USA > New Jersey > Memorial cyclopedia of New Jersey, Volume I > Part 37
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Doughty, the last surviving child, who had been sole owner and manager of the estate since the death of her brother, John H. served by his granddaughter. Doughty, in 1898, sold the mansion and over five thousand acres of land to Atlantic City for a source of water supply.
Abner Doughty was educated under a private tutor, a younger son of Lord Lum- ley, of England, who, for the twice re- peated offence of killing deer on the King's preserves, was obliged to flee the country. The young man came to America as a "re- demptioner," his services being bought by Jonathan Doughty and a neighbor Reed, but, proving worthless as a timber hand, at his own request he was given an opportunity to use his fine education in teaching the Doughty and Reed children. Abner Dough- ty became a noted mathematician, and ac- quired a deep knowledge of astronomy and navigation, the quadrant and instruments he used, as well as a beautiful table he owned, yet being preserved by his granddaughter, Sarah N. Doughty, and eventually they will become, with other cherished souvenirs of the past, the property of the New Jersey Historical Society.
Abner Doughty served in the War of the Revolution as a "minute-man," and fought against the British in the battle of Chest- nut Neck. The State of New Jersey ap- propriated $5,000 for a monument to mark the site of the battle, and on October 6, 1911, Miss Sarah N. Doughty, granddaugh- ter of Abner, and the last of his descend- ants to bear his name, unveiled the monu- ment in her capacity of president of the Monument Commission and regent of Gen- eral Lafayette Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, the latter body of pa- triotic ladies having appropriated one thou- sand dollars for the transportation and en- tertainment of the guests of the day. There was an artistic side to the nature of Ab- ner Doughty. one form of which is ex- pressed in a coverlet of highest workman- ship, fine texture, and exquisite design and
coloring, the work of his own hands, anoth- er of the precious relics of the past pre-
Abner Doughty married, in the Old Swedes Church, Philadelphia, June 20, 1783, Leah Risley, widow of Captain James Holmes, an officer of the Revolution, killed at the battle of Princeton, and a descendant of Richard Risley, the Puritan, and of Pie- ter Van Coenhooven, the emigrant from Hol- land and founder of the New Amsterdam family bearing his name. The Buttonwood Hill homestead continued the family home until the removal to the Locust Grove home, and from that time until his death the former was the home of Nathaniel Dough- ty, son of Abner. This old mansion, built by Abner Doughty in 1794, was destroyed by fire December 26, 1884. Another son of Abner Doughty, Daniel, sold his interest in the estate to his brother Enoch, and moved to Ohio. Later he lost his life when the boiler of the steamboat "Moselle" exploded opposite Cincinnati, while en route to New Orleans. Abner Doughty's life of sixty- six years was honorably spent in the man- agement of his large estate, which he com- mitted to his sons by will, unencumbered and productive.
General Enoch Doughty, next to the youngest child of Abner and Leah (Risley- Holmes ) Doughty, was born in Absecon, New Jersey, March 4, 1792, died at his Locust Grove mansion, not far from his birthplace, April 14, 1871 ; born on Sunday and, according to the superstition at- tached to Sunday birth, "was never to know want," a prediction fully borne out in his career. Two years later, in 1794, the fam- ily moved to the Buttonwood Hill home, built by Abner Doughty, and there resided until the ownership of the Locust Grove home, built by Richard Price, and all the latter's share of the partnership lands passed to Abner Doughty by purchase from the Price heirs. In this old mansion General Doughty lived, there he brought his bride
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in 1816, and there his children were born, Miss Sarah Doughty occupying the room in which she was born, until her sale of the property, February 28, 1910.
Enoch Doughty was well educated under private tutors, inheriting from his sire a well balanced, mathematical mind, keen judgment, and intense public spirit, as well as graces of spirit and manner heretofore described. He inherited a large landed es- tate, and after the purchase of the inter- ests of his brothers possessed about twenty thousand acres of valuable timber land, pine, cedar, and oak, much meadow land, mills, and other property, only about one hun- dred acres of the estate being under culti- vation. While Abner Doughty was yet liv- ing, Enoch was in charge of the estate, and after Abner's death in 1821 managed its vast interests for the family until becoming sole owner in 1833. As the years passed he grew in wealth and power, built and was principal owner of a great many vessels that carried to distant ports manufactured lum- ber from his own mills, tar, charcoal, cord- wood, and piling from his own forests, a particularly large item being his trade with the West Indies. This was his only busi- ness activity, and although his vessels were sometimes wrecked and he experienced a loss of $50,000 in the building of the rail- road between Atlantic City and Camden he met every obligation without encumbering his real estate, and maintained a leading position as a man of wealth, honor, and un- blemished character. His qualities of lead- ership were of the highest, and in all the country round no man was so deferred to or held in higher esteem. His erect, mili- tary form was well known in the large cities and on horseback, his favorite mode of travel, he was a most commanding, im- pressive figure. When the building of the first railroad to connect Absecon Island with Philadelphia was projected. he joined with Dr. Pitney, of Atlantic City, and oth- ers, in application for a charter. The char- ter was applied for in 1851, but Commo-
dore Stockton, whose interests were in the Camden & Amboy railroad and other prop- erties in West Jersey, opposed it until, be- coming satisfied that the road could not be financed by the projectors, he withdrew his opposition. The charter was granted by the New Jersey Legislature, March 19, 1852, General Doughty being elected a member of the first board of directors at the organ- ization of the Camden & Atlantic Railroad Company, June 4, 1854, and holding that position until his death. The road passed through eleven miles of his timber land and meadows, and its early constructive history was marked by disaster to its builders, many of whom failed or placed their property out of their hands to avoid liability. General Doughty purchased a block of the original stock, and in addition signed notes to the amount of $50,000 to aid in the construc- tion of the road, which he paid in full and never was recompensed. He also owned "Catawba," an estate of twelve hundred and ninety-six acres on Great Egg Har- bor River, six miles from Mays Landing, originally owned by George West, who thereon built a mansion, elegantly furnished for that period. "Catawba" passed to his son, Joseph West. who by a course of ex- travagant living and a heavy banking loss became so involved that he mortgaged "Ca- tawba," the commissioners of the newly erected county of Atlantic taking the loan. General Doughty, as one of the commis- sioners, opposed the loan, and when fore- closure was made later bought the property. He cleared the tract of its growth of valu- able timber, dismantled the mansion, trans- porting much of it to his home near Ab- secon, distributing its marble mantels and attractive furnishings among his married children, storing a greater part of the lum- ber and later witnessing its destruction by fire. "Catawba" was allowed to grow anoth- er crop of timber, which was later marketed by his daughter, who yet owns the property on which valuable sand and gravel deposits have been found. General Doughty was
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also an incorporator of the Camden and Atlantic Land Company, an investment cor- poration operating in Atlantic county prin- cipally. He was until his death a director of this company, which yet operates most successfully, his original stock in both the railroad and the land company still reinain- ing in the possession of his daughter.
General Doughty enlisted in the War of 1812, and later was intimately associated for many years with .the National Guard of New Jersey, then known as the "State militia," holding all ranks from lieutenant to brigadier-general, commissioned by Gov- ernor Isaac Williamson, October 28, 1825. He was skilled in military tactics, and when General Lafayette was entertained with mil- itary honor by the State of New Jersey and the nation, General Doughty, although not the ranking officer, was selected to com- mand the military escort that met Lafay- ette at the State border and rode by his side across New Jersey to Trenton. A medal, bearing on one side the likeness of Washington and on the other that of La- fayette, was issued by the State, and was worn during the journey by those who par- ticipated in the march, the one worn by General Doughty being one of the valued souvenirs of her honored father preserved by Miss Doughty, together with his sword and epaulettes.
General Doughty was an ardent Demo- crat, a leader of his party in South Jer- sey, and was heard with respect in State party councils. In 1824, while Gloucester county comprised what is now Camden, Gloucester, and Atlantic counties, he was high sheriff, and after the erection of At- lantic county in 1837, he was county com- missioner of the new county. He also served with honor in other important county and State positions, held by virtue of both popular election and executive appointment. Like his sires, he was reared in the faith of the Protestant Episcopal church, and was christened in Christ Church, Philadelphia. but he later joined with his wife in mem-
bership in the Methodist Episcopal church at Absecon, there being no Protestant Epis- copal church at that time in his neighbor- hood.
General Doughty married, January 15. 1816, at Port Republic, New Jersey, Char- lotte, daughter of Parker and Martha (Leek) Clark, a member of a distinguished New Jersey family. Her great-grandfath- er, Thomas Clark, left his Connecticut home and settled on a large estate purchased at Port Republic in 1730. His son, Thomas (2), while on a mission for his father to the old Connecticut home, met Sarah Park- er, of Saybrook, with whom he became en- amored, although young, and on becoming of age married her and brought her to Port Republic. Adrian, a son of Thomas (2) and Sarah (Parker) Clark, married and left issue, one of his grandsons being the Hon. Champ Clark, now speaker of the national House of Representatives and the leading candidate of the Democratic party for president, on many ballots, at the Bal- timore National Convention in 1912. Park- er, another son of James (2) and Sarah (Parker ) Clark, married Martha Leek, and was the father of Charlotte Clark Doughty, wife of General Enoch Doughty and motli- er of Sarah N. Doughty, between whom and her southern cousins a warm friend- ship exists. Mrs. Charlotte Clark Doughty was born December 2, 1795, at Clark's Mills ( Port Republic), died at the Doughty home, Locust Grove, February 23, 1884. She was a woman of rare grace and beauty of character, a devoted wife and mother, noted for her piety and goodness of heart. she and her husband pillars of strength to the Absecon Methodist Episcopal Church. They were the parents of eight children. three of whom died in childhood. These children were carefully reared, were edu- cated in private schools in different parts of the State, and thoroughly fitted for their stations in life. Their sons took their lion- ored father's place as managers of the estate that he passed on to them, and no
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division was made during the life of the widowed mother, who survived her hus- band thirteen years. After the death of her brothers, Sarah N., the youngest child, succeeded to the management of the estate, handling it with able skill, causing it to produce bountifully in spite of forest fires and a load of responsibility that never daunted or caused her to lay down the bur- den. Never had the estate seen better mant- agement since her father's day, in fact, her father was to her the "prince of men," and in all ways possible she followed the paths of business procedure as she felt he would have done. The old homestead was re- tained as the family residence by the un- married son and daughters as long as they lived, and by Miss Doughty until Febru- ary 28, 1910, when she yielded to the civic necessities of Atlantic City and effected an advantageous sale to the water commission- ers of that municipality. She retains "Ca- tawba" and a great deal of the original es- tate, the gleaming rails of the railroads en- tering Atlantic City passing through her lands. So lived General Enoch Doughty and his gentle, devoted wife, their years well spent and fruitful, only blessings fol- lowing their way through life. They left behind records that teem with instances of their good will and charity, their home re- membered as the abode of hospitality, wel- come, and a refinement fostered by the aris- tocratic General and his no less well born wife and children. The children were all born at the Locust Grove mansion, their order of birth following. General Doughty and wife are buried in the Presbyterian cem- etery at Absecon.
John H., a well educated gentleman, ex- pert surveyor, lay judge, and one of the executors of his father's estate. He was driving with his sister Sarah, when a bolt in the carriage failed, causing an accident that resulted in his death, August 13. 1898. Miss Doughty, althoughi severely bruised. was not seriously injured. John H. Dough-
ty married Arabella Somers, and had a daughter Martha.
Rebecca Wilson, died October 2, 1888. She was a woman of education and fine tal- ents, a faithful Christian, and so thoroughly devoted to her father that although many woers came, no one succeeded in taking his place in her heart.
Abigail Hugg, married David Somers Blackman, a former Senator from Atlantic county. She died March 18, 1851, leaving four children.
Martha A., died in childhood; Leah Ris- ley, died in childhood; Hannah Holmes, died November 2, 1896.
Enoch Alpheus, died suddenly, July 22, 1896. He was one of the executors of his father's estate, and was the more active and energetic business man of the broth- ers. He spent his life at the Locust Grove homestead, never marrying.
Sarah Nathalie, the last of this line to bear the Doughty name, after completing her studies at St. Thomas Hall, Flushing, Long Island, returned to the homestead and after her brother's death took up the work he laid down. After the sale of the estate in 1910 she caused a beautiful home to be erected at No. 1 Stenton Place, Atlantic City, where she now resides, freed from the cares of business and enjoying her free- domi to its utmost limit. She is intensely interested in matters of genealogy, local his- tory, and preservation of all that pertains to the glorious past of her family, lier state, and her country. She was the or- ganizer of Lafayette Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, at Atlantic City. was elected its first regent June 6. 1895. and has held the office continuously until the present. This is one of the large and most efficient of the patriotic bodies of the State, and has accomplished a great deal along its special lines of work. Miss Dough- ty is also regent of Century Chapter. Dauglı- ters of 1812; is a Colonial Dame, a Hol- land Dame, member of the New Jersey
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Historical Society, the Mary Washington Monument Association, and the Pocahontas Society ; a worthy daughter of worthy sires, inheriting their high ideals of life, their strong characteristics and talents.
FRELINGHUYSEN, Frederick T., Lawyer, Distinguished Statesman.
The Hon. Frederick Theodore Freling- huysen, who rose to the distinction of being Secretary of State in President Arthur's cabinet, was born in the village of Millstone, Somerset county, New Jersey, August 4, 1817.
His honored ancestry, distinguished for piety, eloquence and patriotism, traces in direct line to the Rev. Theodorus Jacobus Frelinghuysen. Narratives appear on other pages of this work relating to that eminent divine, to his son, the Rev. John Freling- huysen, his grandson, General Frederick Frelinghuysen, and his great-grandson, The- odore Frelinghuysen.
Frederick Frelinghuysen, youngest of the three sons of General Frederick Freling- huysen, was born in Millstone, New Jersey, November 7, 1788. He was educated at Princeton, and on being admitted to the bar commenced practice in his native town, where he rapidly acquired a lucrative prac- tice and established a brilliant reputation. Though suddenly stricken by death in his thirty-second year, he is remembered as a natural orator, with a fervid imagination, a buoyant temperament, and as possessing great power over juries. He died in 1820, leaving surviving him his young widow, daughter of Peter B. Dumont, Esq .. who owned a valuable plantation on the south bank of the Raritan river, near Somerville, and leaving also three daughters and two sons.
Frederick Theodore Frelinghuysen, son of Frederick Frelinghuysen, was only three years of age when his father died, and im- mediately he was adopted by his uncle The- odore and taken to live with him in Newark.
It is especially satisfactory to record that, inheriting his father's natural gifts, his elo- quent speech and fervent emotions, and partaking of the refinement and comeliness of his mother, whose heart was ever filled with ambitious aspirations for the honorable career of her son, the loss of his father could not have been more fully compensated than it was by the care and custody of the little boy in the guardianship of his distin- guished uncle, who, having no children of his own, lavished upon him all the means that could be employed in his training and culture.
His preparatory education alternated between the academy at Newark and the academy at Somerville. He entered Rut- gers College as a sophomore and graduated in the class of 1836, a class conspicuous for names that subsequently became eminent. While a student in college, Mr. Frelinghuy- sen's prepossessing personal appearance, his tall, slender figure, neatly attired, his hand- some, glowing face, together with a digni- fied and manly bearing, made him singular- . ly attractive. John F. Hegeman, a class- mate, speaking of him at this time, says: "His natural talents were of a high order, but he had no specialties in his studies, no genius for the higher mathematics, no spec- ial fondness for the physical sciences. While his standing was good in the classics and in the general studies prescribed, it was evident that he enjoyed most the branches of mental and moral philosophy, logic and rhetoric. Oratory had a charm for him. He seemed to have a prescience of the path in life he was destined to pursue, and all his studies were subordinated to that end."
Upon graduation Mr. Frelinghuysen en- tered at once upon the study of law in the office of his uncle. Theodore Frelinghuysen, at Newark. The advantages and training which he received here were of exceptional value. After three years of study he was admitted to the bar as an attorney, and three years later, in 1842, he was admitted as a counselor. At this juncture two impor-
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tant events in his history were to be record- ed, the public profession of his religious faith, by which he formed ecclesiastical re- lations with the church of his ancestors, the Reformed Dutch Church, and secondly, his marriage to Miss Matilda Griswold, the accomplished daughter of George A. Gris- wold, a wealthy merchant of New York City. These two relations, the church and the home, ever afterward hield the heart of Mr. Frelinghuysen and were his chief joy to the day of his death. Mr. Frelinghuysen stood on high vantage ground at the very start of his professional career in Newark, succeeding to the office and library of his uncle, whither the old clients of the elder Frelinghuysen were accustomed to resort for professional services. Now that his uncle had become chancellor of the Univer- sity of New York, the young attorney was welcomed as the representative successor of the venerable jurist and senator, loved and revered for so many years ; and he received the sympathy and support of the business men, the merchants and the manufacturers of Newark. A host of influential friends gathered around him. The religious classes cherished an affection for his name; the Newark bar took him into their special favor, and the whole community be- stowed upon him their plaudits and good will. Besides, the helping hand and warm recognition of such men as Chief- Justice Hornblower, Asa Whitehead, Elias Van Arsdale, Governor Pennington, John P. Jackson, Oliver S. Halstead and many other leading lawyers, were extended to him.
He was soon appointed city attorney, an office bringing him in contact with the in- dustrial classes and securing for him a gen- eral interest in the government and business of the city. His early ap- pointment as the retained counsel of the New Jersey Central Railroad Company and the Morris Canal and Banking Company provided a rare field for the development and exhibition of his legal capabilities. Re-
quired to appear before courts and juries in different counties, in hotly contested suits at law, meeting as antagonists the strongest counsel in the State and abroad, and in the highest courts of the State, within a few years he stood within the foremost rank of the New Jersey bar. He became not only. an eloquent advocate capable of swaying juries, but an able lawyer, preparing and conducting most important cases with strat- egic skill and eminent success. A formidable antagonist in any cause, civil or criminal, his practice became lucrative and enviable. It is especially noteworthy that in achiev- ing his eminence at the bar he relied not more upon his eloquence and genius than upon the unwearied diligence with which he studied and toiled.
Patriotism was a strong characteristic in- herited by Mr. Frelinghuysen, and he kept well read in the politics of his State and country. He was frequently called to ad- dress large political gatherings. As far back as 1840 he was one of the speakers at the Whig State Conventions, at Trenton, in the presidential campaign of that memorable year. Having acquired eminent legal dis- tinction, and with an unbroken line of an- cestry standing high in the annals of honor- able official position, his ambition to fol- low in the same path was a logical se- quence. It is recorded that the only in- stance in which he failed to obtain the ap- pointment he desired was in 1857, when he was a candidate for the attorney-gener- alship of New Jersey, ex-Senator William L. Dayton, who failed in re-election as United States Senator, being the success- ful candidate. But in 1861, Attorney-Gen- eral Dayton being nominated by President Lincoln as Minister to France, Governor Olden, who had in the meantime been elect- ed Governor. appointed Mr. Frelinghuy- sen to the vacant place. In 1866, when the term of the office of Attorney-General expired, Marcus L. Ward, who was then Governor. renominated Mr. Frelinghuysen for a new term in that office, which he fill-
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ed witli eminent ability. It was the stormy period of the Civil War, and the legislation of that day demanded muci special labor, attention and official assis- tance. During this trying period he spent the most of his time at Trenton in discharg- ing the duties of his office and bravely sus- taining the governor in defending the Union.
The years which covered the years of the Rebellion were pre-eminently an educa- tional period, one that tested and demand- ed the profoundest application of the minds of public men to comprehend the princi- ples of civil government and to solve the hard problems that rose out of the attempt- ed secession of States and the question of the rights of freedom. No one learned more rapidly and thoroughly in this school for making statesman than did Attorney- General Frelinghuysen, who had already become one of the most popular political speakers in his State, being well read in history, and the politics of the country, and capable of electrifying the masses when he appeared before them. Thus prepared, up- on the death of William Wright, of New- ark, United States Senator from New Jer- sey in 1866, Governor Ward appointed Mr. Frelinghuysen as Mr. Wright's successor, and he took his seat in the Senate in De- cember of that year. In the winter of 1867 he was elected by the Legislature to fill the nin- expired term of Mr. Wright, which ended March 4, 1869. At the expiration of his term, the Legislature of New Jersey was Democratic, but Mr. Frelinghuysen had taken such high rank in the Senate and had been so able and eloquent a supporter of President Grant's administration, that in 1870 he was nominated by President Grant and confirmed by the Senate as Minister to England. This honorable position, which the most ambitious public men have so fondly coveted, Mr. Frelinghuysen, singu- larly enough, declined. The reason, which did not appear until after his death, throws a beautiful sideliglit upon liis intense devo-
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