachusetts, it was not long before the fearless
agitator found himself in hot water with his new neighbors, and
was imprisoned and otherwise punished for his "blasphemies."
In 1643, he had the honor of being excommunicated by his bigoted
neighbors.

During the next four generations the family prospered and
waxed numerous. Its stern fanaticism changed to intellectual
and civic activity, and its members rose to become prominent
actors in the drama of colonial life. The records of Rhode Island
show them to have held many offices, and to have been marked
by probity, intellectuality, and sound sense. One branch settled

potter 53

in Massachusetts, and gave many distinguished sons to the service
of the colony, and afterwards to the State; a second became
prominent in the development of New Hampshire, while a third
settled in New York, and in the course of time came to rival the
main branch in the distinction and public service of its members.

The line of descent of the New York branch is clear and
simple. Robert's son, John [1639], married Ruth Fisher; their son
John [1669] married Jane Burlingame; their son John [1695] rn^r-
ried Mrs. Phcebe Arnold Greene, widow, a daughter Joseph the
of Stephen and Mary (Sheldon) Arnold; and their son New York
Thomas [1735] married Esther Sheldon. Of their off-
spring, Joseph [1757], who married Anna Knight, was the founder
of the New York family. John [1695], Thomas [1735], and Joseph
[1757] were Quakers.

Joseph, of New York, was a well-educated and industrious
character, who on arrival in New York State settled in Beekman,
now La Grange, Dutchess County. He became prominent in his
new home, and enjoyed the affection of his fellow-citizens. They
elected him to many positions of honor, of which the most
important was the Assemblymanship, he being sent to Albany as
a representative in 1798 and 1814. Here he proved an intelligent
legislator and an incorruptible politician.

The great characters of the seventh generation were his two
sons. Bishops Alonzo and Horatio. Alonzo fiSoo] was graduated
from Union College (1818), where he was the honor Bishop

man of his class. Shortly after his graduation, he took ^'°°^°

up theological studies with a view of entering the pulpit. In the
meantime, he served as a tutor at his Alma Mater, and on coming
of age was made professor of mathematics and physics at that
institution.

In 1824, he took orders and married, his wife being Sarah
Maria Nott, daughter of the Rev. Dr. Eliphalet Nott, President
of Union College. In 1832, he was appointed to fill the chair of
moral and intellectual philosophy and political economy. Six
years later, he became Vice-President of Union, which position he
administered with great ability up to the time of his election as

54 potter

Protestant Episcopal Bishop of Pennsylvania. This new honor
was the opportunity of his lifetime. Too often the position is
viewed as a reward for past services and as a vacation after years
of earnest effort. In the case of Bishop Alonzo, it was the opening
of a field for greater energy and efficiency.

He had no more than taken the cathedral chair, when he
began a campaign of work which attracted the attention of the
country and made him immortal in the annals of the Protestant
Episcopal Church. He advocated human liberty, and though he
incurred the displeasure of many rabid pro-slavery enthusiasts,
he won the respect and affection of the great masses of the North.
He lectured with marked success, proving himself one of the
brilliant orators of his time. He contributed largely to American
literature, his writings displaying an almost phenomenal versa-
tility. These writings include a treatise on logarithms and a course
of lectures on the evidences of Christianity, a treatise on descrip-
tive geometry, a noble volume on "Religious Philosophy," a
sound text-book on " Political Economy," and a critical edition of
a volume of poems. His most notable achievement was the
organization of the forces of his Church into instrumentalities for
practical work. His eloquence and goodness, coupled with extra-
ordinary executive ability, made easy for him what to others
would have been insuperable, and resulted in an advance of his
Church in every direction.

Among other things that were accomplished during this time
were the building and endowment of the Protestant Episcopal
hospital of his diocese, the establishment of the Protestant Episco-
pal Academy, the foundation of the Protestant Episcopal Divinity
School of Philadelphia, and the erection of no less than thirty-five
new churches in the city of Philadelphia. So great was the amount
of labor involved that his health broke down under the strain and
he was compelled to seek the relief of an assistant. The conse-
quences of his work were a growth of his diocese in wealth,
numbers, and activity, which necessitated its division into two
separate organizations. He married three times. By his first
wife, Sarah Maria "Nott, he had the Hon. Clarkson N. [1825],

potter 55

who married Virginia Mitchell; Howard [1826], who married Mary
L. Brown; General Robert B. [1829], who married, first, Francis
Tileston, and second, Abigail Stevens; Edward Tuckerman [1831],
who married Julia Blatchford; the Right Rev. Henry Codman
[183s], who married Eliza Rogers; EliphaletN. [1837], who married
Helen Fuller; and Maria [1839], who married Launt Thompson.
By his second wife, Sarah Porter, he had James Neilson [1841],
who married Harriet Duer Jones; William A. [1842]; and Frank
Hunter [1851], who married Alice Key. His third wife was
Frances Seton.

Bishop Horatio [1802] was graduated from Union in 1826,
and admitted to the priesthood two years later. The same
year he was made professor of mathematics and Bishop

physics in Washington, now Trinity, College. Five Horatio
years later, he became rector of St. Peter's Church, Albany, where
he labored with great power and success twenty-one years. In
1845, he was made Provisional Bishop of the Diocese of New York,
and in 1861, Bishop.

His work in New York may be compared with that of his
brother in Philadelphia, being marked by the same great adminis-
trative talent, contagious enthusiasm, and deep belief in the
efficacy of organized effort. The Church grew rapidly, and in
1868 the diocese had become so unwieldy that it was divided into
three parts, Albany and Long Island being erected into separate
jurisdictions. Marked by ripe scholarship and literary skill, his
addresses, sermons, and occasional contributions to Church litera-
ture exerted a strong and wholesome influence wherever read.
During the war his patriotism was marked, and at all times his
labors for the ignorant, poor, and sick were continuous and effi-
cient. He married, first, Mary Jane Tomlinson, and, second,
Margaret Pollock. Among his children were Charles Henry [1 828],
Mary Jane [1830], Anna [183 1], David T. [1836], Phcebe [1838],
Horatio [1840], Robert Minturn [1843], Professor William Bleecker
[1846], and Mary J. [1848].

The eighth generation was marked by many men of emi-
nence. The Hon. Clarkson Nott [1825] was graduated from

56 potter

Union (1842), studied civil engineering at the Rensselaer Poly-
technic, and thereafter law, and was admitted to the bar. This
thorough education made him a valued member of the
Nou, community, and in 1868 he was elected to Congress,

statesman ^jig^g j^g served three terms until 1875, and thereafter
served two terms, from 1877 to 1881. From the first he was a
prominent character in the House of Representatives. His greatest
achievement was his exposure of the frauds in the Presidential
election of 1876, being chairman of the committee which investi-
gated the matter, and doing the lion's share of the work. For
many years he was one of the great leaders of the New York
Democracy, and was at one time President of the American Bar
Association.

Howard, the banker [1826], was born at Union College, and
graduated therefrom in 1846. He came into great prominence
Howard duHug the Civil War, when he organized many relief
the Banker associations and other patriotic societies, and may be
justly called one of the fathers of the famous United States Sani-
tary Commission. He was an incorporator of the American Mu-
seum of Natural History and of the Metropolitan Museum of Art,
and an organizer of the New York State Charities Aid Association.
In 1873, he was elected President of the New York Association for
Improving the Condition of the Poor. He has played an import-
ant part in the various societies which have been established for
the preservation of scenery and historical monuments, the estab-
lishment of state and local parks, and the reservation of Niagara
Falls as a public pleasure-ground.

The soldier of this generation was General Robert B. [1829].
He studied at Union College, and afterwards took up law, and
Major-Generai was admitted to the bar. At the breaking out of the
Robert B. (-{vil War he gave up a lucrative practice to aid in the
defence of the Union. He fought like a hero, and rose rapidly,
becoming a brigadier-general in 1863. The following year he was
brevetted major-general, and on his wedding day Secretary-of-
War Stanton presented the wife with his commission as full
major-general. At the close of the war he gave up army life and

Maria Nott

Wife of Bishop Alonzo Potter

Hon. Clarkson N. Potter

From a pliotograph

potter 57

became interested in railway corporations. According to General
Hancock, General Potter was one of the twelve best officers in the
American Army.

Edward Tuckerman [1831], architect and musician, was grad-
uated from Union (i8si), and devoted his life to Edward
study, architecture, and music. He was as well known Tuckerman,
in Europe, where he resided for a long time, as in his
native country.

For forty years he made a special study of the problem of
housing the masses, during which time he personally investigated
every type of model tenement in the great cities of the world and
compiled an immense mass of valuable facts bearing upon every
phase of the subject. He embodied these studies in a model
tenement, which was exhibited at the Columbian Exposition in
Chicago in 1893, for which he received a medal from the Exposi-
tion authorities, and which has been widely approved by stu-
dents of the tenement-house question. In 1897, he was made
an honorary member of the New York Chapter of the Amer-
ican Institute of Architects. The position of Supervising Archi-
tect of the Treasury Department was offered to him by President
Grant, and, on his declining it, was given to his brother, William
Appleton.

The Right Rev. Henry Codman [1835], Bishop of the Pro-
testant Episcopal Church of New York, was a worthy successor
of both his distinguished father and uncle. He was Bishop

educated at the Episcopal Academy, Philadelphia, and Henry c.
the Virginia Theological Seminary, where he was graduated in
1857. He served with marked success at Greensburg, Pa., St.
John's, Troy, and Trinity, Boston. In 1868, he became rector ot
Grace Church, New York, where he remained sixteen years.
During this time, he declined the Presidency of Kenyon College
(1863), and the Bishopric of Iowa (1875). In 1883, he was elected
Assistant Bishop to his uncle, the Right Rev. Horatio. Four
years later, on the death of the latter, he became his successor.

His policy has been that which has marked the great divines
of his race— that of a patriot upon all national matters, a civic

58 potter

leader upon municipal questions, a tireless advocate of educational
reform and progress, and a resolute worker in philanthropic enter-
prises. During a life of the hardest kind of work, he has found
time to publish several books of literary excellence and general
value. His most notable work of recent years has been his states-
manlike effort to harmonize the interests of labor and capital, and
to Christianize the "Submerged Tenth," in both of which cases
his endeavors have met with gratifying success.

The Rev. Eliphalet Nott [1837] was a graduate of Union Col-
lege (1861), and of Berkeley Divinity School (1852). in 1866, he
President was made professor of ethics at Lehigh University, and
Eliphalet N. j,-, ,§y, President of Union College, and afterwards
President when the college was made into a university, in 1884,
he declined the Bishopric of Nebraska to accept the Presidency of
Hobart College. He died on February 16, 1901.

Professor William Bleecker [1846] was one of the great
educators of the country. He was graduated from Columbia
Professor with high honors in 1866, and thereupon entered the
William B. celebrated School of Mines of that university, where he
took the degree of E.M. in 1869. For two years he was assist-
ant professor of geology, and at the same time served as a geol-
ogist upon the State Geological Survey of Ohio, in 1871, he
became professor of mining engineering and metallurgy at Wash-
ington University, St. Louis, Mo. No one stands higher among
the scientific experts of the land, nor enjoys a greater esteem
among the learned societies of this country and Europe, in
1888, he was made President of the American Institute of Mining
Engineers.

It would be difficult to surpass the record of the Potter family
so far as intellectuality and mental achievements are concerned.
It is difficult, indeed, to equal it. The record of the main branch
is longer and marked by a greater number of distinguished men,
but it may be questioned whether, in general, they have attained
the high levels of their New York kinsmen. They have achieved
fame in the pulpit as orators, and in the cathedral chair as execu-
tives and organizers. In science, pedagogy, architecture, music,

Ipotter 59

literature, and at the bar, they have won enviable reputations for
that high ability which borders upon genius.

In national and civic affairs they have been marked by patriot-
ism, humanity, and philanthropy, and in private life they have
been characterized by a culture, refinement, and grace which have
made them leaders of society for a hundred years.

IRapalje

Jacob Rapalje

From a steel engraving

XXVI

RAPALJE

^ELIGIOUS forces are potent factors in
the breaking up of old and in the
establishment of new communities.
The wars between the Romanists
and Huguenots of France are an in-
teresting exemplification of this fact,
especially to an American student.
The revocation of the Edict of Nantes
drove tens of thousands of the Re-
formed faith into more liberal coun-
tries, and of these a considerable
portion crossed the Atlantic and set-
tled in the Dutch colonies of America, where they soon became a
large and influential element in the community.

Among the first settlers in the New Netherlands, was Joris
Janes de Rapalie, a noble Huguenot of La Rochelle, France, better
known under the Dutch form of his name, Jan Joris janjoris,
Rapaelje. His family had been distinguished in the Founder
history of Brittany from the middle of the eleventh century. In
this romantic province they owned large estates, and were famous
for their valor and patriotism. Many of them took part in the
Crusades, while others achieved distinction in the French wars at
home and abroad. They were among the first converts to the
Reformed faith, and paid the usual penalty for their non-con-
formity. Some were killed, while the majority were forced to

flee to Switzerland, Belgium, and Holland.

64 IRapalJe

Joris was among those who escaped to Holland, Here he
remained a short time, and then, with a company of venturous
men and women, he took passage in the ship Unity of the Dutch
West India Company, and arrived in New Amsterdam in 1623,
being one of the earliest settlers. He stayed a short while at New
Amsterdam, and then went to Fort Orange, now Albany. Here
he remained three years, and returned to New Amsterdam, where
he lived until 1637. '" June of that year he bought a large tract
of land from the Indians on the Long Island side of the East
River, and there made his permanent home. The tract was of
335 acres, and included a large part of what was called the Walla-
bout. He was a man of high integrity, and a few years after his
arrival in Brooklyn he was made a magistrate. He married Cata-
lina Trico, daughter of Joris Trico of Paris, by whom he had
eleven children: Sarah [1625], Marritje [1627], Jannetje [1629],
Judith [1635], Jan [1637], Jacob [1639,] Catalyntje [1641], Jeroni-
mus [1643], Annetje [1646], Elizabeth [1648], and Daniel [1650].

Of these Sarah, the eldest, was the first female child born in
the New Netherlands. In honor of this fact, the authorities pre-
sarah, the scntcd her with a tract of land on the Wallabout ad-
First Girl jaceut to her father's farm. Sarah was a woman of
great talent and physical vigor, and during her long life was the
acknowledged social head of Brooklyn. She was twice married,
her husbands being Hans Hansen Bergen and Tunis Gysbert
Bogaert. By these unions she had fourteen children, becoming
thereby the maternal ancestress of the Bergen and Bogart families
of Long Island.

Jeronimus, in the second generation, was a man of promi-
nence in both New York and Brooklyn. He was a farmer and
merchant. Justice of the Peace, and a deacon of the

Jeronimus

Brooklyn Church. He owned several small craft,
with which he supplied the market of New York with produce,
and turned an honest penny by carrying freight for his neighbors.
He accumulated considerable property, and left his children well
provided for. His wife was Anna, daughter of Tunis Denys, by
whom he had six sons and three daughters.

IRapalie 65

Daniel, the youngest child of Joris, was a man of high char-
acter and of a strong religious nature. He took comparatively little
interest in public affairs, but devoted his time and oaniei

wealth to church work. He was an elder of the the Devout
Brooklyn Church the larger part of his life, and made it a point of
duty to visit regularly all the places of worship belonging to his
denomination. The church records of that period speak of him
in very high terms, and ascribe the prosperity of his denomination
largely to his generous aid. He married Sarah Klock, daughter
of Abraham Klock, by whom he had six children.

In the third generation were several male members of ability
and influence. Tunis [1671], son of Jeronimus, was active and
versatile, having been a farmer, stock-raiser, merchant, Tunis

and sheep-owner. He was an enthusiastic churchman, ^^^ Deacon
and served as deacon of the Brooklyn Church for many years.
He married Sarah Van Vechten, by whom he had seven children.

Jacob [1679], son of Jeronimus, married Sarah Brinckerhoff,
daughter of Abraham Brinckerhoff, by whom he had a large
family. He settled in Raritan, N. J., where he founded the New
Jersey branch of his race.

Cornelius [1690] married Joanna Antonides, daughter of the
Rev. Vincentius Antonides, by whom he had many daughters,
nearly all of whom grew up and married advantageously. He
resided in New York, and from his branch came the Rapaljes who
married into the New York families of that period.

Jeronimus [1682] was a prosperous land-owner, shipper, and
merchant, who was active in religious and philanthropic affairs,
and who served twenty-five years as a trustee of the jeronimus,
town of Brooklyn. He took delight in good roads and Town-trustee
bridges, and was marked by great fidelity to his trusteeship. He
married Hilletie Van Vechten, daughter of Hendrick Van Vechten,
by whom he had five children.

Daniel, son of Daniel [1691], settled in Newtown, where he
established the Queens County branch of the family. He married
Aletie Cornell, daughter of Johannes Cornell, by whom he had
ten children. He was a prosperous farmer, and founded an estate

VOL. II. -5.

66 TRapalje

which grew to large proportions, under the management of his
descendants.

In the fourth generation, the male descendants began to
change from agricultural to mercantile pursuits. In the meantime,
the growth of Brooklyn and New York had enhanced the value
of farm property and of garden produce, so that nearly all the
sons were quite well to do. George, son of Tunis, bought
property in Bedford, which was then developing into a very
prosperous village. He improved it, so that its value almost
doubled during his lifetime. He married Elizabeth Remsen,
daughter of Joris Remsen, by whom he had five children —
Sarah [1722], George [1724], Tunis [1726], Rem [1728], and
Phoebe [1731].

Jeronimus and his brother Derrick (sons of Jeronimus) fol-
lowed their uncle Jacob and migrated to New Jersey, settling
first at Raritan and afterwards at Brunswick. Each married, the
former having two sons, Cornelius and Tunis, and the latter,
George and Jeronimus.

Daniel, son of Daniel, was the thriftiest member of the family.
He was very successful in business, and eight years after his father
died bought the paternal estate at Newtown. He man-
s^ *°'^ 2ged it with prudence and amassed great wealth. He
was a magistrate of the town, and held many positions of honor
and trust in the ecclesiastical, commercial, legal, and social
world.

About this time the conflict of English and Dutch spelling
brought about a curious change of the name. Heretofore it had
been spelled Rapalie; now, on account of slurs cast upon the
Dutch Knickerbockers, the family adopted the Holland spelling.
They could not agree, however, upon the form, and no less than
three versions appeared. The largest number accepted Rapalje,
while two other groups employed Rapaelje and Rapelje respect-
ively. The French particle of place, "de," was now omitted
altogether.

Folkert [1719], son of Tunis, resided at Cripplebush, and
devoted himself to horticulture. He married Matilda Polhemus,

The Rapalje Family Bible, in Possession of Henry
S. Rapalje, Esq.

Title-page of the Rapalje Family Bible and Page Showing Family Records

TRapalje 67

daughter of Cornelius Polhemus, by whom he had one son and
three daughters.

In the fifth generation, Major Daniel [1748], son of Johannes
and grandson of Daniel, was a brave Revolutionary soldier.
Upon the breaking out of the war he took up arms,
served as lieutenant during the conflict, and reached ^^°^
the rank of major at its close. The British holding the western
end of Long Island, he was compelled to fly the country, and did
not see his home until after the British troops had evacuated New
York. He married Agnes Bergen, daughter of Johannes Bergen,
and had a large farm at "New Lots. His children were John,
Daniel, Samuel, and Michael.

From this branch are descended several men of distinction.
His grandson, Williamson, was a skilful portrait painter and a pros-
perous man of affairs. His great-grandson, Daniel wiiuamson,
[1836], was educated at Rutgers, and after graduation ^'^^^*-

entered the theological department and took orders. As soon as
he was ordained he offered his services to the Foreign Danieithe
Missionary Society, which sent him to the Amoy Mis- Evangelist
sion, in China, of the Reformed Church in America. Here he
labored for over thirty years, building up a large and faithful con-
gregation of Chinese converts. The work accomplished by Dr.
Rapalje and his heroic assistants borders on the marvellous.
When he went there in the early sixties, the place was the most
notoriously evil on the China coast. Superstition was rife, and
the Tong-An district, just back of the city of Amoy, had supplied
pirates to the China Sea from time immemorial.

The good doctor determined upon invading the latter field.
He organized all the missionaries of the district into a compact
whole and assigned to each a specific duty. He established
preaching centres throughout the large territory and placed sev-
eral at the more important points among the rough populace of
Tong-An. For many years the task seemed fruitless, and then it
began to bring forth a harvest. Chapels, schools, and, finally,
churches, were founded. In 1890, the turbulent district had be-
come quiet and orderly, and the evangelists found themselves

68 TRapalje

supported by fifty native exhorters of ability and courage. Then
began the foundations of a college on the Island of Kulang-Su,
and, in 1895, several hundred children attended the schools of Dr.
Daniel and his associates.

Rem [1728], the son of George, took up mercantile life in New
York, which he made his residence. Here he amassed a hand-
some fortune, and fmaily retired from business and settled in Pel-
ham. He married Ellen Hardenbrook, by whom he had issue.
George His son George [1771] was graduated from Columbia

the Scholar j,-, ^Jg^^ ^j^^j admitted to the bar in 1794. He had a
large practice, but tlnally confined his work to the management
of his estate, especially after 1805, when his father died, leaving
him a fortune. He was a man of strong literary tastes, and de-
voted his leisure to travel and study. He published many mono-
graphs upon special topics, and, in 1834, a volume upon his travels.
He married Susan Eliza Provost, daughter of Bishop Provost.

George B., grandson of George, who was a grandson of Joris,
was a famous character in his time, and was noted for his strange
ill-luck. His grandfather, George, was drowned in New York
Bay in 1781, his cousin George in 1795, and his uncle George, in
1799, met a similar fate. This singular coincidence of a m.an, his
son, and grandson, each bearing the same name and meeting the
same doom, attracted great attention. George B. was a talented
business man and prospered from the first. In his youth he fell
in love with a very beautiful girl named Miss Sherred, and became
affianced to her. A month before the wedding-day she fell sick,
and died on the very night she was to have been married. From
that time on the young merchant was a changed man. He gave
up all society, especially that of women, and found his solace in
the excitement of trade. He lived amid the humblest surround-
ings in order to accumulate wealth, and invested his gains with
great shrewdness. Before his death he owned numerous houses
and lands between Thirtieth and Fortieth Streets, Eighth and
Eleventh Avenues. His cousin, George Bernard [1784], was a
merchant of high standing and wealth in the first half of the
nineteenth century.

+->

o
2:

-a
c „

CO "

-4— '

t/)
H

IRapalJc 69

In the sixth generation, George, the son of Daniel, grandson
of John, was distinguished as a merchant and philanthropist. He
was a moving spirit in the charities and church organ- George the
izations of the early part of the nineteenth century. Philanthropist
He married Sarah Elizabeth Staples, by whom he had : Ellen
Maria, George Augustus— who was educated for the Protestant
Episcopal Church, but died before he was ordained,— Sarah Eliza-
beth, and Henry Staples, architect, who is the head of the present
branch of the family in New York.

In the seventh generation, Jacob [1788] commands attention.
He began his business life as a clerk in New York, where his
energy and courtesy soon made him liked by his em- Lieutenant
ployers. Attheoutbreakofthe War of 1812, he enlisted J^"''

and became a lieutenant of artillery. He made a good record as
a soldier, and the regimental order-books which he wrote are still
in existence and bear testimony to his administrative ability. At
the close of the war he started business in Charleston, S. C,
where, in 18 16, he was appointed Deputy Secretary of State. In
1825, he returned to Brooklyn, where he soon became a leader in
the City Council.

He labored for the widening and improving of Atlantic Avenue,
and advocated the present South Ferry. In 1837, he invented a
machine with which he proposed to clean the streets of New
York. His invention was far ahead of the age. It did the work
well, but it aroused the fierce enmity of the street sweepers of the
time, who formed a mob, chased the inventor a mile, and destroyed
the machine. It was fully twenty years before his idea was taken
up and made a part of the street-cleaning equipment. In the
forties, with Cornelius J. Bergen and Alexander Bergen, he started
a movement which resulted in the laying out of Carroll Park and
the reclamation of the marsh lands in South Brooklyn.

This measure changed what before had been an unhealthful
territory into a fashionable neighborhood and paved the way for
the Erie Basin and the great manufacturing establishments which
now are so striking a characteristic of that part of the bor-
ough. He developed the district of Newtown known as Laurel

70 IRapalJe

Hill, and gave it its poetic name. With J. S. T. Stranahan he
was one of the first to advocate the establishment of Prospect
Park, and lived to see the first steps taken towards the realization
of that project. He married Elizabeth Van Mater, by whom he
had seven children. Of his sons, the eldest, Gilbert Van Mater,
became a prominent citizen of Staatsburgh, Dutchess County, and
the youngest, Augustus, remained in New York and Brooklyn.

More than thirty of the family have been prominent mer-
chants in the metropolis, and during the Civil War over eighty
espoused the cause of the Union. The Rapaljes are notable for
the vigor of their members, the large size of their families, and
the preponderance of male over female issue, in this respect they
tower over the other old families of the State with but one excep-
tion, the Schencks. The strength and health of the race is
accompanied or manifested by lightheartedness and geniality.
This is modified by a strong religious nature, which expresses
itself in enthusiastic church work. More than one hundred and
fifty Rapaljes have been deacons, vestrymen, and trustees in the
churches of the Greater New York. In the beginning, they were
stalwart pioneers, and assisted in the settlement of at least fifty
towns in New York and New jersey. In their next stage, they
were skilful farmers, graziers, and carriers. In the third, they were
able merchants, owners of real estate, clergymen, and professional
men. In peace, they have always striven for local improvements
and municipal reform, and in war, they have been active supporters
of the nation. They have cared little for office or title, finding
their chief joy in the performance of their duty — domestic, social,
and civil.

George Rapalje

From a photograph in possession of Henry S. Rapalje, Esq.

IRemsen

IRcmsen

Vanderbeeck, meaning "of the Brook." The family belonged
to the nobility of Germany and of the Netherlands at a very early
period. The first reference to them in the ancient chronicles
was in 1162 a.d., when the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa pre-
sented a valorous knight of their race with a handsome coat-of-
arms. From that time up to the present century their name has
been frequent in the annals of both Germany and Holland,
where they earned honor by courage in war and public services
in peace.

The founder of the race in America was Rem Jansen Vander-
beeck, who came to the New Netherlands in 1642. He was a
„ , farmer, and in addition a skilful blacksmith. At that

Rem Jansen '

Vanderbeeck time the young men of Holland were obliged by law
the Founder ^^^ custom to leam a regular trade in addition to their
ordinary calling. This was dohe for the protection of the com-
munity in the event of inundation by the sea or of beleaguerment
by a foreign army. Soon after Rem's arrival he espoused Jannetje,
the handsome daughter of joris Jansen de Rapalje, and settled in
Albany, then Fort Orange. He took up a farm, opened a forge,
and prospered in both callings. He was a man of powerful
physique and sweet disposition, a good-natured, laughing giant,
who won the affections of young and old. A kind husband and
a loving father, he soon had ample opportunity for the use of both
virtues, having a family of which fifteen grew up and married.

He accumulated property and would doubtless have remained
in his first home but for the rumors of an Indian uprising. He
had no fear for himself, but much solicitude for his little ones.
At the same time, his father-in-law, Joris, bought a large estate at
the Wallabout, and added his persuasion to the other incentives
for removal. Rem complied and took up a fine tract of meadow
and marshland at the Wallabout, which was held by the family
more than two hundred years. In Brooklyn he was as popular
as at Fort Orange. Shortly after his arrival, he was made an
official, and during the second Dutch administration he became a
magistrate. Of his fair wife a family tradition says that in her
babyhood she with her Indian nurse sailed across Buttermilk

IRemsen 75

Channel in a Dutch washtub. That body of water between
Governor's Island and Brooklyn, which now floats an ocean
steamer, was then a shallow estuary, which at very low tide
could be waded across by a grown man.

Rem died in 168 1, and at his funeral his fifteen children with
their wives, husbands, and children were present. It was a seven-
days' talk in New York, and made so deep an impression upon
the public mind that it is probable both his offspring and the
public considered the dead man as a greater personality than the
race of which he was a member, and so induced the adoption of
Remsen as a family name from that time on. The sons were Jan,
Joris, Rem, Jacob, Jeromus, Daniel, Abraham, Isaac, and Jeremias.
Of the daughters, Anna married Jan G. Dorlandt, Hildegond mar-
ried Aris j. Vanderbilt, Femmetie, Joseph Hegeman, Jannetje,
Garret H. Van Nostrand, Catalina, Elbert Adriense, and Sarah,
Martin Adriense.

The members of the second generation left the paternal home-
stead and established themselves at various points. Jan [1648]
became a resident at Flatbush, as did his brother .^^^^

Daniel. Joris settled in Brooklyn, near the ferry. Isaac Fiatbush
[1673] became a Brooklynite. Rem, Jr., went to Flat- Abraham
bush. Jeremias retained the homestead, and Abraham "^Newtown
settled in Newtown. No less than six of the sons left families
which became the nuclei in the next generation of large and
influential branches.

In this third generation, Rem, the son of Jan, removed to
Staten Island, where he became a wealthy farmer and justice of
the peace. John and Isaac, the sons of Isaac, settled Rem

at Oyster Bay, where they were the founders of a the justice
powerful clan. Rem, the son of Rem, was a distinguished church-
man in Brooklyn, whose chief interest in life was the education
of his children. Besides the ordinary tuition of the schools, sup-
plemented by instruction at home, he had each apprenticed to
a trade. When the youths came of age he gave them each a por-
tion of his estate so as to start them in life. The sons settled in
New York, where they founded an important branch of the family.

76 TRcmsen

They were seven in number, and seemed to act always upon the
rule of "all for one and one for all."

Captain Jeromus [170',], the son of Abraham, was probably
the most distinguished member of this generation. He was a
Captain thrifty farmer, who saved enough money from his own
Jeromus f^^j^ ^0 purchase the parental homestead from the other
heirs and add it to his own estate. He was active in church and
state, and held many offices of honor and dignity. He had a
warlike vein in his composition, and from early manhood to old
age was connected with the militia, in which he rose from private
Rem the to captaiu. Rem, the son of Jeremias, was another
Trustee forccful individuality. He removed from the old home-
stead at the Wallabout to Bedford, where he took up a large
farm. He soon became a leader in that settlement, and was
chosen a trustee of Brooklyn, in which office he served from 1 727
to 1776. His brother Christopher was a farmer and land-owner,
who invested wisely in real estate at Fulton Ferry, the Walla-
bout, and Newtown. He left a large fortune, which went to
his two daughters, Heyltie, who married Johannes Schenck, and
Phoebe, who married William Howard.

In the fourth generation the sons of Rem were commanding
figures. They were Abraham [1730], Garrett [1736], Aert [1737],
Major and Luke [1749]. The four were fine specimens of

Abraham Knickerbocker manhood. Their education had been
excellent, and had included a thorough course in technical train-
Lieutenant ing. In the decade prior to the Revolution they were
Garrett ^^ outspokeu iu favor of colonial independence that

they were frequently threatened with prosecution for treason.
Even before the outbreak of hostilities they had supplied them-
selves with a full military equipment, and Aert and Luke, who
were machinists and wheelwrights by trade, started the repair of
firearms for patriotic neighbors and friends.

The beginning of the war found them ready and eager for
Luke the ord- actiou. Abraham and Garrett wcut to the frout, whcre
nance-Master ^]-,gy ployed superb soldiers, the former rising to be
a major, and the latter to be a lieutenant. Luke and Aert, on ac-

The Remsen Farm House

From :i print in Kj/i-"//»(''\ M.iiiu.il. iSs8

Bedford Corners in 1770

From an oM piint

TRemsen -n

count of their technical knowledge, were made masters of ord-
nance, their skill proving invaluable to the colonists. With the
British victories on Long Island, the four brothers retreated, first
destroying everything in their homes, likely to be of value to the
foe, which they could not carry away. During the remainder of
the war the two soldiers were at the front, while the two ma-
chinists were high in command in the Continental workshops at
Peekskill. Of Aert and his wonderful strength many Aert

stories are told. On one occasion, when a speculator the strong
tried to palm off an inferior rifle upon the Government, the big
Long Islander, remarking, " Wc don't want this kind of steel,"
took the weapon and bent it to a right angle with his hands and
knee. At the conclusion of peace, the valiant quartet returned to
their home on the paternal farm, and there passed the remainder
of their days.

No less than ten members of this generation were eminent
merchants in New York. All accumulated goodly estates, and
one, Hendrick [1708], became a man of great wealth. Hendrickthe
Through their opulence, education, numbers, and high Merchant
character, they were prominent in New York society, where they
contracted many admirable matrimonial alliances. In the main,
they married into the old Knickerbocker families, more especially
those of Dutch and Huguenot descent.

In the fifth generation the most noticeable figure was Hen-
drick, or Henry, the merchant [1736]. He inherited his father's
business, as well as a handsome fortune, and from the Henry

time he reached manhood's estate he played an active ^""^ Patriot
role in commercial, religious, political, and social affairs. His
strong love of liberty and his intense enthusiasm gained for him
the sobriquet of " Henry the Whig" before the Revolution, and
' ' Henry the Patriot " afterwards. He was a member of the famous
Committee of One Hundred, and was chairman of the importers
of New York, especially those whose trade was with Great
Britain. They met, October 13, 1774, and at his suggestion
formed the first boycott known in American history. This was
aimed at speculators, more especially unscrupulous adventurers

78 IRemscn

from Great Britain, who were taking advantage of the troublous
times to make corners in the necessaries of life.

The chief personality of the sixth generation was Henry [1762],
son of Henry the Whig. He was tlnely educated and began active
Henry li^ ^s a clerk in his father's counting-house. He left

the Banker ^j^g ^q^\^ iq become private secretary to the Hon. John
Jay, when the latter was Secretary for Foreign Affairs. In 1790, he
returned to business life, and became his father's partner. Five
years later he gave up private business to become first teller of the
United States Branch Bank. From this time on his life was de-
voted to financial institutions, for which he displayed an aptitude
bordering upon genius. The only interruption to this career was
when, at the earnest solicitation of the President, he became
private secretary to Thomas Jefferson. He married Elizabeth,
daughter of Captain Abraham R. de Peyster, by whom he had
nine children.

This generation was marked by wealth and culture. More
than fifty members possessed great estates; some twenty were
college graduates who attained distinction in law, medicine, and
the political arena. The largest number belonged to New York
City; next in importance were those of Brooklyn, while smaller
groups were scattered in Staten Island, Pennsylvania, and other
places.

In the seventh generation were eminent scholars and capital-
ists. William [ 1 8 1 5], son of Henry, was graduated from Princeton
William the 1836, and admitted to the New York bar in 1839. He
Financier relinquished practice to attend to the large estates left
by his father and grandfather. He was deeply interested in banks
and financial corporations, and left a large estate. He married
Jane Suydam, by whom he had eight children. Among the
organizations to which he belonged were the St. Nicholas Society
and the American Geographical Society, of both of which he was
a founder. Robert G., brother of William, was an active man in
the financial world during the middle of the nineteenth century.
He married Mary Delprat, by whom he had Georgiana Delprat,
who married Charles Betts Hillhouse.

IRemsen 79

In the eighth generation have been many professional men of
high repute. Dr. Charles, the son of William, was a physician, and
an executor of his father's estate. He was graduated

Dr. Charles

from Princeton (1877). He married Lilian Livingston

Jones, by whom he had issue. He is represented in the ninth

generation by his son William. He has an estate at Remsensburg.

Dr. Robert George was graduated from the New York
University (1873), and from the College of Physicians and Sur-
geons, Columbia (1876). Henry [1852] was graduated Doctor
from Columbia (1871). Phoenix was graduated from Roberto.
Columbia (1867), and resided on the family estate at West Islip,
"N. Y. Jacob D. [1855] was educated at Erasmus Hall jacobo. the
and the Brooklyn Polytechnic. He early displayed Assemblyman
talent for political life, and began his career as a justice of the
peace. On the annexation of Flatlands to Brooklyn, he became
a city assessor, and remained such until the consolidation of the
boroughs into the greater city. In 1899, he was elected to the
State Assembly, and re-elected in 1900 and 1901.

An eminent living representative of the race is Dr. Ira [1846],
now President of Johns Hopkins University. He was born in
New York City, studied at the City College, and was

-^' J !=> y President Ira

graduated from the College of Physicians and Surgeons
(1867). He went abroad to continue his scientific studies, spent
a year in Munich, and then took a course in Goettingen, where
he took the degree of Ph.D. (1870). For the next two years he
served as assistant professor in the University of Tuebingen, Ger-
many, and at the expiration of that time accepted the professor-
ship of chemistry and physics at Williams College. Here he
achieved fame by his brilliant researches in higher inorganic and
synthetic chemistry. In 1876, his rising fame attracted the atten-
tion of the founders of Johns Hopkins University, who invited
him to take the chair of chemistry in that institution. He ac-
cepted the offer, and from that time until to-day has devoted
himself to researches in chemical and electrical fields, in which he
has become one of the greatest experts of the world. In 1879,
he founded the American Chemical Journal, of which he has

8o TRemsen

been the editor, and to which he has largely contributed ever
since. He has written and translated many standard works upon
chemistry, while numerous monographs have become classics
in the literature of that science. Upon the resignation of Dr.
Oilman from the Presidency of Johns Hopkins University, he was
elected to that post. In 1893, Columbia University conferred
upon him the honorary degree of LLD., and Yale chose him for
similar distinction at her bicentennial. He is a member of numer-
ous chemical and scientific societies at home and abroad, and may
be justly regarded as one of the finest scientific intellects this
country has yet produced.

The history of the Remsens has followed a different line of
development from that of any other Knickerbocker family. Like
most of the early immigrants from the Netherlands, they were
dowered with great intelligence, religiousness, and probity, and
were distinguished for physical health and vigor. They took to
husbandry and the manual trades, succeeding in both and dis-
playing industrial and mechanical aptitude of a high character.
Not until the closing of the eighteenth century was there any
break from this mode of life. Then, as if they were no longer
satisfied with their ancestral occupations, and the wealth which
these had produced, they turned from the plough to the counting-
house, the college, and the political forum. During the nine-
teenth century these tendencies developed, until to-day the family
name is more or less identified with scientific, collegiate, and
political affairs.

IRenwick

Fro/t'ssor Jjines Rciiwick

From iiit oi! pai>itiiig ozciieJ hy Mrs. James Renwick

XXVIll

RENWICK

O Scotland the Empire State owes
some of its best blood. The thrift
and intellectuality which so mark
the Scotch character found full field
for their development in the New
World, and achieved triumphs which
would have been impossible in the
home country, for lack of opportu-
nity. Beyond the substantial virtues
of the Caledonian nature are moral
and spiritual traits of even greater
value. From time immemorial the
people of the Land-o'-Cakes, to use Burns's pet phrase, have
been noted for their affection, loyalty, fidelity to duty, and strong
religious convictions. These qualities were developed by the
stern and rigorous life demanded by the necessities of the country.
in an inclement and sterile land Nature compels the citizens to
lead simple, laborious, and upright lives. There is no other
alternative. Any other course of living implies pauperism and
extinction.

The qualities enumerated mark the history of the Renwick
family, which has attained distinction in the land of its birth and
that of its adoption. In the former they were soldiers, jamesthe
lawyers, merchants, and divines. One of them, James Martyr

Renwick, the martyr, a famous soldier and clergyman of the

84 IRenwicU

seventeenth century, was put to death for his religious and
political opinions. He met his fate with a serenity which im-
pressed deeply the spectators of his execution.

The founder of the family in the United States was James
[1744], who came to New York from Manchester, England, in
James the i?^)' shortly after the American Revolution. He was
Founder ^u eutcrprising and long-headed merchant, who was
well known in the mercantile world of the eighteenth century.
A good father and a kind husband, he was also a public-spirited
and philanthropic citizen. In 1789, we find him, with a group
of friends, organizing The Mercantile Society for Employing the
Industrious Poor and Promoting Manufacturing. His generosity
was noted, especially to church and charitable work.

Of his two children, William [1769] was an able merchant,
who established a direct traffic between Liverpool and New York.
William the ^^ that time Liverpool was a place of but little impor-
Merchant tauce, aud the venture was regarded as a wild specu-
lation. It proved a success and gave renown to its author. So
far as history is concerned, he is not so commanding a figure as his
beautiful wife. She was Jean Jeffrey, daughter of the Rev. Andrew
JelTrey, of the Manse, Lochmaben. Her beauty and talents made
her a belle when a mere child, and attracted the admiration of the
noet, Burn.', who immortalized her in three of his finest poems.
The union of James and Jean was very happy, and was blessed
with six children, three sons and three daughters, of whom five
were to become important members of New York life.

In the third generation. Professor James [1792] was born in
Liverpool, while his parents were on a visit to the old country.
Professor He was of studious habits, and entered Columbia Col-
james jggg ^^ |^}-,g g^Hy agc of eleveu, being then on a par

with most boys of fifteen. He was graduated in 1807, being the
first in his class, which contained such brilliant men as Judge
Bronk, Dr. Burrell, the Rev. John H. Hill, and James Van Cort-
landt. The following year he received the degree of A.M., and in
181 3, at the age of twenty-one, was appointed instructor in natural
and experimental philosophy. In 1820, he was made professor of

IRenwtcl? ' 85

natural and experimental philosophy and chemistry. He held this
double chair with rare ability for thirty-three years, when he was
made professor emeritus. He served as trustee of the college
from 1817 to 1820. During the topographical survey of the United
States, there was a large demand for scientists, and, at the request
of the authorities at Washington, he entered the service as an en-
gineer, with the rank of major, and devoted his summers to the
prosecution of Government work. This occupied him for many
years.

in 1838, he was appointed a Commissioner for the exploration
and delimitation of the northeast boundary between the United
States and New Brunswick. In 1829, Columbia conferred upon
him the degree of LLD. For an ordinary man these labors
would have been ample, but to the Professor they were stimu-
lants to further endeavor. He seemed to begrudge all time that
was not applied to intellectual work. He conducted chemical
and physical experiments, translated works from the French,
edited English text-books on science, compiled reports, composed
biographies, text-books, and compendia; contributed to the press
of the period, and frequently acted as editor. In the list of his
literary labors appear two volumes of his translations, four of his
editing, and fourteen of his own authorship, not to mention re-
ports, commentaries, and fugitive articles. His was the first text-
book on natural philosophy or physics ever published in the
United States, and also the first hand-book on geology.

He was among the first to perceive the great historical im-
portance of the founders of the Republic, and urged upon the
writers of his time the duty of recording the events and the in-
dividuals of the latter part of the eighteenth century, and not
leaving them for time to cover with myth, exaggeration, and
distortion. It was in pursuance of this theory that he wrote the
lives of David Rittenhouse, Robert Fulton, Count Rumford, De
Witt Clinton, and (with Henry B. Renwick, his oldest son) of
John Jay and Alexander Hamilton. Outside of his fame as a
pedagogue, a scholar, and scientist, he would have enjoyed
celebrity from his contributions to American literature. He loved

86 IRenwlck

the great college with which he was connected, and left nothing
undone to increase its influence and power. He entered there
his three sons, all of whom were to make admirable records for
themselves in after life; assisted poor students; secured donations
from private citizens; endeavored to create closer ties between
the institution and scientific branches of the national government,
and advocated an enlarged curriculum in the sciences and modern
languages. Looked at after the lapse of more than a half-century,
he stands in the front rank of the wisest and most distinguished
men of his age. He married Margaret Ann Brevoort, by whom
he had three sons and one daughter.

Robert Jeffrey, brother of the Professor, was graduated from

Columbia (1809), and took up a mercantile career. He prospered

and increased his prosperity by marrying Mary Hobart

Robert J.

Rhinelander, a belle and heiress. He was a leading
participant in the social world and prominent in philanthropic
activities. He had five children, three sons and two daughters.
The three sisters of Professor James were society leaders,
who married advantageously, as follows: Jane, Admiral Charles
Wilkes; Isabella, Charles Smedburg; and Agnes, the Rev. James
Henry.

In the fourth generation four sons kept up the high records
of their ancestry. Henry Brevoort [18 17], son of Professor James,

was graduated from Columbia in 1833, and took up

Henry

Brevoort, the profcssiou of civil engineering. He became an as-
Engmeer sistant engineer in the United States service, where he
continued six years, and was then promoted to be first assistant
astronomer of the United States Boundary Commission in 1839-
1842. In 1848, he was made Examiner in the Patent Office, with
special reference to mechanical, chemical, and physical inventions.
The life was too sedentary, and in 1853 he resigned to become
Inspector of Steamboat Engines for the District of New York. He
held this office some years, relinquishing it to become a con-
sulting mechanical engineer, in which capacity he achieved great
fame. In his spare hours he wrote extensively, more particularly
upon scientific topics, and in his early manhood he was joint

Grace Church, Broadway, N. Y.

IRcnwich 87

author with his father, as before mentioned. He married Mar-
garet Janney, daughter of Jonathan Janney, by whom he had
one daughter and one son.

James, the architect [18 18], second son of Professor James,
was graduated from Columbia (1836). This was a famous class
in college history, having among its number John james, the
Graham, the great lawyer, the Rev. John H. Hobart, Architect
Hon. John Jay 11., the Rev. Henry McVicar, the Rev. D. M.
Quackenbush, and the Rev. Charles Seymour. He inherited a
love of architecture, of calculation, drawing, and engineering from
his father. His career began as a surveyor and civil engineer
on the Erie Railway. He went thence to the Croton Aqueduct,
where he served as superintendent of construction of the dis-
tributing reservoir on Fifth Avenue and Forty-second Street,
which was lately demolished to make room for the New York
Public Library. His next work was the making of the model for
a fountain in Union Square. Shortly after this came his entree in
the world of architecture.

The vestry of Grace Church had purchased the land on
Broadway, opposite Eleventh Street, and had called for plans
from the architects of the time for a church, to be erected upon
the site. James submitted designs which, when exhibited, re-
ceived the highest praise from the press and the public, and were
finally accepted by the vestry. The building, which is one of the
finest Gothic structures in the country, was completed in 1845.
This is one of the few famous churches in which all the work
is to be credited to one man. His were the original and final
plans, the working drawings, nearly all of the delicate tracery
and ornamentation of the exterior, and the furniture and orna-
mentation of the interior. It is one of the best specimens of the
French fourteenth-century school of Gothic art upon the Western
Continent. When it was finished it made its designer famous on
both sides of the ocean. From this time James was a recognized
authority upon church architecture in America, and was called
upon to prepare plans for buildings, public and private. He was
the architect of Calvary Church, on Fourth Avenue, New York,

88 IRenwicft

the Church of the Puritans, formerly on Union Square, New York,
and of the Smithsonian histitution and the Corcoran Art Gallery
at the national capital. The Smithsonian is a noble pile of brown-
stone in modified Elizabethan style, which suggests the ancient
halls of Oxford University.

In 1853, he was commissioned by the Archbishop of New
York to draw plans for St. Patrick's Cathedral, on Fifth Avenue,
between Fiftieth and Fifty-first streets. The commission was
the most important one in church construction which has ever
been given in the history of the metropolis. James perceived
the responsibility of the opportunity, and devoted himself to his
task so tirelessly that he nearly broke down from overwork.
The plans were finished, submitted, and accepted. When pub-
lished, they elicited the highest praise from critics the world
over. In 1858, the corner-stone was laid, and in 1879 the building
was dedicated by Cardinal McCloskey. The structure is built of
white marble, with a basement course of Quincy granite. It has
magnificent twin towers on the west fafade, and a main door
which is of remarkable beauty. The style is the decorated or
geometric of the thirteenth century, of which the cathedral at
Rheims is the best foreign example. In 1887, work was begun
upon the spires which terminate the two towers, and these were
finished a few years ago. To-day, St. Patrick's is undoubtedly
the handsomest and most impressive Gothic church in the
New World.

Other buildings which illustrate the broad taste and versa-
tility of James are St. Bartholomew's Church, Vassar College,
the Church of the Covenant, in New York; St. Ann's in Brooklyn;
the Young Men's Christian Association building, on Fourth
Avenue and Twenty-third Street, New York; and a hundred
other buildings of lesser importance. He may certainly be styled
the first of the great American architects. He married Anna L.
Aspinwall, daughter of William H. Aspinwall, the merchant, for
whom is named the City of Aspinwall upon the Isthmus of
Panama. There was no issue to the marriage.

Edward Sabine [1823], third son of Professor James, was

St. Patrick's Cathedral, Fifth Avenue

IRcnwlcft 89

graduated from Columbia (1839), which also conferred upon him

the degree of A.M. Even before he went to college he displayed

a rare talent for machinery, so that upon graduation Edward

he but followed his bent in becoming the superintend- sabine,

,,,.,, , T~> I /- Engineer

ent of iron works in Wilkesbarre, Pa. In a few years
he was recognized as an expert in civil, mechanical, and steam
engineering and the many industries upon which these profes-
sions are based. He invented a number of railway appliances
of value, including a chair for holding together ends of rails, an
improved frog, and an improved switch, in the world of steam
navigation the credit may be ascribed to him for an efficient
cut-off for steam engines, an improvement in the connection
between the moving parts and the valve system, and an in-
genious method of side propulsion for steamers and bulky craft.

He shares with Cyrus Hall McCormick the honor of having
created the self-binding reaper. Between 1870 and 1890, he gave
careful study to the artificial hatching of poultry, and was the
first to determine the condition under which this process could be
applied. These studies were expressed in concrete form by
many incubators, and afterwards by artificial brooders. Before he
undertook the work artificial hatching had never been a profitable
enterprise, but long before he finished his system it had become
a source of handsome revenue to tens of thousands of farmers
in this country and Canada. His careful analysis of the matter
was an invaluable addition to practical poultry-raising. His re-
searches enabled every farmer to form a clear conception of the mat-
ter and to incubate and brood with home-made mechanisms. The
system was applied to the eggs of chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys,
pigeons, and other birds employed for food purposes.

His greatest scientific feat was accomplished in 1862. The
giant steamer Great Eastern had injured its bilge, a portion
eighty-two feet long and ten feet wide having been broken.
There was no dry dock large enough for the leviathan, and the
size of the vessel made it impossible to beach or careen it suffi-
ciently to reach the injured surface. With his brother, Henry
Brevoort, he improvised an appliance upon the coffer-dam principle,

90 IRcnwich

which enabled the workmen to remove the damaged plates
and backing and replace them with new materials. The task had
been pronounced impossible by many of the chief authorities of
the time, so that the exploit became a nine days' wonder to
navigators, ship-builders, and naval men.

He wrote a number of monographs upon various technical
subjects connected with the industries in which he was inter-
ested. His erudition and technical skill so impressed the com-
munity that from the early fifties on he was in constant
employment as an expert in patent suits and scientific inquiries
by public and private bodies. He married Elizabeth Alice Bre-
voort, daughter of Henry Brevoort, by whom he had two sons
and one daughter.

Laura, only daughter of Professor James, married John A.
Munroe.

Of the children of Robert Jeffrey, William Rhinelander [1816],

the oldest son, was graduated from Columbia (1833), and took

up a mercantile career. He was prominent in social,

William R. ... , ,. . , ,, ■ , r^,. ^

religious, and literary circles. He married Eliza S.
Crosby, daughter of William Bedlow Crosby, by whom he had
two sons and three daughters. Robert Jeffrey [1822] died un-
married at the age of thirty-two.

Frederick William, the third son, was twice married — first to
Julia Kortright, by whom he had two sons, and, second, to Annie
Cooke.

Jane Jeffrey [1819], the oldest daughter of Robert Jeffrey,
married S. Stanhope Callender, by whom she had one child,
Mary Renwick Callender. Mary Rhinelander [1825] married
Benjamin L. Swan 11.

The head of the fifth generation is James Armstrong, oldest
son of Henry Brevoort. He was graduated from Columbia
James (^^7^)> where he also obtained the degrees of A.M.,

Armstrong, and of LL.B., from the Columbia Law School in 1879.
He is an active member of the New York bar. He
married Viola Blodget, daughter of Charles F. Blodget, by whom
he had one son, Henry.

« 2

-3

■ — ' o

■y)

'-J

~3'

u«

•g

-a

IRenwicft 91

Meta Brevoort, only daughter of Henry Brevoort, married
Robert Sedgwick, by whom she had two sons, Robert J. and
Henry Renwick.

Of the children of Edward Sabine, Edward Brevoort [1863],
the oldest son, is an accomplished mechanical en- Edward b.,
gineer. He married Emily Dilworth Hicks. Engineer

William Whetten [1864], second son of Edward Sabine, is
an architect and a member of the firm of Renwick, Aspinwall &
Owen, which was established by his uncle James 111., wniiamw.,
architect of St. Patrick's Cathedral. Elizabeth, only Architect
daughter and youngest child of Edward Sabine, married Watson
Condit Wittingham.

Of the children of William Rhinelander, Philip Brevoort, the
oldest son, married Ellen J. Wise, by whom he had one child,
Eliza Crosby. She married A. Leland Brown, by whom she had
issue.

William Crosby, second son of William Rhinelander, was
twice married: first, to Harriet McDonell, by whom he had three
children; and, second, to Gertrude Sears. Of the three

William C.

daughters of William Rhinelander, Emily Ashton mar-
ried Edmund Abdy Hurry (November 17, 1868); Mary Crosby
married, first, Henry Turnstall Strong, and, second, Dr. Frederick
Tilden Brown. Helen Schuyler married Anselm Schaff.

The children of Frederick William are Frederick William II.
and S. Stanhope. The latter married Evelyn Smith, by whom he
had Harold Stanhope and Claire Rhinelander.

The name of Renwick has for a century been associated with
creative intellectuality. It has been borne by philanthropists,
merchants, professors, inventors, architects, engineers, and law-
yers. It is identified with valuable inventions, standard literary
works, magnificent buildings, and the proceedings of learned
societies. If the value of achievement is to be measured by the
creation of wealth through inventive energy and constructive
skill, the family will rank high in the annals of the State. That
man is said to be a public benefactor who makes two blades of
grass grow where but one grew before. From this point of view

92 •Renwicft

the inventor is the most valuable member of society. The flov/er
of his brain creates wealth, sometimes for himself, but always for
the community at large; and it may be that he who makes
wealth for others is higher in the scale of public utility than he
who accumulates it for himself. A nation of inventors towers
over a nation of plutocrats. The secret of American success has
been its creative genius. This in turn has produced wealth and
power, and from the smallest beginnings has raised the nation
to a commanding place in the society of nations. In this class of
forces are to be placed the mental activity and prowess of the
Renwick race.

Jean Jeffrey

From a picture in file possession of Edniuiul Abdy Hiiny, Esq.

IRoosevelt

Theodore Roosevelt

From a photograph by Rockwood

XXIX
ROOSEVELT

T is hard to lay down any definite stand-
ard as to what constitutes a famous
family. Sometimes the laurels are
won by the achievements of a single
individual, which is illustrated in the
case of the Washingtons and Frank-
lins. At the very opposite extreme
are those families in which, genera-
tion after generation, men of eminent
ability appear, and play a large part in
the national life. This is exemplified
by the Adams family of Massachu-
setts, the Lee family of Virginia, and the Roosevelt family of New
York.

In 1649, Claas Martenszen Van Roosevelt came to this coun-
try. He was a shrewd, strong, and sterling Hollander, who trans-
ferred to the New World the habits of thrift which had
been developed by his race in the Old. He was suc-
cessful in his undertakings, especially in that of matrimony, his
wife being Jannetje Thomas, a young belle of the New Nether-
lands, whose personal charms were rivalled by her skill in spin-
ning, weaving, cooking, and housekeeping. The union was a
happy one, and resulted in many children, all of whom seemed to
inherit their parents' virtues— moral, mental, and physical. Small

families, indeed, have been the rare exception with the Roosevelts.

Claas

96 IRooscvelt

Owing to this fact it has extended in every direction, and by
marriage has become connected with nearly every other old
family both in New York City and in New York State.

The most prominent member of the second generation was
Nicholas of Esopus, who married Hillotje Jans, sister of Anneke
Jans of Trinity Church fame. In this generation the
family began to add intellectual to agricultural talents.
Nicholas was a student, and by all odds the most learned and
most popular man in his district. He is referred to by the old
records as a citizen of great influence and authority, and one who
frequently served as an arbitrator between his stiff-necked and
litigious neighbors. He was one of the first settlers to perceive
the business aspect of the Indian question, and during his life was
on the most friendly terms with the red men. He invited them
regularly to his house, and invariably made them presents when
they called. For many years to his neighbors this seemed ex-
travagance, but their eyes were opened when they learned that
in Indian etiquette whoso receives a present from a friend must
give back one of greater value. The gala-colored ancient weapons
which Nicholas presented to the warriors came back to him in
furs, which brought ten times the value of his gifts in the markets
of New Amsterdam. That he was very prosperous is shown by
formal charges that were brought by gossipers against his wife
Hillotje and her sister Anneke for wearing and showing luxurious
petticoats. Nicholas took the part of the women, and after the
proceedings were dismissed he authorized his dress-loving wife to
purchase another large roll of beautiful cloth to increase still fur-
ther her stock of brilliant skirts.

Of the third generation, Johannes appears to have been the

ablest. Early in the eighteenth century he married Hyltje Syverts,

a belle and heiress. He was successful in farming and

Johannes

business ventures, and took what seemed to his friends
a strange and extravagant delight in works of art. He is said to
have been one of the first to import paintings, fine furniture, and
artistic metal ware from the Netherlands. He did it on so gener-
ous a scale that his home was viewed as a wonderland by his less

TRoosevelt 97

enterprising fellow-citizens, in this generation the family became
allied with the Schuylers through the marriage of Sarah Van
Roosevelt, a niece of Johannes, to Philip Schuyler. In the fourth
generation were several sons, of whom Jacobus [1724]

Jacobus

was the most notable. He married Annetje Bogaert,
and had a large family. In Jacobus, the Dutch characteristics had
changed so far that he may be regarded as an American in the
modern sense of the word. He began to drop the Van from his
name, and in other ways showed his Anglicization. He was a
stout believer in freedom and home rule, and was looked upon as
a Dutch malcontent by many of the British colonial officers. He
was diplomatic and never permitted himself to do anything which
could be construed into a violation of law. He attended to his
commercial interests with great care and largely increased the for-
tune which he had inherited.

The fifth generation seems to have been the crucial point in
the family history. Up to that time the various generations had
contlned themselves to agriculture, trading, and the management
of real estate. The race was now represented in its own names
by at least tlfty families, which, as a whole, were more than pros-
perous, capable, and prominent. The simple farmers of the first
and second generations had become educated and cultured men
so far as the opportunities of the time permitted. The Revolution
seemed to stir up their blood and to bring into being the higher
qualities which are represented by patriotism, executive power,
and statesmanship, in this period the first to be
noticed is Jacobus II., afterwards known as James I.,
his brother Nicholas, who invented the steamboat at

r- 1 ^-111 Nicholas

about the same time as Fulton; Captain John J., a

brilliant and wildly reckless soldier; and Isaac, who afterwards

became State Senator. There were others, who were

brave soldiers and faithful representatives of the people,

but the four enumerated stand head and shoulders ig^ac

above the rest. Jacobus or James 1. is often mistaken

for his son James 1. (11.), who was a member of Congress, a

judge, and one of the great jurists of New York State. The elder

98 IRoosevclt

was a good soldier, a capable commissary, and an admirable

organizer.

"Nicholas was America's first great inventor. He had extraor-
dinary versatility and an almost tireless energy. He was a skilful
Nicholas mining engineer and metallurgist, as well as machinist,
the Inventor aj-,(5 ^^33 the first to work coppcr on a large scale in the
United States. As contractor and ship-builder, he was engaged
by Congress to superintend the building of a new navy in the
eighteenth century. He was a civil engineer, and carried through
contracts for supplying the city of Philadelphia with water. In
this busy period he found time to prosecute studies in the then
unknown field of steam engineering, and reached the same con-
clusions that Fulton did a few years afterwards. He submitted
his researches in 1797 to Chancellor Livingston and to Colonel Ste-
vens, who formed a partnership with him to build a boat on joint
account. This was done, and in October, 1798, the new venture
was tried. The engines worked perfectly, but the propelling gear,
which had been designed by Livingston, proved a failure. Roose-
velt was not, however, discouraged, but kept on until he had de-
vised an efficient vertical paddle-wheel in place of the cumbrous
contrivance of the Chancellor. The new design was tried upon the
Ohio River, where it worked satisfactorily. In 1811, he built the
first steamer to ply upon the Mississippi, so that he may be justly
called the father of Mississippi navigation. "Nicholas married Miss
Lydia M. Latrobe. Of his descendants, Samuel Montgomery
is a member of the Chamber of Commerce, and the late "Nicholas
III. was a lieutenant in the United States Navy.

Jacobus or James 1. married Mary "Van Schaick. Among their

children, two were highly distinguished in the beginning of the

nineteenth century, Cornelius Van Schaick and James II.

Cornelius ■'

Van Schaick The former, who married Margaret Barnhill of Pennsyl-
vania, was a merchant, banker, and capitalist. He was one of the
five richest men in New York, and took a deep interest in the wel-
'fare of the city. He founded the fiimous Chemical Bank, the only
bank in the country which has always paid its obligations in gold.
He had five sons, all of whom were important figures in the mid-

Isaac Roosevelt

From an India ink drawing in the Emmett Collection,
Lenox Library

TRoosevelt 99

die part of the last century. These were Silas W., lawyer, wit,
and School Commissioner; James Alfred, banker and capitalist;
Cornelius Van Schaick II., merchant; Robert B., lawyer, author,
editor, Commissioner of the first Brooklyn Bridge, Congressman,
and United States Minister; and Theodore, merchant, War Com-
missioner, and philanthropist. The history of these five sons
covers the most important years from 1850 to the present time.
Each contributed in his own way to the metropolis, ^.^^^ ^
and stamped his name upon its history. Silas W. was
a "New York School Commissioner in deed as well as in name.
He took an interest in educational work before he received his
appointment, and may be classed as a member of the school of
thought started by Horace Mann. When he accepted office he
brought all his energy to bear upon the problem of books and
methods, and infused a new spirit into the proceedings of the
Board. The present admirable condition of the public schools
and the high standards which mark all tuition in the city are
under obligations to his f:iithful and efficient services. James
Alfred, the banker, had a natural genius for finance. He was
admitted to his father's firm when only twenty years of age, and
while still in the prime of life had become an officer or director in
a score of great financial institutions. He was Park Commissioner
during the administration of Mayor Strong.

Robert B., born in 1829, is still a hale and hearty member of
the community. He received a fine liberal education, studied
law, and practised in New York for twenty years. He „ , „

Robert B.

was successful in that profession and was one of the
most popular members of the bar thirty years ago. He was
versatile and made his mark in many fields. A fluent writer,
he served as an editor of the New York Citizen and wrote a
number of books upon fish, birds, and other similar topics. He
took an active part in politics, served in Congress, and was one
of the leaders of the National Democracy. The life-work by
which he will be longest known was that devoted to the game
interests of the State and nation. He took up the task, an
almost novel field, and struggled in the beginning against many

loo IRooscvelt

odds. By degrees he created and organized sentiment on behalf
of the game birds and the fisheries of the State and secured much
of the legislation which has preserved the fin and feather interests of
the community. He served acceptably as Commissioner of Fish-
eries of New York, did much toward the restocking of the rivers,
lakes, and streams of the commonwealth, the establishment and
development of fish culture, the interchange of valuable fish fry,
and the protection of waters from the refuse of cities and factories.
To the angler and the sportsman he will be always regarded as the
Izaak Walton of America. He was one of the famous Committee
of Seventy which started the movement that resulted in the
downfall of Tammany and Tweed, and has always been identified
with the best interests of the municipality.

Theodore, the fifth of the brothers, was a brilliant Unionist
during the war and one of the Allotment Commissioners. Upon
the restoration of peace, he took up practical philan-
thropy and devoted himself to the cause of the poor
and ignorant. He was one of the founders of the Newsboys'
Home and the other homes which grew out of the first one, the
Young Men's Christian Association, the Orthopaedic Hospital, and
the Children's Aid Society. He married Miss Martha Bulloch of
Georgia. Their son was Theodore II.

Theodore [1858] was educated at Harvard (1880), where he
displayed marked literary, scholarly, and athletic talents. The
following year he entered political life and was elected to the As-
sembly from the 21st District, New York City. He served until
1884. In 1886, he was nominated for Mayor, but was defeated by
Abram S. Hewitt. Three years afterwards he was appointed Civil
Service Commissioner by President Harrison and served until
May, 1895. He was chosen Assistant Secretary of the Navy in
President McKinley's Cabinet in 1897. At the breaking out of the
war with Spain, he resigned his position and entered the United
States Army. He raised a regiment of Rough Riders, but instead
of taking the command, as is the custom in such cases, he re-
quested the President to appoint his personal friend. Dr. Leonard
Wood, Colonel, and himself Lieutenant-Colonel.

The Administration Building

Roosevelt Hospital

IRoosevelt loi

He and his men were in the army of invasion which landed
at the eastern end of Cuba and took part in the first engagement
between the American and Spanish forces. Both he and his Rough
Riders made a fimious record for gallantry during the brief cam-
paign. The same year he was elected Governor of the State of
New York. In 1900, he was chosen Vice-President of the United
States and took office on March 4, iqoi. On the death of Mr.
McKinley, September, iqoi, he became President.

He is a man of indef:itigable industry, and in the last twenty
years has contributed largely to the press and added twelve valu-
able works to American literature. He married Alice Lee of Bos-
ton, and, after her death, Edith Carow of New York. By the first
he had one child, and by the second, five.

James Henry of the sixth generation has left a monument in
the Roosevelt Hospital. It was the realization of his life ambition.
Born in 1800, he was graduated from Columbia Col-

James Henry

lege, and took up the practice of law with the ambition
of founding the charity described. To this he subordinated all
other interests. He never married, and allowed nothing to swerve
him from his path. He died in 1863, leaving a million dollars for
a foundation. This, through the wise management of his trustees,
was so administered that, in 1888, the hospital and its endowment
represented over two millions of dollars. His epitaph is written
upon the tablet which records the gift : " To the memory of James
Henry Roosevelt, a true son of New York, the generous founder
of this hospital, a man upright in his aims, simple in his life, sub-
lime in his benefactions."

Considerable impression upon New York City has been made
by the so-called Pelham branch, established by Elbert [1767] of
the sixth generation. He had six sons and two daugh-

^r , , . ? Elbert

ters. Of the former, Clinton, the inventor and scientist,
was the chief of his generation. Peter T. and Albert J. were men
who led long and eventful lives; the former died at the age
of ninety-six, and the latter at eighty-eight. Washington [1802]
was a scholarly Presbyterian divine, who was graduated from
Middlebury, Conn., in 1829. He married Jane Maria Young, by

I02 IRoosevelt

whom he had four sons and one daughter. The oldest of the
sons was Charles Henry [1832], who married Annie J. Jackson,
by whom he had two sons, Henry Everitt and Albert Curtenius.
Charles Henry has long been one of the leading citizens of West-
chester County.

Here and there, in the family history, have been indications
of mechanical and inventive talent. In addition to Nicholas, who
was the greatest in this respect in his generation, and Clinton,
who was President of the Society of Inventors, was Hilborne
Lewis, who was born in 1849, and died when but thirty-seven
years of age. He displayed mechanical genius in his boyhood,
and entered an organ-factory in early youth. He mastered all
that could be learned in this country, and then went to Europe to
gain an insight into the artistic, scientific, and historic features of
the craft. He was one of the first to take up electric apparatus
for organ-manufiicture. in a few years he developed it to an ex-
tent never before known. On his return to America he estab-
lished organ-factories in New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore,
and within five years had become one of the authorities on the
subject. Many of his constructions enjoy a world-wide fame
among musicians. His chief ones are those in the Protestant Epis-
copal Cathedral at Garden City, L. I., and in Grace Church, New
York, each of which contains twenty miles of electric wires. He
built the famous organ for the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition.
He received letters patent for improvements in organ-building,
electrical apparatus, and telephony. His chief electrical invention
was a telephone switch, which was adopted by telephone com-
panies the world over.

IRutgers

1 03

.I'A?. S^ Wir»"\

Colonel Henry Rutgers
From a steel engraving

XXX

RUTGERS

^/O the student of New York history,
-i^>*^ each family name is identified with a
set of virtues or a group of achieve-
ments. That of Rutgers suggests a
warm-hearted public spirit and a deep
love for humanity. It is one of the
first of Knickerbocker names. On Oc-
tober I, 1636, Rutgers Jacobsen Van
Schoenderwoerdt set sail at Texel,
Holland, on board the good craft
Rensselaerswyck, commanded by Cap-
tain Jan Tiebkins, for the New Nether-
lands. The quaint name is eloquent. Schoenderwoerdt is a
pretty village not for from Leerdam, and Jacobsen, or Jacobse,
means that Rutgers was the son of Jacob. The family
belonged to the great middle class of Holland, which
had fought both man and the sea for generations and
had developed a stalwart manhood, which is even to-day the
admiration of the civilized world. The virtues, private and public,
are developed not in ease and idleness, but under the pressure of
danger and of death. Great men never come from Sybaris.

The voyage was uneventful, and early in the following year
Rutgers landed at Fort Orange, where he immediately set to
work to change the wilderness into a fertile domain. He labored

long and late, and enjoyed a proportionate reward. His fields

105

Rutgers

Jacobsen,

Founder

io6 1RutGer0

brought rich harvests and his trading ventures proved profitable.
Not until he was a wealthy man did he look about him for a help-
meet. This occurred in 1646, when he married Tryntje Jansse
Van Breesteede. In 1649, he formed a partnership with Goosen
Gerritse Van Schaick and founded a brewing business. Accord-
ing to the old records, he turned out an admirable quality of beer,
so excellent that it was used by the churches of the time at the
feasts or repasts which were given in connection with funerals
and weddings.

Even in this prosaic business he displayed a kindly heart.
Whenever a poor family was unable to purchase the beer without
which the funeral ceremonies were incomplete, he would send a
cask of his best brew to the house of mourning. By 1660, he had
become very rich. About this time he was appointed a magis-
trate and conducted the office up to his death with dignity and
ability. His last public office was the laying of the corner-stone
of the new church in Albany in 1656.

Two of his children were prominent in Knickerbocker life.
His daughter Margaret married Jan Jansen Bleecker (1667), and
became the maternal ancestor of the Bleecker family. Her hus-
Harraan ^aud Jau was Mayor of Albany in 1700. Harman, the
the Trader ouly SOU, took after his father. He was an active man
of affairs, and conducted successfully the brewery, the real-estate
business, an Indian trade in furs and skins, and the farms which
he inherited. When clouds appeared upon the political horizon,
and an Indian uprising was threatened, he promptly volunteered
and became a private in the Burgher Corps, bringing with him, it
is said, a number of the muscular workmen in his brewery. He
continued his father's practice of supplying beer to the church
funerals, and, like his father, he contributed a friendly cask to
poor neighbors who were in mourning. So far as can be inferred
from the records of the time, the custom known as " church beer "
seems to have been analogous to the modern wake, and both are
undoubtedly survivals of a custom very prevalent among the
early Christians, in 1693, the Indians became so threatening near
Albany, that Harman removed with his family to New York. He

IRutfiers 107

married Catarina de Hooges, daughter of Anthony de Hooges,
Provincial Secretary of Rensselaerswyck, by whom he had
issue.

hi the third generation, Elsie, daughter of Harman, married
David Davidse Schuyler, at one time Mayor of Albany. Anthony,
the oldest son, was a wealthy brewer, who took an Anthony the
active part in public affairs. In 1710, 171 1, 1712, he was Assemblyman
an Assistant Alderman, and from 1727 to 1734 an Alderman. From
1726 to 1737 he was a member of the Colonial Assembly. The
last was a representative body, and included such men of promi-
nence as Henry Beekman, Jeremiah Van Rensselaer, Robert
Livingston, Jr., Stephen de Lancey, Frederick Philipse, Peter
Van Brugh, Benjamin Hicks, Nicholas Schuyler, and Lewis Mor-
ris. Anthony's intellectual grasp was well shown by an under-
taking which in the light of to-day was an enterprise of the
highest merit.

In the neighborhood of what is now Chambers Street and
West Broadway there was a swamp, which occasioned much
fever and ague. The title lay in the Crown, but under the law of
the time it could not be sold in fee simple, but only leased for life
or a period of years. Besides injuring public health, it was a
blemish to the neighborhood, and interfered with the growth of
the young city. Anthony petitioned the local authorities to obtain
authority from the Crown to grant him the swamp in fee simple,
so that he might drain and reclaim it, and so end the sickness
which always prevailed in this neighborhood. In return, he
promised to make it into habitable land at his own expense,
no matter what that might be. it took no less than three years to
secure the authority, and to sign the proper deeds. When this
was done, the good burgher put his men to work, and within a
year had changed a noisome, festering morass into one of the best
meadows on Manhattan. Anthony was twice married: first, to
Hendrickje Vandewater, by whom he had issue, and, second, to
Mistress Cornelia Benson.

Harman II. went into business with his father upon coming
of age, and thereafter purchased a farm lying east of what is now

io8 IRutflere

Chatham Square. Of this farm, Rutgers Street is the relic, and
undoubtedly represents the early road or path which led

Harman II.

the Land- dowu to Rutgers Wharf. Harman married Catharina
°^°" Meyer, and had two sons and three daughters.

In the fourth generation, Anthony II., son of Anthony I., died
a young man, leaving one son, Anthony III., and five daughters.
This son is of importance, because he transmitted to his daughter
Elsie or Alice one third of his great estate. She married Leonard
Lispenard, who thereafter purchased from his wife's two sisters
the other two thirds, thus bringing together again the old Anthony
Rutgers estate, which then became known as the Lispenard
estate.

Peter [1701], son of Anthony, was a wealthy brewer and mer-
chant, and was Assistant Alderman from 1730 to 1736. He was
Captain Captain of the Independent Company of Cadets, and
Peter married Helena Hoogland, by whom he had issue. Of

the children of Harman II., Harman III., a son, died before his
father. The three daughters made brilliant marriages. Elsie
espoused John Marshall, Catharine married Abraham Van Home,
and Eva, John Provoost. Harman III. left three sons and three
daughters.

Hendrick [f7i2], his brother, was a thrifty merchant and
real-estate owner, who married Catharine de Peyster, by whom
he had four sons and a daughter. None of the former left
issue.

In the fifth generation the family reached its meridian. An-
thony III., son of Anthony II., was the head of the family and
Anthony III., fiHcd a large place in social circles. He married Ger-
captain trudc Gouvemeur, a famous belle. In 1775, he was
a captain of artillery. When he was ordered out by the British
Government, he resigned, and moved to "Newark, N. J., which he
made his permanent home. He had three sons and four daugh-
ters, and was the founder of the Rutgers family of New Jersey.

Anthony the lawyer, son of Peter, was a prominent member
Anthony the of the New York bar in the middle of the eighteenth
Lawyer ceutury. He married Elizabeth Williams,

o ■§

— . o

IRutgers 109

Of the three sons of Harman III., the oldest, Robert, was a
man of great wealth, who married Elizabeth, daughter of Dr.
William Beekman. Harman IV. was a wealthy mer- Anthony the
chant, who never married. Captain Anthony, the sea captain
youngest brother, took to the sea in his youth, and rose to be a
captain. In 1754, he received his first command, and in 1758 was
the captain of a privateer, in 1760, he received letters of marque
from the Crown and sailed the good hug King George, with which
he captured many ships and realized an independent fortune.
Five years afterwards or thereabouts he retired and settled upon
the land. The same year he was made an Assistant Alderman.

Shortly afterwards he opened a rope-walk with Jacob Le Roy,
and was the father of that business in the colonies. His two sis-
ters, Catharine and Cornelia, successively married his partner,
Jacob Le Roy, from whom comes the Le Roy family of New
York.

Of the children of Hendrick, three command notice. His
daughter Catharine married William Bedloe, grandson of Isaac,
of Bedloe's Island.

Lieutenant Harman was a heroic soldier, who enlisted in the
Colonial army upon the breaking out of the Revolution, and was
one of the first to give up his life for the cause of Lieutenant
liberty. He was killed by a cannon-ball at the bom- Harman
bardment of Red Hook, on August 28, 1776, by the British ships
in the Long Island campaign.

In Colonel Henry [1745], the son of Hendrick, the race
produced its finest representative. He was marked by unusual
attractiveness — physical, mental, and moral. In his coionei
youth he was studious and was graduated in 1776 Henry the
with very high honor from King's College, now Co-
lumbia University. On leaving college, he took up a mercantile
life and assisted in the management of his father's estate. The
times were exciting, the troubles between the colonies and the
mother country coming to a crisis. In the general controversy
which prevailed he took strong sides with the Colonials. His
fine appearance, culture, and ability soon made him prominent.

no IRutgera

and before the Revolution broke out he was looked upon as a
Revolutionary leader. He was lieutenant in 1775 and a captain
in 1776, serving in Malcolm's Regiment and taking part at the
battle of White i^lains, where he was wounded. He fought
through the war and was cheered (?) from time to time by
escaped or returned soldiers, who informed him that his family
homestead had been converted into a British barracks and after-
wards a military hospital.

At the close of the war he returned to New York City, where
the following year he was elected a member of the Assembly.
This honor was frequently repeated, his last term being 1807-
1808. In 1802, he was made a regent of the New York State Uni-
versity, and held it for twenty-four years. From 1804 to 18 17, he
was a trustee of Princeton.

His most important work in political life was in 1800, when
he was one of the Republican leaders in the movement to defeat
the Federalist party. The campaign was all-important as regarded
the future policy of the United States, and in it the two New
York champions of popular rights were Colonel Henry and Gen-
eral George Clinton. Their efforts were successful, and their
party carried the day and elected Thomas Jefferson President of
the Republic.

In 1812, Colonel Henry was chairman of the mass-meeting
held in New York, which was called to take defensive measures
against a threatened attack on land and sea by the British, sub-
scribing liberally to the campaign fund and overseeing the con-
struction of the fortifications that were built to defend both New
York and Brooklyn against a naval expedition from the harbor
and a land attack from Long Island. In 1829, he was made Presi-
dent of the New York Public School Society, succeeding Gov-
ernor De Witt Clinton in that office. He gave the money which
assisted in founding Rutgers Female College, New York, and
which took Queens College, New Jersey, out of bankruptcy. It
was in honor of his munificence that the name of that institution
was changed in 1825 to Rutgers College, by which it has been
known ever since.

TRutGcrs 1 1 1

His benefactions to churches were large and numerous. He
showed no sectarianism and treated all with equal kindness.
Among the beneficiaries were the Dutch Reformed, the Scotch,
the Baptist, and the Presbyterian. He made many gifts to schools,
charitable societies, and to the deserving poor. The rule of his
life was to spend one quarter of his income in charity. This,
however, did not include what he called his "special gifts."
These were numberless and extraordinary. Thus, for example,
for many years he had all the boys of the ward in which he lived
call upon him early New Year's morning. When the crowd was
small, they were invited into the house; when large, they would
stand in the yard and on the sidewalk. Punctually at the hour,
the Colonel appeared in full dress, delivered a little speech appro-
priate to the occasion, and then presented each urchin with a
large cake and an entertaining volume. The cakes were always
made to order, and were "nutritious and wholesome, but not
too rich nor cloying," and the books were "edifying as well as
amusing." Even the Colonel's speeches were not impromptu
affairs, but were the results of weeks of careful thought and
preparation. A few have been, it is believed, preserved, and are
models of kindliness of heart, manliness, and patriotism.

On any occasion when the city's finances were at an ebb and
the schools were about to suffer, the Colonel paid repair bills,
teachers' wages, and on several occasions built schoolhouses, out
of his own pocket. During the last twenty years of his life he
was known as the "well-beloved citizen."

His home, a large and superbly furnished mansion, stood at
Rutgers' Place— what is now the corner of Jefferson and Cherry
streets — and for many years was a capital of the world of fashion.
Here Lafayette was entertained, ''en prince" to use the great
Frenchman's own words, and here was given the most notable
reception of the time to General Washington and Colonel Willet,
after the latter's return from his mission to the Creek sachems and
sagamores, in the Rutgers drawing-rooms met all the Republi-
can leaders of the period, and, despite the bitter asperities of
politics, most of the great Federalists.

I 12

IRutgers

The names of the streets bear testimony to the man. Henry
and Rutgers are his name ; while Clinton and Jefferson represent
General George Clinton, with whom he led the campaign which
gave New York's electoral vote to their friend, Thomas Jefferson,
and made him President of the nation.

Colonel Henry never married. His estate was divided by his
will among his many relatives, the largest individual share going
William B. to his grcat-uephew, William B. Crosby, grandson of
Crosby iijs sister, Catharine Bedloe, who, left an orphan in his

childhood, had been adopted by his generous kinsman.

in the sixth generation, the main line was represented by
Gerard, who married Margaret Bayard; Robert 11., and Elsie.

Elsie Rutgers married John Marshall and from this marriage
came the Rutgers-Marshall family of the metropolis.

Of their issue the Rev. John Rutgers was the foremost.

Graduated from King's College in 1770, he took orders, and was

„ , ^ ordained a minister of the Church of England at Lam-
Rev. John ^

Rutgers- beth Palace, London. He began his clerical career as
Marshall ^ missionary at Woodbury, Connecticut, where he
remained until his death, in 1789.

He took an active part in bringing about the first convention
of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States, which
was held at Woodbury in 1783. The old "glebe house," one
of the earliest landmarks of that denomination in this country,
is now used by the diocese as a home for aged and infirm
clergymen.

The head of the present generation is Henry Rutgers-
Marshall, the psychologist and architect.

No family has ever given more of itself and its belongings
to the Commonwealth.' From Rutgers Jacobse to the ninth
generation, the members have been marked by commercial and
intellectual ability and have reaped the reward which comes from
these traits, when put to practical use. Instead of applying this
wealth solely to the upbuilding of a great family, they have
devoted it to relatives and friends, neighbors, and strangers.
Colonel Henry, the greatest son, must have given away two

The Old " Glebe House." Woodbury, Conn.

(At the time of the Revolution it was the home of Rev. John Rutgers Maisluill)

The Kutgers House, Rutgers Place

Between Jefferson and Clinton Streets. From a print in yjlciiliiic's Mjinial, 1858

IRutGers 113

thirds of his vast fortune during his life ; and at the close, dis-
tributed the remaining third with the same kindly thoughtfulness.
The other members have been marked by this altruistic character.
They have left their imprint upon the city in the names of a
dozen streets, and upon the country in Rutgers College, New
Jersey; but more lasting than these are the noble actions which
for two hundred years have made them notable among their
fellow-men.

VOL, 11.— S

Scbermerborn

115

XXXI

SCHERMERHORN

CHARACTERISTIC Knickerbocker
family is tiiat of Schermerhorn. It em-
bodies the so-called Dutch virtues —
thrift, courtesy, probity, patience, and
zealous patriotism. It was among the
very first settlers, and antedates most
of its Knickerbocker compeers. It has
cared little for military glory or politi-
cal power, but has devoted its energies
. to religious, philanthropic, and edu-
cational institutions. Its history is to
be found in church archives, college
records, and the annual reports of benevolent organizations.
Such qualities exert a profound influence upon a community and
give a prestige to a family name like that which clings to such
characters as Wesley, Fox, and Asbury.

The founder of the Schermerhorn family in the New "Nether-
lands was Jacob Jansen, who was born in Holland in 1622. He
crossed the ocean with some relatives in 1636, and jacob jansen
shortly afterwards settled in Beverwyck, now Albany. ^^^ Pouadtr
Here he married and had many children. His farm was not far
from the river, and was so fertile as to make him independent. In
spite of his prosperity and of the large and happy family which
he saw growing up around him, he was not altogether contented
with his residence. Many features of the feudal system which

ii8 Scbcrmcrborn

were applied by the West India Company and the Patroons con-
travened his ideas of liberty and government, so that when Arendt
Van Curler proposed to his friends to migrate westward and there
form a new settlement, based upon freedom and equal rights,
Jacob was one of the first farmers who volunteered to take part
in the expedition.

They made the journey in 1662, and established the village
which is now the city of Schenectady. Here Jacob cleared the
virgin soil and made a farm whose fertility v/as greater than that
of the one he had relinquished. He resided on this estate until
his death in 1688, seeing the country develop, the population in-
crease, his wealth accumulate, and his family of nine children
grow up, marry, and become esteemed citizens of the community.
His wife was Jannetje Segers, daughter of Cornelius Segers Van
Voohoudt. His sons were Beyer [1652], Symon [1658], Jacob,
and Lucas, and his daughters, Helena, Nachtilt, Cornelia, Jannetje,
and Neeltje.

Among these the chief in the second generation was Symon.
He began life as a farmer and Indian trader, and was one of the
Symon the survivors of the massacre at Schenectady in 1690 by
Fearless ^j^^ French and Indians. In this tragic affair he dis-
played rare gallantry, saving several people at the risk of his life.
Even as it was, his horse was wounded under him and he himself
shot through the thigh. The following year he removed to "New
York and became interested in the navigation of the Hudson. He
seems to have been commander and part owner and, finally, owner
of a large trading-sloop, which, owing to his great strength and
business sense, soon became very profitable. This change in his
calling affected not only his own career, but also the careers of
his descendants. For the next five generations, nearly all of these
showed a love for the sea and for commercial and maritime enter-
prises. He married Willempie Viele, by whom he had four chil-
dren. The marriages of his brothers and sisters disclosed the
names of several families that were to become eminent in after
years. Among them were Bogart, Van Buren, Beekman, Ten
Eyck, and Dame.

Scbcrmcrborn 119

ArnoLit [1686], the second son of Symon, was the master
mind of his generation, hi his early boyhood he escaped the
massacre at Schenectady, where his elder brother,

Arnout

John, was killed. After receiving such education as theship-
the period afforded, he took eagerly to his father's °''°"

calling and soon became a skilful navigator and shipping-master.
He led a very long and busy life. He invested his earnings with
sound judgment in "New York real estate, many of his trans-
actions being on record in the New York Register's office. One
of these was the purchase of three parcels of land, which cover
nearly all the present site of Fulton Market. The bay at that
time ran up nearly to Pearl Street, then known as Queen Street.
Here Arnout built a handsome wharf, after the old Holland pattern,
which lasted into the nineteenth century. This is the Schermer-
horn wharf, so often referred to in the old books and records. It
proved a wise investment, as it was soon called into constant use
by the increasing commerce of the port, so that the wharf dues
and demurrages amounted to a handsome sum every year. He
displayed rare enterprise and energy. Before January, 1733, he
had established a line of sailing vessels between New York and
Charleston, S. C, and, in connection with this, a warehouse and
ship-chandlery in the latter city. At the height of his career he
was conducting this line, managing large mercantile establish-
ments at each end, and also caring for many interests in real
estate and water rights. He married Marytje Beekman, by whom
he had six children, Catharina [171 1], Willementje [171 3], Johannes
[1715], Aeltje [1717], Jannetje [1719], and Symon [1721].

Of the two sons, Johannes proved another edition of his
brilliant father. He was both a "merchant and mariner," and
enlarged the lucrative business which his father had , .

° Johannes,

established. During the long war between England "Merchant
and France he secured letters of marque and reprisal *°
from the British Government, and under this authority fitted out
a number of privateers, which played havoc with French com-
merce and put corresponding profits in the pockets of the shrewd
builder. He married Sarah Cannon, daughter of John Cannon,

I20 Scbermcrborn

who was a descendant of a Huguenot refugee from Rochelle,
France. The union was very happy and was blessed with
twelve children — Arnout [1742], Mary [1743], John [1746],
Symon [1748], Peter [1749], Sarah [175 1], Catharine [1753],
Abraham [1755], Cornelius [1756], Catharine [1759], Esther
[1761], and Hester [1762].

Of the six sons of this generation, Peter, commonly known
as Peter the Elder, was the greatest. He started life with a
Peter moderate fortune, on account of the great wealth of

the Elder Y[\^ father, and increased it largely and rapidly. At the
beginning of his business-life, he took up his father's calling and
conducted it until the outbreak of the Revolution in 1776. Here
his forethought was displayed to rare advantage. After the frigate
y^sia fired upon the town and before the people had taken alarm,
he disposed of all the property he could and then with his family
and belongings removed up the Hudson to the neighborhood of
Hyde Park. In this district were many coves, where his vessels
would be safe from the men-of-war upon the river. What increased
their security was the strong colonial spirit of the people on the
land. Nearly all of his kindred withdrew from New York at the
same time, so that the family lost almost nothing in the weary
seven years of the Revolution. Both Peter and his relatives were
strong Revolutionists and helped the colonial cause wherever it
was possible. The sterling seamanship of the family enabled
them to be of great usefulness to the Continental armies. They
supplied transportation to the soldiers, forwarded arms and pro-
visions, carried despatches, and even made reconnaissances, when
information was needed by the American generals.

When peace was restored, Peter returned to New York and
re-established himself as a ship-chandler. The business was devel-
oped with such skill that it soon became one of the first commer-
cial concerns in the metropolis, and its owner one of the richest
merchants. In the beginning of the nineteenth century the firm
was changed to "P. Schermerhorn & Son," and afterwards to
" P. Schermerhorn & Sons." It sustained its reputation under the
new management and earned fine fortunes for the two junior

Scbermerborn 121

members. In 1796, Peter was elected a director of the Bank of
New York, and in 1800 was prominent in all financial matters.
He was one of the first to invest in Brooklyn real estate, and as
early as 1795 purchased a great tract in Gowanus, which included
what is now a goodly part of Greenwood Cemetery. From his
interest in Brooklyn matters, the authorities of that town named
one of its chief thoroughfares after him, a name which it still
retains. He took an active part in church and charitable work,
and was justly regarded as one of the best citizens of New York
in his time. He married Elizabeth Bussing, daughter of Abraham
Bussing, by whom he had six children: John [1775], Peter [1781],
Abraham [1783], George [1785], Elizabeth [1787], and James

[1792].

In the sixth generation, the most conspicuous member was
Peter the Younger, son of Peter the Elder. When he came of
age he was admitted to his father's firm as a junior peter

partner, and, in 1810, he and his brother, ambitious to the Younger
surpass their father, started a separate firm called " Schermerhorn
& Co.," which they managed with success, while still retaining
their connection with the other house. This duality was con-
tinued even after the father's death, the old houses being reorgan-
ized under the names of "Schermerhorn, Banker & Co." and
" Schermerhorn, Willis & Co." He invested wisely in real estate,
purchasing among other tracts a large piece of land between Third
Avenue and the East River, from Sixty-fourth to Seventy-fifth
Street.

In 1814, he was made a director of the Bank of New York,
which office he held until his death in 1852. He was a pillar of
Grace Church, which in the early part of the nineteenth century
was a small affair, but which, owing to the hard work and munifi-
cence of the Schermerhorns, reached its present prominence in
the ecclesiastical world. Peter the Younger became a vestryman
in 1820 and a warden in 1845. He was an active member of the
Building Committee which superintended the new church and
rectory on Broadway, near Tenth Street. The two buildings with
their exquisite fa9ades are a fitting tribute to the memory of the

122 Scbcrmcrborn

great merchant prince. He married Sarah Jones, daughter of
John Jones, by whom he had six children: Peter Henry [1805],
John Jones [1806], Peter Augustus [181 1], Edmond Henry [1815],
James Jones [1818], and William Colford [1821].

in the seventh generation, William Colford has probably been
the most eminent member of the family. He was graduated from
William Columbia in 1840, and admitted shortly afterwards to
Colford the bar. He received the degree of A.M. from his
Alma Mater in i860, and the same year was elected one of the
trustees. In 1893, he was chosen chairman of the Board of Trus-
tees. His life has been eventful for its many acts of philanthropy
and munificence, the most notable being the presentation to
Columbia University of Schermerhorn Hall, one of the noblest
buildings devoted to natural science. He married Ann Elliott
Huger Laight.

His brother, Peter Augustus, gave promise of the highest
scholarship. He was an honor-man at Columbia, where he was
Peter Augustus graduated in 1829, and where he took the degree of
theschoiar ^ j^l. in 1833. His eruditiou, literary talent, and vig-
orous mentality were unusual. He had just begun his career as a
scholar when he was overtaken by death at the age of thirty-four.
He married Adeline E. Coster, by whom he had three children:
Ellen, Henry Augustus, and Frederick Augustus. The first has
played an active part in city philanthropy. She married the late
Colonel R. T. Auchmuty, who founded the New York Trade
School in 1881.

Frederick Augustus [1844] is the head of the eighth genera-
tion. He was educated at Columbia. During his college term he
Frederick euHsted In the Union army, and served in the Civil War
Augustus as second lieutenant in the One Hundred and Eighty-
fifth New York Infantry. He rose to be first lieutenant, and at the
end of the war was brevetted captain for gallant conduct at the
battle of Five Forks. At the close of the war he returned to
Columbia, but instead of continuing the classical course he took
up the study of science, and was graduated from the School of
Mines (1868) with the degree of Engineer of Mines. In 1877, he

Scbcrmcrborn 1^3

was elected a trustee of the university, which office he has held
ever since. He is President of the New York histitution for the
Blind, a member of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Loyal
Legion of America, the American Geographical Society, and other
learned bodies.

Other distinguished members of the family were Henry Au-
gustus [ 1 840], a brilliant scholar, who was graduated from Columbia
(1861), and took the degrees of A.M. (1863) and LL.B. Henry

(1867); Dr. Burr, who was graduated from the College Augustus
of Physicians and Surgeons in 1863; William Barnewell, who was
graduated from Columbia in 1863; Bruce, who was graduated
from Columbia in 1833; Daniel C, who was graduated from
Columbia in 1824; and Judge Cornelius, who was graduated
from the same institution in 1806, and practised law for many
years in this State.

The women of this race have been noted for their social
graces. Nearly all married well and enjoyed long and happy
wedded lives. In every generation they have been at the very
head of New York society, and in the present decade they still
wield that sovereignty in the person of Mrs. William Astor.
They have been women of deep religious sentiments, and have
been identified with church work in all of its forms. They have
written their names indelibly upon the pages of philanthropy in
the history of the metropolis.

The family typifies the growth of the Empire State. Its early
members were active in the opening of the primeval forest-lands
and thereafter in the development of travel and traffic. They
were among the first to establish the higher education in New
York, and have ever since been closely connected with its college
and university life. In the present century they have aided gener-
ously in the formation and support of learned bodies and semi-
educational institutions. They have never sought office, and of
all the old families of the State, they have been the most reserved.
This reserve has not been that of selfish isolation, but has, on the
contrary, been accompanied by an ideally democratic conduct.
They have looked after the welfare of their neighbors and

124 Scbermerborn

fellow-citizens, and have in every generation increased the pros-
perity of the community.

From the earliest time they perceived the maritime importance
of "New York. They realized that the possession of the Hudson,
the Sound, the Kills, and "Newark Bay involved a mine of inex-
haustible wealth to Manhattan Island. They were advocates of
the Erie and Champlain Canal, the Morris and Essex, the Delaware
and Raritan, and of the harbor improvements which have been
going on for more than a century. They took part in the develop-
ment of coastwise and river navigation, and laid the foundation
for many mercantile enterprises between New York and the coast
cities of the Atlantic. It was this clear statesmanlike view which
enabled them to take advantage of opportunities unperceived by
others, and to accumulate that wealth which is usually the reward
of intelligence and determined effort. The name Schermerhorn
bears the same relation to the coastwise shipping of New York
that the names of Astor, Low, and Grinnell do to its huge ocean
traffic.

Schuyler

125

VvWA'^

General Philip Schujler
From the painting by Trumbull

XXXII

SCHUYLER

'WO hundred and fifty years ago (1651)
a handsome young Dutchman, Philip
Pietersen Van Schuyler, p^iiip

came across the seas from Pietersen
Holland and settled in the town of
Rensselaerswyck, known to-day as
Albany. He represented the finest
type of Dutch manhood, being brave,
intelligent, energetic, and religious.
He was a pioneer in the best sense
of the word, and in addition was a
commander of men and an organizer
of industry. He was a successful farmer, acquiring an estate
which enriched his descendants for many generations. He was
eminent as a public leader, preserving friendly relations with
the Indians, directing the conquest of the wilderness, and aiding
newly arrived immigrants to obtain a foothold in the valleys of the
Hudson and the Mohawk. He married Margherita Van Schlich-
tenhorst soon after his arrival, and had a numerous family, all of
whom inherited his health and physical and mental strength.

Of his children, Pieter, the oldest son, was the most conspicu-
ous. With Dutch thrift, he circulated a petition, presented it in per-
son, and obtained a royal charter in 1688 for the city,
under the new name of Albany. Incidentally with the

incorporation, came his appointment as Mayor. The mayoralty

127

Pieter

128 Scbupler

was more important in colonial days than at the present time, it
had military and legal as well as executive obligations, and in
general jurisdiction was almost the equal of the governorship.
On account of the exigencies of the time, the Mayor was the In-
dian Commissioner or Agent. He was popular among the red
men, who named him "Quedor," a sobriquet by which he was
well-known in northern New York.

in 1689, the war broke out between England and France,
affording the doughty Mayor the opportunity of proving himself
as brilliant a soldier as he was a statesman. From this period up
to his death, in 1724, his life was one of the chief glories of New
York. He was indefatigable; he kept his own property well in
hand, organized the people of northern New York into military
companies, established forts at strategic points, led several expedi-
tions into Canada, then an appendage to the French Crown, made
treaties with the Puritan colonies in New England, and alliances
with the Indian tribes in the Empire State. When affairs were
looking dark for the colony, he took a delegation of Indian chiefs
across the sea and presented them to Queen Anne. It is hard to
say which produced the greatest sensation at the English capital
— the handsome Dutch Mayor or the stalwart sagamores. They
were entertained in the most lavish style of old-fashioned
hospitality, which, according to old historians, nearly ruined
the Honorable Pieter's digestion and half demoralized his redskin
colleagues. But it had the effect desired. When the chiefs
returned laden with clothing, jewels, arms, toys, watches, and
baubles they created such a furor among the Iroquois that from
that time on the Mayor had no difficulty in gathering an Indian
army whenever needful. The historians of the time are singu-
larly unanimous— the English, Canadians, and Americans pro-
nouncing Pieter the best soldier and statesman of his period, while
the French chroniclers refer to him as the most ferocious and
bloodthirsty enemy of the King of France. The fame of Pieter
has obscured his brothers, Brandt, Arent, and John, who were gal-
lant officers and public-spirited citizens, the latter also having been
Mayor of Albany. Pieter might have had a title had he so desired,

i—

> ^

tyo

c«

f~.

E
o

I^^^^^^^H

^^^B^^^H

t; m

~ a.

' — 'o

^— ^

<1-| 5

Scbuv>lci* 129

but when knighthood was offered him by Queen Anne he refused
the honor. He explained his declination on two grounds: first,
that it might humble his brothers, who were just as good men as
he; and, second, that it might make the women of his family vain.
Pieter's bravery came as much from his mother as his father. The
former, Margherita Van Schlichtenhorst, was living in the fort at
Albany when a party of soldiers came to seize the place. The
Colonel, her son, was away at the time, and the men attached to
the house were at their wit's ends; but the woman was equal
to the emergency. She summoned the men, called them to arms,
and drove out the assailants.

in the third generation, the most conspicuous figure was that
of Colonel Philip, Jr., Pieter's oldest son. According to his tomb-
stone, he was "a gentleman improved in several public employ-
ments." He was a capable soldier, a shrewd statesman, and a
good business man. He married his cousin, Margaret Schuyler
(1701-1782), whose many graces have been recorded in Mrs.
Grant of Laggan's interesting book, Memoirs of an Amcriccin Lady.

From Arent, Philip Pietersen's third son, are descended the
Schuylers of northern New Jersey, where many still own large
estates along the Passaic River. To this branch belongs Colonel
Pieter, son of Arent, the gallant commander of the ' ' Jersey Blues "
during the "Old French War," who will be remembered for his
humanity and generosity while in Canada toward the captives of
the French and Indians whom he rescued or ransomed, as well
as toward the prisoners he himself made.

The fourth generation brings upon the boards the greatest of
the family, Major-General Philip Schuyler, who was born in 1733,
and died in 1804. He was a man who could have sue- ,, . ^

^ Major-Gen.

ceeded in any calling, so well rounded was his mental Phnip

and moral eciuipment. Webster pronounced him second only to
Washington among the great Revolutionary heroes. At the
breaking out of the Revolution, he was practically the head of the
Schuyler family. He had wealth, power, and culture; he held
a commission under the British Crown, and could, had he so de-
sired, received knighthood. His interests were bound up in the

I30 Scbu^ler

English cause, and to espouse the cause of the colonies seemed to
mean ruin. He was an aristocrat by birth, breeding, and associa-
tion. Nevertheless, when the conflict came he threw up his com-
mission and gave himself to the Revolutionary cause. His career
during the seven years' war is known to every one, and it is gen-
erally conceded that it was his genius which won the battle of
Saratoga. After the Revolution, he took an active part in public
aflairs, serving as a delegate to the Continental Congress, and as
a United States Senator.

General Schuyler was not covetous of public office. From
boyhood he was marked by an equanimity seldom found among
the children of the wealthy. He was generous to a fault. Under
the law of primogeniture, which then prevailed, he was entitled
to the major part of the paternal estate. He refused to accept it,
however, and shared the patrimony with his brothers and sisters.
The first half of the eighteenth century was not an age when edu-
cation flourished. Conviviality and social pleasures engrossed the
attention of the higher classes, but young Schuyler made himself
conspicuous even then by his studious habits. In this determina-
tion he was greatly aided by his mother, Cornelia Van Cortlandt.
He was a fluent French scholar, had a good knowledge of Dutch,
German, and Latin, excelled in mathematics, and was more than
proficient in civil and military engineering.

The first recognition of his ability came when he was a young
man. The Commissary Department of the British Army was in
a muddled condition, and Lord Viscount Howe, the commander,
selected young Schuyler to take charge of an- important branch
of the work. There was a protest from many officers, who
resented the placing over them of what they called a boy. Lord
Howe is said to have replied that he did not like to appoint a boy,
but when a boy was the only one who could do the work prop-
erly, he had to appoint him. It was just before this time, September
17, 1755, that Philip Schuyler married Catherine Van Rensselaer,
a noted beauty of the period, daughter of Colonel John Van
Rensselaer. The choice was a happy one, as the wife possessed
the determination and heroism of the husband. Her daughter

Scbu^lcr 131

wrote concerning her: " Perhaps 1 may relate of my mother, as
a judicious act of her kindness, that she not infrequently sent a
milch cow to persons in poverty. . . . When the Continental
Army was retreating before Burgoyne, she drove in her chariot
with four horses to Saratoga to remove her household articles.
While there, she received directions from General Schuyler to set
fire to his extensive fields of wheat— which she did with her own
hands— and to induce his tenants and others to do the same, rather
than suffer them to be reaped by the enemy. She also sent her
horses on for the use of the army, and returned to Albany on a
sled drawn by oxen."

Of Philip's chivalry, the best witness was his adversary, Gen-
eral Burgoyne. This British commander in the House of Commons
delivered a speech in which he held General Schuyler up to the
admiration of Parliament. He said: "By orders a very good
dwelling-house, exceeding large storehouses, great sawmills, and
other outbuildings, to the value altogether of perhaps ten thousand
pounds, belonging to Gen. Schuyler at Saratoga, were destroyed
by fire a few days before the surrender. One of the first persons
1 saw after the convention was signed was General Schuyler, and
when 1 expressed to him my regret at the event which had
happened to his property, he desired me to think no more of it,
and said that the occasion justified it according to the rules and
principles of war. He did more: he sent an aide-de-camp to con-
duct me to Albany, in order, as he expressed it, to procure better
quarters than a stranger might be able to find. That gentleman
conducted me to a very elegant house, and to my great surprise
presented me to Mrs. Schuyler and her family. In that house 1
remained during my whole stay in Albany, with a table with more
than twenty covers for me and my friends, and every other pos-
sible demonstration of hospitality."

This home in Albany saw all the great men and women of
the land. The library contained the best collection of books in the
colony. This room, or den, as the owner called it, was a favorite
resort of Aaron Burr, who went there, when a member of the
Legislature at Albany, to prepare his cases and write his orations.

132 Scbu^ler

There he met the daughter of General Schuyler, whom he was to
make a widow by shooting her husband, Alexander Hamilton.
General Schuyler displayed great political wisdom and statesman-
ship during his term in the Senate.

Of General Schuyler's children, eight reached maturity and
married. Only one took part in public affairs— Philip J. Schuyler,
who was a Representative in Congress from Dutchess
"'' ' County and a valued citizen. The other seven exer-
cised great social influence in the latter part of the eighteenth
century and the early part of the nineteenth. Angelica married
John Barker Church; Elizabeth, Alexander Hamilton; Margarita,
Stephen Van Rensselaer, the Patroon; John B., Elizabeth Van
Rensselaer, the daughter of the Patroon; Rensselaer, Elizabeth
Ten Broeck; Cornelia, Washington Morton; and Catherine, who
will be long remembered as the godchild of Washington, married
Samuel Bayard Malcolm, and, upon the latter's death, James
Cochran. Six of the eight marriages proved fruitful, though in
nearly every instance there was a preponderance of female over
male descendants. This is seen in the small number of those who
bear the General's name, and the very large number of those who
carry his blood in their veins. Among the names which now repre-
sent this branch of the house are Ogden, Harison, Baxter, Bolton,
Chambers, De Luze, Seabury, Peck, Morton, Van Rensselaer,
Nolan, Douw, Thayer, Robb, Andrews, Berry, Townsend, Barber,
Crosby, Hamilton, Church, Cruger, Pell, and Glover.

The oldest son of General Philip was John Bradstreet [1763],
who was a distinguished engineer, and who died (1795) from a
fever contracted while engaged in the construction of a water-
way from Schenectady to Lake Ontario. He inherited the Sara-
toga estate. His wife was Elizabeth, daughter of Stephen Van
Rensselaer.

Philip of Saratoga [1788], son of John Bradstreet, was gradu-
ated from Columbia in 1806 and immediately afterward began a
brilliant career. He was a canal advocate and secured the con-
struction of the great canal-basin at Schuylerville. He established
at the latter place the second cotton-mill in New York State. He

i^\r

Np**^"^^

■i^^

■

iL-'

(

%i^

■»''?^

■ T>hj

~ "-

o t

^ ^ ^1

Scbu\>Icr 133

served in the New York Assembly (1822) and made an excellent
United States Consul at Liverpool. He married Grace, sister of
Hon. John Hunter. His life was noted for its generosity and hospi-
tality. At his first home in Schuylerville, and his second and last,
at Pelham-on-the-Sound, he entertained with princely liberality.
He was enthusiastic in his love of humanity, giving all the time
he could to church work and charity.

John [1825], son of Philip of Saratoga, was educated at the
New York University and became a civil engineer. In this profes-
sion he rose to the highest rank, and became an authority on
railway construction and bridge-building. He was a member of the
Order of the Cincinnati, where he was elected progressively sec-
retary, general treasurer, and vice-president. His chief relaxation
was the study of astronomy and Egyptology, in both of which
sciences he was a distinguished expert. He died unmarried in 1895.

Philip Jeremiah [1768], second son of General Philip, settled
in Rhinebeck, where he attained great prominence. He served in
the Assembly and held many responsible offices. He married
Sarah Rutzen, and, after her death, Mary Anna Sawyer.

George Lee [181 1], son of Philip Jeremiah, was born in Rhine-
beck and came to New York early in his career, where he became
a civil engineer of high repute. He was one of the organizers of
the modern system of transportation upon the Hudson River and
Long Island Sound, and shares with Stevens, Astor, and Stock-
holm the credit of having developed, if not created, that system
which has been so potent in increasing the wealth of the
Metropolis.

He was a stanch supporter of the Union during the Civil
War, and served as an aide-de-camp with rank of Colonel on the
staff of General Wool, as agent for the Union Defence Committee
and as agent for the Federal Government. He enjoyed considera-
ble reputation as a writer and historical student. He was married
twice, both wives being grand-daughters of Alexander Hamilton.
He was active in club life, having been a member of the Union,
Knickerbocker, and New York Yacht Clubs. He was probably
best known to the public as one of the original owners, with J.

134 Scbu^ler

C. Stevens, E. A. Stevens, Hamilton Wilkes, and J. Beekman
Finley, of the America's Cup. In 1882, he was the sole survivor
of that famous group of yachtsmen.

In 1887, he was the referee in the international race between
the Volunteer and the Thistle. He had one son, Philip, and two
daughters, Louisa Lee and Georgina. The present head of this
branch is Philip [1836]. He was educated at Harvard (1853) and
the University of Berlin (1857). He read law with the late Ben-
jamin D. Silliman. He joined the Seventh Regiment N. Y. N. G.
in 1859, and at the outbreak of the Rebellion left New York for the
defence of Washington, in May, he entered the regular army as
lieutenant and became major for gallant and meritorious services.
He has been identified with the management of several large local
institutions, including the New York Hospital and its Asylum for
the Insane at White Plains and the New York Blind Asylum. He
is a trustee of the New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox, and
Tilden Foundation, and of the Zoological Gardens. He inherits
his father's yachting tastes and has been tleet-captain of the New
York Yacht Club.

Louisa Lee [1837], daughter of George Lee and Eliza Hamilton
holds a high rank in philanthropy and patriotism. At the breaking
out of the Civil War she joined the U. S. Sanitary Commission
and was one of the chief volunteer workers of the New York
Branch during the four years of that great struggle. So closely
did she attend to her duties that her health was impaired and she
was obliged to pass some time in Europe, in 1872, as a result of
her visits among the poor and to institutions for their benefit, she
organized the " State Charities Aid Association," which has been
so potent a factor in the reforms of institutional work in the
Empire State. To this Aid Association she has given her time
and labor up to the present date. Her achievements include
reports, recommendations, studies upon pauperism, hospitals,
asylums, and the care and treatment of the pauper insane. She
is especially distinguished for her ability in initiating and further-
ing reform measures and for her power of enlisting the sympathy
of the community in such undertakings.

Louisa Lee Schuyler

The hiterior of the Schuyler House on 31st Street

Scbu^lcr 135

She accepted the honorary position of representative of New
York State on the Woman's Board of the Columbian Exposition
at Chicago 1892-g"), and in igoo was chosen an honorary member
of the Woman's Board of the Pan-American Exposition at Buffalo.

Arent Schuyler, a brother of Pieter, the founder, is the head
of a junior branch which has been well represented in official and
professional life. In the family itself it has been known

^ ■' Arent

as the clerical division, on account of the large num-
ber of ministers and writers it contained. To this line belongs the
Rev. Dr. Montgomery Schuyler, who was born in New York City
in 1814, and who studied at Geneva, now Hobart, and at Union
Colleges. After graduating from the latter in 1834, he Rev.

practised law, went into mercantile life, and finally Montgomery
entered the Protestant Episcopal Church.

He was a rector in Marshall, Mich., Lyons, N. Y., and
Buffalo, N. Y. He then went to Christ Church, St. Louis, Mo.,
where he labored up to his death, in 1896, serving over forty years.
When his church was made the cathedral of the diocese, he was
chosen dean. He made many valuable contributions to Church
literature and ecclesiastical publications.

About his son, the Rev. Louis Sanford Schuyler, is the halo
of heroism. He was born at Buffalo in 1852, graduated from
Hobart in 1871, entered the ministry in 1874, and, when Re^_ louIs
the yellow fever broke out in 1878, was the first to sanford
volunteer upon the relief committee, and obtained an assignment
at his own request for Memphis, Tenn., where the epidemic was
the worst. Here he fought well, but paid the penalty of his
philanthropy with his life. Memorial services for him were held
in all the Protestant Episcopal churches of the country, as well
as in those of other denominations.

The Rev. Dr. Anthony Schuyler, cousin of the Rev. Dr.
Montgomery Schuyler, was another distinguished Episcopal
divine. After graduation from Hobart College, he Reverend
studied and practised law for ten years. He then took Anthony
sacred orders, and was admitted to the Protestant Episcopal
Church in 18=50, at the age of thirty-four. For thirty-two years

136 Scbu^Icr

he was rector of Grace Church, Orange, N. J. A ripe scholar and
author, he was rewarded by the degrees of D.D. and S.T.D.
He died November, 1900.

Montgomery Schuyler [1843], son of the Rev. Dr. Anthony
Schuyler, is the well-known editor, writer, and author of New
York City. He received his education at Hobart Col-
on gomery ^^^^^ travcllcd extensively at home and abroad, and
has made a special study of American architecture.

Montgomery Schuyler, Jr., son of Montgomery and grandson
of Anthony of the Arent line, is a fellow of Columbia University
njonj. and the author of monographs upon early Persian and

gomery II. Sauscrit religious and dramatic literature.

An important branch begins with Captain Philip, fourth son
of the founder. He was a stalwart farmer and brave soldier, and
was the leading spirit in Old Saratoga and its vicinity. To his
energy was due much of the development of that early settle-
ment. During King George's War (1744-48) the authorities at
Albany gave notice that they could not protect the outlying
towns in the event of an invasion by the French and Indians, and
advised the settlers to rendezvous at the northern metropolis.
Captain Philip refused to leave and fortified his house. Here he
remained, and when the French made their attack in 1745 he
was one of the many heroes who fought and died at Saratoga in
defence of their homes.

Among the descendants of Captain Philip was George Wash-
ington Schuyler, his great-grandson, who was born in 1810, and
George d>ed at Ithaca, N. Y., in 1888. He was a graduate of

Washington ^^iq (Juiversity of New York. He studied theology,
but turned from the pulpit to commerce. In 1863, he was State
Treasurer and in 1866 was appointed Superintendent of the Bank-
ing Department of New York. He served in the Assembly in
1875 and from 1876 to 1880 was auditor of the Canal Department.
He was undoubtedly the first to advocate the abolition of tolls
upon the canal and, after many years' agitation, saw his project
become the law of the State by the passage of a Constitutional
Amendment.

Philip Schuyler

From a painting by R. M. Stagg

The Schuyler Houie " Nevis," at Tarrytown on the Hudson

Scbu^ler 137

The high talents of George Washington were transmitted to
his son, Eugene Schuyler, author and diplomat. He inherited
the intense energy of the founders of his race. He

'='•' Eugene

was born in 1840, at Ithaca, N. Y., and died in Egypt,
at fifty years of age. He held consular and diplomatic posts no
less than ten times, and in all acquitted himself creditably. He
was a popular contributor to the magazines of both his own
country and England, and made two translations from the Russian
of Turgenef and Tolstoy, and one from the Finnish. He wrote a
biography of Peter the Great, and was an esteemed member of a
dozen learned societies.

Viewed as a unit, the Schuyler family has had a great influ-
ence upon the Empire State. In the colonial days it was in the
front rank of the progressive patroons, and aided the conversion
of the northern and eastern districts of the commonwealth from
savagery to civilization. It was always liberal, generous, and
tolerant. These virtues it brought from the Netherlands, and
with them the love of learning, of comfort, and refinement. The
Schuyler homes for two hundred years were noted for hospitality,
and were crowded by the leading men and women of the time.
Of the great Revolutionary characters, more than one half were
guests at some time of the Schuyler mansion in Albany. They
devoted their activity to matters of general welfare, such as the
extension of the colonies into Canada, the construction of the
Erie Canal system, the establishment of a national bank, and
the upholding of the national honor no matter at what cost. In
quiet seasons they took little interest, and seldom engaged, in the
game of politics. They made good soldiers and landed proprietors,
and were gentlem.en of culture. Where they had pov/er over ten-
ants they never abused it, and never were arbitrary or tyrannical.
During the Revolution, tradition says, they incurred the displeas-
ure of some of the patroon class by waiving all rents from tenants.
They did this from pure philanthropy, and probably did not
realize that in so doing they were making the stepping-stone from
the then existing conditions to the anti-rent and anti-quarter sale
agitation, which was to revolutionize the rural system of New York.

Smith

139

A'. V.^\ ■. . \

IVillijin Smith

Justice of the Supreme Court

From a miniature

XXXIII

SMITH

|IVE generations of college men, where-
of each has supplied distinguished
lawyers to the community, is the sim-
ple but magnificent record of the Smith
family of New York. Through profes-
sional ability, it has enjoyed the ad-
vantages of wealth; through marriage,
it has become connected with many
of the old Knickerbocker bloods, and
through legal, literary, and medical
services, it has stamped itself upon the
chronicles of the State.
Its most prominent ancestor was William, a stalwart soldier
in the army of Oliver Cromwell. He was one of the praying
and pious soldiers of that period, who taught the
world the impressive lesson that a religious devotee
was more than a match in the tented field for the
conscienceless free-lance or the roystering swashbuckler. His
was the type which, after the Restoration, supplied the New World
with so much of its best material. The emigrants brought with
them across the seas the high moral purposes and the indomitable
patience which had marked them in the civil struggles at home.
That nearly all were narrow-minded and intolerant, is often charged
against them as a heinous fault. Such criticisms, however, over-
look the fact that the conquest of the New World demanded the

141

William
the Soldier
and Puritan

142 Smitb

iron virtues, and not the pleasing courtesies of a refined civiliza-
tion. The great colonies of the world have been founded by
heroes and zealots.

William the soldier was born in the Isle of Ely, Cambridge-
shire, England, but removed and settled at Newport Pagnell, Buck-
inghamshire, where he died about 1682. He married Elizabeth
Hartley of Lancashire, by whom he had six children — five sons
and one daughter: William 11., James, John, Samuel, Thomas
(from whom the New York branch descends), and Christiana.
Of this generation, two left home for America. William 11., the
oldest, emigrated to Jamaica, W. I., and settled at Port Royal,
from which he is known as " Port Royal " Smith. He married
"Port Royal" Frauces Peartree, daughter of Colonel William Peartree,
Smith ,^1-10 was Mayor of New York in 1703. From him are

descended the Peartree-Smiths, who played an important part in
the Empire State in the eighteenth century.

Thomas, the fifth and youngest son of William I., was born
in 167^ at Newport Pagnell, married Susanna Odell, and came to
Thomas the New World with his three sons in 17 15. He had
the Merchant scarcely more than landed when he started a move-
ment looking toward the establishment of a Presbyterian Church,
there being none in the city at that time. Success crowned his
efforts, and in 17 16 the denomination in which he was an enthu-
siastic worker had its own place of worship. He died in 1745.
He was a merchant and a man of large means.

Of the children of Thomas, Judge William was one of the
great men of his period. When he arrived with his father in New
Judge York he was eighteen years of age. The same year

William (1715) he entered Yale, where he was graduated in
1719, and took the degree of A.M. in 1722. For the next two
years he served as professor at that institution of learning, during
which period he showed so much ability that in 1724, when but
twenty-seven years old, he was asked to become the President of
the college. He declined, as he had already taken up the study
of law, and had pursued it with such assiduity in his leisure hours
that he was admitted to the bar the same year. Two months

Smitb 143

afterwards he opened a law office in New York, and was shortly
in the enjoyment of a good practice.

From this point on until his death, in 1769, he was a leading
figure in colonial life. He appeared in nearly every litigation of
importance, and was a leader in each political issue. In politics,
he was a Whig; in his ideas, an advocate of the people against
the Crown. When the British officials undertook the prosecution
of John Peter Zenger, editor of the New York Weekly Journal
(1735), William Smith and James Alexander defended the accused,
and so offended the magistrates that their names were stricken
from the roll of attorneys. In spite of the power of the Crown,
Zenger was acquitted, and the liberties of the press preserved.
Although his disbarment lasted two years, it only served to in-
crease his power and influence in the colony. In 1736, he was
made Recorder; in 1748, he was one of the incorporators of Prince-
ton College, and is said by the historian of that institution to have
drawn up the first charter and the draft of the second. To the
end of his life " he was the earnest friend of the college, and one
of the most honored and influential members of the Board."

The cause of higher education was neglected in New York in
those years. Among the chief men of that period, only Judge
Smith and Lieutenant-Governor De Lancey were college grad-
uates. The first step toward a better condition was taken by
Judge Smith, William Alexander, and three members of the Morris
family, who in 1732 petitioned the Assembly to establish a free
school for teaching Latin, Greek, and mathematics. This was
done the same year, and proved a success. The experiment was
so popular that the same men now, aided by other leading citizens,
determined to have a college in their own city. Funds were col-
lected by lotteries, and an annual grant promised by the Legis-
lature. In 1 75 1, trustees were appointed, and in 17^4, the charter
of the College of the Province of New York, known as King's
College, was granted. Owing largely to Judge Smith's efforts,
the new school started upon a liberal and almost non-sectarian
basis, in the Board of Governors were the rector of Trinity
Church, the senior minister of the Reformed Protestant Dutch

144 Smitb

Church, the minister of the Ancient Lutheran Church, the minister
of the French Church, and the minister of the Presbyterian con-
gregation. In 1754, the Judge, with a number of distinguished
friends, arranged plans for a public library, obtained the charter,
and started what is now the New York Society Library.

The year 1751 saw the Judge appointed Attorney-General
and Advocate-General. Two years later, he was made a member
of the Council. The following year, he was chosen to be one of
the four representatives from "New York to the General Congress
at Albany. In 1760, the office of Chief Justice was offered to him
by Lieutenant-Governor Cadwallader Colden, but declined. Three
years afterwards, he accepted the appointment of Judge of the
Supreme Court of the Province, and held it with singular ability
up to the time of his death. He was twice married, his first wife
being Mary Hett, by whom he had fifteen children; his second,
Mrs. Elizabeth Scott Williams, by whom he had no issue. He
applied his educational ideas to the training of his children. All
were good French and Dutch scholars, and thoroughly versed in
English literature. The sons were familiar with Greek and Latin,
and had a fair knowledge of Hebrew.

Thomas [1700?], the second son of Thomas and Susanna,
was a merchant and real-estate owner of considerable wealth. He
Thomas II., was oue of the first to develop Orange County, where
Merchant j^g j^ad a great tract of land. He lived at Smith's
Clove, now Monroe. John, the third son [1702], was a popular
„ , ^ clergyman, who spent the larger part of his life at

Rev. John

White Plains. He married Mehetabel Hooker, by
whom he had four sons and eight daughters.

In the fourth generation, William Peartree [1723] was a
public-spirited citizen and patriot, who was very active in civic
affairs.

Chief Justice Wiiiiam [1728], son of Judge William, was the
great man of the generation. He inherited his father's character,
Chief Justice ^ud was a brilliant student. He was graduated from
William Yale in 1745, when but seventeen years of age. So
great was his precocity that he was an honor man in the classics.

William Smith

Chief Justice of New York and of Canada. From a steel engraving

Smitb 145

mathematics, Hebrew, and medicine — a wonderful record for a
mere youth. He entered his father's law office, where he had as
a fellow-student William Livingston, the future war-Governor of
New Jersey. He was admitted to the bar in 1760, and formed a
partnership with Livingston, the tlrm immediately building up a
lucrative practice.

Up to the time of the Revolution, no man stood higher in the
affections of the Colonials. His culture, eloquence, probity, gen-
tleness, and breeding made him a universal favorite. He was
conscientious to a f'uilt, doing things that to the great world
seemed ultra-chivalrous and even quixotic. He would not defend
a cause which he knew to be wrong, and when he served as ar-
bitrator, he refused any remuneration, on the ground that a judge
should never have any fee. He declined speculative cases, and
would not permit a man to come into his law office unless it was
with "clean hands." He was a copious writer, wielding a pleas-
ant and powerful pen. His chief work, A History of the Province
of New York, is an eighteenth-century classic. From this work
he takes the sobriquet of " William the Historian,"

Yet his very conscientiousness plunged him into a sea of
trouble. When the Revolutionary War broke out, his sympathies
were with the people, and yet he believed the crime of rebellion
to be unpardonable. He was bitterly opposed to the tyranny of
the British Government, but he thought redress should be sought
along peaceful channels. He had the courage of his convictions,
refusing to take part in the rebellion, on the one side, or to fight
against his countrymen on the other. As a result, he was named
in the Act of Attainder, and his estates confiscated. When mod-
erate counsels prevailed, the act was cancelled, and the Chief
Justice invited to return to New York, in the meantime, he,
with his son William, had gone to England on the evacuation of
New York in 1785. In 1785, he was appointed Chief Justice
of Canada, where he exercised the functions of that high office
with honor to himself until his death, in 1793. He married Jennet
Livingston, daughter of James Livingston of New York, by whom
he had ten children.

VOL. II — 10.

146 Smitb

Thomas [1734], the second son of Judge William, was gradu-
ated from Princeton (1754) and admitted to the bar in 1756. He
Thomas was a patHot, and, unlike his brother, a Revolutionist,
the Lawyer j^g ^-jg a member of the Committee of Safety and of
the Provincial Congress. His law practice was lucrative, and made
him a wealthy man, outside of the property which he inherited.
He married Elizabeth Lynsen, by whom he had a large family.

Dr. James [1738], the third son of Judge William, was gradu-
ated from Princeton (1757), and received the best medical education
of the time in Europe, and especially at Leyden, Hol-
land. He was instrumental in the organization of the
medical department of Columbia College, and in 1768 was ap-
pointed to the chair of chemistry and materia medica. He was an
active Whig, and both in this country and abroad argued manfully
for the colonies. He was not alone a great physician, but so far
ahead of his time as to be pronounced too theoretical and fanciful.
What galled the practitioners of the period was that Dr. James
would write his theses in Latin or else employ so much of that
language in his medical papers as to render them unintelligible to
the average practitioner. He married Mrs. Atkinson, a wealthy
widow of Kingston, Jamaica, by whom he had issue.

Joshua Hett [1749], the youngest son of Judge William, was
admitted to the bar in 1772. He was a successful practitioner,
Joshua Hett ^"^ duriug the Revolution pursued the same course as
the Lawyer j^jg oldest brother, the Chief Justice. He was involved
in the Arnold episode, but appears to have been innocent of all
complicity in that treachery.

In the fifth generation, William [1769], the son of the his-
torian, was educated in New York and England. He accompanied
,„.„. ,^ his father to Canada, where he was made Clerk of

William the '

Historian the Provlucial Parliament, in 18 14, he was placed in
° ^^ * the Executive Council. He was lieutenant-colonel in
the Quebec militia and a successful lawyer and writer. His chief
work was A History of the Province of Canada, similar to his
father's A History of the Province of New York. He married
Susan Webber, by whom he had five children. His grandson,

Smitb 147

Lieutenant-Colonel William C. Smith of the British Army, is the
present head of that branch of the family.

Of the children of Thomas of Haverstraw, second son of
Judge William, the most important was Thomas, Jr. [1760?]. He
was a lawyer of wealth, who devoted most of his time Thomas, jr.,
to the management of his estate. He married Mary *''« Lawyer
Taylor, daughter of John Taylor, a merchant prince of the metrop-
olis, by whom he had five children.

in the sixth generation, the children of Thomas, Jr., deserve
special mention. The oldest, John Taylor, was graduated from
Columbia University in 1805, and admitted to the bar j^hnTayior,
in 1810. He became District Attorney of Rockland District
County, and for many years was active in State affairs. °"^^

He was a stanch supporter of De Witt Clinton and the canal policy,
as well as of all the liberal movements of his period. He married
Willimina Stodart, by whom he had six children — three sons and
three daughters.

The head of the seventh generation, and of the house, so far
as America is concerned, is Charles Bainbridge, a prominent
member of the New York bar. He is a son of John charies
Taylor and Willimina, and was born in 1822. He Bainbridge,
studied law in the office of William Curtis Noyes, ^''^^

and was admitted to the bar in 1846. He has been an active and
successful practitioner up to the present time. He married twice,
his first wife being Miss Keteltas, by whom he had issue.

In the eighth generation is Eugene Keteltas, son of Charles
Bainbridge. He was educated in this country and in Eugene
France, and resides in Vermont. He is represented Keteitas
in the ninth generation by two sons.

Female descendants of William and Elizabeth Smith married
into the following families: Bostwick, Budd, Delafield, Denning,
Doyle, Gordon, Hay, Herbert, Keteltas, Livingston, Mackie, Mallet,
Maturin, Roberts, Rose, Ross, Sewall, Stewart, Tallmadge, Temple,
and Torrans.

To-day, when all are agreed upon the value of education,
especially in its relations to professional and social life, it is difficult

148 Smitb

to appreciate the conditions which prevailed in the first century
of the life of New York. Schools were few and poorly patronized,
and such of the citizens as desired to give their children the bene-
fits of the best mental training were compelled to send them to
New England or to the old country. The change which the
colony underwent during these one hundred years was largely
due to the influence and activity of the descendants of William
and Elizabeth Smith. They had big hearts, and endeavored not
only to give their own children the best education which could be
procured, but also to place educational opportunities within the
grasp of the community. Their work in respect to Yale, Prince-
ton, and Columbia, and, above all, the example which they them-
selves set for their neighbors, were two forces potent for good.
That the family has sustained its own traditions, was to have been
expected.

Stu^vesant

149

vi -^"i^AK

Peter Stuyvesant

After an engraving of the picture owned by the N. Y. Historical

Society

XXXIV

STUYVESANT

Petrus the
Governor

N the early history of the New Nether-
lands, one man towers high over all
the rest. A soldier, statesman, patriot,
and philanthropist, he seems to have
embodied the virtues of his age.
Petrus, or Peter, Stuyvesant, the great
Dutch Governor of New
York, was born in 1602, in
Friesland. His father was a clergy-
man, who gave the boy an excellent
education, and developed the schol-
arly instincts which were to mark his
subsequent career, but neither study nor the quiet life of Holland
suited a youth whose vitality, physical and mental, was of heroic
proportions. At an early age he had shown a love for military
life, and to gratify it entered the service of the West India Com-
pany. This corporation represented the inordinate ambition of
the Dutch leaders of that period. Upon it was conferred more
power than had been bestowed by England upon the East India
Company.

It had plenary rights to all the lands it might discover, occupy,
or conquer. It had the right to make war and peace, enter into
alliances, raise armies, build navies, construct fortresses, adminis-
ter justice, impose tariffs and other forms of taxation, and its
generals and admirals enjoyed an independence unlike anything

151

152 Stu^vesant

known to either national or international jurisprudence. In return
for these mighty prerogatives it was obliged to report its trans-
actions from time to time to the States-General of Holland, and to
apply to them for commissions for its chief officials. The object
of the corporation was to build up a trade monopoly and a landed
empire in the West, as had been done in the East, Indies.

The capital of the West India Company was about $2,500,000,
which, in purchasing power, would equal about $25,000,000 to-day.
These powers and wealth made it a quasi-political entity, stronger
and better organized than many of the European nations of that
period. Conducted by business-men, merit was the criterion of
selection and advancement — more than in the administration of
public affairs by the governments of the time. From the em-
ployees of the company were graduated many of the best soldiers
and sailors of that century. Its service was the Mecca of adven-
turers from many lands. In the rosters which have come down
to the present day may be found names of English, French,
Swedish, Spanish, Italian, German, and even Russian officials.

Among its myriad servitors, Peter Stuyvesant was prominent
within a few years after he had entered its employ. Of his ex-
ploits at this time, but little has come down from the past. Yet
that little shows him to have been a fearless and even reckless
fighter, a bold strategist, a powerful executive, and a stern dis-
ciplinarian, and by a seeming contradiction, a man of great kind-
liness and rare generosity. This combination of attributes made
him popular if not beloved among the fighting men, who prepon-
derated in the Company's service. He took part in the brilliant
campaign against Spain which resulted in the conquest of several
Spanish territories in the Antilles, and was thereafter made Gover-
nor of the island of Cura^oa.

Here, while occupying the gubernatorial chair, he led an ex-
pedition against the island of St. Martin, which belonged to Portu-
gal, where, according to an ancient wit, he lost both the battle
and his leg. He returned to Europe for surgical aid, and while
convalescing was so eager for either vengeance or the carrying out
of his plans that he secured a promise from the directors of the

Stu^vcsant 153

Company to renew the attempt, which they did triumphantly four
years later. In 1046, he was appointed Governor of the New
Netherlands, and sailed on Christmas morning for his post. The
sting of defeat must have been rankling in his bosom, because he
did not proceed directly across the sea, but went to the West
Indies and to Cura^oa, where he arrived early in 1647. Here he
held many councils with his successor, and probably among the
plans which the doughty veteran expatiated upon was the expul-
sion of the Portuguese from those seas.

He reached New Amsterdam in May of that year. With him
were his wife, Judith Bayard, the daughter of a distinguished
Huguenot divine, and his sister Anna, who had married Nicholas
Bayard, his wife's elder brother, but who had been widowed and
left with three infant sons. This group, the origin of two families,
may be regarded as a genealogical unit. The Bayards had in-
herited the grace, intellectuality, and high moral sense of their
clerical sire, while the Stuyvesants, brother and sister, seemed to
have been made in the same mould of physical and mental power.
The two women were to wield as potent an influence in the social
sphere as the great Governor in the political. Even at home they
would have been leaders of society. They were brilliant, cul-
tured, and accomplished. Mrs. Stuyvesant, who was a Bayard,
was beautiful, artistic, and gentle. Mrs. Bayard, who was a
Stuyvesant, was massive, forceful, and proud. Each had a talent
for business, and each acted as a tutor to her children, nephews,
and nieces. They deserve special reference at this point because
they exerted a profound influence upon the husband and brother.
He consulted with them upon many, if not most, matters, and
seemed to feel more confidence in their opinions than in those of
his staff. To these women may be ascribed much of the moral
force which prevailed during the Stuyvesant administration, and
which was noticeable during that century.

The Dutch women were notably chaste and upright, but
were, of course, apt to be influenced by those high in power.
Mrs. Stuyvesant and Mrs. Bayard, occupying the highest official
positions in the colony, set an example in both word and deed

154 Stu^vcsant

similar to that of the late Queen Victoria in the century just
passed.

The Governor's administration may be called the golden age
of the New Netherlands. He was no more than landed when he
took up his work, and never wearied so long as he was in power.
He organized a Council, established a court of justice, and insti-
tuted representative government. His Assembly was, of course,
crude, consisting of eighteen delegates, elected by the people,
from whom the Governor and Council selected a board of nine to
act with them as advisers. He framed laws for the better govern-
ment of the Indians, improved the revenue service, and increased
the treasury receipts. He was wiser than his generation in disap-
proving the construction of poor and cheap houses and encourag-
ing the building of those of a better type. Worthy of mention
was his establishment of a town market and of an annual cattle
fair intended to benefit the dairy and stock interests of the com-
munity. He took a large if not a chief part in founding the first
public school. With remarkable foresight for that period, he per-
ceived the necessity of accurate boundaries, and for a long time
carried on a spicy controversy with Connecticut upon this topic.

As may be supposed, his career was stormy. He was a born
commander, and brooked no opposition. According to modern
standards, he was a genial, kind-hearted tyrant, who knew no law
but his own will. He quarrelled with the patroons, merchants,
and his own Council. When his enemies submitted reports
against his course of action to the home Government, and the
States-General commanded him to appear in person in Holland,
he refused to obey in a tirade of Dutch eloquence which was long
remembered by his hearers. In 1665, he sailed down the coast
and up the Delaware, and took forcible possession of the Swedish
colony of New Sweden, which he annexed to the New Nether-
lands, and called New Amstel.

in 1664, he signed the treaty of surrender to Great Britain,
whereupon the town of New Amsterdam was rechristened New
York. Circumstances connected with this surrender throw a
clear light upon the Governor's character. The West India Com-

Stu^vcsant 155

paiiy had come to neglect the colony, and, in spite of his re-
peated appeals for arms, munitions of war, and soldiers, had done
nothing. He was not on friendly terms with the great patroons,
whose estates lay between New Amsterdam and Fort Orange,
and could not summon levies of men from their tenantry. New
England was growing rapidly, and there was strong jealousy be-
tween the English settlers of Connecticut and Long Island and
his own government. When, therefore, four English war-ships,
with four hundred and fifty soldiers, arrived in the harbor, Stuy-
vesant had scarcely a hundred men and only a few small cannon
to oppose them.

The English commander sent a summons to surrender —
promising life, liberty, and property to all who submitted to the
royal authority. Stuyvesant read the letter, tore it to pieces,
and set about making the best defence he could. Nicholas Bay-
ard, his nephew, picked up the pieces of the letter and put them
together. An anxious crowd had collected outside of the Council
chamber, to whom the letter was read. Its tone was so kind
and moderate that the people declared themselves in favor of
surrender. A petition to that effect, signed by nearly all the
leading citizens, was given to Stuyvesant, who, nevertheless,
kept on preparing for battle. Everything was ready for action —
the English fleet and soldiers, reinforced by Connecticut and
Long Island troops, on the one side, Stuyvesant and a handful
of men upon the other — when his favorite clergyman intervened,
pointing out the folly and hopelessness of so unequal a struggle.
Then, and not till then, did Stuyvesant yield.

His after-life was uneventful. He devoted himself to his
cattle and farm, the latter running along what is now the Bowery
well up to Harlem. His home was near what is now Eighth
Street. A pear tree which he brought from Holland in 1647 was
planted near the road, and lived and bore fruit until 1867. Its site
at that time was the corner of Thirteenth Street and Third Avenue.

On the outer wall of St. Mark's Church is the tablet record-
ing his death. He left two sons, Balthazar [1647] and Nicholas
William [1648].

156 Stu?ve0ant

Balthazar was a stanch Dutch patriot, and after

Balthazar

New Netherlands became English he moved to the
West Indies.

Nicholas William was a prominent citizen of early New
York, who took a lively interest in church work and philan-
Nichoias thropy. His first wife was Marie, only daughter of
William William Beekman, who died childless. His second
was Elizabeth, daughter of Commander Slechtenhorst of Rens-
selaerwyck, by whom he had three children, Peter, Anna, and
Gerardus or Gerard.

Of this generation Peter died unmarried, Anna espoused the

Rev. Dr. Pritchard, a popular Episcopal clergyman of the period,

and Gerard, his second cousin, Judith Bayard. They

had four sons, of whom only one, Peter [1727],

left issue.

The latter married Margaret, the daughter of Gilbert Living-
ston. He occupied a leading place in New York society, his
wealth being great from the growth in value of the Stuyvesant
estate. He had six children, two sons and four daughters. This
generation was probably the most important, socially, in the
family career, both sons and daughters occupying eminent po-
sitions in the colonial world. Judith married Benjamin Winthrop;
Cornelia, Dirck Ten Broeck; and Elizabeth, Colonel Nicholas
Fish; while Margaret died unmarried.

Peter Gerard [1778], was graduated from King's College
(1794), was admitted to the bar, and practised law a short time.
Peter ^^ g^ve up the profession in order to devote himself

Gerard ^q ^j-jg (-^j-g Qf j^jg j^j-gg gstate. He was twice married,

but had no children by either wife. His first wife was Susan
Barclay, and his second Helen Rutherfurd. He founded the New
York Historical Society, of which he was President from 1836
to 1840.

Nicholas William 11, married Catherine Livingston Reade,
daughter of John Reade and Catherine Livingston, by whom
Nicholas he had nine children, six sons and three daughters.
William II. pgtgr^ the oldest, married Julia Martin.

i^'s.

rt 0

. 5

O 5j

^ §

■(/) 5!
•v „-

Stu^vcoant 157

Nicholas William III. married Catherine A. Cheeseborough;
John Reade married, first, Catherine Ackerley, and secondly,
Mary A. Yates. Gerard married Susan Rivington Van Home,
Robert Reade married Margaret A. Mildeberger, Joseph Reade
married Jane Ann Browning; Catherine Ann, the oldest daughter,
married John Mortimer Catlin; Helen C. married, first, Henry
Dudley, secondly, Francis Olmsted, and thirdly, William S. Mayo.
Margaret Livingston married Robert Van Rensselaer. This was
a generation of scholarly, well-to-do men, who devoted them-
selves to their estates, to study, and to social relations, but who
took little part in the great world of affairs.

In the seventh generation Julia Helen married Rudolph C.
Winterhoff; Catherine S., Edward M. Neill; Rosalie, Aristede
Pillot; and Gertrude, Raymond P. Rogers, U. S. N.; Caroline
Augusta, Benjamin A. Onderdonk; Margaret L. J., Howard Wain-
wright; Helen Mary, Robert Sandford; Catherine L., Francis R.
Butler. Of the male members, Van Rensselaer Stuyvesant did
not marry; Henry married Caroline Hoppock; Robert, Fanny J.
Gibson; John Reade, Elizabeth T. Kendall; Robert R., Amelia
Schuchardt; A. Van Home, Harriet Le Roy Steward.

To this generation, on the maternal side, belongs Lewis
Morris Rutherfurd, a great scientist. He was a grandson of Judith
Stuyvesant, who married Benjamin Winthrop. Born Lewis Moms
in Morrisania [1816], graduated from Williams College Rutherfurd
(1834), admitted to the bar (1837), in 1849 he gave up law for
science. Perceiving the importance of specialization in astro-
nomical research, he took up astronomical photography, spectro-
scopy, and spectrologic analysis. With an intellect of extraordinary
power, and with pnough wealth to experiment upon a lavish scale,
he made remarkable progress. In 1863, he started a series of
papers on spectroscopic astronomy in the American Journal of
Science which attracted great attention. His greatest work was
the construction of differential gratings and of machines for ruling
lines upon glass. So delicate were these instruments that they
are said to have ruled ten and even fifteen thousand parallel lines
to the inch. He succeeded in dividing space with the same

158 Stu^vesant

accuracy as the most modern balance divides and weighs matter.
Honors came upon him thick and fast both at home and abroad.

For more than a quarter of a century he was a trustee of
Columbia College and a member of scientific associations. He
was an Associate of the Royal Astronomical Society, and the
recipient of more than a hundred medals, titles, degrees, resolu-
tions, and other marks of esteem from the governments, colleges,
and scientific institutions of the world. As physicist and astrono-
mer, he held high rank. He died in 1 892, at the age of seventy-six.
His wife was Margaret Stuyvesant Chanler, and his oldest son,
Stuyvesant Rutherfurd, who, by act of Legislature, transposed his
two names.

Genealogically, the latter is now the most notable member of
his race, being descended from Governor Stuyvesant of New Am-
sterdam, Governor Winthrop, of Massachusetts, Gov-

Rutherfurd

ernor Dudley, of Connecticut, Governor Morris, of New
Jersey, Robert Livingston, Balthazar Bayard, Walter Rutherfurd,
and Lewis Morris, the signer of the Declaration of Independence.
He was graduated from Columbia in 1863, and is a prominent mem-
ber of the American Geographical Society, the American Museum
of Natural History, the National Academy of Design, and a trustee
of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The other male members of
the generation are the children of Robert R. Stuyvesant, F.
Schuchardt Stuyvesant, who married Cornelia U. Bergen; Gerard,
who married Mildred N. Floyd, and Van Home, the son of A.
Van Home Stuyvesant.

The career of the Stuyvesant family, since the time of Peter
the Governor, has been marked by scholarship and social prestige
rather than by political, military, or commercial genius. It has
been wealthy from the first generation, and has used its wealth
wisely and well. Its members have been religious, and identified
with charitable, educational, and other public-spirited movements.
They have attended to all social duties, and from the landing of the
bluff Governor to the present time have dispensed hospitality to
all who came within their circle. Through marriage they have be-
come related with many colonial families, but these relations have

Stu^vcsant 159

been mainly local, so that the name is essentially a New York
name. Upon the metropolis their name is stamped indelibly;
Bowling Green, Whitehall, and the Battery are mute witnesses of
the old Governor, and Stuyvesant Square of his ancient country-
seat.

XTappen

VOL. II.— II,

l6l

■\,:\-\

Frederick D. Tappcn
From a photograph

pHpfr

^^^^L ^^^^^^Hfll^Bf

^^^1

l^^k

■ 'ifll

^B^:^'

XXXV

TAPPEN

jMONG the families of the Empire State
the Tappens or Tappans, as the name
is also spelled, hold a curious position.
Their renown rests upon achieve-
ment, probity, and public perform-
ance, but it has been largely increased
by the attainments of another family
of the same name. It is probable
that the Tappans and Tappens of
Massachusetts and of New York are
of the same race. From the time of
Henry Vlll. up to Charles I., there
was a small but constant migration of sturdy Hollanders into Eng-
land. The superiority of the Dutch in spinning, weaving, bleach-
ing, dyeing, and other industrial arts made them desirable
acquisitions to any country; and in spite of the jealousy of fellow-
craftsmen in Great Britain, they received in the main a hearty
welcome from the English Government and people.

The New York Tappens, at least, were artisans of great
ability. In the old records they are referred to as weavers, glaze-
makers, shipsmiths, and builders. The records of the sixteenth
and seventeenth centuries are incomplete and oftentimes untrust-
worthy. Of their origin nothing is known. The name has been
derived from the Dutch and also from the old English patronymic

of Topham. It is, however, more probable that the English

163

1 64 tlappen

family of Tappan brought its name from the Netherlands rather
than that it changed the good Saxon patronymic of Topham into
Tappan. "No other branch of the Tophams is known to have made
swch an alteration, and it is difficult to conceive of an English
family discarding or modifying their own name to " Dutchify " it.
To complicate the problem still further, there was in the New
Netherlands a Flemish family from Luxembourg which spelled its
name Tapin, Tappin, or Tappen, and pronounced it Tappan, and
in later years one of the offshoots spelled it to conform to the
pronunciation.

The Massachusetts race has been pre-eminent for intellectual-
ity, philanthropy, and practical Christianity; the Luxembourg for
professional attainments; while the Knickerbocker stock has
gained renown by its sturdy manhood, its high character, public
spirit, and mental attainments. The distinction of each branch
has been shed upon the other two. The New York family of
Tappen came to the New World about 1630, and, after remaining
a brief time in New Amsterdam, went to Fort Orange, where it
settled and remained for two generations. It then broke asun-
der, the main line removing to Kingston, where it became distin-
guished in matters of the State and nation. The junior line remained
in the neighborhood of Albany and sent out shoots to the West,
which took root and grew into stately growths in the course of
the years.

The founder was Jurian Teunisse, who married a daughter of
Wybrecht Jacobse. Jurian must have brought considerable prop-
jurian ^rty with him from the Old World, as he appears to

the Founder j^jjyg j^ggp j^ g^gy circumstances, if not affluence, from
the first. He was popular with the people and on terms of warm
friendship with the patroons and leading merchants. He was a
devout member of the Dutch Church and during the inclement
winters devoted a certain number of hours every week to visiting
and caring for the sick poor. The same kindly spirit actuated him
in his dealings with the Indians, who called him "The Good
Chief. " His married life was happy and uneventful. In the latter
part of his life (1654-1677) he seems to have operated largely in

tTappen 165

real estate, buying, selling, and exchanging upon a scale indi-
cating the possession of large means.

in the second generation the leading figures were Tunis and
Jurian 11. They were well-to-do farmers and traders, Tunis seem-
ing to have had the larger mercantile talent. He carried
on commerce with New Amsterdam and afterwards New
York; and on several occasions seems to have done business directly
with Holland. At that time most of this trade was in the hands
of the Dutch West India Company, the patroons, and
the high officials. The few private citizens who en-
gaged in it were men of means, prominent position, or of influence
with the authorities. During the Indian troubles, the two
brothers were enrolled in the militia, and probably took part in
the fighting which occurred at that time. Like their father, they
were devout and charitable, and were active members of the
group which made Albany at that time the rival, if not the
superior, of New York.

The wife of Tunis was Sarah Schepmoes, a Dutch belle of the
time. The wedding, which occurred in 1695, was one of the
most notable social events of the year. The wealth and social
position of the parties, the beauty of the bride, and the popularity
of the groom brought together a very distinguished assemblage
from all the settlements, even from Breuckelen and Staten Island.
The wedding-feast, tradition says, was a seven days' talk. Be-
side the luxuries in food and drink imported from the old coun-
try, there was an unusual supply of game, which had been
purchased from the Indians, or had been contributed by the
redmen and hunters. It lasted two days, during which time
every friend and neighbor was expected to come and help him-
self. In middle age, Tunis removed to Kingston, which he made
his permanent home.

In the third generation, the great personality was Christoffel,
who was born in Albany, but whose life is identified with King-
ston, the whilom capital of the Empire State. He re-

• 1 „ 1 • ,. , , Christoffel

ceived an excellent education as well as a handsome
patrimony from his father, Tunis, and on the latter's death

1 66 happen

inherited the larger part of the paternal estate. He married Cor-
nelia Vas or Vos, a handsome heiress, by whom he had a large
family of vigorous and able children. Upon his farm he built a
fine homestead, where he entertained generously. He held many
minor offices, both in the public service and church administration.
In the fourth generation, Christopher the patriot was the
leading figure. A man of marked ability, he became prominent
Christopher iu early life, and during a long career held many offices
the Patriot ^j- j^Qj^gr aud importance. Chief of these was mem-
bership in the First, Third, and Fourth Provincial Congresses,
where he took strong grounds in favor of colonial liberty and
independence. He was a trustee of Kingston, speaker of the
Board, a magistrate, and President of the Board of Magistrates.
He was deputy county clerk from 1759 to 18 12 and county clerk
from 18 12 to 182 1. His home was destroyed on the burning of
Kingston by the British. At this juncture he displayed a gal-
lantry and patriotism worthy of notice. When the attack began
it was evident that there was no hope of successful resistance and
there was barely enough time for the citizens to save their private
property. Christopher had before him the alternative of preserv-
ing either the public records or his own personal belongings, in-
cluding family heirlooms, deeds, and other evidences of wealth.
He did not hesitate a second, but took his own horses and
wagons to the court-house and removed the public records in
safety, leaving his home to the torch of the foe. After the evacu-
ation he rebuilt the family home, constructing it of stone and
brick, and making it as fire-proof as the resources of that century
would permit. Here he kept open house, as had been the habit
of his father and grandfather. The mansion was the favorite
resting-place of Governor George Clinton, who was Christopher's
brother-in-law, as well as of the State and national leaders.
Catey, a sister of Christopher, married Gilbert Livingston. Dr.
Peter, a younger brother, was a distinguished physi-

Dr. Peter > J o » o r y

cian, whose courtesy and attainments made him be-
loved in private life, and whose bravery and patriotism during the
Revolution made him an idol of the public. A letter is preserved

ZEappcn 167

from Gilbert Livingston to Dr. Peter, which gives in pleasant
fashion an account of the year 1775:

"New York, June 29, 1775.

( (

Dear Brother — You will see by the warrants who are nomi-
nated officers for your County; it is very likely we shall raise an
additional number of troops beside the three thousand now raised.
We expect all diligence will be used in Recruiting, that the regi-
ments may be formed immediately. Last Saturday about two
o'clock the Gens. Washington, Lee and Schuyler arrived here;
they crossed the North River at Hoback and landed at Col,
Lispenards. There were eight or ten companies under arms all
in uniforms who marched out to Lispenards, the procession began
from there thus, the Companies first. Congress next, two of Con-
tinental Congress next, general officers next and a company of
horse from Philadelphia who came with the General brought up
the rear : there were innumerable Company of people, Men, Wo-
men and Children present. In the evening Gov. Tryon landed
as in the newspapers. I walked with my friend George Clinton,
all the way to Lispenards, who is now gone home. 1 am very
well, hope all friends so. The Tories Catey writes are as violent
as ever, poor insignificant souls, who think themselves of great
importance. The Times will soon show 1 fancy that they must
quit their Wicked tenets at least in pretense and show fair, Let
their hearts be black as Hell. Go on, be spirited and I doubt not
success will crown our Honest endeavors for the support of our
just rights and privileges."

Cornelia, another sister of Christopher, married Governor
George Clinton, so that the family in this generation became allied
with the two houses of Livingston and Clinton, then the great
war leaders of the State.

Two sons in the fifth generation continued the prestige of
their name. Christopher, Jr., the lawyer, was a man Christopher,
of marked ability and oratorical and literary power. J""'*""

He married Cornelia Kiersted.

1 68 ZTappen

More conspicuous was John [1766]. He received a good
education, studied law, and was admitted to the bar. His tastes
John were literary and journalistic, rather than forensic, and

the Editor i^Q began contributing to the press even before he at-
tained his majority. He entered journalism, and became a popular
and influential editor. His best-remembered work was done while
he was editor and proprietor of the Plebeian, which afterwards
became the Ulster Gazette. The paper was, anti-Federalist, and
through its epigrammatic and argumentative power exerted great
influence upon the political arena in the early part of the nine-
teenth century.

Colonel Charles Barclay [1796] represented the sixth genera-
tion. He was a son of John, the editor, and was an artist by taste
Colonel ^nd an architect by profession. Intensely patriotic, he
Charles B. voluuteered in the War of 1812, and served with great
gallantry throughout the conflict. After the war his military in-
stinct kept him in touch with the militia, and in 1833 he was
made Colonel of the Two Hundred and Thirty-sixth Regiment of
the National Guard of New York State. He was deeply interested
in the development of New York City, of which many of the finest
buildings were the products of his brain. From 1835 to 1838 he
was the City Superintendent of Repairs, a post equivalent to a
modern municipal department of public works. He was happily
married and had a numerous family. He lived to the extraordi-
nary age of ninety-seven, and left behind him eleven children and
more than thirty grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Here belongs the famous educator. Rev. Henry Philip [1805].
Graduated from Union (1825), he entered Auburn Theological
Seminary, where he took orders in 1827. Five years later, he ac-
cepted the chair of moral philosophy in the University of New
York City. In 1852, he was elected the first chancellor of the Uni-
versity of Michigan, which he held for eleven years, during which
he made that institution famous for its efficiency and excellence.
He was a strong and fluent writer, contributing to the periodical
press and publishing at least seven books of more than ephemeral
value.

happen 169

Of the seventh generation, Frederick D. ' [1829] is the head.
He was educated at the Columbia Grammar School and the New
York University (1849). Attracted by financial science, Frederick d.
he began his career in the National Bank of New York, ^^^ p'°=^°c'"
which afterwards became the Gallatin National Bank. In 1857,
he rose to be cashier, and in 1868 president, which position he
has held ever since, being probably the oldest of the great
bankers of the nation. He is one of the few Americans who,
beside mastering ordinary banking, have attained renown in the
fields of high finance. His ability in this direction has given him
national and international fame. In times of commercial panic or
general depression, he has been instrumental in steering the ship
of credit through the shoals of adversity.

In the panics of 1873, 1884, 1890, 1893, and 1901 he was a
leader in the movement of the great banks which checked the
headlong fall of prices in Wall Street, and prevented the forced
insolvency of hundreds and even thousands of responsible busi-
ness concerns. He has the confidence of the banking world and
of the vast business community which depends upon banks for
the transaction of the enormous trade of the United States, in
honor of his services in this field the great banks of New York
presented to him, as a token of affection and esteem, a silver
tankard which in itself was an epitome of financial history.
It was made more than two hundred years ago, and was first
presented to Sir John Houblon, Lord Mayor of London, and
first Governor of the Bank of England, who, in a monetary crisis
in 1693, took such prompt and decisive measures as to restore
confidence to the business world and end disasters which were

' Frederick D. Tappen passed away in March, 1902. In his death the banking world lost one of
its leading figures. His funeral was attended by representatives of nearly all of the financial interests
of the metropolis and a public meeting of the bankers of the city was held at the clearing-house on
Cedar Street to honor his memory.

Addresses, describing and commending his life-long services, were delivered by George G. Wil-
liams, president of the Chemical National Bank, J. Edward Simmons, president of the Fourth National
Bank, Joseph C. Hendrix, president of the National Bank of Commerce, Thomas L. James, president of the
Lincoln National Bank, Alexander Gilbert, president of the Market and Fulton banks, and Vice-President
Hepburn of the Chase National Bank.

Nearly all of the banks of the city half-masted their flags, and similar action was taken by bankers
in other cities of the Union.

1 70 happen

threatening British credit, both public and private. Upon it is an
inscription which tells in quaint language the story of that famous
year. In the course of the centuries this tankard passed from
the hands of the family, which is now believed to be extinct,
and came into the possession of a New York collector of antiques.
From him it was secured by Mr. Tappen's colleagues and pre-
sented to him just two hundred years after its first presentation
for exactly similar reasons.

Mr. Tappen has been President of the Clearing-house Associ-
ation twice, Vice-President of the Metropolitan Trust Company,
a director of the Astor National Bank and Queen Insurance Com-
pany, and a trustee of the Royal Insurance Company. He
married Sarah A. B. Littell.

The Tappens of New York have been characterized from the
first by vigor, executive ability, and conservative patriotism.
The founder was one of the greatest real-estate operators of his
period, and the present head, seven generations afterwards, is
one of the leaders of the financial world. The intervening links
have been men of similar tastes and tendencies. They have
cared little for the pomp and glory of life, but have possessed a
deep faith in the great gospel of work, and the fruits of their
labor have usually been dispensed in the forms of hospitality,
philanthropy, and charity.

Dan B u r e n

171

iV»'V\

Martin l^an Buren

From a steel engraving

XXXVI
VAN BUREN

^HEN the patroons had secured the
magnificent grants of virgin territory
which, according to their hopes and
ambitions, were to become populous
and opulent feudal estates in years
to be, their first care was to obtain
settlers in the Old World to consti-
tute a vassal yeomanry in the New.
According to the means, the influ-
ence, or ability of these landed pro-
prietors, or their agents, were the
numbers and quality of the colonists
whom they thus secured. While nearly all of those who
crossed the sea in the middle of the seventeenth century
were of the same general class, namely, vigorous and intelli-
gent peasantry or artisans, there was considerable difference in
their character and accomplishments. They varied from stern,
religious, and energetic Scotch and Huguenots, to easy-going and
unambitious Dutch farmers. It must be said that nearly all of
the tenantry were admirable morally. In many cases, we know
that they were certified to by their pastors at home; in other
instances, we find allusions in the archives to instructions to
agents to secure agriculturists of probity and good name.
Further evidence is shown by the infrequency of crime and vice
in the early Knickerbocker years.

173

174 ^an Burcn

In this respect, the Dutch West India Company and the
patroons are entitled to the gratitude of prosperity. In securing
good men and women, they builded better than they knew, and
assured to the new community beyond the ocean a moral, men-
tal, and physical strength which is seldom found in colonies,
based more or less upon commercial considerations. Here
Kiliaen Van Rensselaer is entitled to special consideration. He
appears to have taken greater precautions in the selection of his
tenants than any other of the leading men of the time. As far as
possible, he chose young men, especially young married men.
He had an eye for the future as well as for the present.

Cornelius ^

Maessenthe Amoug his colouists was Comelius Maessen, who
emigrated from Buren, a village in the western part of
Gelderland, lying a few miles from the River Rhine.

Unfortunately, the records do not show whether he was a
native of the place. At that time such names as Van Buren were
not family names in our sense of the word, but adjective phrases,
indicating nativity or accidental or legal connection with a place.
Cornelius himself did not use the name Van Buren, so far as is
known, but signed himself Cornelius Maessen, which in English
would be Cornelius, the son of Maes. It was his son, Martin,
who seems to have first used the geographical name, and who
signed himself Martin, or Marten, Cornelissen Van Beuren.

The founder sailed from the Netherlands in 1631, bringing
with him a young wife, Catalyntje Martense, and a son. Marten,
or Martin, who, according to an ancient legal document, was
born in Houten, a village not far from Buren. On the voyage a
second son, Hendrick, was born. This f:ict he used in later life
to claim the honor of being the first Dutchman born in the New
World. The family came over in the stout craft Rensselaerswyck,
which, as the name indicates, was employed by the great patroon
for the transportation of his tenants, servants, and supplies.

On reaching the New World, he stopped a brief time at New
Amsterdam, where probably he looked with amazement at the
funny little fort which Governor Pieter Minuit had improved, and
at the wigwams which were to be found a short distance from the

IDan Buren 175

settlement. He proceeded up the river to a point a little below
Greenbush, which was then known as Papsknee. Here he
settled on a farm leased from Kiliaen Van Rensselaer. The few
glimpses which the student is able to obtain of this period show
a wise administration on the part of the patroon. He charged
little or nothing for bringing over the colonists, and when they
settled upon his land, he gave them all the necessary supplies
and aided them in clearing the soil and making a home. In
return, he asked one-tenth of the product of the soil and a quasi-
feudal allegiance to him in his capacity as patroon. Compared
with the Factor's Agreements of the Southern States, where the
landlord and tenant divide the produce of the land equally, or those
of the West, where the owner takes one-third and the tenant two-
thirds, Kiliaen's system seems to have been singularly generous.

Cornells was not a poor farmer, like many of the emigrants
of his time. He brought with him some property and a man-
servant or farm-hand, Cornells Teunissen, who afterwards be-
came a trader and commissary. The career of the first Van Buren
was quiet and uneventful. His land was fertile, and under his
management yielded large crops. One year the records show
that he paid a tithe-rent of one hundred bushels of grain and a
small amount of garden produce, which would indicate a total
crop of over one thousand bushels of grain alone. He invested
his money in real estate, one tract of which was a farm on the
Island of Manhattan, next to the land belonging to Governor
Wouter Van Twiller. His farm lay between Christopher and
Fourteenth streets, and ran from a line west of Broadway down
to the North River. Cornells left four sons and one daughter.
The latter married Dirck Wesselse (Ten Broeck), merchant, who
afterwards became Recorder and Mayor of Albany, and a major
in Colonel Pieter Schuyler's famous regiment.

One of the sons, Maes, for some unknown reason, adopted
the family name of Bloemingdael, which probably M^es

represented the poetic title of his farm. From him sioemingdaei
comes the Bloomingdale family of New York, who genealogically
are Van Burens.

176 IDan Buren

Martin [1629] was a substantial citizen, who, after he came
of age, settled at Albany. He was active in local affairs, and in
ca tain ' 1^ ^^^ Captain of a military company in Colonel Pieter
Martin Schuylcr's regiment. He married twice: first, Maritje

Quackenbosch, and, second, Tanneke Adams, widow. He was
the ancestor of the President.

Hendrick[i6}i] remained in the neighborhood of the paternal
home. He was a rich farmer and a devout member of the Dutch
Hendrick Reformed Church. During the Indian outbreak of 1663
the Devout ^g proved himself a brave soldier. He died leaving five
children.

The third generation found the family well established at
Albany, near Greenbush. Cornelius, son of Martin, married
Martin Ariaautjc Gerritse Vandenberg, by whom he had one

the Deacon ggu. Comelia, his sister, married Robert Teunise Van
Deusen, who was the head of the family of that name. Peter
married Ariaantje Barentse Meindersen. Martin, the most promi-
nent figure of this generation, was a freeholder of Rensselaerwyck
in 1720, and a leading member of the Dutch Church in Albany.
He was twice married.

The fourth generation repeated the experience of the third.
The Van Burens grew in numbers, influence, and wealth. Among
the more conspicuous members were the following: Tobias [1690],
son of Cornelius, who became the ancestor of the Ulster County
branch ; he inherited a fortune from his father and a small estate
from his grandfather, Martin. Marritje [1701], daughter of Martin,
married Johannes Vosburgh, a prominent member of the family of
that name. Barent [1702], her brother, was a wealthy farmer,
Barent who married twice: first, Margrietje Van Vechten, and,

the Wealthy gecoud, Mrs. Catalyntje Van Buren Schermerhorn, and
had issue by both. Martin [1705], another brother, married The-
notje Vanderberg. Tobias [17 10] married Marritje Hun, by whom
he had one son. Other sons of Martin in this generation by his
second wife, Maria Vandenberg, were Petrus [1723], who married
Marritje Vanderpoel; Johannes, or John [1725], who married Mar-
ritje Briesch ; Benjamin [1731], who married Cornelia Salisbury;

IDan Buren 177

Tobias [1737], who married Catalyntje Witbeck. The children
of Peter in this generation were Cornelius [1693], who married
Maria Litner; Barent [1695], who married Maria Winne, and
Tobias [1697], who married Anna Goes or Hoes.

In the fifth generation several members are noteworthy.
Peter [1733], son of Martin, married Catharine Quackenbosch.
They had a large plantation near Kinderhook, and were the god-
parents of President Van Buren. Abraham [1737] mar- captain
ried Maria Goes Van Alen. They are best known as Abraham
the parents of the President. Abraham was a fine type of a revo-
lutionary patriot. He was a strong advocate of popular rights be-
fore the Revolution, and upon the breaking out of hostilities was
among the first, if not the first in Kinderhook, to enlist under the
colonial banners. He rose to be a captain in the regiment com-
manded by Colonel Abraham Van Alstyne, a maternal relative.

Of the sixth generation, the most eminent was Martin [1782],
eighth President of the United States. A remarkable memory,
great physical and mental vigor, and infinite patience Martin

combined to make him successful in life. He took ad- ^^^ President
vantage of such educational facilities as were to be found in
Columbia County in the latter part of the eighteenth century, and
began to read law when a boy of fourteen years. He worked
tirelessly for seven years, serving as office-boy, messenger, clerk,
copyist, practitioner in constables' courts, and collector.

In the evening he spent his time at debating clubs, and before
he attained his majority had become noted for his logical power
as well as eloquence. He displayed a love for politics from youth,
and at eighteen was a member of a political convention. He was
admitted to the bar when coming of age, and opened a law office
at Kinderhook with his half-brother, James I. Van Alen. The
same year he was a vigorous speaker in the gubernatorial cam-
paign, and had the satisfaction of seeing his candidate. General
Morgan Lewis, elected to the executive chair. He at once became
prominent in State politics; in 1807, he was a leader of the move-
ment in favor of Daniel D. Tompkins against his former friend,
Lewis, and was again with the victors. Shortly afterward, as a

VOL. II.— 12.

178 IDan Buren

reward for his services, he was appointed Surrogate of Columbia
County by Governor Tompkins, displacing his half-brother, who
belonged to the Lewis faction. In 1813, the balance of power
shifted, and Van Men replaced him in turn.

By 181 1, he had become one of the State leaders of his party,
and the following year he was elected to the Senate as a Clinton
Republican, defeating Edward P. Livingston, who was supposed
to be invincible. In 1815, the Attorney-Generalship was awarded
to him, and the following year he was re-elected to the Senate.
He removed to Albany, where he formed a partnership with Ben-
jamin F. Butler, in the same twelve-month he made himself a
foremost advocate of the Erie Canal. Politics at this period was in
a chaotic state, the main parties being broken up into factions,
which were more bitter toward one another than toward the
opposition. Yet, out of these conditions, with a masterly skill
for organization, Martin so manipulated personal and political
forces that in 182 1 he was elected to the United States Senate,
being only thirty-nine years of age.

His course at the Federal capital was marked with the same
tact and shrewdness as at Albany. He seemed to divine what
the people wanted, and was in nearly every instance at the
head of each successful measure. He had the rare genius of
knowing when to keep silent. Re-elected to the Senate in 1827,
he resigned to become Governor of New York in 1828. The
same year he was the most distinguished advocate of General
Andrew Jackson, who, when elected, made the New York
diplomat his Secretary of State. In 1832 he was elected Vice-
President, and as such was President of the Senate. Here he
astonished his enemies by displaying imperturbable suavity and
absolute fairness, treating friend and foe with equal considera-
tion. In 1836, he was elected President of the United States.
In this campaign may be seen the best evidence of his matchless
craft. He was championed in the South as " a Northern man
with Southern principles," while in the North he was heralded
as "the apostle of progress and enlightenment." in 1840, he
was renominated, but his star was now descendant. General Harri-

IDan Buren 179

son being elected by an electoral vote of almost four to one.
During the forty years after his retirement, he took a deep inter-
est in public affairs, and exerted an appreciable influence upon
the policy of his party, if not of the nation. He married Hannah
Hoes, a kinswoman of his mother, by whom he had four
children.

John Dash, the merchant [181 1], was graduated from Co-
lumbia (1829), became a lawyer, and afterwards a successful
importer. He retired from business when about forty john Dash,
with a large fortune, and led a life of study, in which Financier
he paid great attention to political topics, financial legislation,
and the theories of taxation. He was one of the first to enunci-
ate the modern theories of currency and to argue for a gold
basis for all money. Lawrence [1783], a brother of Major

the President, was a Kinderhook farmer, who, during Lawrence
the War of 18 12, won distinction as a soldier and rose to be
a major.

In the seventh generation the chief personage was Abraham
[1807], son of the President. He was graduated from the United
States Military Academy at West Point (1827), and made an
enviable record as a soldier. He resigned in 1837 to become the
President's secretary, but took up arms during the coionei
Mexican War, where he was brevetted for bravery. Abraham
He married Angelica Singleton of South Carolina, who acted as
mistress of the White House during her father-in-law's Ad-
ministration.

John [iSio], another son of the President, better known as
" Prince John," from his manners and appearance, was graduated
from Yale (1828), and admitted to the bar in 1830. A

^ ^ ' ^ Prince John

year afterwards he was attache of the United States
Legation at the Court of St. James, and Attorney-General of
New York State in 1845. Eminent as a lawyer, orator, and
politician, he was also a society leader up to the time of his
death. He married Elizabeth Vanderpoel, by whom he had one
daughter.

John Dash, Jr. [1838], was educated at Harvard and the

i8o IDan Buren

Rensselaer Polytechnic. He entered the Engineer Corps of
johnD. II., the United States Navy in the Civil War, and served
Engineer jp, ^[^^^ branch of the service until 1868. In 1876, he
was State Engineer and Surveyor. He has written many valu-
able works upon mechanical science and other technical topics.

Robert [1843], son of John A., was graduated from the Rens-
selaer Polytechnic (1864) with honors. He served as an expert
Robert, mining engineer in the Lake Superior copper district,
Engineer ^^^j jp ,g^^ entered the service of the city of Brooklyn
as assistant engineer of the water works. In 1877, he became
chief engineer, which position he still holds.

The eighth generation was well represented by Singleton
[1840], who was graduated from Columbia Law School (1865)
and died in 1879; Frank Roe, who was graduated from Columbia
College (1863) and thereafter received the degree of A.M. ; Martin,
who was graduated from Columbia College (1866); and Howard,
who was graduated from Columbia Law School in 1878 and
settled in Nyack, "N. Y.

The Van Burens, outside of their great son, Martin, may be
compared with many other Knickerbocker families, being marked
by the same probity, thrift, patriotism, piety, and valor. Martin
was a singular blossom of his race. He was one of the greatest
politicians the United States ever produced, and understood the
difficult art of managing human beings so well that he may
be classed with such historical personages as Richelieu and Maz-
zini, but, unlike these great masters, he does not seem to have
had any high ideal or master passion, unless it were the love
of power or the aggrandizement of self To him more than to
any other political leader, belongs the onus of having made the
doctrine of "to the victors belong the spoils " an organic part of
the American political system. Careless writers have charged
it to General Jackson. It was, of course, applied on a large scale
during the latter's Administration, but the real actor was the
keen-eyed intellectual Secretary of State, and not the bluff, big-
hearted President. Beneath his graceful tact there was much
fun and sterling humor. His best bon mot was that which tradi-

\Dan Buren i8i

tion says he delivered to Queen Adelaide at a royal reception
at the Court of St. James. She had the tactlessness to ask
him how far back he could trace his ancestry. He bowed with
the grace of a courtier as he responded : "As far back as Kin-
derhook, your Majesty."

\t)an Cortlanbt

183

Pierre J/an Cortlandt

From the painting by J. IV. Jarvis

XXXVII

VAN COR.TLANDT

^HE sixteenth century was a period
of disorder in Europe. Beside the
religious and dynastic disturbances
in the West, there were national
and political struggles in the East.
Sweden, Russia, Poland, Livonia, and
the smaller principalities were con-
stantly at war and undergoing the
ravages of hostile armies. The Duchy
of Courland was at one time a por-
tion of Livonia, and enjoyed a semi-
autonomous constitution. In 1561, it
was ceded to Lithuania, and thereafter it became a part of Poland
by the amalgamation of this kingdom with the former.

The population was a mixture of Letts, Russians, Lithuanians,
Poles, Germans, and Scandinavians. Racially, it was Slav,
Teuton, and Norseman. The people were brave, intelligent, and
progressive, but bound by feudal customs and laws, necessitated
by their surroundings. The Courland Dukes were on friendly
terms with the Netherlands and frequently exchanged courtesies
with the latter land in times of both peace and war. They had
representatives equivalent to the consuls of to-day at the Dutch
capital and leading cities. These were either relatives of the
Ducal family, or gentlemen of their court. Unlike consuls, they

had a quasi-military character, corresponding to the military

185

1 86 IDan Cortlanbt

attaches of the present age. Frequently these representatives
Right Hon. became attached to the land to which they were ac-
steven credited, and settled there permanently. One of this

type was the Right Honorable Steven Van Cortlandt.

The name Van Cortlandt was the Dutch equivalent of Cour-
land, referring to the land which Steven or his ancestor represented,
oioffthe Steven's oldest son, Oloff Stevense, was brought up
Founder Qg ^ gentleman of the period, and thoroughly trained in
the profession of arms. When a young man he had become so
expert a soldier that when he applied for service in the Dutch
West India Company, he was engaged as an officer. In 1638, he
was detailed to accompany Governor William Kieft, who had been
appointed to succeed Wouter Van Twiller in the administration of
the government of the New Netherlands. He arrived in New
Amsterdam in March of that year, and in the following year was
appointed "commissary of cargoes," or collector of customs.
Four years afterwards he was made Keeper of the Public Stores,
one of the most responsible posts of that time. In 1648, he re-
signed his office, became a freeman of the city, and began busi-
ness as a merchant and brewer.

in both callings he was remarkably successful, becoming
before he died one of the wealthiest men on Manhattan Island.
His military knowledge was so great that in 1849 he was elected
Colonel of the City Guard, in 1 645, he had been appointed one of
the "Eight Men "(or Town Council), and, in 1649, one of the "Nine
Men." in 1654, he was made schepen, and in 1655 Burgo-
master or Mayor. He remained chief magistrate until the English
conquest in 1664. His high abilities soon gained him the respect
and confidence of the English Government, for which he acted as
councillor and advisor up to his death in 1684. He married Annetje
Loockermanns, by whom he had two sons and five daughters.

The two sons inherited their father's civic and commercial
talents. Stephanus, the elder [1643], was the most eminent man
Judge of the province after it had become English territory,

stephanus |^g ^^^^5 educated by the learned clergymen of New
Amsterdam, and when he came of age was a fine scholar and a

Dan Cortlanbt 187

capable merchant. From this time on until his death his career
was busy and brilliant. Among the positions he held were those
of Judge, Ensign (i5o8), Captain, Colonel, Mayor (1677), Privy
Councillor, Chief Justice, Judge of the Court of Common Pleas,
Justice of the Supreme Court, Commissioner of Revenue, Deputy
Auditor-General, and Deputy-Secretary of New York. The for-
tune which he inherited he increased by his own exertions, and
invested it in real estate. In 168}, he bought 8}, 000 acres on the
east side of the Hudson, which in 1697 was erected into the lord-
ship and manor of Cortlandt. He also purchased great holdings
on the west side of the Hudson, on Long Island, and in Sussex
County, N. J.

At the time of his death he must have been seized of more
than two hundred thousand acres, valued at over a million dollars.
Upon the manor his son Johannes built a fort which

Johannes

was converted into a dwelling-house by Stephanus.
The walls were of stone, nearly three feet thick, pierced with
loop-holes for fire-arms. It stood near the mouth of the Croton
River and has been the centre of social and intellectual life from
that time to the present day. It is still in the possession of the
founder's descendants. Stephanus married Gertrude Schuyler, by
whom he had fourteen children. Five of his daughters made
brilliant marriages, and became the maternal heads of many dis-
tinguished families: Anne wedding Stephen de Lancey; Margaret,
Samuel Bayard; Maria, Killian Van Rensselaer; Gertrude, Henry
Beekman, and Cornelia, Colonel John Schuyler.

Jacobus [1658], the youngest son of the founder, was a New
York merchant and man of affairs. He had an estate at Yonkers,
which was continuously held by his descendants until jacobus the
1889, when it was purchased by the City of New York Merchant
for public purposes, and appropriately named "Van Cortlandt
Park." He was Alderman, Assemblyman, and, in 17 19, Mayor of
the City of New York. He owned a large estate at Bedford,
Westchester County, of which a portion descended to John Jay,
who built upon it a handsome mansion. Jacobus married Eva
Philipse, by whom he had one son, Frederick [1698].

1 88 IPan Cortlan&t

Three sons in the third generation were famous. Johannes,
oldest son of Stephanus, married Anne Sophia Van Schaack, by
whom he had a daughter, Gertrude, who married Philip Ver
Plank. Johannes was a merchant and landed proprietor and active
in benevolent work.

Philip [1683], the third son of Stephanus, was prom.inent in
mercantile and public life. He was made a Councillor of the
Philip the Province by Governor Montgomerie in 1730, which
Councillor officc he retained until his death, in 1746. He was
made a Commissioner for the Crown in nearly all the important
issues of his time. His wife was Catherine de Peyster, by whom
he had five sons and one daughter.

Frederick [1698], the son of Jacobus, was a man of great
promise, who died in early manhood. According to the records,
he was winning, learned, charitable, and devout. He married
Frances Jay, by whom he had two sons.

In the fourth generation occurred the American Revolution,
a political event of such far-reaching power that it turned father
against son and brother against brother. Nearly all the old
families of the State were affected, and among them the Van
Cortlandts.

Stephen [1710J, the oldest of the family, was marked by
strong Royalist tendencies, which he transmitted to his children.
Colonel He married Mary Walton Ricketts, by whom he had
Stephen ^wo SOUS, Philip and William Ricketts. Of these,
Philip [1739] became a British soldier, rising to the rank of
colonel. He married Catherine, daughter of Jacob Ogden, by
whom he had twenty-three children. Five of his sons joined the
British Army.

Pierre [172 1], the youngest son of Philip, inherited the
manor, and early in life became prominent in the province. He
Pierre the served scveu years in the Assembly, and while there
Lieutenant- was au eloQueut and dauntless advocate for the rights
of his people against those of the Crown. He was a
member of the Provincial Convention, Council of Safety, and the
Provincial Congress. When the province of New York organized

Dan Cortlanbt 189

its own State Government in 1777, he was chosen Lieutenant-
Governor, and held that office for eighteen years. He could
have been re-elected, but declined on the score of age and ill-
health. He presided at the Convention which formed the first
State Constitution, and in every way stamped himself upon the
political and social events of the time.

Pierre's course must have been difficult and painful. His
favorite nephew, the head of the family, was an officer in the
British Army, and many of his friends and relatives were enthusi-
astic Royalists. Their influence and that of many of the society
leaders of the time were brought to bear upon Van Cortlandt to
induce him to change his political views. In 1774, Governor
William Tryon went from New York to Croton to call upon the
" rebel Van Cortlandts," as they were then termed, Pierre having
just been elected to the Colonial Assembly, and his son Philip
having just completed his professional studies. To the former
the Governor offered large grants of land and a probable title;
to the latter, a commission as major in the royal army. Both
father and son refused the offers, and Tryon returned disap-
pointed to New York.

During the war Pierre entertained Washington, Franklin,
Lafayette, Rochambeau, and other generals at the Manor-house;
when the place was threatened by the British Army in New York,
he removed his wife and children to one of the Livingston farms
at Rhinebeck. The stout-hearted commoner was acting-marshal
of the " Equestrian Provincial Congress." This body, during the
Revolution, was frequently obliged to change quarters, and made
the necessary journey upon horseback. Several times while
marching they received dispatches from General Washington re-
quiring official action. The bugler would sound halt; they
would wheel their horses into a hollow square; there put
through legislation in approved parliamentary style, and an-
nounce adjournment by the bugle call, when they would
break into fours and proceed on their way. Pierre married
Joanna Livingston, his second cousin, by whom he had eight
children.

I go IPan Cortlanbt

The two sons of Frederick, of the junior branch, were Colonel
James, the patriot, and Augustus, the loyalist. Colonel James
Col. James was a bluff, kind-hearted land-owner, who was as gen-
the Patriot ^jg jn peacc as he was terrible in war. He was idolized
by the people of his district, especially by the poor, in whom he
Augustus the took a paternal interest. He married Elizabeth Cuyler.
Bookworm Augustus was a student and bookworm, who in early
manhood became a clerk of the Common Council of New York
City, and held that office for many years. At the outbreak of the
Revolution he foresaw the chaotic conditions that were to ensue,
and to preserve the city records he built, upon his own responsi-
bility, and at his own expense, a great vault, in his own garden, of
stone and brick, laid in cement so as to be water- and air-tight.
To this he removed three cart-loads of official documents, and
kept them unharmed during the war, and returned them in excel-
lent condition after peace was declared in 1783. Of him a wit
of the time said: " While other men were quarrelling about their
duty to liberty and to the King, August Van Cortlandt saw only
his duty to his books." He married Helen Barclay, by whom he
had two daughters.

In the fifth generation two of the sons of Lieutenant-Governor
Pierre rose to prominence: General Philip [1749] and Pierre II.
[1762]. Philip enlisted in the American Army in 1775,
when he was commissioned lieutenant-colonel. The
following year he was made colonel, and for his brilliant services
during the Revolution a brigadier-general. He took part in the
two decisive battles of the struggle, Saratoga and Yorktown, wit-
nessing the surrender of Burgoyne at the one and of Cornwallis at
the other.

His greatest exploit was the part he played in the Indian cam-
paign in 1779. For this style of fighting, so different from that
which prevailed among civilized people, he seemed to have an
especial genius. For days he could remain with scarcely any
sleep or food. He was a wonderful shot, and possessed a singular
knowledge of woodcraft. He either knew or divined Indian
strategy, and before he had been in the Indian territory thirty days

\Dan Cortlan^t 191

was called by the redskins " The Great White Devil." Strangely
enough, among the Indians he fought and routed were levies
which had been brought from the far West by his cousin, Colonel
De Peyster. Upon the return of peace he went into public life,
and was successively Assemblyman, Senator, and Congressman
from Westchester, holding the last office from 179} to 1809. He
never married.

Pierre, his brother, was graduated at Rutgers in 1783, studied
law with Alexander Hamilton, but relinquished practice to attend
to public affairs and the management of his property. Major-cen.
He was Congressman, 1811-1812; Major-General of P'«"«

militia, a Presidential elector for Jefferson in 1800, and for William
Henry Harrison in 1840. He took a deep interest in local matters,
and for fifteen years was President of the Westchester County
Bank. He was strenuous in developing trade and manufactures in
that county, and used his influence and wealth to favor that end.
He married, first, Catherine, daughter of Governor George Clinton,
and, second, Ann, daughter of John Stevenson, by whom he had
one child, Pierre.

Colonel Pierre [18 15], the head of the family in the sixth gen-
eration, was a landed proprietor, a society leader, gifted with a
splendid physique. During his long life of seventy

1 ^ii • , • T^ r . Col. Pierre

years he was one of the most prominent men in West-
chester and Dutchess counties. He administered the Manor-
house according to its traditions, and entertained nearly all the
leading people of the county within its portals. He married
Catharine, daughter of Dr. Theodoric Romeyn Beck, the founder
of Medical Jurisprudence. The issue of this happy union com-
prised Catharine Teresa Romeyn, who married the Rev. John
Rutherford Mathews; Pierre Van Cortlandt, who died 1879;
Romeyn Beck, who died 1843; Captain James Stevenson; Theo-
doric Romeyn, who died in 1880; Ann Stevenson, and Philip, who
died 1858.

Captain James Stevenson [1843], the head of captain
the seventh generation, inherited the patriotic character J*"^^ s.
of his ancestors. At the breaking out of the Civil War, though

192 IDan Cortlanbt

but eighteen years of age, he volunteered, and served brilliantly
through the entire conflict. He became aide-de-camp to General
Corcoran, and afterwards served in the Nev/ York One Hundred
and Fifty-fifth, and lastly in the "New York Tvv'enty-second Cavalry.
He was with the last-named body during Sheridan's historical
campaign. He was admitted to the Society of the Cincinnati in
1885, upon the death of his father, Colonel Pierre.

Catharine T. R. Van Cortlandt Mathews, who now occupies
the Manor ferry-house, which is converted into a handsome
home not far from the Manor-house, is an historical and gen-
ealogical student of note, and has contributed largely, as did
her mother, to the biographical literature of the State. She has
preserved many relics of the race, some of which run back to
Oloff, the founder in America.

The Van Cortlandt family belongs to a rare type. From its
foundation in the New Netherlands, it has owned great holdings
of real estate and enjoyed the advantages of wealth, education,
and social prestige. None of Its members have entered trade,
and but a few have been merchants or professional men. They
have produced many men of public affairs, of whom a majority
have been statesmen of rare ability. Their lives have been de-
voted to the management of estates, and to the performance of
their duties as parents, citizens, and Christians. From the time
of Oloff down, they have brought to the New World the finest
products of European art, paintings, miniatures, jewels, tapestries,
elegant furniture, marvellous products of the loom, beautiful ap-
parel, fine books, the choicest glass, porcelain, and household
decorations. These have served as object-lessons to a commu-
nity, whose growing wealth required some directing influence to
confine it to the channels of good taste, and prevented its de-
parture into those of vulgar luxury and ostentatious display.
With the material side of art has gone the spiritual side. They
have cultivated noble literature, the best music, the finest man-
ners, and the broadest religious thought. These admirable fea-
tures of modern life can only be brought into a new community
by those who have wealth and wisdom. In this respect, the

IDan Cortlanbt 193

Van Cortlandts hold a high place in the annals of the Empire
State. While they may not have impressed themselves upon
political life or high finance as other families have done, they
certainly stand first in fostering the development of the civic and
aesthetic side of "New York life.

VOL. II.— 13.

Dan Cott

195

XXXVIII
VAN COTT

'MONG the early settlers of New Am-
sterdam was Claes Cornelise Van
Cott, who came to the New Nether-
lands in i6s2. He belonged to North-
ern Holland, the name being taken
from the village of Cott or Catt, both
forms being employed by the family,
one branch of which has contracted
it to Catt. Here for many genera-
tions it had prospered, supplying
numerous sons to the Dutch navies
and armies. In the blood ran a strong
love for adventure which, added to a superb physique, made them
famous in that part of the country. Their maritime and martial
prowess was theirs by descent, as the family originally had come
from Scandinavia, where it had made its record among the fierce
Vikings of the early centuries.

The old Dutch records give the names of many Van Cotts
in the rosters of its navies and armies, but in the latter part of the
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries the only reference that has
been found indicates that they were among the brave men that
fought the Spanish rule, and that they gave many of their sons
upon the altars of religious and political liberty.

Claes crossed the ocean to New Amsterdam in 1652. He was
a young man with but little money, his family having lost largely

107

1 98 Dan Cott

in the wars which preceded that time. He staid a few years on
Manhattan Island and then crossed the East River to the village
of Brooklyn and took up a large farm, which he worked, with
more or less profit, until about 1680. Allured by convenience of
access to New York, he removed to Bushwick, which he made
his final residence and where he died about 1692.

In the second generation, Cornelius, Jr., was the chief figure.
After coming of age, he removed to Flushing, where he founded
the Queens County branch of his race. His wife was Antie
Sprung, a wealthy Dutch belle, who brought him an estate that,
added to his own, made him a wealthy man. His brother Jan
remained upon the paternal homestead and led the life of an
industrious and thrifty farmer.

In the third generation, Cornelius of Flushing was notable
for his public spirit and enterprise. He was active in road build-
ing and the development of local commerce. He perceived the
future importance of Long Island Sound as a mercantile highway,
and either owned or was interested in a number of sloops whose
home port was Flushing, and which traded with New York, Con-
necticut, and the eastern end of Long Island. Many offices of
honor were held by him both in civil and ecclesiastical matters.
He was a devout churchman and was famous for his charity and
generous hospitality,

David [1720], of the fourth generation, bore a substantial re-
semblance to his distinguished uncle Cornelius. He was a farmer,
trader, and public-spirited citizen. During the Revolution, he
rendered many services to the Colonial armies and was one of
the sturdy Dutch burghers who went down to defeat in the
Battle of Long Island. The war destroyed his property, and
the privations he endured broke down his constitution. He died
a few years after the conclusion of peace. His wife was
Nellie Praa.

In the fifth generation, Cornelius was a busy and progres-
sive agriculturist, and took a deep interest in local and national
affairs. He was also a revolutionist, like his father, and was
wounded by the British during the campaign of Long Island.

Dan Cott 199

At the conclusion of the war he returned to Brooklyn, where he
passed the remainder of his days. He was popular in church
circles, and his daughter Cornelia was the belle of Brooklyn in
the latter part of the eighteenth century. She married John De-
bevoise, the head of the Debevoise family.

Gabriel [1780] was the chief member of the sixth generation.
He received an excellent education and on reaching manhood's
estate he gave up farming and went to Manhattan, where he
entered commercial life. He was an excellent business man and
built up a large trade and handsome fortune. He established
business connections with different places in this country. Nova
Scotia, New Brunswick, and Great Britain. A man of the highest
honor himself, he gave almost unlimited credit to those with
whom he was on friendly business relations. This worked very
well in peace, but proved ruinous in time of war. The breaking
out of the conflict with Great Britain in 18 12 taught him the
stern lesson that private rights and obligations have little or no
meaning when nations are engaged in fierce combat. What with
the blockade and embargo, the refusal of correspondents to
honor drafts or pay just debts, he saw his business destroyed and
his fortune swept away. The worry and strain proved too much
for him, and, with the little money he had remaining, he removed
to Smithtown, Long Island, and there started a new career.
There is something pathetic in his sense of duty. He labored
long and well with only one ambition, and that was to pay off his
own debts which had been contracted during, and prior to, 1812.
With remarkable resolution, he toiled until this was accomplished,
and thereafter accumulated enough to leave fortunes to his chil-
dren, if credit is to be bestowed upon the Revolutionary Van
Cotts, much more belongs to this stern, upright man, who con-
secrated his life to the performance of what he regarded as a
duty. Gabriel was twice married, the sons by his first wife
being Richard [1805], Joshua [1815], and Cornelius, and by his
second wife, Thomas and Gabriel. All of these reached manhood's
estate, married, and had issue. Richard, the oldest, was a
New York merchant who was prominent in the first half of the

200 IDan Cott

nineteenth century. His wife was Caroline Case, by whom he
had four children.

The leader of the generation was the Hon. Joshua M., who
was educated in New York, and at Yale, and after graduation from
that University was admitted to the bar. He made a specialty of
Admiralty cases, in this important branch of the law, he became
one of the great masters and was retained in many of the most im-
portant litigations of his time. Though a man of great public spirit
and a polished speaker, he cared little for office and refused many
nominations and positions that were tendered to him by the polit-
ical leaders of the State. The only exceptions he made to this
rule were when he accepted the position of Corporation Counsel
of Brooklyn, and again in 1868, when he was a Delegate-at-large
to the Constitutional Convention. Up to his death, in 1896, he
was a leader of the New York bar.

The eighth generation produced many men of distinction.
Of the main line, the leader was Hon. Cornelius [1838], at this
writing Postmaster of New York. He was educated in the city
schools and in early life took up the insurance business, where he
rose quickly and became Vice-president of the /^tna Insurance
Company. From 1859, when he came of age, he took an active
part in public affairs, in 1873, he was made a member of the
Board of Fire Commissioners, serving from 1873 to 1875, and from
1879 to 1885; a larger part of the period being President of the
Board. His administration should be long remembered by the
many valuable reforms which he introduced; so progressive were
his ideas that they aroused the antagonism of grasping property-
owners and ultra-conservative citizens. His design of compelling
the owners of all large buildings to use improved and convenient
fire-escapes was emasculated by the politicians to the present
unworthy system. He advocated larger and more numerous exits
to the large stores, theatres, and churches, so as to prevent the
blocking of people in a crisis or panic, which is usually produced
by the outbreak of a conflagration, and insisted upon the prohibition
of the ancient practice of having church and other doors which
opened inward and were fastened during the hours of service.

Dan Cott 201

Nearly all of his propositions were adopted in the course of time
and many of the new reforms of to-day are restatements of his
suggestions made twenty-tive years ago.

To him belongs the credit of having called attention to the
danger of tire, lightning-stroke and accident from non-insulated or
poorly insulated electric wires, and the peril as well as unsightli-
ness of large telegraph poles in the great city. Within ten years
after he officially called attention to these facts, the poles were
removed, the wires buried and insulated so thoroughly that the
conditions as to which he gave the alarm ceased to exist. In 1887,
he was elected to the State Senate, where he made an enviable
record. In 1889, he became Postmaster of New York. He served
his term and was reappointed to the position, which he still holds.
He married Fanny Thompson, by whom he had issue.

Dr. Joshua Marsden [1861] was educated at the Brooklyn
Polytechnic Institute and the Long Island College Hospital,
being graduated from the latter institution in 1885, and receiving
the position of interne upon graduation, in 1886, he was ap-
pointed adjunct to the chair of histology and pathologic anatomy.
in 1888 he went to Europe and studied under Professor Koch in
bacteriology, and Professor Rudolph Virchow in general pathol-
ogy. Upon finishing his studies, he visited all the important
medical laboratories in Germany and Austria, the Pasteur histitute
in Paris, and the Medical Institute of London.

In 1 89 1, he was appointed to the chair of pathology at the
Long Island College Hospital. Many distinguished medical and
scientific societies claim him as a member, and in several he is an
officer and leader.

Alexander H. is a prominent member of the New York bar,
and resides in Brooklyn. He is conspicuous in political and
social circles and has served as Assistant District Attorney of
King's County.

David H., another brother, was a lawyer, litterateur, and a
poet. He contributed freely to the press and had begun to make
a name in the world of letters, when he was suddenly stricken by
death. Other members of this generation were Thomas [1834],

202 lt)an Cott

Wickfield [1840], and Gabriel [1844], all of whom married and
had issue.

in the ninth generation Richard [1864], son of the Hon. Cor-
nelius, took an active part in New York life. In 1897, he was
elected to the Assembly, where he displayed rare ability and
fidelity to duty. He married May Richardson, by whom he had
issue.

Another member of this generation was Lincoln, who was
graduated from Columbia in 1884 and entered the railway calling.
He rose to be travelling auditor of the New York Central Railroad.

The Van Cotts have been typical Knickerbockers of the dem-
ocratic type. From the first, they have been opposed to privilege
and in favor of liberty, and home rule. The first of the race in
the New World, Claes Cornelise, was opposed to doughty Gov-
ernor Stuyvesant and on the side of the patroons and merchants.
In the Revolution the race was for the colonies and against the
Crown. In 1812, they were on the side of the Republic, and dur-
ing the Civil War the Hon. Joshua was one of the great leaders
of the Union Republican organization. In their politics they have
been nearly always identified with the more progressive of the
parties, but within their own organization they have been allied
rather to the conservative than the radical elements. Their motto
has been progress, but never haste. They have manifested a sound
mind in a sound body, and in law, medicine, politics, official life,
agriculture, science, and commerce, have made their mark by patient
energy and indomitable will power. The family has grown with
the years, and is now well distributed in New York State, with
branches in four other commonwealths. Though of Dutch an-
cestry, they are Americans of the most pronounced type.

Danberbilt

203

-T^TTA:V7y ,, , y ... ..

Cornelius l^andcrbilt

From a steel engraving

\ \>

XXXIX

VANDERBILT

'HALF-CENTURY ago the railways of
the United States were in the same
condition as the coral polyp. They
were a congeries of separate units —
alive, but uncontrolled and unorgan-
ized. To-day they may be com-
pared to a highly developed mammal,
so thoroughly correlated that each
fibre of its being is in touch and
sympathy with all the rest. This
change from what Herbert Spencer
would call heterogeneity to homo-
geneity was, of course, unavoidable, and would have come about
in due season, no matter who the men or what the forces that
might have been involved in the operation. Had the metamor-
phosis been slow, the country would be now in the same state
as it was in 1875. The difference between existing conditions
and those of a quarter-century ago are due to the swiftness of
the transformation. In this evolution one man, Cornelius Van-
derbilt, stands out above the rest like a giant in an ancient army
of foot-soldiers.

The Vanderbilts are of Dutch origin. The first of the race in
this country was Jan Aertsen Van-der-bilt, a Holland farmer, who
came to the New World in the first half of the seventeenth

century, and who settled in the neighborhood of Brooklyn about

205

2o6 IDanberMlt

1650. As the name indicates, the family belonged originally to
either the village of Bilt, a suburb of Utrecht, or the parish of Bilt
in Frisia. Family names in old Holland were very different from
those of the present time. The true patronymic of a man was
the father's Christian name, with "sen" or "son" added to it.
The name of the place to which the father belonged or the call-
ing which he practised was descriptive or incidental, and not
appellative.

In the second generation the family divided, one of the sons
removing from Brooklyn to New Dorp, Staten Island, in 1715.
There was at that time a movement of population from Long
Island to Staten Island, which is shown very clearly by the same
family names appearing in the records of the two counties. The
separation of the Vanderbilts was soon attended by religious dif-
ferences, the New Dorp branch being converted to the Moravian
Church. In this, the eighteenth century, both branches in-
creased in numbers and prosperity. They were successful farm-
ers and pursued industrious and godly lives. Their names are
found in the old church records, and at times in the civil lists of
the period. Here belong John and Jeremiah Vanderbilt, stalwart
members of the Provincial Congress.

In the fourth generation of the Moravian branch the leading
„ ,. member was Cornelius Vanderbilt. Like his forbears,

Cornelius, '

Father of the he was a farmer, tilling a large amount of land on
the northeast side of Staten Island. His chief farm
was near the Quarantine ground, and as early as 1780 he had
established a ferry to New York. He started it in order to carry
his own produce to the city markets. By degrees he built up a
good business in carrying freight for his neighbors, and at last
made it a daily enterprise, his stout sloop leaving his wharf in
the morning and returning from the city early in the evening.
Among his quiet neighbors he was looked upon as a prodigy of
ability and wealth. Before middle age he had acquired a compe-
tence, and when he died he left what was regarded as a fortune.
He was blessed with a wife of remarkable wisdom and thrift.
She took charge of the dairy, and probably the garden, and con-

William H. Vanderbilt

From a steel engraving

\Dan5erbUt 207

ducted business on her own account. She invested her profits
wisely, and when she died, at the age of eighty-seven, she left
$50,000. From her youth, tradition says, she was a leader of
Staten Island society. According to the records of the time, she
attended all the weddings, christenings, funerals, and other func-
tions, and is everywhere alluded to as " kindly, generous, loving,
and extremely wise."

The characteristics of both husband and wife were trans-
mitted to their son Cornelius, better known as "The Com-
modore." Born in 1794, he was the oldest of a family comeiius
of nine children. He was endowed with a superb thecom-
physique, and from his boyhood was a champion in ""

all out-door sports. He had an aversion to school and to books,
and a hearty love for farming, sailing, driving, and travel. His
dislike of study was doubtless due to the school system in New
Dorp, which was of the most conservative and repressive nature.
The children were obliged to sit erect and silent upon uncom-
fortable wooden seats, and were punished rigorously for the
slightest infraction of the rules. For a boy of superabundant
health and strength, the schoolroom must have been a purgatory.
At ten, the youth began to aid his father, and at twelve was a
valued assistant. Before he was sixteen, he desired to go into
business on his own account, and to become a boatman. Even
here his common sense manifested itself. There were many
watermen at the time, and he noticed that those who had the
handsomest craft did the best business. He therefore applied to
his mother for the loan of a hundred dollars with which to get
the finest boat that he could secure. He made this request on
the first day of May, 1810, twenty-six days before his birthday.
His mother replied: " If by your birthday you plough, harrow,
and plant with corn that lot (one of eight acres) 1 will advance
you the money."

It was seemingly an impossible job, but the boy was equal
to the emergency. He called together all his juvenile friends,
told them of the conditions of the task, and agreed that if they
would help him he would give them sailing excursions in return.

2o8 IDanberblU

The youngsters were only too glad to accept the offer. They
turned to, and for a fortnight that field was an ant-hill of boyish
activity, every one working, and young Vanderbilt easily excel-
ling all his companions. Not only was the work done, but in
addition the boys removed every stone from the soil, and with
them built a wall which is said to have increased the value of
the property by $200. Young Cornelius got his boat, and the
boys had their excursions. His success was immediate. He was
soon the most popular boatman in the harbor, and that summer
cleared $1000. In the spring of 1814, he obtained a contract from
the Government for the transportation by water of supplies to
the nine military posts around the city. The work was so severe
that at times he was on his feet twenty-four and thirty-six hours
consecutively, but he carried it through without a complaint, and
made enough money to build in the fall a fine schooner, and the
following year, with his brother-in-law, a still larger and swifter
craft.

His success emboldened him to larger efforts, so that in 1818
he was the owner of three vessels, a comfortable home, and
$9000. He astonished his friends at this point by giving up his
former business and becoming the captain of a steamboat. There
was a bitter prejudice against steam at the time, and the wise-
acres of the day regarded his move as the height of folly, but he,
with extraordinary foresight, saw the magnificent future of the
new system of navigation, and went into it with characteristic
energy. For twelve years he retained his position and inci-
dentally conducted a hotel at New Brunswick, the terminus of
his steamboat route. By the time he was forty years old his
fortune was estimated at $500,000. When the gold excitement
broke out in California, he established a passenger line to the
Pacific via Nicaragua. This with his other enterprises netted for
him $10,000,000 in the course of eleven years. In the meantime,
he had anticipated the importance of the great trunk lines run-
ning into New York, although it may be questioned if he con-
templated their unification. He bought New York and New
Haven stock in 1844 by disposing of the Sound Steamboats he

The Obelisk in Central Park

Brought from Egypt liy Win. H. Vaiukibilt

IDan&erbllt 209

then owned, and in 1863 he purchased a large part of the shares
of the New York and Harlem Railroad, and began acquiring
Hudson River shares. His next move was to consolidate the
Hudson River and Harlem Railroads. In 1867, he was elected
president of the New York Central Railroad. Into this road he
introduced the reforms which he had applied with so much suc-
cess to the other two lines. The year 1869 saw him consolidate
the two companies, and also secure a controlling interest in
several small roads. He died in 1877, leaving a fortune estimated
at $100,000,000. He was a man of great generosity, but never
allowed his name to appear in connection with giving. The
chief exception to this rule was his gift of a million dollars where-
with to establish Vanderbilt University in Tennessee. He was
twice married: to Sophia Johnson in 181 }, and to Frances Craw-
ford in 1869. There were twelve children by the first union, but
none by the second.

Of the daughters, Phebe [1815] married James M. Cross;
Ethelinda [1818], Daniel B. Allen; Emily [1823], William K.
Thorn; Eliza [1828], George Osgood; Sophia [1830], Daniel
Torrance; Maria Alecia [1831], N. La Bau; Catherine [1834], first,
Smith Parker, and afterwards, Gustave Lafitte ; Marie Louise
[1835], first, Horace Clark, and second, Robert Niven.

Of the three sons, only one married and had issue. This was
William Henry [182 1]. He began commercial life at the age of
seventeen, and attracted notice in the business world by wiuiam
his singular success in the management of the Staten "^°^

Island Railroad, of which he was made receiver by the court.
This may be regarded as his education in railroad finance. His
next step forward was when he was chosen vice-president of
the Harlem and Hudson River Roads in 1864, and thereafter of
the New York Central. His management of these corporations
was marked by tact and wisdom. He secured control of the
Canada Southern and the Michigan Central Roads. Between
1877 and 1880 he obtained control of the Chicago and Northwest-
ern, and of the Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, and Indianapo-
lis Railroads. The year 1879 witnessed the formation of the

2IO

IPanberWIt

largest railroad syndicate which had yet been organized. To it
he sold 250,000 shares of his New York Central stock. He died
in 1885. He increased the wealth of Vanderbilt University by
nearly $400,000; he gave to the College of Physicians and Sur-
geons (Columbia) a new building, costing $500,000; he paid the
expenses ($103,000) incurred in removing the obelisk from Egypt
to Central Park, and distributed large amounts of money among
many charities and church works. His wife was Maria Louise
Kissam, whom he married in 1840, and by whom he had eight
children.

Of the daughters of William Henry, Margaret Louisa married
Elliot F. Shepard; Emily, William D. Sloane; Florence Adele, H.
McKay Twombly; and Eliza Osgood, W. Seward Webb. Of the
four sons, Cornelius [1843] married Alice Gwynne; William Kis-
sam [1849], Alva Smith; Frederick W. [1858], Mrs. Alfred Tor-
rance; George [1864], Edith Stuyvesant Dresser.

All of the male members of this generation have been active

in New York society and commerce. Cornelius, the oldest, was

carefully trained for business by his father. He was

Cornelius III.

placed in the offices of the New York Central, and rose
from clerk to be president. His life was exceedingly busy; he
was a director in thirty-four railways, and a trustee of many in-
stitutions. He was a generous contributor to the Protestant
Episcopal Church and to numerous charities and philanthropies.

The other three sons are prominent in railway affairs. Two
tributes from this generation to their father deserve mention: one,
the Vanderbilt Clinic, which was presented by the four sons to
the College of Physicians and Surgeons, and the other, the Sloane
Maternity Hospital, presented to the same college by Emily, the
wife of William D. Sloane.

In the next, or present generation the great-grandchildren of
the Commodore are: Cornelius [1873], who married Grace Wil-
son; Gertrude [1876], who married Henry Payne

Cornelius IV. L / J> . , „, .

Whitney; Alfred Gwynne [1877], who married Elsie
French; Reginald [1880]; Gladys [1885]— these being the children
of Cornelius; Consuelo [1877], who married the Duke of Marl-

DanberWIt 211

borough; William K. [1880], who married Virginia Fair; and
Harold [1882] — the three being the children of William Kissam.
Of this group, Cornelius has displayed high talent as a physicist,
mechanical engineer, and inventor. The fact is notable, because
he seems to be the first in ten generations to manifest this type
of mentality.

Among the descendants of the Commodore who through
marriage bear other names may be mentioned members of the
families of Horton, Wilmerding, Wallace, Schieffelin, Morris,
Fabbri, Burden, Thorn, King, Baring, Parrish, Post, Kissell, An-
thony, Hadden, Dyer, Blois, Aymar, Barker, Collins, and
Souberbille.

The Vanderbilt record represents the triumph of constructive
over destructive finance. The great head, the Commodore, had
from his Dutch ancestry all the slow and conservative qualities
which are needful in the world of moneyed affairs. To this he
added an ambition, will-power, and force which were monu-
mental. The larger part of his life was a fierce battle against rival
capitalists, many of whom lived by the death of others. This
was true in the world of shipping, and especially true in the
railway sphere. His chief competitors were men who will go
down in history as "wreckers." They owned railroads, not for
the benefit of the stockholders, but of themselves. They used
their position to control the stock market, and, after fleecing
every person possible, they usually wound up by destroying the
properties they were supposed to protect, and out of the ruins
carving additional fortunes. The history of American railways
for many years was the story of misappropriation and malappro-
priation. It is painted in the darkest colors, and to few of the
figures which occupy its scenes can the historian look with pride
or sympathy. Against this motley crew the old Commodore
stands out in magnificent relief. In his rugged Dutch heart he
knew that honesty paid in the long run, and that the greatest
reward came to him who best did his duty. He made his
millions not at the expense of others, but by helping others to
make thousands where before they had made hundreds.

212

IDanberbilt

By reducing the rates for travel and traffic, by diminishing
the peril, wear, and tear of railway life, by utilizing every new
invention and discovery, by employing men with regard to their
fitness and merit, by organizing railways as a general organizes
an army, he estabished a new precedent and standard for Ameri-
can financiers. His descendants have but followed in his foot-
steps. Scores of other financiers have taken up the work, and,
following the same lines, have met with the same success. The
giant operations of to-day are merely repetitions on a larger scale
of what the old New York Central President did forty years ago.
He was the first American railway king in the true sense of the
word. His kingdom was small, compared to the empires whose
capitals now dot Wall Street, and his army of employees insig-
nificant beside those which serve the huge corporations of the
present year, but their systems are his system applied to new
conditions, and their success is based upon the principles he laid
down for his own guidance. As the prosperity of the Empire
City and State is so largely a consequence of its matchless
railway facilities, his name will go down to the future as one of
its most useful citizens.

IDan 1Ren88elaer

213

Kiliaen Km Rensselaer

First Lor.f of the Manor

VAN RENSSELAER

the greatness of a family is to be
measured by the number of distin-
guished public servants it has given
to the State, the Van Rensselaers are
entitled to a high place on New
York's roll of fame. From the first
Dutch settlements to the present time,
a period of thirteen generations, they
have always been represented by one
or more members of ability and social
position in public affairs. The family
will be long remembered because it
was identified with the movement for establishing a landed aris-
tocracy of the New Vv^orld. It enjoyed the ancient Dutch title of
Patroon, and, after the supersedure of the Dutch by English au-
thority in America, of Lord of the Manor. They were a stalwart
race and fought strenuously for their ideas. Their titles vanished
in the Revolution, but their real-estate system was not abolished
until the middle of the nineteenth century.

The founder of the family in America was Kiliaen Van
Rensselaer, who was a wealthy Amsterdam merchant, and a
leader in the famous guild of trading princes which at
that time played so prominent a part in the commerce
of the world. He owned large estates in the Netherlands, and
was a director of the Dutch West India Company. He must

Kiliaen

215

2i6 Dan IRensselaer

have been shrewd and far-sighted. When the company took
possession of land around the Hudson River, he, with his col-
leagues, instituted a college of nine commissioners to take
charge of the new enterprise, and practically to become an im-
perium in imperio. It is needless to remark that Kiliaen was a
member of this smaller body, and before a year had passed was
apparently its active head. As a member of the company, he
voted in favor of a liberal charter to the college, which created a
number of patroons with feudal power and jurisdiction, of whom
he was one of the most prominent. He was fair and just in his
dealings. He might have followed the example of the Puritans
and Pilgrims, and seized land without recognizing the rights of
the redmen. This was too common a course in those years,
and had he done it, it would have provoked neither censure nor
comment.

But he sent out agents and bought the land from the Indians
in 1630, and paid the owners even more than they demanded.
Then with mercantile thrift he had the sale sanctioned by the
college and the company under their great seal. He kept on
securing other bits of choice land for seven years, when he con-
cluded that his property was as large as he could handle with
his surplus wealth, it was a magnificent estate. His agents
with fine judgment had chosen a territory which composed a
tract twenty-four miles wide and forty-eight miles long, contain-
ing more than seven hundred thousand acres, which now con-
stitutes the counties of Rensselaer, Albany, and the northern
part of Columbia. If the record is to be believed, he never came
out to take charge of his colony, although he sent out colonists
and stores with generous hand. According to tradition, how-
ever, he visited Rensselaerwyck, as he styled the colony, once
or twice, but if he ever made the trips, they must have been of
brief duration.

Kiliaen's wisdom was shown in another point — the selec-
tion of his colonists. As far as he could, he picked out young
farmers — strong, healthy, intelligent, and married. To keep them
from growing homesick, he dispatched regularly shipments of

£3

(/)

—

Qsi

—

'Lt

,,_,

Dan IRenssclacr 217

various goods and merchandise from home, taking care to include
little articles of comfort or pleasure-giving quality, which v/ould
appeal to the better nature of his tenants. One cargo, sent in
1643, and consigned to his colony for its own use, was valued
at twelve thousand eight hundred and seventy guilders — about as
many dollars, according to the purchasing value of the guilder at
that period. The great merchant was working not for himself,
apparently, but for his children. Rensselaerwyck was to be a
petty principality, of which his descendants were to be the feudal
lords. At the very start he built a fort and went to the expense
of equipping it with the best cannons of the time. He organized
a court which dispensed justice, civil and criminal, and from
which appeals were allowed to a higher tribunal. Even here
the forethought of the man was well displayed. On the face
of the old documents it does not appear whether these appeals
lay to the college, the company, or to the highest court of the
Netherlands.

As all his colonists were required to take an oath of alle-
giance to him, it may be inferred that the indetlniteness as to
appeals was intentional, and was put there with a view to deny-
ing in the future any jurisdiction of a superior power outside of
the Netherlands. This would have avoided any claim of suze-
rainty by the college or the company. The colony grew in pros-
perity and numbers, and was a formidable rival for many years
to New Amsterdam. The superintendents were generally, if not
always, blood relatives of the first Patroon, and men of strong
personality and executive power. Two of them, jan Baptist Van
Rensselaer and jeremias Van Rensselaer, carried the

•' Jan Baptist

estate through all the storms and troubles of those
exciting times, and increased its value to handsome proportions.
The latter possessed a chivalrous nature of the highest type.
After the New Netherlands were transferred to Eng-

Jeremias

land, there was some legal trouble in securing the
confirmation of the Van Rensselaer grants. Partly to evade the
legal difficulties, and partly, perhaps, to tempt the man, several
people of prominence advised jeremias to take out the patents

2i8 Dan IRcnsscIacr

in his own name. At the time he had a large interest in the
property, both as agent and as heir, and could have obtained the
patent in his own name without deceit or trouble. But it is
recorded that he refused the offer with the simple remark: " 1
am only a part heir, and 1 cannot defraud my sisters and
brothers."

In 1695, the great Kiliaen Van Rensselaer estate was divided,
the American part going to Kiliaen of Albany, son of Jeremias,
Kiliaen of for himself, his brothers and sisters, and the Holland
Albany possessious to the heirs living in that country. In

1704, Queen Anne confirmed Kiliaen's estate. This made him
the first Lord of the Manor of Rensselaerwyck, of which he was
also the fourth Patroon. From Kiliaen, and his brother Hendrik,
have sprung all the American Van Rensselaers. The other rel-
atives of the three generations preceding them either died childless
or else remained in the Old World. Kiliaen married his cousin,
Maria Van Cortlandt, by whom he had six sons and four daugh-
ters. His oldest son, Jeremias, who died unmarried, was the
fifth Patroon, and his second son, Steven, the sixth. The latter's
son, Stephen 11., became the seventh Patroon, and

Stephen II.

married Catherine Livingston, daughter of Philip
Livingston, signer of the Declaration of Independence. He built
the Van Rensselaer manor-house, which in the last century was
regarded as the finest colonial mansion in the Empire State.
Like his ancestors, Stephen was a royal host. He entertained in
a style which would have been extravagant for other citizens.
To his tenants he was a kind landlord, aiding them to improve
their property and the surrounding country, and often making
improvements himself for their benefit. His very generosity
proved paying investments. Thus he assisted several tenants
in building sloops with which to navigate the Hudson. In the
course of time they paid him back the loans, and with true
Knickerbocker gratitude always carried his produce and freight
for smaller rates than they charged other customers. The same
policy marked his construction of wharves and toll bridges, lime-
stone kilns and brickyards.

<U «

^ i

> ^

•^

<1>

> "^

.2 I

IDan IRcnesclaer 219

The next generation produced the flower of the family. This
was Stephen Van Rensselaer 111., fifth Lord of the Manor and
eighth Patroon. His father having died, he was

^ ° Stephen HI.

educated by his grandtather, Philip Livingston. Under
such auspices he progressed rapidly, and in due course was
graduated from Harvard with high honors. He married Mar-
garita Schuyler, thus transmitting to his posterity the blood of
five of the great colonial f'lmilies — Schuyler, Van Rensselaer,
Livingston, Van Cortlandt, and Ten Broeck. After graduation,
he kept up his studies, and at the same time personally managed
his large estates. Four years later, he became interested in
military affairs, and received a commission as major of infantry.
He was so active in his new position that in 1786 he was pro-
moted to be colonel; thereafter he was made a major-general.
He also entered politics, and proved an efficient Assemblyman,
Senator, and Lieutenant-Governor. His first wife dying, he
married Cornelia Paterson, daughter of Supreme Court judge
William Paterson, who was also Governor of New jersey. In
1810, the General was appointed upon the commission to desig-
nate the route for the Erie Canal. In 18 16, the law was passed
for building that vast waterway, and he served as member of
the board and then as president from 1824 until his death in 1839.
In the War of 18 12 he displayed rare gallantry and military skill.
Among his officers were many of his kinsmen, notably his
cousin. Colonel Solomon Van Rensselaer, who was wounded
at the battle of Queenstown Heights. In addition coionei

to his studies, his business, military affairs, and his soiomon
political labors, Stephen Van Rensselaer still found time for a
vast amount of outside work. From 1819 to 1839, he was a
Regent of the State University, and, in the last years of that
period, its Chancellor. From 1823 to 1829, he served acceptably
in the House of Representatives. In 1824 he founded the first
scientific school in the New World. His own words show how
far ahead he was of the times: " A school to qualify teachers to
instruct the application of experimental chemistry, philosophy,
and natural history to agriculture, domestic economy, and to the

220 IDan IRensselaer

arts and manufactures." This school, now known as the Rens-
selaer Polytechnic Institute, will always be a memorial to the
philanthropy and statesmanship of its founder, in 1 825, Yale con-
ferred upon him the degree of LL.D.

The eighth Patroon left twelve children, three by his first and

nine by his second wife. Of these, Stephen Van Rensselaer IV.,

usually referred to as the Young Patroon, was the

Stephen IV.

eldest. To him had descended the bulk of the great
Van Rensselaer estate or plantation, and by him, through political
causes, it was dissipated for ever. The dream of the first Patroon
came to naught in the lifetime of his ninth successor. The occa-
sion was what is known to-day as the anti-rent war, and it was
brought about by industrial rather than political forces. Under
the old Dutch system the great plantation of seven hundred
thousand acres had been split up in small holdings, and these
leased in perpetuity for rent charges or services of the olden time.
For one field, so many bushels of grain per annum was the rent;
for another, so many skins and pelts; for a third, so much timber;
and, for a fourth, so many head of cattle, or of sheep. This cum-
brous system, well enough adapted to a primitive age, had become
utterly opposed to the new conditions of the land. The Van
Rensselaers were fine landlords, which cannot be said of all the
Patroons of New York, but even with the kindest landlord there
was always trouble. Besides this, no tenant desired to make im-
provements, whose benefit would revert to the landlord and not to
himself Opposition to the rent system developed into agitation,
and this into social and political organizations. Conflicts occurred
between the anti-renters and the authorities, and at one time it
looked as if civil war or insurrection would devastate the fair land
of the old manorial grants.

Stephen was a man of singularly sweet disposition, and rather
than oppose the people in their desire for a change in the landed
system, he gave up the traditions of his race, cutting his estate
into farms and house lots, and selling them to the highest bidder.
It was a losing transaction in every way. Worst of all, the coun-
try was agitated, the market was worse than stagnant, and most

Stephen Van Rensselaer III.

Patroon ofthe Manor of Reiisselaeiwyck. Major-General of the United
States Army

IPan TRcnsselaer 221

of his sales went, it is said, for a mere song. Although legally his
father was the last of the Patroons, yet the people of his time,
with poetic justice, called him by that title, and as "the last of
the Patroons" he will go down to history. He married Har-
riet E. Bayard, by whom he had five daughters and three sons.
The preponderance of female children has caused this branch of the
family almost to disappear in other names, among which are the
Douws, Thayers, Robbs, Andrews, Townsends, Barbers, Crosbys,
and Berrys. In the web of life, the threads cross unceasingly.
The late Stephen Van Rensselaer Townsend, who was graduated
from Harvard in 1882, was looking over the university rolls one
day, and there found that his great-grandfather, after whom he
was named, had been graduated in the class of 1782, just one
century before.

Among those who have rendered public service in the present
generation of the oldest branch of the family, are William Bayard
Van Rensselaer, Dr. Howard Van Rensselaer, and the

Dr. Howard

Rev. Stephen Van Rensselaer. A distinguished brother

of Stephen was Brigadier-General Henry Van Rensselaer, who

graduated at West Point in 1827, and served as lieuten-

Gen. Henry

ant in the United States Army. He was sent to
Congress in 1841, and during the rebellion was a colonel, inspector-
general, and aide-de-camp to General Scott. He died just before the
close of the war of typhoid fever, contracted while in the service.

Besides General Henry was his nephew, Kiliaen, who was
born 1845, at Albany. He entered the Civil War a mere boy, and
rose to be a captain in the Thirty-ninth New York Volunteers. He
took part in some fourteen engagements, and served under
Generals Grant and Hancock.

At the close of the war he travelled and entered business life,
but after a few years came to devote most of his time to philan-
thropy and church work. Another hero of the civil

....... t r T-> <- 1 /~ Col. William

conflict was William Van Rensselaer, of the Seneca
Falls branch of the family. He was an officer of the New York
Volunteer Engineers, and fought with distinguished gallantry in
the Army of the Potomac.

222 IPan IRensselaer

Of the eight other brothers and sisters of Stephen IV., there
has been a similar preponderance of female descendants, and the
absorption of their own in other family names. Here are found the
Ervings, Pruyns, Coopers, Kings, Atterburys, Fairfaxes, Hodges,
Grubbs, Screvens, Lorillards, Kennedys, Waddingtons, Delafields,
Crosbys, Baylies, and Crugers.

Less distinguished, perhaps, than Stephen III., the eighth
Patroon, were his kinsmen, Jeremiah, Colonel Kiliaen, Kiliaen
K., and Solomon. Jeremiah was born in 1741, was graduated
from Princeton College in 1758, and took part in the Revolution.
Distinguished as a member of Congress, he represented New York
from 1789 to 1 79 1. He was Lieutenant-Governor from 1801 to
1804.

Colonel Kiliaen Van Rensselaer, a grandson of Jeremiah III., son
of the first Patroon, who succeeded his brother Jan Baptist as di-
coi Kiliaen ''^ctor of the Colony of Rensselaerwyck (1658), was an
ardent patriot in Revolutionary days. At the outbreak
of hostilities he joined the colonial forces and took with him three
of his sons, leaving behind only those who were too young to go
to war. He and his boys served with heroism, he being known
as " Fighting Kiliaen " (or " Colonel Kiliaen ") during the conflict
and afterwards, as long as he lived. He was complimented by
Washington. Kiliaen K. Van Rensselaer, son of Colonel
Kiliaen, was a Yale graduate, and in college he achieved
a high reputation for scholarship. After graduation he became
private secretary to General Schuyler, who had married his cousin.
In his leisure he studied law. He entered the bar and belonged to
a famous group of jurists, which included James Kent, De Witt
Clinton, and Ambrose Spencer. He was elected to Congress in
1801, and was re-elected four times. Chief among his descendants
may be mentioned the Rev. Dr. Maunsell Van Rensse-
laer, the Episcopal divine, President of De Veaux Col-
lege, and thereafter of Hobart College, who was born in Albany,
1819.

In 1 876, he resigned the presidency of Hobart College and went
to Europe. He occupied the pulpits of Emanuel Church and the

Cornelia Paterson

Wife of Stephen Van Rensstlaei 111. From a miniature

IPan IRcnsselacr 223

American Chapel at Geneva, the corner-stone of which was laid by
Gen. U. S. Grant. He was afterwards connected with many
philanthropies.

Solomon Van Rensselaer was also a soldier in the eighteenth
century. He enlisted when but nineteen years old, and served
under General Wayne, in 1794. In 1 799, he was promoted to be
major, and was Adjutant-General of "New York from 1801 to 1810.
He fought bravely through the War of 1812, and ended his military
career by becoming a Congressman, from 18 19 to 1822.

A celebrated junior line from jeremias, third son of the first
Patroon, has added many names to the roll of honor. One of these
begins with his great-grandson Major James Van Rensse-
laer, who fought bravely in the Revolution, enjoyed the *J°'' J*™"
confidence of Washington, and at one time served under Gen. Mont-
gomery. From him comes the line marked by Philip, Gratz, and
Cortlandt Van Rensselaer, formerly United States District Attorney
in this city. The records of the eighteenth century show at least
seventy members of the family besides those enumerated.

Mention should be made of Colonel Stephen, son of Brigadier-
General Henry, a brilliant soldier on General Scott's staff during the
civil conflict, whose heroism has adorned the history of Reverend
that giant struggle ; of Rev. Cortlandt, son of Rev. coniandt
Cortlandt, a noted Presbyterian divine, a war chaplain and an
efficient secretary of the Presbyterian Board ; of Philip Livingston,
another son of Rev. Cortlandt who made a laudable war record ;
of William, son of William P., an officer in the U. S. Volunteers ;
and of Stephen Van Rensselaer Cruger, a brilliant soldier. The
five were grandsons of Stephen and his wife, Cornelia Paterson.
To this generation belongs James Tallmadge (son of Philip S. and
his wife Mary B. Tallmadge), who was U. S. Assistant District
Attorney for New York.

The Van Rensselaer fame will rest more upon political than
upon personal grounds. Were every member of the race annihil-
ated the story of the family would be preserved by all students of
jurisprudence. Many attempts were made toward establishing
aristocracies of various types in the New World. In Maine, when

224 ^^" IRensselaer

it was Acadia, the French endeavored to reproduce upon a small
scale the social features of the ancien regime. In Mexico, both
Church and State essayed the creation of ecclesiastical and Castil-
ian tenures. The experiments of Lord Delaware and other English
nobles are well known. None of these came to any notable suc-
cess, but the plans of the great Kiliaen Van Rensselaer were made
with consummate skill and executed with magnificent power. He
and his descendants ruled with wisdom and justice. If ever a feudal
aristocracy could have been perpetuated in the New World, they
were the men to perform the task. The abolition of the double
title of Patroon and Lord of the Manor was the first blow which the
spirit of the New World administered to their cherished designs.
Though the titles were abolished by the Revolution, the system
remained unchanged. Even as late as 1812 it looked as if the Pa-
troon system were to become a factor in the social development of
the Empire State. The anti-rent agitation, followed by the legisla-
tion which was enacted in Albany between 1845 and i860, was the
second blow which put an end to the last relics of feudal Europe.
The Van Rensselaers made a brave fight for the cause with which
they were identified, and the last of the Patroons went down in
defeat like a gentleman. He himself lived to see the day when his
representatives at Albany and Washington were the descendants
of the oath-bound underlings of his ancestors. It took two hun-
dred years for John Smith to take the Patroon from the manorial
chair, and to carve the manor into ten thousand independent little
farms. Yet in this change the heroic qualities of the Van Rensse-
laers were developed and made greater. Those who fought in the
Revolution were a higher and finer type than those who first ruled
the poor farmers of Rensselaerwyck, and with the final crash the
newer generation took up the great work of life with a zeal and
manhood worthy of any race.

Dan Siclen

225

XLI

VAN SICLEN

HE consolidation of Brooklyn with New
York was merely the legal recognition
of a very ancient fact. From the
founding of New Amsterdam the two
boroughs have been organic parts of
the same community. Indeed, Brook-
lyn up to the middle of the nineteenth
century was more intimately asso-
ciated with New York proper than
were Haarlem and the settlements
beyond that river, which now make a
continuous city from the Battery to
Yonkers. Nowhere is this better evidenced than in the history of
the old families. Both boroughs have equal claims upon the
Livingstons, Schermerhorns, Remsens, Kings, Schencks, and Van-
derbilts. To this class belongs the ancient Dutch race of Van
Siclen, which crossed the ocean to the New Netherlands in the
middle of the seventeenth century, and has been an influential ele-
ment in the development of the community up to the present time.
Like most of the old Holland names, the orthography of the patro-
nymic has varied considerably. Among the forms which it has
assumed may be enumerated Van Sicklen, Van Sichlen, Van
Siclen, Van Sickelen, Van Siechelen, Van Sychlen, Van Scyklen,
Van Syckle, Vansyckel, and Van Sickle. Several branches have

dropped the Van and simplified the name to Sickel and Sickles.

227

2 28 IDan Siclen

In Holland, the family belonged to the agricultural class, and
held many positions indicative of importance in the State. They
were Syndics, Burgomasters, elders and deacons, lieutenants and
captains, merchants and divines. Anthony van Sicklen was one of
the Protestants who emigrated from Catholic Belgium (from
Ghent), in 1566, to Protestant Holland, where he became a Coun-
cillor from the province of Zeeland, representing that province and
signing the Pacification of Ghent, with William the Silent and the
other Dutch representatives. For three centuries at least, in the
Old World, they were noted for their physical vigor and soldierly
qualities. They seemed to enjoy war for its excitement and glory
rather than for ambition or gain. They took part in every war
wherein the "Netherlands were engaged, and supplied many free
lances to other nations. They were in the armies of Gustavus,
of the Duke of Burgundy, the Kings of France, and Charles V.,
the great Emperor of Germany. Military life is closely connected
with the nomadic instinct. The soldier has no home and is called
by both duty and inclination to march from camp to camp and
country to country. This nomadic instinct appeared in the history
of the Van Siclens in the New World. In the seventeenth cen-
tury they seemed to have visited all of the settlements of the New
Netherlands, and in the eighteenth to have been among the
explorers and pioneers of the unbroken West.

The founder was Ferdinandus [1635], who at the age of seven-
teen came to New Amsterdam, where he stayed a year or more,
Ferdinandus ^ud theu Settled in Flatlands, Long Island. Here he
the Founder ggou had a large farm, and was doing a profitable
business with Brooklyn and New Amsterdam. He married
Eva Antonise Jansen, by whom he had three sons and five
daughters. These children were strong and sturdy and must
have been of invaluable service to their parents. In the Dutch
families at that time the boys aided the father upon the land and
with the live stock, while the girls helped the mother in the care
of the house, the management of the poultry-yard and dairy, and
in spinning, weaving, and dyeing.

The father of Eva, the wife of Ferdinandus, was Antony

The Old Van Sicklen House in Ghent, Belgium

Built about niS, and still standing

Dan Slclen 229

Jansen, known as Antony Jansen van Salee, and sometimes as
Antony Jansen van Fez, from his having lived for some time
in Morocco at the cities of Salee and Fez ; he had carried out
practically the motto of his Beggars' Badge: "Liver Turc dan
Paus," (literally, "Rather Turk than Papist "), becoming a free-
booter and capturing Spanish and other Catholic ships. This
Beggars' Badge, which is in the possession of Mr. George W. van
Siclen, was one of the most famous coins or badges of Europe,
being in the shape of a crescent, and having on the obverse the
other motto: " En tout fidelle au Roi " (In all things faithful to
the king). This was the motto of the Dutch Protestants who re-
belled against the Spanish Inquisition, yet claimed to remain
faithful to Philip 11. The crescent was the badge of the " Beggars
of the Sea," while the badge of the "Gueux"or Beggars of the
Land had for motto, "En tout fidele au roi jusqu'a porter la
besa<;e " (in all things faithful to the king, even to carrying a
beggar's sack), because a Spanish count, when Brederodeand the
Dutch nobles came to King Philip's representative with a petition
against the Inquisition, said, scornfully: "Here come those
beggars." The latter badge had the portrait of Philip 11. on one
side, and on the reverse a beggar's sack with two hands clasped
through the strap, and pendant from the sides of the metal badge
two metal gourds or bottles, and from the bottom, a cup; at Mr. van
Siclen's suggestion this was adopted as the badge of the Holland
Society of New York, and is made by Tiffany from a model sent
by the Numismatic Society of Amsterdam. Antony Jansen van
Salee was called "The Turk," and received from Governor
William Kieft a grant of land where Bensonhurst now stands; it
is known to this day in the abstracts of title as "The Turk's Plan-
tation." A brazier of his is in the possession of Mr. Robert Bayles,
president of the Market & Fulton National Bank, of New York, to
whom it descended from Johannes Gulick, who married a daughter
of Ferdinandus van Sicklen. From Ferdinandus [1635] and his
wife Eva are descended all the Van Siclens in America. Before
1566, the Van Sicklen family were living in Ghent continuously
from A.D. 1338, and prior, often serving as echevins, or members

230 Dan Siclen

of the city council. George van Sicklen was abbot of St. Bavon,
A. D. 140'^. The family were Normans and came to Ghent from
Amiens. A stone residence is standing in Ghent to-day (1902)
which was standing there in a. d. 1338, and is and always has
been known as " De Groote Sickele " and " La Grande Fau9ille,"
belonging to the Van Sicklen family; it has lately been purchased
by the municipality of Ghent and is to be used as a museum of
antiquities; it is built of rough-hewn stone, " Belgian pavement,"
and is about one hundred feet square.

Not far from the Van Siclen homestead (near Van Siclen
Station on the Brooklyn Elevated) was the settlement of the
Canarsie Indians, who proved kind neighbors, and a warm friend-
ship sprang up between them and the family. The children used
the camp as a playground, and picked up a knowledge of the
Indian tongue. This idle accomplishment had singular conse-
quences. In each generation during the following century at least
one Van Siclen was the official interpreter of the Dutch, and after-
wards of the British Government. Several of them became so
much attached to the redmen that they left their homes and lived
with and ruled the latter. One of them, tradition says, became a
titular chief, and transmitted his complimentary title through
several generations.

The three sons played prominent parts in their time. They
and their father were among the moving spirits in the establish-
ment of a market and fair in Brooklyn. This was patterned after
the jovial town-fairs of Holland, and proved a thorough success.
On fair days the grounds about the market were covered with
booths, tents, and Indian wigwams, the farmhouses held open
hospitality, and in the afternoon and evening music and dancing
gave pleasure to the young, and pipes, beer, and wine to the old.
It was the first collective attempt on the part of the community to
cater to the social side of life in this part of the New Netherlands.
These fairs must have been a pleasant spectacle. The rosy-
cheeked girls, fresh from the farms, attired in gayly-colored dresses,
with heavy jewelry and voluminous linen petticoats, the stalwart
young farmers in their traditional Dutch garb, soldiers and sailors,

IDan Slclen 231

merchants and their families from neighboring towns, with a
sprini<Iing of hidians through the crowd, must have made a pictu-
resque ensemble. The records show that many visitors came
from New York, some of whom took part in the dancing and
festivities.

Of the three sons, Reinier [born about 1659] remained at
home; Johannes, the scholar, became a schoolmaster in Flatbush;
and Ferdinandus, Jr., settled upon a farm in the neighborhood, and
became a notable Indian interpreter and farmer.

Johannes was a popular pedagogue, and enjoyed the respect
and affection of his townsmen. To be a teacher in those days
meant much more, in view of the environment, than it , .

' ' Johannes the

does to-day. He was second only to the pastor, and schoolmaster
in some respects played a larger part than the latter. A fair
idea of his duties, as well as of the social conditions of the latter
part of the seventeenth century, may be obtained from the Flat-
bush schoolmaster's agreement of 1682:

" (i.) The school shall begin at eight o'clock, and goe out at
II; shall begin again at one o'clock and ende at four. The belle
shall be rung before the school begins.

" (2.) When school opens one of the children shall reade
the morning prayer as it stands in the catechism, and close with
the prayer before dinner; and in the afternoon the same. The
evening school shall begin with the Lord's prayer and close by
singing a psalm.

" (3.) Hee shall instruct the children in the common prayers
and questions and answers off the catechism, on Wednesdays and
Saturdays, too enable them to saye them better on Sunday in
church.

" (4.) Hee shall be bound to keepe the school nine months
in succession from September to June, one year with another, and
shall always be present himself.

"(5.) Hee shall bee Chorister of the Church, ring the belle
three times before service, and reade a chapter of the Bible in the
Church between the second and third ringinge of the belle; after

232 IDan Slclen

the third ringinge hee shall reade the ten commandments, and
the twelve articles of Ffaith, and then sett the Psalm. In the after-
noon, after the third ringinge of the belle, hee shall reade a short
chapter or one of the Psalms of David, as the congregation are
assemblinge; afterward he shall sett the psalm.

" (7.) Hee shall provide a basin of water for the baptisme, for
which hee shall receive 12 stuyvers in wampum for every bap-
tisme Ffrom parents or sponsers. Hee shall furnish bread and
wine Ffor the Communion att the charge of the Church. Hee
shall also serve as Messenger Ffor the Consistorie.

" (8.) Hee shall give the Funerale invitations and toll the
bell, and Ffor which hee shall receive Ffor persons of 15 years of
age and upwards 12 guilders, and Ffor persons under 15, 8 guilders,
and if hee shall cross the river to New York, hee shall have four
guilders more."

The school money was paid as follows:

"(i.) Hee shall receive Ffor a speller or reader 3 guilders,
and Ffor a writer 4 guilders Ffor the day school. In the evening
4 guilders Ffor a speller and reader, and 5 guilders Ffor a writer
per quarter.

" (2.) The residue of his salary shall bee 400 guilders in wheat
off wampum value delivered at Brookland ferry, with the dwell-
ing, pasturage, and meadow appertaining to the school."

Johannes, after several years' service, moved to Jersey, where
he was followed shortly afterwards by his nephew, Jan. Here he
established the New Jersey branch, which was to become one of
the great families of that State.

In the third generation the leading figures were Cornelius of
Gravesend, who in middle life bought a large tract of land in
Reinier Ameutrem, Huntingdon County, N. J.; Ferdinand of
ofFiatbush Gravesend, who was a prosperous farmer and real
estate owner; Reinier of Flatbush, who was a farmer, merchant,
and public official; Ferdinand of Flatlands, who married Mary

IDan Slclen 233

Van Nuyse, increased the ancestral estate, and had property at
Canarsie and in Queens County; Jan of Raritan, who was the
possessor of a large estate, and was a leading man in that part of
Jersey. All married and had large and vigorous families.

The fourth generation witnessed the continuation of the
prosperity enjoyed by the third, and a wider distribution of the
members. Reinier [17 16] was a leader of Gravesend and Flat-
lands. Gysbert [17 18] was a large landed proprietor in Grave-
send. Johannes [1722] had a fine establishment at New Lots,
and Cornelius [1728] was one of the wealthiest farmers at Wap-
pinger's Falls, N. Y. Reinier was a selectman in Huntingdon
County, N. J. Andries [17 18] was a justice at Raritan, j^^^^ ^^^^j^^
N. J. Johannes [ 1 720] was an influential farmer, soldier,
and trader at Brunswick. Abraham [172 3 J founded a family in
Philadelphia. Jacobus settled in Albany, and Peter began life in
New York City.

The fifth and sixth generations covered the most important
event of the eighteenth century, the War of Independence, and
afforded opportunity for many of the family to display military
skill and patriotic virtue. One of these was Peter, son peterthe
of Peter, who served under General George Clinton. Pioneer
He was wounded several times, but invariably reported for duty
before his wound had completely healed. On one occasion he
was sent back because he was still unable to use a gun. At the
close of the war he joined a party of adventurous soldiers who
went West and established settlements along the Ohio River.
Here he made a record as a pioneer, and founded a branch in the
"Buckeye" State. Ferdinand of Wappinger's Falls, N. Y., was
a well-to-do patriot, who contributed largely to the Revolutionary
cause. He belonged to the militia of the place, and is said to
have taken part in the battle of Saratoga.

Lieutenant Abraham [1775] was a soldier, farmer, and musi-
cian. He served in the War of 18 12, where he displayed great
valor. He settled in Orange County, N. Y., where he Lieutenant
established a local branch of his race. Captain James Abraham
[1790], of the Jacobus line, also served faithfully in the same war.

234 ^an Slclen

Captain Joseph [1797], of the Reinier branch, enlisted, when a

mere lad, in the army, where he rose to be captain. In later life

he removed to Michigan, where he made a permanent

aptain osep j^^^^^ ^^^ where his descendants are now quite

numerous. He was Captain of the Belvedere Rangers, and when
receiving his honorary discharge from General Jackson was highly
praised by that great soldier.

The 'seventh and eighth generations supplied many soldiers
to the armies of the Union. More than one hundred appear upon
the rolls. Of these, the more conspicuous were: Rich-
D^wtu ard Henry [1827], of the Abraham branch, who served
Clinton j^ ^Y[e Forty-second Illinois; Sergeant De Witt Clinton
[1816], of the Andrew branch, who was a brilliant soldier in the
Black Hawk War, where he made himself famous as an Indian
Lieutenant fighter; Lieuteuant Moses E. [1815], his brother, who
Moses E. ^Qp, ^Yie military laurels of the family. When seven-
teen years old, he enlisted in the Black Hawk War; in 1846, he
marched to Mexico and served through that struggle, and, in
1 86 1, he was one of the first to offer himself to the national Gov-
ernment. He inherited the Van Siclen talent for Indian languages,
and served as Government interpreter for many years. Lyman,
of the Peter branch, a cavalryman from Michigan during the Civil
War, was captured by the Confederates, and died from jail fever
in Andersonville.

John Sydney [1827], son of De Witt Clinton, was another
hero of the great conflict, where his career was altogether unique.
John Sydney He was captured at the beginning of the war, and
the Pioneer ^-^j^gj^ ^Q Selma, Ala. Here he contrived a plan of
escape, which was discovered. He was forthwith removed to
Meridian, Miss., where he with other prisoners built a tunnel and
fled to the woods. He was recaptured and returned to his former
place of captivity. Here he designed another jail escape, but was
transferred to Cahaba, Ala. Twice again did he try to break his
confinement, and was each time transferred, first to Selma and
thence to Vicksburg. Here at last he was exchanged, and im-
mediately went back to the front. His boast was that he " had

\Dan Siclcn 235

done time in seven Southern prisons." George Washington
[1841], of the Peter branch, enlisted in 1852, and was discharged
at the end of the war with the rank of corporal. He was one
of the company which captured Jefferson Davis after the fail
of Richmond.

At the present time the family is represented by the eighth
and ninth generations. Of these, the chief is George West [ 1 840],
who was graduated from the College of the City of

° o ./ George West

New York (18s 7) and the Columbia Law School (1867),
and was admitted to the bar, where he achieved success in real-
estate law. He was the founder of the Title Guarantee and Trust
Company of New York; founder and first Secretary of the Hol-
land Society of New York and the first Secretary of the Holland
Trust Company of New York. He married Sarah Gregory, by
whom he has issue. Three years after her death, in 1901, he
married Grace C. Hogarth.

Arthur, son of George West, was graduated from Columbia
Law School [1891] and was admitted to the bar; Matthew, his
other son, is a senior at Amherst. James Cornell, of the Reinier
branch, was graduated from the Columbia Law School in 1892.
Judge Bennett Van Syckel of the Supreme Court of New Jersey is
a jurist of the highest rank. And John T. Van Sickle, manager
of the Morgan S. S. line to New Orleans, is long known for his
executive ability.

At the present time the family is represented by numerous
branches in the Empire State and elsewhere. It has members
at its old homesteads in Flatlands, Gravesend, and Brooklyn, as
well as in Queens, Manhattan, and the Bronx. It is uniformly
marked by the old Dutch virtues— patience, industry, resolute
probity, and a deep love for education.

mUenbell

237

XLII

WENDELL

►N the first century of the Hudson River
settlements, it was rare for either
Knickerbocker or Englishman to move
eastward and invade the sterile terri-
tory of the Puritan. To the stout
burghers of "New Amsterdam, New
England was a rocky land peopled by
wild Indians, wild beasts, and wilder
Englishmen, it was rarer still for a
Dutch family to become identified
with New England life, and to attain
as much celebrity in Massachusetts
as the main branch did in New York. Yet this is what occurred
with the great Dutch family of Wendell, one of the most distin-
guished of the colonial stocks of the Empire State. Not alone
under their own name did they make history in the Bay State, but
in their two immortal descendants, Oliver Wendell Holmes and
Wendell Phillips, they added two great stars to the heavens of
American intellectuality.

The founder of the race in the New World was Evert Janse,
who was born [1615] in the little city of Embden in East Friesland,
then belonging to the Netherlands, but now part of the Evert janse
province of Aurich, in the kingdom of Hanover, Ger- ^^^ Pounder
many. Embden was not the home of his race. Not many

years before, his family had lived in the district of Rhynland or

239

240 Menbell

Delftland, from which they fled to escape the sword and rack of
the Duke of Alva. In Rhy nland the family owned several farms and
possessed considerable property, much if not most of this being
lost when they departed for the North. Nevertheless, enough
remained to give Evert a good education, and to enable him in
1639-1640 to cross the ocean to the New Netherlands. He arrived
in 1640, during the administration of Governor William Kieft.

New Amsterdam, though small, was a busy community, with
galleons coming and going, and Indian traders arriving and depart-
ing by both land and water. Most of the population were busy
upon farms or converting the wilderness into arable fields.
Another group were trading with the redmen, from whom they
purchased the fine furs and peltries which were so prized by the
nobility and the well-to-do classes of Europe.

Evert seems to have been a trader at first. Five years were
spent in New Amsterdam, and then he joined in the prevailing
movement of population from Manhattan Island to the great Van
Rensselaer settlements around Fort Orange. He did not settle at
Rensselaerwyck proper, but made a comfortable home almost
under the guns of Fort Orange. He took title to property, and
obtained a trading license, pursuant to the custom of the period.
Gifted with pleasant manners and a fine sense of justice, he
quickly became popular with the sachems, and within a year was
among the leading merchants of the place. He won the esteem
of his neighbors at the same time, who honored him with many
positions of dignity and profit.

In 1652, he, with other burghers, had a dispute with the great
war-horse, Petrus Stuyvesant, Governor of the New Netherlands.
The latter, a keen-eyed soldier, when visiting Fort Orange saw
that the houses around the fort weakened the latter from a strate-
gic point of view, as they were in the line of gunfire from the fort,
and offered protection to an advancing enemy. He, therefore,
under the provision of some ancient documents, claimed title to
all land around the fort, for a distance of 250 Dutch rods, and
ordered the burghers to remove their property, their homes to be
destroyed, and the land converted into an open space, according

Ment)cll 241

to the military tactics of the time. The sturdy burghers, aided by
Evert, rose up in immediate protest, and, like their descendants
of to-day, held a mass-meeting, in which they denounced the
Chief Magistrate in round terms. A delegation was appointed
which waited upon the Governor, who so enjoyed their bellig-
erent attitude that he compromised the matter by paying them
handsomely for their houses and improvements, and gave them
patents for land further away from the fort, of larger extent than
the farms which they surrendered.

The incident is a pleasant one, and shows both Governor and
colonists in very favorable light. Wendell's new farm was on the
south side of the present city of Albany. Later he removed to a
site now the corner of James and State streets. Here he passed
the remainder of his life, and here his son Thomas lived in the
first part of the eighteenth century. Among the offices which
Evert held were ruling elder of the Dutch Church (1656), Orphan
Master (1657), and Magistrate (1660-1661). Evert was twice
married, his first wife being Susanna de Trieux, daughter of Philip
de Trieux, the Marshal of the province; and his second, Maritje
Alrahamise Vosburgh, of Beverwyck. He had issue by both wives.

His children inherited his tine appearance and unusual abil-
ity. Thomas, the eldest, took as his patrimony the paternal
mansion, where he acted as a father to his many Thomas the
nieces and nephews. He was never married, having, Hospitable
according to a family tradition, been jilted in young manhood,
and thereupon become a confirmed misogynist. His favorite
amusement, tradition says, was to entertain a lot of Indian
friends, who, according to the critics of the Dutch age, invariably
grew " beastlie drunken" at the most interesting part of the
banquet. The fame of his hospitality crossed the seas, so that
nearly all newcomers of any social position at home made their
first visit upon "Uncle Thomas" at Albany. Abraham, the
trader and soldier, married Maryken Van Nes of Albany. John
[1649], the third brother, married, first, Maritie Jillisse Meyer, and,
secondly, Elizabeth Staats, of Albany. Jeronimus [1655] married
Ariaantje Harmense Visscher. Philip [1657] married her sister,

VOL. II. — 16.

242 Wlen^eU

Maria Harmense Visscher. Evert, Jr. [1660], married Elizabeth
Sanders, of Albany. He had one son and two daughters by his
second wife.

Next to Abraham, John [1649] was the most conspicuous
member of this generation. He was a devout member of the
John the Pub- church and received his education from the minister,
lie Spirited Manifesting great aptitude for business, he accumu-
lated a large estate, and after arriving at the age of thirty, de-
voted much of his time to public affairs. He was a Justice of the
Peace in 1684, captain in the Albany militia in 1685, an alderman
in that city the following year, and in 1690 was one of the Com-
mission which negotiated a treaty with the Five Nations and
superintended the defence of Albany against a threatened attack
of the sons of the forest. Both his wives brought him large
fortunes in their own right, so that in middle age he was not
only rich in money and warehouses, but also in large tracts of
land in the Mohawk Valley, in what is now Saratoga County,
and in other districts of the province. His daughter Elsie mar-
ried Abraham Staats, Jr., a leading man of the time, while
Marritie married Jan Johannse Oothout of Albany.

The third generation was marked by many members of
unusual energy and ability. Abraham [1687], son of John, re-
Abrahamthe Hioved from Albany to New York not long after he
Merchant came of age, and started a commercial house, which
grew to large proportions. He established relations with promi-
nent houses in Holland, England, and New England, and shipped
great quantities of furs to Europe, which netted him profits,
sometimes of great amounts. He married Katrina De Kay,
great-granddaughter of Anneke Jans, who brought him a large
dowry and afterwards a handsome fortune by inheritance. His
mercantile relations with Boston increasing, he established a
branch house there, which, proving very remunerative, caused
him to remove to that city and make it his permanent home.
John, of Here his son John [1703] married Elizabeth Quincy,
Boston daughter of the Hon. Edmund Quincy, and his daugh-

ter Elizabeth married Edmund Quincy, Jr. This founded the

Mcnbcll 243

alliance between the Wendell and Quincy families which was to
play an important part in the social history of Massachusetts, and
reinforce through its wealth and prestige the influence of his
younger brother Jacob [1691], who also removed to the capital
of the Bay State.

This brother became identified with "New England even more
thoroughly than did Abraham. He married Sarah Oliver of Cam-
bridge, by whom he had twelve children. His daugh- „,.

o ' J o Oliver

ter Sarah married the Rev. Dr. Abiel Holmes, and their wendeii

fourth child was Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes. Margaret,

the twelfth child, married William Phillips, and their ^^'.°'!*"

' ' ' Phillips

grandson was Wendell Phillips, the reformer and orator.

Hermanns [1678], the son of Jeronimus, was a leading citizen
of Albany. He was an Alderman (1714-1720), Indian Commis-
sioner (1728-1732), and again an Alderman (1726-1727). Aiderman
He incurred some opposition on account of his strenu- Hermanus
ous endeavors to open roads into the Indian country. During
these years there was always a commercial conflict between the
trading element and the governing element. The former desired
to preserve their industry, and objected to any change which would
decrease the supply of furs or alter the modes of collection and dis-
tribution. The latter, with an eye to the development of the
country, desired to clear the wilderness and construct roads, not
only for commerce, but also for military purposes, in the event of
an Indian uprising or a war with France.

Hermanus married Anna Glen, by whom he had issue. He
was the head of three of the most distinguished lines or branches
of his house.

Ephraim [1685, or 1688, as is given in some of the records] was
a rich landowner and influential churchman of his community. He
contributed " largely to the Gospel," and was often an Ephraim
officer in assemblies, synods, and other convocations t^e Eider
of his faith.

Harmanus [17 14], son of Hermanus, was a leader ju^g^

of his time. Enjoying independent means, he devoted Harmanus
himself to study, and to public afiairs. He was an Alderman at

244 Mcnbell

Albany for many years, and an Associate Judge of the Court of
Common Pleas (1752- 1758). He was the possessor of a fine
library in both Dutch and English, which he generously put at
the service of his neighbors and of the lawyers who attended
his court. He married Catharina Van Vechten, by whom he had
numerous children.

Abraham, brother of Harmanus, was enterprising and ventur-
some. On coming of age he moved to Schenectady, from which
Captain hc is knowu in the family records as Abraham of Schen-
Abraham ectady. Dudug the old French war (1744-1748) he
was active in organizing the military company which was formed
in that neighborhood to resist any possible attack. He married
his cousin, Elizabeth Wendell, by whom he had issue.

Hendrick, or Henry, was one of the Albany patriots who so
ably aided the Revolutionary cause. As early as 1770 he was a
Hendrick forcible speaker against the new imposts which had
the Sheriff hetu laid upon the colonies, and the exasperating re-
strictions upon their trade. In 1774, he was one of the Committee
of Safety and Correspondence which was appointed by the Free-
holders of Albany. Along with his name upon the list are those of
John Barclay, John R. Bleecker, Stephen de Lancey, Abraham Ten
Broeck, Abraham Yates, Jr., Cornelius Van Santvoordt, John H.
Ten Eyck, Henry L. Bogert, Jacob C. Ten Eyck, and Robert
Yates. In 1777, he was elected Sheriff of Albany, which office
he held until 1786, often acting as Provost Marshal, as well
as Court Executive. He married Maria Lansing, by whom he
had issue.

The fifth generation supplied many brave sons to the Revolu-
tion. Captain John Harmanus [1744], son of Judge Harmanus,
General was a lawyer, in active practice, when the mutterings
johnH. Qf ^i^g coming storm of war were heard. He was a
warm friend and supporter of his cousin, Sheriff Henry, and aided
the latter materially in the period immediately preceding the
Revolution. He took arms in 177=5, when he was appointed lieu-
tenant and quartermaster of the Second Albany Battalion. In
1776, he was promoted to be captain, and served in the First New

■QGlenbeU 245

York, under Colonel Goose Van Schaick, until 1781. After the
war his gallantry was recognized by his appointment as brigadier-
general of militia. In 1796, he was elected to the Assembly from
Albany County, and, in 1812, he was made Surrogate. His wife
was Cathalina Van Benthuysen.

Lieutenant Jacob Henry [1754], son of Judge Henry, had just
come of age when the Revolution broke out. He promptly joined
the colonial forces, and fought with high gallantry Lieutenant
until the restoration of peace in 1783, having risen Jacob h.
during that period to the rank of adjutant. He was thrice elected
to the New York Assembly (1796, 1797, 1798). His wife was
Gertrude Lansing, daughter of the Honorable Peter Lansing.

Sheriff Harmanus [1767I, son of Sheriff Henry, was one of
the wealthy men of Albany and devoted the larger sj,„iff

part of his time to public affairs. He served upon Harmanus
many committees and held numerous positions of honor and
trust He was made Sheriff in 1803.

John [1731] was the scholar of the family. He was gradu-
ated from Harvard in 17S0, and married Dorothy Sherburne. He
established a branch, of which the most important john

member has been Professor Barrett [1855], his great- the scholar
grandson. The latter was graduated from Harvard (1877), and
became assistant professor of English literature and professor
thereafter professor in that university. He married Barrett

Edith, the daughter of William Curtis Greenough.

John Lansing [1785] was the most prominent member of the
sixth generation. He studied law with his brother Garritt V/en-
dell, a distinguished real-estate lawyer of the time, and john l.
became a member of the Albany bar. He was elected the jurist
judge of Washington County for one term, but made his fame as
a reporter of the New York Supreme Court. His great works
are Reports of Cases in the Supreme Court (twenty-six volumes),
and the Digest of Cases, Supreme Court of New York. He also
edited Starkie's Law of Slander and Blackstone's Commentaries
with rare judicial ability.

Dr. Peter, son of Adjutant Jacob Henry, was a distinguished

246 Mcnbell

physician of Albany in the early part of the century. From him
has descended an important branch, which included

Dr Peter

Dr. Harman and Benjamin Rush, his sons, and Burr
and Benjamin Rush, jr., grandsons. The last-named was gradu-
ated from Yale (1878), and from the Columbia Law School (1882).

Harmanus C. [1781] was a landed proprietor who inherited
fortunes from both his father, Cornelius [1745], and his grand-
father, Hermanus [17 14]. He was a magistrate for twenty years,
Judge ^nd an active participant in public affairs during his

Harmanus c. entire life. His wife was Cathalina Hun. He is repre-
sented in the seventh generation by William, who married, first,
Sarah Kip, and, second, Frances Roberts.

The sixth generation from Evert, Junior, was represented by
William Henry, of Ballston Spa, N. Y. To him the public is par-
wiiiiara ti^'ly indebted for the development of that beautiful
"«"^ community. He was for many years supervisor and a

member of many progressive local organizations. He married
Anna Melvin.

From Abraham [1791], of the Harmanus branch, came the
members of the family who were the pioneers of Kansas, Michi-
gan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. They were stanch free-soilers^
and carried into the West the public schools and the liberal
Colonel l^ws of the Empire State. This branch supplied
Adalbert c. Adclbert Chauncey [1848] to the Union Army, where
he made a brilliant record, closing his military career as a staff
officer of Major-General Granger. The branch was represented
in the ninth generation by William Fuller [1873], who was gradu-
ated from the University of Minnesota in 1892.

The career of the Wendells in both Massachusetts and New
York has been marked by business ability, intellectuality, social
grace, and patriotism. They have served in every conflict, from
the old French wars to the late struggle with Spain. Their sons
are upon the rolls of the great universities, and their names are
found in the lists of eminent lawyers, writers, scientists, and
pedagogues.

INDEX

Abeel (Beekman), Magdalene, i., 29
Abercrombie, Colonel, i., 25
Alburtis (Barclay), Louisa, i., 29
Alexander (Duer), Lady Catharine, i., 129

— William (General), i., 129
Allen, iVlargaret De Lancey, i., 95
Allen, William, i., 95

Allyn (Gardiner), Elizabeth, i., 149
Alsop, John, i., 69
Ames, Fisher, i,, 140
Andrews, W. (Rev.), i., 16
Anthon (Fish), Marion G., i., 142
Armstrong (Astor), Margaret, i., 7
Ashdoer, i., 5

Ashton (De Peyster), Frances, i., 111
Aspinwall (Renwick), Anna L., ii., 88

— William H., ii., 88
Astor, Ava Willing, i., 9

— Battery, i., 9

— & Broadwood, !., 5

— Charlotte A. Gibbes, i.,8

— (Langdon) Dorothea, i., 5

— Eliza, i., 5

— Family, i., 3-10

— Henry, i., 4

— House, i., 7

— Jacob, i., 3

— John Jacob, the founder, i., 3, 38

— John Jacob 111., i., 8

— John Jacob IV., i., 9

— Laces in Metropolitan Museum, i., 8

— Library, i., 7

— (Bristed) Magdalen, i., 5

— Margaret A. Armstrong, i., 7

— Mary D. Paul, i., 8

— Military Company, i., 9

— Regiment, i., 9

— William, i., 8, 9

— William Backhouse, !., 5

— William Waldorf, i., 8

Baker (Delafield), Ann, !., 84

Baldwin (De Peyster), Christianna, i., 109

Bancker (De Peyster), Anna, i , 105

— — Mary, i., 105
Barber (Delafield), Elsie, i., 85
Barclay, Adelbert E. E. W., i., 20

— (Robinson) Anna D., i., 19

— Anna M., i. , 20

— Anthony, i., 19

— Anthony, i., 20

— Catherine Cochrane, i., 20

— (De Lancey) Cornelia, i., 19, 97

— Cuthbert (Rev.), i., 20

— David (Colonel) the founder, i., 13

— David, i., 16

— Dentie Lent, i., 19

— Fanny, i., 21

— Frederick W., i., 20

— George, i., 20

— Harold, i., 21

— ■ Henry (Rev.), i., 16

— Henry, i., 20, 21

— Henry A., i., 20

— Henry A. W., i., 20

— House, the, i., 16

— James L., 1., 20

— John, i., 16

— John O'C, i., 20

— J. Searle, i., 20

— J. Searle, i., 21

— Mary Rutgers, i., ig

— (Rives) Matilda A., i., 20

— Olivia Mott Bell, i., 20

— Robert (Governor), i., 15

— Robert C, I., 21

— Sackett M., i., 20

— Susan De Lancey, i., 19, 97

— Thomas (Colonel), i., 19,97

— Thomas (Rev.), i., 16

— Thomas (Captain), ',., 20

247

248

llnbci:

Barclay, Thomas III., i., 20

— Walter C, i., 20

— Wright, i., 21
Bard (Delafield), Eliza, i.,83

— William, i., 8)
Barnwell (Cruger), Mary, i., 73
Bayre (Fish), Clemence S. , i., 141
Beam, Catherine A., i., 131

— John, i., 131
Beasley (Delafield), Margaretta, 1., 85
Bedlow (Beekman), Mary E. C, i., 31
Beekman, Abian Steele Milledoler, i., 32

— (De Peyster) Ann, i., 109

— Catherine B., i., 32

— Catherine Peters de la Noy, i., 29

— Catherine Sanders, i., 31

— Catherine Van Boogh, i., 28

— Cornelia, i., 32

— Cornelius, i., 26

— Elizabeth de Peyster, i. , 29

— Family, !., 25

— Gerard, the scholar, i., 26

— Gerard (Dr.), i., 28

— Gerard, i., 31

— Gerard, i., 32

— Gerardus, i., 29

— Gerard W., i., 31

— Gertruyd Van Cortlandt, i., 29

— Henry (Colonel), i., 28

— Henry 11. (Colonel), i.,29

— Henry R., i., 32

— Henry R. 11., i., 32

— Isabella Lawrence, i., 32

— Jacobus, i., 29

— James, i., 30

— James William, i., 31

— James William II., i., 32

— Jane Keteltas, i.,31

— Janet Livingstone, i., 29

— Joanna de Loper, i., 29

— John, i., 29

— John, i.,31

— Josephine, i., 32

— Magdalene Abeel, i., 29

— (Livingston) Margaret, i., 30

— Mary Duyckink, i., 31

— Mary E., i.,32

— Mary E. G. Bedlow, i., 31

— Street, i., 27

— Swamp, i., 27

— Wilhelmus, the founder, i., 25

— William (Dr.), i., 29

— William F., i., 32
Bell (Barclay), Olivia M., !., 20
Bellomont, Governor, i., 28
Benjamin, Julia K. Fish, i.-, 141

Benjamin, Samuel N. (Colonel) i., 141
Benson, Dirck, i., 117

— (Duane) Eve, I., 117

Berkeley (original or older form of Barclay), i., 13

— Lord, i., 15

Blair (Cruger), Elizabeth, i., 71
Blake, John L. (Rev.), i., 45
Blealsley (Cruger), R. A., i., 74
Bleecker, Jan., ii., 106

— Margaret Rutgers, ii., 106
Bogart (Delafield), Anita, i., 85
Boke, Jaquemyntje, i., 38
Bowers (Duane), Marianne, i., 123
Bowne, Robert, i., 4, 5

Boyd, Harriet Delafield, i., 85

— Robert, i., 85
Breck, Charles D., i., 132

— Mary Duer, i., 132
Brevoort, Annetje Bastiaense, i., 37

— Catherine Delamater, i., 39

— (Hicks) Charlotte, i., 39

— Elizabeth Dorothea Lefferts, i., 41

— Elizabeth Schermerhorn, i., 42

— Family, i., 35

— Hendrick Jansen, i., 35

— Hendrick 11., i., 37

— Hendrick 111., i., 39

— Henry i., 39

— Henry II., i., 39

— Henry (Captain), i., 40

— Henry Leffert, i., 42

— James Carson, i., 41

— James Renwick, i., 42

— Jan Hendricksen, i., 37

— John, the goldsmith, i., 39

— (Bristed) Laura, i., 42

— Mary Ren Van Couwenhoven, i., 37

— (Astor) Sarah Todd, i., 38

— Sarah Whetten, i., 39
Briggs (Cornill), Rebecca, i., 56
Bristed, John (Rev.), i., 5

— Margaret Astor, i., 5
Broadwood (Astor &), i., 3

Brogan (De Peyster), Elizabeth i., 109
Brooks (Delafield), Anna O., i., 85

— Frederick W., i., 85
Buchanan, Thomas, i., 61)
Bunner (Duer), Anna B., i., 131

— George, i., 131
Burgwm, J. Pollock, i., 21
Burke, Edmund, i., 70
Burns, Robert, i., 108
Burr, Aaron, i., 49

Carrick (Barclay), Lavinia, i., 20
Carter (Cruger), Sarah E., i., 74

1In&ey

249

Carteret, Sir George, i., i?
Chandler (Gardiner), Sarah, i., 149
Chew, Beverly, i., 130, 131

— (Duer) Lucy, i., 131

— Maria T. Duer, i., 130
Church (Cruger), Catherine, i., 173
Clark, Joseph, i., 132

— (Duer) Josephine, i., 152

— Wilhelmina B, De Lancey, i., 98
Clarkson, Alice Delafield, i., 84

— Howard, i., 84

— (De Peyster) Susan M., i., 111
Clinton, Alexander, i., 46

— Alexander (Dr.), i., 52

— Alexander James, i., 52

— Catherine Jones, i., 52

— Charles, i., 45, 46

— Charles, son of James, i., 49

— Cornelia Tappan, i., 49

— De Witt; 1., 48, 49, 50-52

— Elizabeth Denniston, i., 46

— Family, i., 45

— George (Admiral,) i., 93

— George (Governor), i., 31, 45, 47-49

— George, Jr., i., 49

— Henry, Sir, i., 45

— James (Brig.-General), i., 45, 46, 121

— Mary De Witt, i., 47

— Maria Franklin, i., 52

— Mary Little Gray, i., 47

— Spencer, i., 52

— William, i., 45
Clive, Lord, i., 127

Cochran (Barclay), Cornelia, i., 20
Colden, Cadwallader (Governor), i., 94

— Elizabeth De Lancey, i., 94
College, Columbia, i., 17, 18

— Kings, i., 17, 18
Colles, Christopher, i., 49

Collet (Barclay), Ann Wilkes, i., 20
Cook, Anna L. Delafield, i., 85

— William G., i., 85
Cooper, Susan A. De Lancey, i., 97

— James Fenimore, i., 97
Combury, Governor, i., 28
Cornehill (for Cornell), i., 55
Cornewall " " i., 55
Cornewell " " i., 55
Cornell, Abigail B. Hicks, i., 59

— Alonzo B. (Governor), i., 57, 61, 62

— Charity Hicks, i., 57

— Chjtles, i., 59

— Edward Everett (Dr.), i., 62

— Ezekiel (General), i., 58

— Ezra, i., 57, 59, 60

— Family of, i., 55, 56, 6}

— George, i., 59

Cornell, George, brother of John Black, i., 60

— George Birdsall, engineer, i., 63

— Isaac Russell, i., 60

— Jacob, 1., 59

— Jacob Stiuirc, i., 57

— James LeiTerts (Dr.), i,, 63

— John (Colonel), i., 57

— John (Lieutenant), i., 58

— John, evangelist, i., 62

— John, merchant, i., 59

— John Black, inventor, i., 60, 61

— Jolm Henry, composer, i., 62

— John M., philanthropist, i., 62

— Mary Katherine Osterburg, i., 62

— Rebecca Briggs, i., 56

— Richard (Deputy), i., 56, 57

— Richard II., i., 57

— Robert Clifford (Judge), i., 63

— Sarah Cortilyou, i., 61

— Thomas, i., 56

— Thomas, of Portsmouth, i., 56

— Thomas [1620?] i., 57

— Thomas (Squire), i., S7

— Thomas (Assemblyman), i., 57

— Thomas (Captain), i., 58

— Thomas, inventor, i., 59

— William, i., 56

— William (Captain), i., 57

— William W., manufacturer, i., 6»

— William Mason (Dr.), i., 61

— Whitehead, i., 58

— Whitehead II., i., 59
Cornhill (for Cornell), i., 55
Comill " " i., 55
Cornwall " " i., 55
Cornwallis, Lord, i., 46

Corn well (for Cornell), i., SS, 56
Cortilyou, Sarah, i, 01
Couwenhoven, Johannes, i., 37
— Maryken, i., 37

Covington, E. M., i., 83

— General, i., 83

— (Delafield) Harriet B., i., 83
Cox, Ann De Lancey, i., 97

— John, i., 97

Cressen (Cruger), Henrietta, i., 71
Cromwell, Oliver, i., 14
Crosby, Frederic V. S., i., 85

— Julia R. F. Delafield, i., 85
Cruger, Alfred, i , 73

— Ann Markoe, i., 72

— Ann Trezevant Heyward, i., 73

— Anna de Nully, i., 72

— Anne de Lancey, i. , 70

— Bertram Peter, i., 73

— Bertram, i., 74

— Caroline M. Shepherd, i. , 74

250

lln&ey

Cruger, Caroline Smith, i., 71

— Catherine Church, i. , 73

— Eliza Kortrighf, i. , 75

— Eliza L. C. Dyckman, i., 73

— Elizabeth Blair, i., 71

— Elizabeth Harris, i., 69

— Elizabeth Roberts, i., 73

— Elizabeth Van Schaack, i., 70

— Euphemia W. Van Rensselaer, i., 73

— Eugene, i., 7;

— Eugene [1836] i., 74

— Family, i., 67, 75

— Frances A. Jones, !., 73

— Frances E. Rusher, i., 75

— George Ehninger, i. , 74

— George Seymour, i., 73

— Gouverneur, (Rev.), !., 74

— Hannah Slaughter Montgomery, i., 69

— Henry Cressen, i., 72

— Henry (Councillor), i., 69

— Henry 11., the M.P., i., 70-71, 72

— Henry III., i., 73

— Henrietta Cressen, i., 70

— Henry Harris, i., 72

— Henry IVlortimer, i., 75

— Henry Nicholas, i., 73

— Henrietta Julia, i., 73

— Harris [1795] i., 73

— Harriet, i., 73

— Harriet D., i,, 73

— James Hamilton, i., 73

— James Henderson, i., 75

— John, the founder, i., 68

— John Church, i., 7-)

— John Harris (Colonel), i., 70, 72, 94

— John, the merchant, i., 72

— John Peach, i., 73

— John Whetten, i., 7s

— Julia Grinnell Storrow, i., 75

— Laura A., i., 74

— Lewis Trezevant, i., 73

— Louise E. Ancrum Williamson, i., 73

— Mary, i., 69

— Mary Barnwell, 1., 73

— Mary Boynton, i., 75

— Maria Cuyler, i., 69

— Mary Romaine, i., 75

— Martha Ramsay, i., 72

— Matilda Caroline, i., 72

— Melville Wood, i., 73

— Melvin S., i., 74

— Nicholas, i., 71

— Nicholas, Jr., i., 75

— Nicholas III., i., 73, 74

— Nicholas IV., i., 73, 75

— Nicholas V., i., 75

— Peter Cornee, i., 75

Cruger, Philip, Sir, i., 08

— Randolph, i., 74

— Robert, i., 74

— R. A. Blealsley, i., 74

— Sarah E. Carter, i., 74

— Sarah J. Maxwell, i,, 73

— Stephen Van Rensselaer, (Colonel), i.,

74, 75

— Susan Matilda Whetten Rathbone, i., 73

— Telemon, i., 71

— William Hyde, i., 73

— William R., i., 75
Cuyler (Cruger), Maria, i., 69

Davenport, John (Rev.), i., 146

De Kay (De Peyster), Frances, !., 109

Delafield, Albert, i., 84

— (Clarkson) Alice, i., 84

— Anita Bogart, i., 85

— Anna Baker, i., 84

— Anne S. Lloyd, i., 85

— Ann Hallet, i., 80

— (Cook) Anna L., i., 85

— Annie O. Brooks, i., 85

— Benjamin T., i., 85

— (Hall) Catherine C, i., 84

— Charlotte H. Wyeth, i., 85

— Clara C. Foster, i., 84

— Clarence, i., 83

— Clarence II., i., 85

— (Sturgis) Cornelia, i., 84

— (Woodbury) Cornelia, i., 85

— Cornelia V. R., i., 85

— (Krebben) Edith, i., 84

— Edith Wallace, i., 83

— Edward, i., 82

— Edward, i., 84

— Edward, i., 8s

— Edward Joseph, i., 85

— Elinor E. Langdon, i., 82

— Eliza Bard, i., 8;

— Eliza Bard II., i., 85

— Eliza Paine, i., 83

— Elizabeth, i., 85

— Elizabeth Breese, i., 85

— Elizabeth B. Moran, i., 84

— Elizabeth Ray, i., 85

— Elizabeth Schuchardt, i, 84
Elsie Barber, i., 85

— Emily Prime, i., 83

— Eugene C, i., 85

— Family, i., 79

— Royd, i., 84

— Francis, i., 84

— Frederick, i., 85

llnDcy

251

Delafield, Frederick Prime, i., 85

— (Boyd) Harriet, 1., 85

— Harriet Baldwin, i., 83

— Harriet Cecil, i., 84

— Harriet Coleman, i,, 85

— Harriet W. TallmaJge, i., 81

— Helen Summers, i., 8}

— Henry, i., 82

— Henry Parish, i., 84

— John, the founder, i., 79, 80

— John II., i., 81

— John III., i., 8?

— John IV., i., 84

— Joseph (Major), i., 81

— Julia, i., }0

— (Longfellow) Julia, i., 85

— Julia Floyd, i., 82

— Julia Floyd II., i., 84

— Julia Livingston, i., 82

— Julia Livingston II., i., 83

— Julia R. F., i., 8s

— Katherine Floyd, i., 84

— Katherine Van Rensselaer, i., 84

— Lettice L. Sands, i., 85

— Lewis Livingston, i., 85

— Lewis Livingston II., i., 85

— Lizzie H. Kamp, i., 84

— Louisa Eaton, i., 84

— Louisa Potter, i., 8j

— Margaretta Beasley, i., 85

— Marguerite M. Dewey, i., 84

— Mary, 1., 85

— (Sturgis) Mary, i., 84

— (Dubois) Mary Ann, i., 83

— Mary C. Livingston, i., 83

— (Neely) Mary Floyd, i., 83

— Mary P. Munson, i., 82

— Mary Roberts, i., 81

— Maturin Livingston, i., 83

— Maturin Livingston II., i., 85

— Nina M., i., 85

— Richard, i., 82

— Richard, i., 84

— Robert Hare, !., 85

— Rufus, i., 85

— Rufus King, i., 85

— Tallmadge, i., 83

— Tallmadge II., i., 84

— Wallace, i., 84

— Walter, i., 84

— William, i., 82
Delamater (Brevoort), Catherine, i., 29
De Lancey, Alice Izard, i., 97

— (Cruger), Ann, 1., 70

— Anne Van Cortlandt, i., 91

— Anna, i., 95

— Anne, i., 92

De Lancey, Anne C, i., 97

— Anne Cox, i., 97

— Anne Heathcote, i., 93

— Cornelia Barclay, i., 97

— Edward Etienne, civil engineer, i., 98

— Edward Floyd [1795], i., 97

— Edward Floyd [1821], i., 97, 98

— Elizabeth C, i., 94

— Elizabeth E. H., i., 98

— Elizabeth F., i., 96

— Etienne (Stephen), i., 91, 92

— Family, i.,8(), 90, 98

— Frances Jay Munro, i., 97

— Guy (Vicomte), i., 90, 91

— Hannah S., i., 95

— Jacques (Seigneur), i., 91

— Jacques II. (Seigneur), i., 91

— James (Judge), i., 92, 93, 94

— James II., i., 95

— Jane, i-i 97

— John, i., 94

— John, i., 95

— John Peter, i., 95, 97

— John Peter II., i., 98

— John [1741]!., 96

— Josephine, i., 98

— Martha, !., 95

— Margaret A., i., 95

— Margaret M., 1., 98

— Mary, i., 95

— Mary E., i., 97

— Oliver (General), i., 94, 95

— Oliver (Lieutenant), i., 96

— Oliver, i., 97

— Peter, i., 94

— Peter, i., 96, 97

— Phila Franks, i., 94

— Stephen (Etienne) the founder, i., 91,

— Stephen II., i., 95

— Stephen (Captain), i., 95

— Stephen [1740], i., 96

— Stephen [1748], i., 97

— Susan, i., 92

— Susan Augusta, i., 97

— Susannah, daughter of Chief Justice,

i, 95

— Susannah, daughter of Peter, i., 97

— Thomas J., i., 97

— Thomas J. (II.), i., 97

— Warren, i., 96

— Wilhelmina, V. C, i., 98

— William Heathcote (Bishop), i., 97

— William Heathcote II., i., 98

— William Howe (Sir), i., 97

De la Noy (Beekman), Catherine Peters, i., 29
Denning (Duer), Hannah, i., 130

252

Inbey

Denning, William, i., 130
Denniston (Clinton), Elizabeth, i., 46

De Nully, Anna, i., 72
De Peyster, Abraham (Captain), i., 109

— Abraham (Judge), i., 105, 104, 105

— Abraham (Treasurer), i., 105, 106

— Abraham [1742], i., 100

— Abraham [1753], i., 109

— Ann, i., ioq

— Ann B., i., 109

— Anna Bancker, i., 105

— Anna Schuyler, i., 106

— Arent Schuyler, i., 108

— Arent 11., i., 109, 1 10

— Augusta McEvers, i., 112

— Augustus (Captain), i., 110, ill

— Berthick H., i., 109

— Catharina, i., 105

— Catharine L., i., 109

— Catharine Schuyler, i., 106

— Christina B., i., 109

— Cornelia Lubbertse, i., 102

— Cornelius [1673], i., 105

— Elizabeth B., i., 29

— Elizabeth Brogan, i,, 109

— Elizabeth Henry, i., 109

— Elizabeth Rutgers, i., 109

— Estelle Livingston, i., 112

— Family, i., 1 13

— Frances De Kay, i., 109

— Frances Goodhue Ashton, i., 111

— Frederick, i., 106

— Frederick (Captain), i., 109, 111

— Frederick J., i., 112

— Frederick the Marquis, i., 107

— Gerard, i., 106

— Gerard [1737], i., 109

— Helen Hake, i., 109

— Henry, i., 1 13

— Isaac, merchant, i., 105

— Jane Jansen, i., 109

— James [1745], '■, "09

— James [1757], i., 109

— James Abraham (Colonel), i., 107

— James Ferguson, i., 111

— Johannes (Renteneer), i., 102, 103

— Johannes II., i., 105, 107

— Johannes (Captain), i., 106

— John [1731], i., 109

— John J. [1781], i., 1 13

— John Watts (Major-General), i., 112,

■13

— John Watts [1841], i., 113

— Johnston Livingston, i., 113

— Joseph Reade, i., 109

— Julia Ann Toler, i., 1 13

— Margaret K., i., 107

De Peyster, Margaret Van Cortlandt, !., 106

— Maria Antoinette Kane Hone, i., 111

— Mary Bancker i., 105

— Mary Justine Watts, i., in

— Mary Livingston, i., 113

— Mary O., i., 107

— Mary Van Baal, i., 105

— Nicholas, i., 109

— Pierre Cortlandt, i., 113

— Pierre Guilliaume [1707], i,, 106-108

— Pierre Guilliaume II., i., 109

— Richard Varick, i., 1 13

— Robert Gilbert Livingston, i., 113

— Sarah R., i., 107

— Susan Maria C, i., 111

— William, i., 109

— William [1735], i., 109

— William [1792], i., 1 13
Defrich, George, i., 4

Dewey (Delafield), Marie, i., 84
De Witt (Clinton), Mary, i., 47
De Zeng, Josephine M. De Lancey, i. , 98

— William S., i., 98
D'Hauteville, Elizabeth S. Fish, i., 141

— Frederick S. G., i., 141

Douglass (Barclay), Grace, i., 20

— (Cruger), Harriet, i., 73
Drawyer, Andrew (Admiral), i., 16

— (Barclay) Anna D., i., 16
Duane, Abraham, i., 123

— (Pell) Adelia, i., 123

— Althea Keteltas, i., 118

— Anthony, the founder, i., 117

— Cornelius, i., 123

— Eve Benson, i., 117

— Family, i., 117

— James, i., 1 18

— James Chatham, I., i., 123

— James Chatham, II., i., 124

— John, i., 123

— (North) Maria, i., 123

— Maria Livingston, i., 1 19

— Marianne Bowers, i., 123

— (Feathstonhaugh) Sarah, !., 123
Du Bois, Cornelius, i., S3

— (Delafield) Mary A., i., 83
Duer, Alexander, i., 131

— (Irving) Anna H., i., 131

— Anna Van Buren, i., 132

— Anne B, Bunner, i., 131

— Beverly Chew, i., 132

— Caroline King, i., 131

— Catharine Alexander, i., 129

— (Beam) Catherine A., i., 131

— Catherine Robinson, i., 131

— Denning, i., 132

— (Smith) Catherine, i., 132

Ilnbcj:

25:

Duer, Edward Alexander, i., 132

— (Wilson) Eleanor J., i., 131

— (King) Elizabeth D., i., 131

— Elizabeth Mead, i., 132

— Ellen Travers, i., 132

— Family, i., 127

— (Robinson) Frances, i., 130

— (Hoyt) Frances M., i., 131

— George Wickham, i., 131

— Georgiana Huyler, 1., 131

— Hannah M. Denning, i., 130

— (Robinson) Henrietta, i., 130

— (Gedney) Henrietta, i., 131

— James Gore King, i., 132

— John, i., I 30

— John 11., i., 132

— John Beverly, i., 132

— John King, i., 131

— Josephine Clark, i., 153

— Lady Catharine, i., 129

— Lady Kitty, i., 129

— Louise Suydam, i., 132

— Lucy Chew, i., 131

— (Chew) Maria T., i., T30

— Maria Westcott, i., 131

— (Breck) Mary, i., 132

— Mary A. Hamilton, i., 132

— Rufus King, i., 132

— (Smith) Sarah, i., 130

— Sarah Du Pont, i., 132

— Sophia Lawrence, i., 132

— William (Judge), i., 131

— William the founder, i., 127, 133

— William 111., i., 132

— William Alexander 11., i., 132

— William Denning, i., 131
Du Pont Henry, i., 132

— (Duer), Sarah, i., 132
Duyckinck (Beekman), Mary, i.,31
Dyckman (Cruger), Eliza L. C, i., 73

Ellison, Mary De Lancey, i., 97

Feathstonhaugh, George W., i., 123

— Sarah Duane, i., 123

Fish, Clarence S. Bryce, i., 141

— (Northcote) Edith, i., 141

— (Hauteville) Elizabeth S., i., 141

— (Monis) Elizabeth S., i., 139

— Elizabeth Sackett, i., 137

— Elizabeth Stuyvesant, i., 139

— Emily N. Mann, i., 141

— Family, i., 137

Fish, Hamilton, i., 139

— Hamilton 11., i., 141

— Hamilton III., i., 141

— Hamilton IV., i., 141

— Jonathan the founder, i., 137

— (Benjamin) Julia K., i., 141

— Julia Kean, i., 141

— (Neilson) Margaret A., i., 139

— Marion Anthon, i., 142

— Marion G. Anthon, i., 143

— Nicholas (Colonel), i., 138

— Nicholas, ii., 141

— (Webster) Sarah, i., 141

— Sidney Webster, i., 142

— Stuyvesant, i., 139

— Stuyvesant (railway-president), i., 141

— Stuyvesant 11., i., 142

— (Le Roy) Susan, i., 139

— (Rogers) Susan L., i., 141
Floyd, Elizabeth De Lancey, i.,'96

— (Delafield) Julia, i., 82

— NicoU, i.,82

— Nicoll (Colonel), i., 82

— Richard (Colonel), i. , 96

— William, i., S2

Foster (Delafield), Clara C, i., 84

— Frederick, 1., 84
Franklin, Benjamin, i., 03

— (Clinton) Maria, 1., 52
Franks, Phila De Lancey, i., 94
Fraunces, Samuel, i., 92
Fulton, Robert, ii., 97

Gardiner, Abigail Worth, i., 152

— Abraham (Captain), i., 151

— Abraham (Colonel), i., i^o

— Adele Griswold, i., 153

— Baldwin, i., 153

— Coralie Livingston, i., 153

— Coralie L. Jones, i., 153

— Daniel Dennison, i., 151

— David, i., 149

— David, i , 1=52

— David (the lawyer), i., 153

— David (4th Lord), i., 150

— David (oth Lord), i., 131

— David Johnson (8th Lord), i., 153

— David Johnson II., i., 153

— Deborah L. Avery, i., 151

— Elenor Groesbeck, i., 152

— Elizabeth Allyn, i., 149

— Elizabeth Coit, i., 150

— Elizabeth Hedges, i., 149

— Elizabeth Mulford, i., 151

254

1InJ)ey

Gardiner, Eunice Otis, i., 151

— Family, i., 145

— Frances Mulford, i., 153

— Hannah Havens, i., 151

— Howell, i., 152

— Jeremiah, i., 151

— Jerusha Buel, i., 151

— Joanna Conkling, i., 151

— John, i., 151

— John (of Batons Neck), i., 151

— John i., 153

— John, Jr., i., 151

— John (3d Lord), i., 149

— John (5th Lord), i., 151

— John (Dr.), i., 151

— John David (Rev.), i., 153

— John Griswold, i., 153

— John Lyon, i., 153

— John Lyon II., i., 153

— Joseph (Captain), i., 150

— Julia Havens, i., 152

— Juliana McLachlan, i., 152

— (Tyler) Juliana, i., 152

— Lion, the founder, i., 145

— Louise L. Veron, i., 153

— Lydia Dann, i., 152

— Lyon, i., 153

— Margaret Moore, i., 152

— Mary L'Hommedieu, i., 153

— Mary C. L'Hommedieu, i., 153

— Mary King, i., 149

— Mary Leringman, i., 149

— Mary Smith, i., 151

— Mary Thompson, i., 153

— Mary Wilemson, i., 146

— Nathaniel (Dr.), i., 151

— Phoebe Weed, i., 152

— Rachel Gardiner, i., 151

— Samuel (Captain), i., 150

— Samuel, i., 151

— Samuel Buel (loth Lord), i., 153

— Samuel Smith, i., 152

— Sara Grant, i., 150

— Sarah Chandler, i., 149

— Sarah Griswold, i., 152

— Susan Mott, i., 153

— William, i., isi

— Winthrop, i., 153
Gedney, David, i., 131

— Henrietta Duer, i., 131
Gibbes (Astor), Charlotte Augusta, i., 8
Gray, Mary Little (Clinton), i., 47
Gustavus Adolphus, King, i., 13

Hake (De Peyster), Helen, i., 109
Hall (De Peyster), Berthick, i., 109

Hall, Catherine C. Delafield, i., 84

— JohnJ., i., 84

Hallett (Delafield), Ann, i., 80

— Joseph, i., 80
Hamilton, Adelaide, i., 163

— Alexander, i., 163

— Alexander, i., 71, 109, 121, 122, 138,

157-161

— Alexander (Laird), i., 137

— Alexander IL, i., 161

— Alexander III., i., 162

— Alice, i., 163

— Allen McLane, !., 163

— Charles Apthorp i., 163

— Charlotte Augusta, i., 163

— Charlotte Pierson, i., 163

— (Schuyler) Eliza, i., 162

— Elizabeth, i., 163

— Elizabeth Schuyler, i., 161

— Family, i., 157

— James, i., 157

— James Alexander, i., 162

— John Church, i., 162

— Juliet P. Morgan, i., 164

— Maria Eliza, i., 163

— Maria E. Van den Heuval, i., 162

— Mary Augusta, i., 132

— (Schuyler) Mary M., i., 162

— Philip, i., 161

— Philip, II., i., 162

— Schuyler (Major-General), i., 162

— Schuyler, Jr., i., 164

— William Gaston, I., 163

— William Pierson, i., 164
Harris (Cruger), Elizabeth, i., 69
Hauteville, Elizabeth S. Fish d', i., 141

— Frederick S. G. d', i., 141
Hayward (Cruger), Ann T., i., 73
Heathcote (De Lancey), Ann, i.,

— Caleb, i., 93, 94
Hedges (Gardiner), Elizabeth, i.,
Hicks, Abigail B., i., 59

— (Cornell) Charity, i., 57

— Charlotte Brevoort, i., 30

— Whitehead (Mayor), i., 39
Hitchcock, Lieutenant-Colonel, i., 58
Hobart, Bishop, i., 97

Hoffman, Abraham, i., 176

— Adrian (Dr.), i., 179

— Alida L. Hansen, i., 172

— Ann C, Stoutenburgh, i., 179

— Anthony (Colonel), i., 175

— Anthony (Judge), i., 173

— Anthony A. (Judge), i., 176

— Anthony N., i., 179

— Arthur Gilnian, i., 184

— Beekman Verplanck (Captain), i., 179

'49

■fln^ey

255

Hoffman, Beulah Murray, i., 177

— Cadwallader Colden (Rev.), i., 180

— Catharina van Gaasbeck, i., 173

— Catharine Douw, i., 175

— Catharine Verplanck, i., 175

— Charles Fenno, i., 182

— Charles Frederick (Rev.), i., 183

— Cornelia R. Vredenburgh, i., 173

— David Murray, i., 180

— Edward Fenno, i., 184

— Edy Silvester, i., 176

— Eleanor L. Vail, !., 183

— Elizabeth Baylies, i., 184

— Elizabeth Snedeker, i., 176

— Emily Burrall, i., 182

— Emmerentje, C. D. W., i., 171

— Eugene Augustus (Rev. Dr.), i., 182

— Eugene Augustus II., i,, 184

— Family, !., lOo

— Frances A. Burr,all, i., iSo

— Gertrude Verplanck, i., 176

— Glorvina R. Storm, i., 178

— Harmanus (Captain), i., 175

— Helena Kissam, i., 176

— Helena Van Wyck, i., 174

— Jane Hoffman, i., 176

— John Thompson (Governor), i., 183

— John White, i., 184

— Josiah Ogden (Judge), i., 177

— josiah Ogden, II., i., 184

— Lindley Murray, i., 180

— Lindley Muiiay II., i., 184

— Lysbeth Hermans, i., 177

— Margaret Bayard, i., 176

— M.aria Fenno, i., 178

— Martin, the founder, !., 170

— Martin (Colonel), i., T72, 173

— Martin (Captain), i., 176

— Martin, i., 177

— Martin, i., 180

— Mary Colden, i., T78

— Mary C. Elmendorf, i., 183

— Mary Frances Seton, i., 177

— Mary M. Ogden, i., 180

— Mary Rutgers, i. , 175

— Matilda, i., 181

— Mills, i., 172

— Murray (Judge), i., 180

— Nicolaes (Captain), i., 171

— Nicholas (Captain), i., 171

— Nicholas, i., 174

— Nicholas Anthony, i., 176

— Ogden, i., 181

— Ogden (Judge), !., 184

— Philip Livingston, i., 176

— Philip Verplanck, i,, 178

— Phoebe Pell, i., 179

Hoffman, Phoebe W. Townsend, i., 180

— Rachel Dubois, i , 176

— Richard Anthony (Dr.), i., 179

— Richard Kissam (Dr.), i., 179

— Robert (Colonel), i., 175

— Samuel Southard (Colonel), i., 184

— Samuel Verplanck, i., 178

— — — II., i., 1S4

— Sarah Ogden, i., 174

— Sarah Van Alstyne, i. , 175

— Tryntje Benson, i., 172

— Virginia E. Southard, !., 182

— Wickham (Colonel), i., 184

— William (Dr.), i., 178

— Zachariah (Lieutenant), i., 176

— Zacharias (Captain), i., 171

— — II., (Captain), i., 173

— Zecharias (Captain), i., 171
Holmes, Abiel (Dr.), ii., 243

— Oliver Wendell, ii., 243

— Sarah Wendell, ii., 243
Hone (De Peyster), Maria A. K., !., in
Hoyt, Frances M. Duer, !., 131

— Henry S., i., 131
Hull, Gener.il, i., 40

Hunter, Elizabeth E. De Lancey, i., 98

— Governor, i., 28

Irving, Anna H. Duer, i., 131

— Pierre P. (Rev.), i., 131

— Washington, i., 39, 40, 41
Izard, Alice De Lancey, i., 97

— Ralph, i., 07

J
Jansen, (De Peyster) Jane, i. , 109
Jay (Balch), Anna, i., 199

— (von Schweintz), Anna, i., 200

— Anna Maria, i., 191

— (Pienepont) Anna Maria, i., 199

— Anna M. Bayard, i., 191

— (Robinson) Augusta, i., 200

— Augusta McVickar, i., 198

— Augustus, i., 200

— Augustus 11., i., 191, 192

— Augustus the founder, i., 190

— (Dubois) Catherine, i., 199

— (Chapman) Eleanor, i., 200

— Eleanor K. Field, i., 199

— (Pellew) Eliza, i., 199

— Emily Astor Kane, i., 200

— Euphemia Dunscombe, i., 192

— (Munro) Eva, i., 191

— Family, !., 189

— (Van Cortlandt) Frances, i., 191

— Frederick, i., 191

256

■flnbey

Jay, Harriette A. Vinton, i., 200

— James (Dr.), i-, 191, 192

— John, i., 199

— John (Chief-Justice), i., 191

— John Clarkson (Dr.), i., 199

— John Clarkson II., (Dr.), 1., 200

— Josephine Pearson, i., 199

— (Van Horn) Judith, i., 191

— Julie Post, !., 200

— (Wurts) Laura, i., 200

— Laura Prime, i., 199

— Lucy Oelrichs, i., 200

— Margaret Barclay, i., 192

— (Banyer) Maria, i., 197

— (Butter worth) Maria B., i., 199

— (Edwards) Mary, i., 200

— (Schieffelin) Mary, i., 200

— (Valletta) Mary, i., 191

— Mary Duyckinck, i., 192

— Mary R. Clarkson, i., 197

— (Prime) Mary Rutherford, i., 199

— Mary Van Cortlandt, i., 191

— Peter, i., 190

— Peter (Jr.), i., 191

— Peter II., i., 191

— Peter Augustus, i., 197

— — — "•, i-. '99

— — — III., i. , 200

— Pierre, i., 190

— (Dawson) Sarah, i., 199

— (Bruen) Sarah Louisa, i., 199

— Sarah V. B. Livingston, i., 195

— (Clarkson) Susan Maria, i., 199

— William, i., 198

— William (Colonel), i., 200
Jefferson, Thomas, i., 40
Johnson, Samuel (Rev.), i., 17
Jones, Anne DeLancey, i. , 95

— (Clinton) Catherine, i., 52

— De Witt Clinton, i., 52

— (Cruger) Frances A., i., 73

— Julia DeWitt, i., 52

— Thomas (judge), i., 95

Kamp (Delafield), Lizzie H., i., 84

— Richard, i., 84
Kean (Fish), Julia, i., 141

Keoncott (De Peyster), Margaret, i., 107
Keteltas, Abraham (Rev.), i., 118

— (Duane), Althea, i., 118

— (Beekman), Jane, i., 31
Kieft, William (Governor), i., 56
King, Adelaide L. Yorke, i., 21 j

— Adeline McKee, i., 212

— (Paterson) Alice C, i., 211

King, Archibald Gracie, i., 131, 212

— Caroline, i., 211

— Caroline, i., 222

— (Duer) Caroline, i., 131, 211

— Charles (General), i., 213

— Charles (President), i., 209

— Charles Ray (Dr.), i., 212

— Cornelius Low (Colonel), i., 212

— Cyrus, i., 206

— Edward, i., 211

— Edward II., i., 212

— (Halsey) Eliza G., i., 21 1

— Eliza Gracie, i., 209

— Elizabeth D. Duer, i., 131,212

— Elizabeth Fisher, !., 212

— Elizabeth Lewis, i., 212

— (Van Rensselaer) Elizabeth R., i., 211

— Emily Post, i. , 211

— (Paterson) Emily S., i., 211

— (Martin) Esther, i., 21 1

— Family, i., 205

— (McLane) Fanny L., i., 211, 212

— Frederic Gore (Dr.), i., 211

— (Davis) Frederica G., i., 210

— (Schuyler) Gertrude, i., 211

— Hannah Fisher, i., 212

— (Wilkes) Harriet, i., 211

— Henrietta Low, i., 210

— Isabella Bragdon, i., 206

— Isabella R. Cochrane, i., 212

— James Gore, i., 131,211

— James Gore II., i., 131, 21 1

— Janet de Kay, i., 212

— John, the founder, i., 205

— John Alsop (Lieutenant), i., 208

— John Alsop II., i., 212

— Julia Lawrence, i., 212

— Maria Williamson, i., 213

— (Gardiner) Mary, I., 149

— (Nightingale) Mary, i., 211

— (Richards), Mary, i., 211

— (Waddington), Mary A., i., 211

— Mary Alsop, i., 206

— Mary Black, i., 206

— Mary C. Rhinelander, i., 212

— Mary Ray, i., 209

— Mary Stowell, i., 205

— Nancy Fisher, i., 212

— Richard, i., 206

— Richard II., i., 212

— Rufus, founder in New York, i., 206

— Rufus II. (General), i., 212

— Rufus 111., i., 213

— Sarah R. Gracie, i., 211

— Sarah Worthington, i., 211

— Susan Elliott, i., 212

— William (Governor), i., 206

Iln^cy

257

King, William Gracie (Colonel), 1., 212
Kip, Abraham, i., 221

— (Rhinelander), Adelaide, i., 226

— Anna de Sille, i., 219

— Anne C. Wilson, i., 225

— Brockholst Livingston, i., 224

— Catalina de la Noy, i., 221

— Catalina de Suyers, i., 219

— Charlotte M. Wells, i., 223

— Cornelia Brady, i., 220

— Cornelia Lewis, i., 223

— Elizabeth C. Kinney, i., 226

— Elizabeth Marschalk, i., 222

— (Storrs) Elizabeth, i., 224

— Eva K. M., i., 225

— Eva Lorrillard, i., 225

— Family, i., 217

— Francis M. (Rev.), i., 225

— George Goelet, i., 225

— Harriet L. Van Rensselaer, i., 224

— Hendrick, the founder, i., 217, 218

— Hendrick 11., i., 219

— Hendrick 111., i., 221

— Henri or, Henry II., i., 218

— Henry 111., i., 223

— Henry IV., i., 225

— Isaac, i., 219

— Isaac, i., 221

— Isaac, i., 222

— Isaac (Dr.), i., 222

— Isaac Lewis, i., 224

— Isaac Lewis (Dr.), i., 226

— Jacob, i., 219

— Jacob, i., 221

— jean Baptiste, i. , 218

— John, i., 221

— Lawrence, i., 226

— Lawrence (Colonel), i., 225

— Leonard, i., 222

— Leonard 11., i., 224

— Leonard ML, i., 224

— Leonard IV., i., 225

— Leonard William, i., 224

— Leonard William, Jr., (Rev), i., 226

— Magdalena Van VIeeck, i., 221

— Margaret de Marveil, i., 218

— Maria E. Lawrence, i., 224

— Mana Ingraham, i., 224

— Maria Vermilyea, i., 219

— Marie de la Montagne, i., 219

— (Kane) Mary, i., 224

— Mary R. Bayard, i., 225

— Nicholas, i., 221

— Rachel Kip, i., 222

Kip, Rachel Swarthout, i., 221

— Roeloff, i., 217, 218

— Roeloff II., i., 218

— Roeloff III., i., 222

— Samuel I., i., 222

— Samuel II., i., 223

— Sarah de Mille, i., 221

— Sarah Smith, i., 224

— (Burgess) Sophia, i., 224

— William F., i., 222

— William Ingraham (Rev.), i., 224

— William Ingraham 11., i. 221

— William Ingraham 111., i., 226

— William V. B., i., 220
Knickerbocker, Dietrich, i., 40
Kortright (Cruger), Eliza, i., 73
Krebben, Christian C, i., 84

— Edith Delafield, i., 84
Kuyter Jochiem P. (Captain), i., 36

Langdon (Delafield), Elinor E., i., 82

— John, i., 82

— Thomas E., i., 82
Lawrence, Abraham Riker, i., 237

— Abraham Riker (Judge), i., 243, 244

— Adam, i., 235

— Albert Gallatin (General), i., 244

— Alfred Newbold, i., 244

— Alice W. Work, i., 245

— Amy Whipple, i., 234

— Andrew (Captain), i., 236

— Anna, i., 244

— (Delafield) Anna A., i., 83

— Anna Townsend, i., 236

— Augusta M. Nicoll, I., 240

— Catharine i., 246

— Catherine Farmer, i., 234

— Catherine Livingston, i., 234-235

— Catherine Remsen, i., 236

— Clement, i., 245

— Charles William, i., 243

— Christina Knell, i., 241

— Cornelia A., i., 242

— Cornelius Van Wyck, i., 240

— David, i., 234.

— Deborah Smith, i., 232, 234

— Deborah Woodhill, i., 233

— Deborah Woolsey, i., 233

— Edward Newbold, i., 244

— Effingham, i., 233

— — '•, =44

— — •••, "•, 2}4

— — III., i., 236

— — (Judge), i., 236

— Eliza Miner, i., 244

258

1Int)ey

Lawrence, Elizabeth Little, i., 233

— Elizabeth Smith, i., 232

— Elizabeth Watson, i., 236

— Estell, i., 237

— Eugene, i., 241

— Family, i., 229

— Ferdinand, i., 241

— Hannah Bowne, i., 233

— Hannah Newbold, i., 244

— Harriet, i., 242

— Henry, i., 230

— Henry, i., 242, 243

— (Beekman) Isabella, i., 32

— Isabella E. Burgoyne, i., 241

— Isaphene C, i., 242

— James (Sir), i., 229

— James (Captain), i., 238-239

— John, i., 230-231

— John, i., 233

— John, 1., 234

— John, i., 237

— John (Captain), i., 233
_ John (Judge), i., 233

— John Burling, i., 244

— John L., i., 237

— John L., i., 243

— John L., i., 244

— John L., i., 244-245

— John Smith, i., 243

— John Watson, i., 240

— Jonathan, i., 233

— Jonathan, i., 236

— Jonathan (Major), i., 235

— Jonathan (Dr.), i-, 243

— Jonathan (Jr.), i., 243

— Jonathan V., i., 233

— Joseph, i., 232-233

— Joseph, i., 234

— Joseph, i., 237

— Joseph, i., 241

— Judith Fish, i., 235

— Julia B., i., 242

— Julia Montandevert, i., 239

— Lavinia Oliver, !., 245

— Lydia A., i., 244

— Margaret S. Mtiller, i., 237

— Maria C. Prall, i., 240

— Maria E., i., 242

— Mary, i., 231

— (Whittinghame) Mary, i., 231

— Mary Betts, !., 234

— Mary A. Jones, i., 237

— Mary K. Bowne, i., 240

— Mary Richardson, i., 243

— Mary Sackett, i., 237

— Mary Townley, i., 232

— Mary Woodbury, i., 2'i'}

Lawrence, Matilda Washington, 1., 229

— Nicholas, i., 237

— Obadiah, i., 234

— Oliver, i., 245

— Patience Sackett, i., 233

— Rachel A. Hicks, 1., 240

— Richard, i., 230

— Richard, i., 233

— Richard, i., 236-237

— Richard, i., 243

— Richard (Captain), i., 235

— Robert (Sir), i., 229

— Rosetta Townsend, i., 241

— Ruth, i., 245

— Ruth Rikev, i., 235

— Samuel (Judge), i., 236

— Samuel Adams, i., 2;6

— Samuel Sterry (Dr.), i., 241

— Sarah Smith, i., 237

— Sarah A. Smith, i., 237

— Sophy Tilley, i., 243

— Susanna T. Eaton, i., 234

— Sybil Sterry, i., 234

— Thamen Fisher, i., 236

— Thomas, i., 237

— Thomas (Captain), i., 234
— . Thomas (Captain), i., 235

— Thomas (Major), i., 230, 231

— Thomas of Newton, !., 233

— W.ilter, i., 236

— Watson E. (Judge), i., 240

— William, i., 230

— William, i., 232

— William, i., 236

— William, i., 246

— Willliam (Dr.), i., 234

— William (Judge), i., 230, 231

— William Anderson, i., 243

— William Beach, i., 241, 242, 243

— William Miner, i., 24s

— William T., i., 237

— William Thomas, i., 243
Lefferts (Brevoort), Elizabeth D., i., 41

— Lefferts, i., 41
Leisler, Jacob (Governor), i., 28
Lent, Abraham, i., 19

— (Barclay) Dentie or Dientje, i., 19
Le Roy, Catherine Rutgers, ii., 139

— Cornelia Rutgers, ii., 139

— Daniel, i., 139

— Jacob, ii., 109

— Susan Fish, i., 119
Lerringman (Gardiner), Mary, i., 149
Lewis, Ann, i., 253

— Elizabeth Annesley, i., 251

— Elizabeth Ludlow, i., 253

1In&ey

259

Lewis, Family, i., 249-256

— Francis, jr., i., 253

— Francis, the Signer, i., 82, 249, 250, 252-

25'>

— Gertrude Livingston, i., 255

— Margaret (DeLifield), i., 82

— Morgan (General), i., 82, 253-254-25S-

256
Library, the Astor, i., 7

— the New York Society, i., 18
Lincoln, Abraham, i., 140
Livingston, Abraham ii., 16

— Albert Gallatin ii., 14, 15

— Alida, ii., 11

— Anne Home S., ii., 16

— Brockholst [1757], ii., 12, 13

— (Ten Broeck), Catharine, ii., n

— Catherine, ii., 11

— Charles Carroll, ii., 13

— Cornelia Beekman, ii., 6

— Edward, i., 130; ii., 13, 14, 15

— Eliza, ii.,16

— Elizabeth Knight, ii., 5

— Elizabeth S., ii., 16

— (De Peyster), Estelle, i., 112

— Eugene Augustus, i., 83

— Family, ii., 3, 17

— Gilbert, ii., 6, 7, 13

— Henry, ii., 11

— Henry, ii., 12

— Henry B., ii., 16

— Henry W., ii., 12

— Herman, ii., 12

— James, ii., 7

— James, ii., 11

— James, ii., 17

— James (Colonel), ii., 16

— (Van Home), Johanna, ii., 6

— John, ii., 7

— John, ii., 11

— John, ii,, 1 1

— John, ii., 17

— John (of Oak Hill), ii., 12

— John (Colonel), ii., 5

— John (Rev.), ii., 3, 4

— Joh^ G., ii., 1 12

— John Henry (Rev.), ii., 13

— John P., ii., 16

— John Swift, ii., 12

— John William (Admiral), ii., 16

— Johnston, ii., 12

— Johnston II., ii., 12

— (Delafield), Julia, i., 82

— Katherine Van Brugh, ii., 5

— Louis, ii., 12

— Margaret, i., 139

— Margaret, ii., 11

Livingston, (Vetch), Margaret, ii., 6

— Margaretta Schuyler, ii., 7

— Maria K., ii., 11

— (Decare) Mary, ii., 11

— (De Peyster , Mary, i., iij

— (Penn Allen), Mary, ii., 12

— (Thong), Mary, ii., 7

— (Delafield), Mary C, i., 83

— Maturin (Judge), i., 82

— Maturin, ii., 17

— Maturin II., ii., 17

— Peter, ii., 7

— Peter R., ii., 11

— Peter R.,ii., 12

— Peter Van Brugh, ii., 7-9

— Philip, ii., 5-7

— Philip, ii., 7, 8

— Richard (Lieutenant-Colonel), ii., 16

— Robert, i., 118; ii., 4-5

— Robert, ii., 7

— Robert, ii., 17

— Robert (of Clermont), ii.,6, 7, 10, 11,

— Robert (Nephew), ii. , 6, 7 , 1 7
-^ Robert Cambridge, ii., 11, 12

— Robert Cambridge II., ii., 12

— Robert Cambridge III., ii., 12

— Robert Cambridge IV., ii., 12

— Robert R. (Chancellor), ii., 13, 14

— Robert R. (Judge), ii., 10, 11, 13

— Sylvia, ii., 12

— Walter, ii., 11

— Walter [1740], ii., 12

— William (Governor), ii., 7, 9. "1 ^-
Lloyd (Delafield), Anne S., i., 85
Longfellow, Frederick H., i., 85

— Julia Delafield, i., 85

Low, Isaac, i., 69

Lubbertse, Cornelia De Peyster, i., 102
Lynch, Thomas, i., 118

McAdam, Anne Charlotte De Lancey, i., 97

— John L., i., 97

— William I., 69
McEvers, Charles, i., 69
McGee (Barclay), Fanny, i., 20
Madison, James, i., 49, 50
Mann (Fish), Emily N., i., 141
Markoe (Cruger), Ann, i., 72
Marshall (Barclay), Margaret, i., 20
Maur-Rhys, ii., 22

Maxwell (Cruger), Sarah J., i., 73
Mead (Duer), Elizabeth, i., 132

— Orlando, i., 132
Milledoler (Beekman), Abian Steele, i., 32

26o

ln^cJ:

Milledoler, Philip (Rev. Dr.), i., 31
Montgomery, Hannah S., i., 69

Moran, Daniel E., i., 84

— (Delafield), Elizabeth B., !., 84

Morris, A. P., ii., 34

— Anna M., ii., 35

— Anna R. Russell, ii., 36

— Annie C, i., 55

— (De Peyster), Augusta M., i., 112

— Eleanor R., ii., 36

— Elizabeth S. Fish, i., 139

— Emily Lorillard, ii., 36

— Family, ii., 21

— Fordham, ii., 36

— Francis (Commodore), ii., 36

— Gerard Walton, ii., 35

— Gouverneur, ii., 29

— Gouverneur II., ii., 33

— Gouverneur 111., ii., 35

— Gouverneur IV., ii., 35

— Helen Van Cortlandt, ii., 34

— Henry, ii., 35

— Henry Lewis, ii., 36

— Isabella Graham, ii., 26

— Jacob (General), ii., 33

— James (Captain), ii., 34

— John (Captain), ii., 22

— Katrintje Staats, ii., 29

— Lewis (Chief Justice), ii., 24

— Lewis (Colonel), ii., 22

— Lewis (Colonel), ii., 34

— Lewis III., ii., 28

— Lewis IV., ii., 29

— Lewis Gouverneur, ii., 34

— Lewis Spencer, ii., ^6

— Martha J. Gary, ii., 35

— Mary Cox, ii., 34

— Mary Walton, ii., 32

— Randolph, ii., 35

— Richard, ii., 29

— Richard (Captain), ii., 21

— Richard (Judge), ii., 32

— Richard Lewis (Dr.), i., 139

— Richard Valentine II., ii., 35

— Richard Valentine (Commodore), ii., 34

— Robert (of Fordham), ii., 34

— Robert Hunter (Governor), ii., 28

— Robert Hunter II., ii., 34, 35

— Sarah Pole, ii., 25

— Sarah Gouverneur, ii., 29

— Sarah Ludlow, ii., 32

— Staats Long, ii., 29

— William, ii., 22

Morse (Delafield), Elizabeth B., i., 85

— Sidney, i., 85
Munro, Frances De Lancey, i., 97

— Peter Jay, i., 97

Munson (Delafield), Mary P., i., 82
— Judge, i., 82

Neely, Henry A., i. 83

— Henry A. (Rev.), i., 83

— (Delafield), Mary F., i., 83
Neilson, John (Dr.), i., 139

— Margaret A. Fish, i., 139
New York Society Library, i., 18
NicoUs, Richard (Governor), i., 56, 57, 67
North, Maria Duane, i., 123

— William (General), i., 123
Northcote, Edith Fish, i., 141

— Oliver, i., 141

Oakley, Matilda C. C, i., 72

— Thomas j. (Chief justice), i., 72
Octave (De Peyster), Mary, i., 107

Ogilvie, J. (Rev.), i., 16
Oldfield (Barclay), Lillie, i., 20
Osgood, Alfred (Rev.), ii., 45

— Alfred T.,ii., 46

— Caroline T. Lawrence, ii., 46

— Catharine R. Montgomery, ii., 47

— Clara Runyon, ii., 40

— Daniel (Rev.), ii., 42

— David (Rev.), ii., 46

— David L., ii., 46

— Family, ii., 41

— Frances, ii., 46

— Harriet K., ii., 46

— Harriet K. Ladd, ii., 46

— Henry (Dr.), ii., 42

— Herbert L. (Professor), ii., 47

— Howard (Rev.), ii., 46

— Howard Lawrence, ii., 47

— Isaac (Colonel), ii., 42

— John (Colonel), ii., 42

— John (Captain), the founder, ii., 41

— Joseph (Dr.), ii., 43

— Julia, ii., 45

— Kendall (Dr.), ii., 42

— Maria Bowne Franklin, ii., 45

— Maria Carle, ii., 46

— Martha Brandon, ii., 45

— (Genet), Martha B. II., ii., 45

— Mary M., ii., 46

— Paulia C. Pelt, ii., 46

— Peter (Captain), ii., 42, 45

— Samuel (Captain), ii., 42

— Samuel (Colonel), ii., 43, 44

— Samuel (Rev.), ii., 45

— Samuel StiUman, ii., 46

Unbcy

261

Osgood (Field), Susan M., ii., 45

— Tliaddeus (Rev.), ii., 42

— Walter Franklin, ii., 45
Osterburg (Cornell), Mary C, i., 02

Paine (Delafield), Eliza, i., 83

Paterson (Van Rensselaer), Cornelia, ii., 219

— William (Governor), ii., 219
Paul (Astor), Mary D., i., 8
Pell, Adelia Duane, i., 123

— George W., i., 123

— James D., i., 123

— John A., i., 123

— Richard M., i., 123

— Robert L., i., 123

Perry O. H. (Commodore), i., 41
Peters, Hugh (Rev.), i., 146
Phillips, Margaret Wendell, ii., 243

— Wendell, ii., 243

— William, ii., 24-5
Pool (Duer), Sophia L., i., r ?2
Potter, Abigail Stevens, ii., 55

— Alice Key, ii., 55

— Alonzo (Bishop), ii., 53

— Anna, ii., 55

— Anna Knight, ii., 53

— Charles Henry, ii., 55

— Clarkson N., ii., 54

— David T., ii., 55

— Edward Tuckerman, ii., 55

— Eliphalet N., ii., ss

— Eliza Rogers, ii., 55

— Esther Sheldon, ii., 53

— Family, ii., 51

— Frank Hunter, ii., 55

— Frances Seton, ii. , 55

— Frances Tileston, ii., 55

— Harriet D. Jones, ii., 55

— Helen Fuller, ii., 55

— Henry Codman (Bishop), ii., 55

— Horatio (Bishop), ii., 53

— Horatio, Jr., ii., 55

— Howard, ii., 55

— James Neilson, ii., 5";

— Jane Burlingame, ii., 51

— John, ii., 53

— John, ii., ■;3

— Joseph, ii., s?

— Julia Blatchford, ii., 53

— (Delafield), Louisa, i., 83

— Margaret Pollock, ii., 55

— (Thompson), Maria, ii., 55

— Mary J., ii., 55

— Mary Jane, ii., 55

Potter, Mary J. Tomlinson, ii., 5;

— Mary L. Brown, ii., 55

— Paraclete, i., 83

— (Delafield), Paraclete, i., 83

— Phoebe, ii., 55

— Phoebe Arnold Greene, ii., 51

— Robert, the founder, ii., 51

— Robert B. (General), ii., 55

— Robert Minturn, ii., 55

— Ruth Fisher, ii., 53

— Sarah M. Nott, ii., 53

— Sarah Porter, ii., 55

— Thomas, ii., S3

— Virginia Mitchell, ii., 55

— William A., ii., s?

— William Bleecker (Professor), ii., 55
Prime (Delafield), Emily, i., 83

— Frederick, i., 83

Ramsay (Cruger), Martha, i., 72
Rapalje, Agnes Bergen, ii., 67

— Aletje Cornell, ii., 65

— Anna Denys, ii., 64

— Annetje, ii., 64

— Augustus, ii., 70

— Catalina Trico, ii., 64

— Catalyntje, ii., 64

— Cornelius, ii., 65

— Cornelius, ii., 66

— Daniel, ii,, 64

— Daniel, ii., 65

— Daniel, ii., 66

— Daniel, ii., 67

— Daniel (Major), ii., 67

— Daniel (Rev.), ii., 67

— Derrick, ii., 66

— Elizabeth, ii., 64

— Elizabeth Remsen, ii., 66

— Elizabeth Van Mater, ii., 70

— Ellen Hardenbrook, ii., 08

— Ellen Maria, ii., 69

— Family, ii., 65

— Folkert, ii., 66

— George, ii., 66

— George, ii., 68

— George, ii. , 69

— George, Jr., ii., 66

— George A., ii., 69

— George B., ii., 68

— George Bernard, ii., 69

— Gilbert V. M., ii., 70

— Hilletje Van Vechten, ii., 65

— Jacob, ii., 64

— Jacob, ii., 65

— Jacob, ii., 69

262

■flntJey

Rapalje, Jan, the founjer, ii., 6}

— Jan, Jr., ii., 64

— Jannetje, ii., 64

— Jeroniinus, ii., 64

— Jeroninius, ii., 65
- Jeroninius, ii., 66

— Jeroninius, ii., 66

— Joanna Antonidcs, ii., 65

— John, ii., 67

— Judith, ii., 64

— Marritje, ii., 64

— Matilda Polhemus, ii., 66

— Michael, ii., 67

— Phoebe, ii., 66

— Rem, ii., 66

— Rem, ii., 68

— Samuel, ii., 67

— Sarah, ii., 66

— (Bergen) (Bogaert), Saiah, ii., 64

— Sarah Brinckerhoff, ii., 65

— Sarah E., ii., 69

— Sarah E. Staples, 69

— Sarah Klock, ii., 65

— Sarah Van Vechten, ii., 65

— Susan E. Provost, ii., 68

— Tunis, ii., 65

— Tunis, ii., 66

— Williamson, ii., 67
Rathbone (Cruger), Susan M. W., i., 73
Reade, Joseph, i., 107

— (De Peyster), Sarah, i., 107
Remsen, Abraham, ii., 75

— Abraham, ii., 76

— Aert, ii., 76

— (Dorlandt), Anna, ii., 75

— (Adriense), Catalina, ii., 75

— Charles (Dr.), ii., 79

— Christopher, ii., 75

— Daniel, ii., 75

— Elizabeth de Peyster, ii., 78

— Family, ii., 7;

— (Hegeman), Femmetje, ii., 75

— Garrett, ii., 76

— Georgiana D., ii., 78

— Hendrick, ii., 77

— Henry, ii., 77

— Henry, ii., 78

— Henry, ii., 79

— (Schenck), Heyltie, ii., 76

— (Vanderbilt), Hildegong, ii., 75

— Ira (Dr.), ii., 79

— Isaac, ii., 75

— Isaac, Jr., ii., 75

— Jacob, ii., 75

— Jacob D., ii., 79

Remsen, Jan, ii., 75

— Jane Siiydam, ii., 78

— (Van Nostrand), Jannetje, ii., 75

— Jannetje Rapalje, ii., 74

— Jeremias, ii., 75

— Jeronius, ii., 75

— Jeromus (Captain), ii., 76

— John, ii., 75

— Joris, li., 75

— Lilian Livingston, ii., 79

— Luke, ii., 76

— Mary Delprat, ii., 78

— (Howard), Phoebe, ii., 76

— Phoenix, ii., 79

— Rem, ii., 75

— Rem, ii., 76

— Rem II., ii., 75

— Rem 111., ii., 75

— Rem Jansen, the founder, ii., 74

— Robert G., ii., 78

— Robert G. (Dr.), ii., 79

— (Adriense), Sarah, ii., 75

— William, ii., 78

— William, ii., 79
Renwick (Henry), Agnes, ii., 86

— Anna L. Aspenwall, ii., 88

— Annie Cooke, ii., 90

— Claire Rhinelander, ii., 91

— Edward B., ii., 91

— Edward S., ii., 88

— (Brown), Eliza C, ii., 91

— Eliza S. Crosby, ii., 90

— (Wittingham), Elizabeth, ii., 91

— Elizabeth A. Brevoort, ii., 90

— Ellen J. Vv'ise, ii., 91

— (Hurry), Emily A., ii.,91

— Emily D. Hicks, ii., 91

— Evelyn Smith, ii., 91

— Family, ii., 83

— Frederick W., ii., 90

— Frederick W. II., ii., 91

— Gertrude Sears, ii., 91

— Harold S., ii., 91

— Harriet McDonell, ii., 91

— (Schaff), Helen S., ii., 91

— Henry, ii., 90

— Henry B., ii., 86

— (Smedburg), Isabella, ii., 86

— James, ii., 87

— James (Professor), ii., 84

— James, the founder, ii., 84

— James, the martyr, ii., 83

— James A., ii., 90

— (Wilkes), Jane, ii., 86

— (Callender), Jane J., ii., 90

— Jane Jeffrey, ii., 84

— Julia Kortright, ii., 90

■flnbey

263

Renwick, (Munroe), Laura, ii., qo

— Margaret A. Brevoort, ii., 86

— (Brown), Mary C, ii., 91

— (Strong), Mary C, ii., 91

— Mary H. Rhinelander, ii., 86

— (Swan), Mary R., ii., 00

— (Sedgwicl<), Meta B., ii., 91

— Phili[) B., ii., 91

— Robert J., ii., 86

— Robert J. II., ii., 90

— S. Stanhope, ii., 91

— Viola Blodget, ii., 90

— William, ii., 84

— William C, ii., 91

— William R., ii., 00

— William W., ii., 01
Rhinebeck (from Beekman), i., 27
Riker (Duane), Grietje, i., 118
Rives, Francis R., i., 120
Roberts (Cruger), Elizabeth, i., 75

— John, i., 81

— (Delafield), Mary, i., 81
Robinson, Beverly, i., 131

— (Duer), Catherine, i., 131

— Frances Duer, i., 130

— Hamilton E. Duer, i., 130

— Morris, i., 131

Rochester, Margaret M. De Lancey, i., 98

— Thomas F. (Dr.), i., 98
Rogers, Susan L. Fish, i., 141

— William E., i., 141
Romaine (Cruger), Mary, i., 73
Roosevelt, Albert C, ii., 102

— Albert J., ii., 101

— Alice Lee, ii., 10 1

— Anne L. Jackson, ii., 102

— Annetje Bogaert, ii., 97

— Charles H., ii., 102

— Claas, the founder, ii., 95

— Clinton, ii., 101

— Cornelius V. S., ii., 98

— Cornelius V. S. II., ii., 99

— Edith Carow, ii., 101

— Elbert, ii., 101

— Family, ii., 95

— Helborne, ii., 102

— Henry E., ii., 102

— Hillotje Jans, ii., 96

— Hyltje Syverts, ii., 96

— Isaac, ii., 97

— Jacobus, ii., 97

■ — Jacobus II., ii., 97

— James, ii., 97

— James I., ii., 97

— James 11-, ii., 98

— James A., ii., 99

— James H., ii., loi

Roosevelt, Jane M. Young, ii., 101

— Jannetje Thomas, ii., 95

— Johannes, ii., 90

— John (Captain), ii., 07

— Lydia M. Latrobe, ii., 98

— Margaret Barnhill, ii., 98

— Martha Bullock, ii., 100

— Mary Van Schaick, ii., 98

— Nicholas, ii., 9b

— Nicholas, ii., 97

— Nicholas (Lieutenant), ii., 98

— Peter T., ii., 101

— Robert B., ii., 99

— Samuel M., ii., 08

— (Schuyler), Sarah, ii., 97

— Silas W., ii., 99

— Theodore, ii., 99

— Theodore (President), ii., 100

— Washington, ii., 101
Rusher (Cniger), Frances E., i., 75
Rutgers (Lispenard), Alice, ii., io8

— Anthony, ii., 107

— Anthony, ii., 108

— Anthony (Captain), ii., 109

— Anthony 11., ii., 108, 19

— Anthony 111., ii., loS

— Catarina de Hooges, ii., 107

— Catharina Meyer, ii., 108

— (Bedloe), Catharine, ii., 109

— (LeRoy), Catharine, ii., 109

— (Van Home), Catharine, ii., 108

— Catharine de Peyster, ii., 108

— Cornelia Benson, ii., 107

— (LeRoy), Cornelia, ii., loq

— Elizabeth Beekman, ii., 109

— Elizabeth Williams, ii., 108

— (Lispenard), Elsie, ii., 108

— (Marshall), Elsie, ii., 108

— (Schuyler), Elsie, ii., 107

— (Provoost), Eva, ii., 108

— Family, ii., 105

— Gerard, ii., 112

— Gertrude Gouvemeur, ii., 108

— Harman, ii., 106

— Harman (Lieutenant), ii., 109

— Harman III., ii., 108

— Harman IV., ii., 109

— Harman H., ii., 107

— Hendrick, ii., 108

— Hendrickje Vandewater, ii., 107

— Henry (Colonel), ii., 109

— (Bleecker), Margaret, ii., 106

— Margaret Bayard, ii., 112

— (Barclay), Mary, ii., 19

— Peter, ii., 108

— Robert, ii., 109

— Robert II. , ii., 1 12

264

llnt)ey

Rutgers, Rutgers Jacobsen, the founder, ii., 105
— TryntjeJ. Van Breesteede, ii., 106

Sackett, Hannah De Lancey, i., 95

— Joseph (Rev.), i., 95
Sanders (Beekman), Catherine, i., 31
Sands, Charles, i., 85

— (Delafield), Lettice L., i., Ss
Schermerhorn, Abraliam, ii., 121

— Adeline E. Coster, ii., 122

— Aeltje, ii., 1 19

— Ann Elliott Huger Laight, ii., i:

— Arnout, ii., 1 19

— Arnout, ii., 120

— Beyer, ii., 1 18

— Bruce, ii., 123

— Burr (Dr.), ii., 123

— Catharina, ii., 1 19

— Catharine, ii., 120

— Cornelia, ii., 1 18

— Cornelius (Judge), ii., 123

— Daniel C, ii., 123

— Edmond H., ii., 122

— Elizabeth, ii., 121

— (Brevoort), Elizabeth, i., 42

— Elizabeth Bussing, ii., 121

— (Auchmuty), Ellen, ii., 122

— Esther, ii., 120

— Family, ii., 1 17

— Frederick Augustus, ii., 122

— George, ii., 121

— Helena, ii., 118

— Henry A., ii., 122

— Henry Augustus, ii., 123

— Hester ii., 120

— Jacob, the founder, ii., 117

— Jacob, Jr., ii., 1 18

— James, ii., 121

— James J., ii., 122

— Jannetje, ii., 1 18
• — Jannetje, ii., 119

— Jannetje Segers, ii., ii8

— Johannes, ii., 119

— John, ii., 120

— John, ii., 121

— Lucas, ii., 118

— Mary, ii., 120

— Marytje Beekman, ii., 119

— Nachtilt, ii., 118

— Neeltje, ii., 1 18

— Peter, ii., 120

— Peter, ii., 121

— Peter, the younger, ii., 121

— Peter Henry, ii., 122

— Sarah, ii., 120

Schermerhorn, Sarah Cannon, ii., 119

— Sarah Jones, ii., 122

— Symon, ii., 118

— Symon, ii., 1 19

— Symon, ii., 120

— Willementje, ii., 1 19

— WiUempie Viele, ii., 1 18

— William B., ii., 123

— William C, ii., 122
Schieffelin (Barclay), Sarah S., i., 20
Schuchardt (Delafield), Elizabeth, i., 84
Schuchardt Frederick, i., 84
Schuyler (Church), Angelica, ii., 132

— Anna de Peyster , i., 106

— Anthony (Rev.), ii., 135

— Arendt, ii., 127, 128

— Arent, i., 106; ii., 135

— Brandt, ii., 127

— (De Peyster), Catharine, i., 106

— (Malcolm) (Cochran), Catherine, ii, 132

— Catherine Van Rensselaer, ii., 130

— (Morton), Cornelia, ii , 132

— Cornelia Van Cortlandt, ii., 130

— Elizabeth Ten Broeck, ii., 132

— Elizabeth Van Rensselaer, ii., 132

— Eugene, ii., 137

— Family, ii., 127

— (Hamilton), Elizabeth, ii., 132

— George Lee, ii., 133

— George W., ii., 136

— Georgina, ii., 134

— Grace Hunter, ii., 133

— John, ii., 127

— John, ii., 1 53

— John B., ii., 132

— John Bradstreet, ii. , 132

— Louis Sandford (Rev.), ii., 135

— Louisa Lee, ii., 134

— Margaret S., ii. 129

— (Van Rensselaer), Margarita, ii., 132

— Margherita Van Schlichtenhorst, ii., 127

— Mary A. Sawyer, ii., 133

— Montgomery, ii., 136

— Montgomery (Rev.), ii., 135

— Montgomery, Jr., ii., 136

— Myndert, i., 100

— Philip, ii., 132

— Philip (Captain), ii., 136
Philip (Colonel), ii., 129

— Philip (General), i., 138; ii., 129

— Philip (Major), ii., 134

— Philip, ttie founder, ii., 127

— Philip J., ii., 132

— Philip Jeremiah, ii., 133
■ — Pieter (Colonel), i., 106

— Pieter (Colonel), ii., 129

— Pieter (Mayor), ii., 127

■fln&cy

265

Schuyler, Rensselaer, ii., 132
Scott, John W. (General), i., 138
— Sir Walter, i., 39, 40
Sharp, Richard, i., 6q
Shepherd (Cruger), Caroline M.. i., 74
Shipman, Edgar, i., 84

— Harriet C. Delafield, i., 84
Simpson, Sampson, i., 09
Sloane (Barclay), Priscilla D., i., ;o
Smith, Atkinson, ii., 146

— (Cruger), Caroline, i., 71

— Catherine Duer, i., 1^2

— Charles Bainbridge, ii., 147

— Charles Vincent, i., 132

— Christiana, ii., 142

— Elizabeth Hartley, ii., 142

— Elizabeth Lynsen, ii., 146

— Elizabeth Scott Williams, ii., 144

— Eugene Keteltas, ii., 147

— Family, ii., 139

— Frances Peartree, ii., 142

— James, ii., 142

— James (Dr.), ii., 146

— Jennet Livingstone, ii., 145

— John, ii., 142

— John, ii., 144

— John Taylor, ii., 147

— John Witherspoon, i., 130

— Joshua Hett, ii., 146

— Keteltas, ii., 147

— Mary Hett, ii., 144

— Mary Taylor, ii., 147

— Mehetabel Hooker, ii., 144

— Samuel, ii., 142

— Sarah H. Duer, i., 130

— Susan Webber, ii., 146

— Susanna Odell, ii., 142

— Thomas, ii., 142

— Thomas, ii., 144

— Thomas, ii., 146

— Thomas, Jr., ii., 147

— William, ii., 141, 142

— William, ii., 140

— William II., ii., 142

— William (Chief-Justice), ii., 144

— William (Judge), ii., 142

— William Peartree, ii., 144

— Willimina Stodart, ii., 147
Steuben, Baron, i., 123
Storrow (Cruger), Julie C, i., 75
Sturgis, Charles, i., 84

— Cornelia Delatield, i., 84

— George, i., 84

— Mary Delafield, i., 84
Stuyvesant, A. Van Home, ii., 1S7

— Amelia Schuchardt, ii., 157

— Anna, ii., 156

Stuyvesant, (Bayard), Anna, ii., 153

— Balthazar, ii., 15s

— (Onderdonk), Caroline A., ii., i';7

— Caroline Hoppock, ii., IS7

— (Mortimer), Catherine A., ii., IS7

— Catherine Ackerley. ii., 157

— Catherine A. Cheesebrough, ii., 1S7

— Catherine L. Rcade, ii., 156

— (Neill), Catherine S., ii., 157

— (Ten Broeck), Cornelia, ii., 156

— Cornelia U. Bergen, ii., 158

— (Fish), Elizabeth, i., 139; ii., 156

— Elizabeth Slechtenhorst, ii., 156

— Elizabeth T. Kendall, ii., 157

— F. Schuchardt, ii., 1 s8

— Family, ii., 151

— Fanny J. Gibson, ii., 157
— ■ Gerard, ii., 157

— Gerard, ii., 158

— Gerardus or Gerard, ii., 156

— (Rogers), Gertrude, ii., 157

— Harriet L. Seward, ii., 157

— (Dudley-Olmsted-Mayo), Helen C.,

ii., 1S7

— (Sandford), Helen M., ii., 157

— Helen Rutherford, ii., 150

— Henry, ii., 157

— Jane A. Browning, ii., 157

— John R., ii., 157

— John R., ii., i'i7

— Joseph Reade, ii., IS7

— (Winthrop), Judith, ii., 156

— Judith Bayard, ii., 153

— Judith Bayard 11., ii., I?6

— (Winterhoff), Julia H., ii., 157

— Julia Martin, ii., is6

— Margaret A. Mildeberger, ii., 157

— (Van Rensselaer), Margaret L., ii., i S7

— (Wainwright), Margaret L., ii., 157

— Margaret Livingston, ii., 156

— Marie Beekman, ii., 156

— Mary A. Yates, ii., 157

— Mildred N. Floyd, ii., 158

— Nicholas W., i., 28; ii., 155, 156

— Nicholas W. II., ii., 156

— Nicholas W. 111., ii., 157

— Peter, i., 139

— Peter, ii., 156

— Peter G., ii., 156

— Petrus (Governor), i., 26, 102; ii.,

151, 152

— Robert, ii., 157

— Robert R., ii., 1S7

— Robert Reade, ii., 157

— (Pillot), Rosalie, ii., 157

266

■fluDey

Stuyvesant, Rutherford, ii., is8

— Susan Barclay, ii., 156

— Susan R.Van Home, ii., 157

— Van Home, ii., isS

— Van Rensselaer, ii., IS7
Summers, Andrew, i., 83

— (Delafield), Helen, i., 85
Suydam, Henry, i., 132

— (Duer), Louise, i., 132
Swamp, Beekman, i., 27
Swift, Dean, i. , 40

Tallmadge, Benjamin, i., 81

— (Delafield), Harriet W., i., 81
Tappen (Livingston), Caty, ii., 166

— Charles Barclay (Colonel), ii., 168

— Christoffel, ii., 165

— Christopher, ii., 166

— Christopher, Jr., ii., 167

— (Clinton), Cornelia, ii., 167

— Cornelia Kiersted, ii., 167

— Cornelia Vas, ii., 160

— Family, ii., 163

— Frederick D., ii., 169

— Henry Philip (Rev.), ii., 168

— John, ii., 168

— Jurian, the founder, ii., 164

— Jurian (II.), ii., 165

— Peter (Dr.), ii., 166

— Sarah A. B. Littell, ii., 170

— Sarah Schepmoes, ii., 165

— Tunis, ii., 105
Throckmorton, Captain, i., 56
Thurman, John, i., 69
Todd, Adam, i., 5

Todd (Astor), Sarah, i., 5

Toler (De Peyster), Julianna, i., 113

Travers (Duer), Ellen, i., 132

— William, i., 132

Van Baal (De Peyster), Mary, i., 105
Van Boogh (Beekman), Catherine, i., 28
Van Buren, Abraham, ii., 177

— Abraham (Colonel), ii., 179

— (Duer), Ann, i., 132

— Anna Hoes, ii., 177

— Angelica Singleton, ii., 177

— Ariaantje B. Meindersen, ii., 176

— Ariaantje G. Vanderberg, ii., 176

— Barent, ii., 176

— Barent, ii., 177

— Benjamin, ii., 176

— Catalyntje Martense, ii., 174

Van Buren, Catalyntje V. B. Schermerhorn, ii.,
176

— Catalyntje V^itbeck, ii., 177

— Catharine Quackenbosch, ii., 177

— (Van Deusen), Cornelia, ii., 176

— Cornelia Salisbury, ii., 176

— Cornelius, the founder, ii., 174

— Cornelius, ii., 176

— Cornelius, ii., 177

— Elizabeth Vanderpoel, ii., 179

— Family, ii., 173

— Frank Roe, ii., 180

— Hannah Hoes, ii., 179

— Hendrick, ii., 176

— Howard, ii., 180

— Johannes, or John, ii., 176

— John, i., 132

— John (" Prince "), ii., 179

— John Dash, ii., 179

— John Dash, Jr., ii., 179, 180

— Lawrence, ii., 179

— Maes, ii., 17s

— Margrietje Van Vlechten, ii., 176

— Maria G. Van Alen, ii., 177

— Maria Litner, ii., T77

— Maria Vanderberg, ii., 176

— Maria Winne, ii. , 177

— Maritje Quackenbosch, ii., 176

— (Vosburgh), Marritje, ii., 176

— Marritje Briesch, ii., 176

— Marritje Hun, ii., 176

— Marritje Vanderpoel, ii., 176

— Marten, ii., 174

— Martin, ii., 176

— Martin (President), ii., 177

— Petrus, ii., 176

— Peter, ii., 177

— Robert, ii., 180

— Singleton, ii., 180

— Tanneke Adams, ii., 176

— Thenotje Vanderberg, ii., 176

— Tobias, ii., 176

— Tobias, ii., 177

Van Cortlandt, Ann Stevenson, ii., 191

— (De Lancey), Anne, i., 91 ; ii., 187

— Anne S. Van Schaack, ii. , 188

— Annetje Loockermanns, ii., 186

— Augustus, ii., 190

— Catharine Beck, ii., 191

— (Mathews), Catharine T. R., ii.,

191, 192

— Catherine Clinton, ii., 191

— Catherine de Peyster, ii., 188

Iln^ey

267

Van Cortlandt, Catherine Ogden, ii., 188

— (Schuyler), Cornelia, ii., 187

— Elizabeth Ciiyler, ii., 190

— (Phillipse), Eva, ii., 187

— Family, ii., 18s

— Frances Jay, ii., 188

— Frederick, ii., 186

— Frederick, ii., 188

— Gertrude, i., 29

— (Beekman), Gertrude, ii., 187

— (Ver Planck), Gertrude, ii., 188

— Gertrude Schuyler, ii., 187

— Helen Barclay, ii., 100

— Jacobus, i., 9; ii., 187

— James (Colonel), ii. , igo

— James S. (Captain), ii., iqi, 192

— Joanna Livingston, ii., 189

— Johannes, ii., 187

— Johannes, ii., 188

— (Bayard), Margaret, ii., 187

— (De Peyster), Margaret, i, 106

— (Van Rensselaer), Maria, ii., 187

— Mary W. Ricketts, ii., 188

— Oloff, the founder, ii., 1S6

— Philip, ii., iSS

— Philip (Colonel), ii., 188

— Philip (General), ii., 189

— Pierre, ii., 191

— Pierre (Colonel), ii., 191

— Pierre (General), ii., 190

— Pierre (Lieutenant-Governor), ii.,

188, 189

— Romeyn B., ii., 191

— Stephanus, i., 91, 92 ; ii., 186

— Stephen (Colonel), ii., 188

— Steven, ii., 186

— Vv'illiam R., ii., 188
Van Cott, Alexander H., ii., 201

— Caroline Case, ii., 200

— Claes, the founder, ii., 197

— Cornelius, ii., 198

— Cornelius, ii., 199

— Cornelius (Postmaster), ii., 200

— Cornelius, Jr., ii., 198

— David, ii., loS

— David H., ii., 201

— Family, ii., 197

— Fanny Thompson, ii., 201

— Gabriel, ii., 199

— Gabriel, ii., 202

— Gabriel, Jr., ii. , 199

— Joshua M., ii., 199

— Joshua M. (Dr.), ii., 200

— Lincoln, ii., 202

— May Richardson, ii,, 202

— Nellie Praa, ii., 198

Van Cott, Richard, ii., 109

— Richard, ii., 202

— Thomas, ii., 1Q9

— Thomas, ii., 200

— Wickfield, ii., 202

Vanderbeeck, or Vanderbeek (for Remsen), ii.,
73, 74
— Rem Jansen, ii., 74

Vanderbilt, Alfred G., iL, aio

— Alice Gwynne, ii., 210

— Alva Smith, ii., 210

— (Parker) (Lafitte), Catherine, ii., 209

— Consuelo (Duchess), ii., 210

— Cornelius, ii., 206

— Cornelius, ii., 210

— Cornelius (Commodore), ii., 205

— Edith S. Dresser, ii., 210

— (Osgood), Eliza, ii., 209

— (Webb), Eliza Osgood, ii., 210

— Elsie French, ii., 210

— (Sloane), Emily, ii., 209

— (Thorn), Emily, ii., 209

— (Allen), Ethelinda, ii., 200

— Family, ii., 205

— (Twombly), Florence Adele, ii., 210

— Frances Crawford, ii., 209

— Frederick W., ii., 210

— George, ii., 210

— (Whitney), Gertrude, ii., 210

— Gladys, ii., 210

— Grace Wilson, ii., 210

— Harold., ii., 21 1

— Jan, the founder, ii., 205

— Jeremiah, ii., 206

— John, ii., 206

— (Shepard), Margaret Louisa, ii., 210

— (La Bau), Maria A., 209

— Maria L. Kissam, ii., 210

— (Clark) (Niven), Marie L., ii., 209

— (Cross), Phebe, ii., 209

— Reginald, ii., 210

— Sophia Johnson, ii., 209

— (Torrance), Sophia, ii., 209

— Virginia Fair, ii., 211

— William H., ii., 209

— William K., ii., 210

— William K. (IL), ii., 211
Van Fez, Anthony Jansen, ii., 229

Van Rensselaer, Catherine Livingstone, ii., 218

— Cornelia Paterson, ii., 219

— Cortlandt, ii., 223

— Cortlandt (Rev.), ii., 225

— (Cruger), Euphemia W., i., 73

— Family, ii., 213

— Gratz, ii., 225

268

fln^ey

Van Rensselaer, Harriet E. Bayard, ii., 22^

— Hendrick, ii., 218

— Henry, i., S4

— Henry (General), ii., 221

— Howard (Dr.), ii., 220

— James (Major), ii., 223

— James T., ii., 213

— Jan Baptiste, ii., 217

— Jeremiah, ii., 222

— Jeremias, ii., 217, 225

— Jeremias (5th Patroon), ii., 218

— (Delalield), Katherine, i., 84

— Kiliaen, the founder, ii., 215

— Kiliaen (of Albany), ii., 21S

— Kiliaen (Captain), ii., 221

— Kiliaen (Colonel), ii., 222

— Kiliaen K., ii., 222

— Margarita Schuyler, ii., 219

— Maria Van Cortlandt, ii., 218

— Mary B. Tallmadge, ii., 223

— Maunsell (Rev.), ii., 222

— Philip, ii., 223

— Philip L., ii., 223

— Solomon, ii., 222

— Solomon (Colonel), ii., 219

— Stephen, ii., 218

— Stephen (8th Patroon), ii., 219

— Stephen (9th Patroon), ii., 220

— Stephen (Colonel), ii., 223

— Stephen (Rev.), ii., 221

— Steven (6th Patroon), ii., 218

— WiUiau), ii., 221

— William, ii., 223

— William B., ii., 220

— William P., ii., 223
Van Salee, Anthony Jansen, ii., 229
Van Schaick (Barclay), Cornelia, i., 16

— Elizabeth, i., 70

— (Roosevelt), Mary, ii., 98

— Peter, i., 70

Van Sichlen (for Van Siclen), ii., 227
Van Sickelen (for Van Siclen), ii., 227

Van Sickle (for Van Siclen), ii., 227
Van Sicklen (for Van Siclen), ii., 227

— George, ii., 230
Van Siclen, Abraham, ii., 233

— Abraham (Lieutenant), ii., 233

— Andries, ii., 253

— Anthony, ii., 228

— Arthur, ii., 255

— Bennett (Judge), ii., 25s

— Cornelius, ii., 233

— Cornelius (of Gravesend), ii., 232

— De Witt Clinton, ii., 234

— Eva Jansen, ii., 228

— Family, ii., 227

— George W., ii., 235

Van Siclen, George Washington, ii., 235

— Grace C. Hogarth, ii., 255

— Gysbert, ii., 233

— Ferdinand, ii., 232

— Ferdinand, ii., 233

— Ferdinandus, the founder, ii., 228

— Ferdinandus, Jr., ii., 231

— Henry, ii., 234

— Jacobus, ii. , 233

— James (Captain), ii., 23?

— James C, ii., 235

— Jan of Raritan, ii., 233

— Johannes, ii., 231

— Johannes, ii., 233

— Johannes (of New Lots), ii., 233

— John Sydney, ii., 234

— John T., ii., 235

— Joseph (Captain), ii., 233

— Lyman, ii., 2J4

— Mary Van Nuyse, ii., 232, 233

— Matthew, ii., 2^5

— Moses E. (Lieutenant), ii., 234

— Peter, ii., 233.

— Peter, ii., 233

— Reinier, ii., 231

— Reinier, ii., 233

— Reinier (of Flatbush), ii., 232

— Richard, ii., 234

— Sarah Gregory, ii., 235
Van Siechelen (for Van Siclen), ii., 227
Varick, Richard (Colonel), i., 122, 123
Voltaire, i., 15

Waldorf, Hotel, i., 8

— Town of, i., 3
Waldorf-Astoria, i., 9
Wallace (Delafield), Edith, i., 83

— Matthew G. (Rev.), i., 83
Walton, Jacob, i., 72

— Mary De Lancey, i., 95

— William, i., 69, 95
Warren, Peter, (Sir), i., 92

— Susan De Lancey, i., 92
Washington, George, i.,47, 48, 71, 72
Watts, Ann De Lancey, i., 92

— John, i., 92

— John, i., 97

— Jane De Lancey, i., 97

— (De Peyster), Mary J., i., 97
Webster, Sarah Fish, i., 141

— Sidney, i., 141
Wendell, Abraham, ii., 241

— Abraham, ii., 242
— ■ Abraham, ii., 244

Hn^cy

269

Wendell, Adelbert C, ii., 246

— Anna Glen, ii., 243
^ Anna Melvin, ii., 240

— Ariaantje Visscher, ii,, 241

— Barrett (Professor), ii., 245

— Benjamin R., ii., 246

— Benjamin R., Jr., ii., 246

— Burr, ii., 246

— Cathalina Hun, ii., 246

— Cathalina Van Benthuysen, ii., 245

— Catharina Van Vecliten, ii., 244

— Cornelius, ii., 246

— Dorothy Sherburne, ii., 245

— Edith Greenough, ii., 245

— (Quincy), Elizabeth, ii., 242

— Elizabeth Quincy, ii., 242

— Elizabeth Sanders, ii., 242

— Elizabeth Staats, ii., 241

— Elizabeth Wendell, ii., 244

— (Staats), Elsie, ii., 242

— Ephraim, ii., 243

— Evert, the founder, ii., 239

— Evert, Jr., ii., 242

— Family, ii., 239

— Frances Roberts, ii., 246

— Garrett, ii., 245

— Gertrude Lansing, ii., 245

— Harman (Dr.), ii., 246

— Harmanus, ii., 243

— Harmanus (Sheriff), ii., 24s

— Harmanus C, ii., 246

— Hendrick, or Henry, ii., 244

— Hermanus, ii., 243

— Jacob, ii., 243

— Jacob H. (Captain), ii., 245

— Jeronimus, ii., 241

— John, ii., 241

— John, ii., 242

— John, ii., 245

— John (of Boston), ii., 242

— John Harmanus (Captain), ii., 244

— John Lansing, ii., 245

— Katrina de Kay, ii., 242

Wendell, (Phillips), Margaret, ii., 243

— Maria Lansing, ii., 244

— Maria Visscher, ii., 242

— Maritie Meyer, ii., 241

— Maritje Vosburgh, ii., 241

— (Oothout), Marritje, ii., 242

— Mary Ren Van Nes, ii., 241

— Peter (Dr.), ii., 245

— Philip, ii., 241

— (Holmes), Sarah, ii., 243

— Sarah Kip, ii., 246

— Sarah Oliver, ii., 243

— Susanna de Trieux, ii., 241

— Thomas, ii., 241

— William, ii., 246

— William F., ii., 240

— William H., ii., 246
Westcott (Ducr), Maria, i., 131
Whetten (Captain), i., 30

— (Brevoort), Sarah, i., 39
Wilkes, Charles (Admiral), ii., 86

— Jane Renwick, ii., 86
Willemson, Derike, i., 146

— (Gardner), Mary, i., 146
William Street, i., 27

Williamson (Cruger), Louise E. A., i., 73
Willing (Astor), Ava, i., 9
Willis (Cruger), Laura A., i., 74
Wilson, Eleanor J. Duer, i., 131

— George T., i., 131
Winthrop, John, i., 146
Woodbury, Cornelia Delafield, i., 85

— Theodore, i., 85
Wright (Barclay), Clara, i., 20

— Edward, i., 84

— Katherine F. Delafield, i., 84
Wyeth (Delafield), Charlotte H., i., 85

— Leonard, i., 85

Zeng (DeLancey), Josephine M. de, i., g8
— William S. de, i., 98

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT LOS ANGELES

THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

This book is DUE on tUe last date stamped below

CISCH/VRGE
MAY 10 196?

APR 14 1978

Form L-o

El8f Hamm -
T.2 Pamous families

of Mow York.

DeMCOU4N

MAY 1 0 195'

*F118

H18f

▼.2

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY

Los Angeles
This book is DUE on the last date stamped below.

•itC'D LD-URi;

m 1 4 ,993

NON-REWEWJIBLE

NOV uo ]%{i

"EC 0 ; 1990

315

i|fff|iii|iimiiifiiiiii»iiiir,,n,,,n

3 1158 00857 1787

p,-,,MTucoi,oir,n:il.l ,lHlWU''ninV

D 000 738 007 4

Internet Archive Audio

Featured

Top

Images

Featured

Top

Software

Featured

Top

Books

Featured

Top

Video

Featured

Top

Mobile Apps

Browser Extensions

Archive-It Subscription

Save Page Now

Full text of "Famous families of New York; historical and biographical sketches of families which in successive generations have been identified with the development of the nation"

See other formats