Hudson-Mohawk genealogical and family memoirs, Volume I, Part 10

Author: Reynolds, Cuyler, 1866-1934, ed
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: New York, Lewis historical publishing company
Number of Pages: 656

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HUDSON AND MOHAWK VALLEYS

9. Catherine, born May 22, 1698, died De- cember 6, 1699.

(II) Philip (second lord of the Manor), second son and fourth child of Robert and Alida (Schuyler-Van Rensselaer ) Livingston, was born July 9, 1686, died February 4, 1748-49. He was named for his maternal grandfather, Philip Schuyler. He studied law and was admitted to the New York bar, De- cember 31, 1719. In the following year he was appointed one of the commissioners of Indian affairs and succeeded his father as secretary of that board. He was an appointed member of the legislative council, 1715, and the following year was despatched on a mis- sion to the French governor of Canada to prevent the French proceeding further with the erection of a fort at Niagara. On the death of his father he succeeded to the en- tailed and largest portion of the Manor estate and for many years the new lord of the Man- or took a prominent part in the political af- fairs of the province. His family connections and personal attractions made him a person of note in New York City, where "he lived in a style of courtly magnificence". He be- came involved in a quarrel with Admiral George Clinton, the English governor of the province, who made serious charges against him and endeavored to have him dismissed from the council but failed, Philip holding the office and continued to take a leading part in the affairs of his native province until his death. His funeral was a most elaborate and expensive one and was the occasion of gen- eral comment. He married, September 19, 1707, Catherine Van Brugh, baptized Noven- ber, 1689. died February 20, 1756, daughter of Peter and Sarah (Cuyler) Van Brugh. Of their seven sons, Peter Van Brugh, Philip "the signer," and William, became prominent in the war of the revolution. The fourth son, John, was the only important member of the family who adhered to the king during the war for independence. Children, all bap- tized in Albany: 1. Robert, of whom fur- ther. 2. Peter Van Brugh, baptized Novem- ber 3, 1710, died 1793. He was a member of the committee of one hundred, 1775, a member of provincial congress, 1775, presi- dent of the same, 1775. and treasurer, 1776. He was a merchant of the city of New York. He married (first), Mary Alexander, (sec- ond), a widow, Mrs. Ricketts. Twelve chil- dren by first wife. 3. Peter, baptized April, 1712, died young. 4. John, baptized April II, 1714, died 1788: married, December 3, 1742, Catherine, daughter of Abraham de Puyster and Margaret Van Cortlandt. 5. Philip, born January 15, 1716; member of committee of

one hundred, 1775, president of the provincial convention, 1775 ; member of continental con- gress, 1774-78; signer of the Declaration of Independence, 1776: member of provincial congress, 1776-77. He died at York, Penn- sylvania, June 12, 1778. He married, April 14, 1740, Christiana Ten Broeck, born Decem- ber 30, 1718, died June 29, 1801, daughter of Dirck Ten Broeck, recorder and mayor of Albany, and Margarita Cuyler. They were the parents of nine' children, of whom two served as officers in the war of the revolu- tion. 6. Henry, baptized April 5, 1719, died in Jamaica, West Indies, February, 1772. 7. Sarah, baptized May 7, 1721, died October, 1722. 8. William, born November 8, 1723, died at Elizabethtown, New Jersey, July 25, 1790. He was a member of continental con- gress, 1774-76, brigadier-general New Jersey militia, 1775-76, governor of the state of New Jersey, 1776-90, signer of the federal consti- tution, 1777. He married, about 1745, Su- sanna, daughter of Philip and Susanna (Brockholst) French. She was baptized at New York, June 19, 1723, died at Elizabeth- town, New Jersey, July 17, 1789. They were the parents of thirteen children, one of whom, Sarah Van Brugh, married John Jay, chief justice of the supreme court of the United States. Another daughter, Susanna, married John Cleve Symmes, of New Jersey, asso- ciate justice of the supreme court of New Jersey and a judge of the supreme court of the new Northwest Territory in 1786. 9. Sarah, baptized November 7. 1725; married, March 1, 1748. William Alexander, Earl of Stirling, major-general in the continental army. His right to this title was never rec- ognized by the British government, but as a matter of courtesy he was always addressed during the war as Lord Stirling. She died' March, 1805. 10. Alida, baptized July 18, 1728; married (first). September 26, 1750, Henry Hansen, of Harlem : married (second), Colonel Martin Hoffman, September 26, 1766. She died February, 1790. 11. Catherine, bap- tized April 18, 1733 ; married, April 18, 1759, John Lawrence, alderman of New York City. (III) Robert, third lord of the Manor, eld- est son of Philip and Catherine (Van Brugh). Livingston, was born in Albany, New York, December 16, 1708, died November, 1790. He inherited the vast estates entailed to the- eldest son, and although he filled no official position himself during the revolutionary war, he proved his loyalty to the cause by placing his iron mines and foundry at the disposal of the New York committee of safety. His seventy years, no doubt, was the cause of his not taking a more active part. He was elected"

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representative from his Manor to the twenty- first New York assembly, 1737, and during the next twenty years he sat uninterruptedly through seven general assemblies, returned at every election by the Manor Freeholders. When the elections were being held for the twenty-eighth assembly he retired in favor of his younger brother, William, then coming into prominence as a leader of the Presbyter- ian party. He married (first ), May 20, 1731, Maria, daughter of Walter Tong and grand- daughter of Rip Van Dam, president of the council. He married (second), Gertrude, daughter of Killaen Van Rensselaer, and his wife, Maria Van Cortlandt, and widow of Adonijah Schuyler, born October 1, 1744. Children, all by first marriage: I. Catherine, born August 4, 1732, died in infancy. 2. Philip, born February 9. 1733, died unmar- ried April 3, 1756. 3. Sarah, born April 23, 1735, died September 4. 1745. 4. Peter R., born April 27, 1737, died 1793: he was a member of the provincial convention, 1775, member of the provincial congress, 1775-76, president of provincial congress, 1776-77, member of assembly, 1780-81 ; colonel of mi- litia during the revolutionary war. He was the last of the representatives returned to to the New York assembly under the patent of 1715 and with him ends the political his- tory of the old Colonial Manor of Livingston, which became by the new order of events ab- sorbed into the electoral district of Albany. He married Margaret Livingston. 5. Maria, born October 29. 1738, died May 6, 1821 ; married, October 21, 1759, James Duane, aft- erwards one of the New York delegates in the continental congress. 6. Walter, born No- vember 27, 1740, died May 14, 1797 ; he was a member of the provincial congress 1775, member of the assembly, 1777-78-79, speaker of the assembly, 1778, commission of United States treasury, 1785, deputy commissioner- general of the northern department, 1775. He married, in 1769, Cornelia, daughter of Peter and Gertrude (Schuyler) Schuyler. She was baptized July 26, 1746, died 1822. Walter Livingston built and resided in his mansion "Teviotdale" in Columbia county, New York. 7. Robert (better known as Rob- ert Cambridge, because he was a graduate of Cambridge University, and to distinguish him from numerous other Roberts), born Decem- ber 26, 1742, died August 23, 1794. He mar- ried, November 12, 1778, Alice, daughter of John Swift. 8. Catherine, born December 22, 1744, died May, 1832; married, 1766, John Paterson. 9. Sarah, born February 16, 1745-46, died May II. 1749. 10. Alida, born December 15, 1747, died September, 1791 ;

married Valentine Gardiner. II. Margarita, born February 16, 1748. died June 22, 1749. 12. John, of whom further. 13. Hendrick or Henry, born January 8, 1752, died unmarried, May 16, 1823.

(IV) John, twelfth child and fifth son of Robert and Maria (Tong) Livingston, was born at New York, February II, 1749, died at Oak Hill, Columbia county, New York, October 24, 1822. He built the family man- sion, "Oak Hill," the only Livingston man- sion, except "Clermont," now owned by a Liv- ingston, and lived there the life of a country gentleman. He married (first), May II, 1775. Mary Ann, daughter of Jacob and Cornelia (Rutgers) LeRoy : married ( second), Novem- ber 3, 1796, a kinswoman, Catherine, daugh- ter of William Livingston, the "War Gover- nor of New Jersey," and widow of Matthew Ridley. Children. all by first marriage: I. Cornelia, born October 23, 1776; married Nicholas G. Rutgers. 2. Robert Le Roy, of Claverack, New York, born October 10, 1778; married Maria Diggs, of Washington, D. C. 3. Jacob, of Cherry Valley, New York, born July 13, 1780: married (first), Catherine De Puyster ; married (second), Levantia White and had issue by both wives. 4. John G., born January 29, 1782, killed in a duel, unmarried. 5. Child, born November 30, 1783. 6. Daniel, of New York City, born June 3, 1786; mar- ried Julia Oothout. 7. Philip Henry, born November 17. 1787. 8. Anthony Rutgers, of Tarrytown, New York, born April 27, 1789; married Anna Hoffman. 9. Henry, of Clave- rack, New York, born September 2, 1791 ; married Ann Eliza Van Ness. 10. Herman, of whom further.

(V) Herman, son of John and Mary Ann (LeRoy) Livingston, was born August 2. 1793, died May 9, 1872. He inherited "Oak Hill," where he maintained an open-handed hospitality for forty-five years until the death of his wife. He was a Republican and mem- ber of the Dutch Reformed church. He mar- ried Sarah Lawrence Hallett, who died Sep- tember 10, 1868. Children : John Henry, born September 8, 1822, died October 7, 1846; Cornelia, born February 29. 1824, died Sep- tember 21, 1851, married Clermont Living- ston ; Herman Tong, of whom further.

(VI) Herman Tong, youngest child and second son of Herman and Sarah Lawrence ( Hallett ) Livingston, was born at "Oak Hill," Columbia county, New York, June 12, 1827, died October 20, 1899. He continued in the ownership and occupancy of "Oak Hill" and adjoining estates, bequeathing same to his son Herman, the present owner (1910). He was an active business man the most of his life.

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As a merchant and ship owner in New York City, first in the firm of Livingston & Croch- eron, owning a line of steamers plying be- tween New York, New Orleans and Havana : later the head of the firm of Livingston, Fox & Company, when they added the Savannah to their line with the others. Their vessel, com- manded by Captain Bullock, was the last to enter New Orleans before the war. It was seized by the rebel government and after- wards released by order of Jeff Davis, on the grounds that they were not fighting private interests. Captain Bullock was formerly of the United States navy, but resigned and ac- cepted a position with this firm. Later joined the confederacy, and was sent to England, where later he fitted out the Florida and the Alabama.

Herman T. Livingston spent the latter part of his life in his home on the Hudson. He was a strong Republican, and a member of the Episcopal church. He married, De- cember 6, 1853. Susan Bard, daughter of Ar- chibald and Anna ( Pendleton) Rogers, of Hyde Park, New York. Children: Herman, of whom further : Edmund Pendleton. born September 21. 1857, died December 10, 1888; John Callendar, born May 8, 1862; Anna Pendleton, born January 6, 1866; Archibald, born November 23. 1868; Sarah, born Au- gust 22, 1871.

(VII) Herman (2), son of Herman Tong and Susan B. ( Rogers) Livingston, was born in New York City, June 24, 1856. He was educated in private schools in New York City, entered Yale university and was graduated A. M., class of 1879. He is now ( 1910) en- gaged in the operation of his oil properties in Virginia. Ilis home is the old Livingston mansion at Oak Hill overlooking the Hudson, which was built by his grandfather. He is the fourth generation of the family to own and occupy the fine old mansion. He is a Republican and has taken quite an interest in local politics, holding minor offices, attending state and county conventions as delegate, and was presidential elector when Harrison was defeated.

He was married. November 9, 1882, to Emmeline C., daughter of Henry and Mary Elizabeth (Cornell) Hopkins. Children: 1. Herman, born August 18, 1883: graduate of Williams College, now engaged in the insur- ance business in Boston ; married. April 24, 1909, Alga Kobbe, of New York. 2. Henry Hopkins, born February 5, 1887 : graduate of Yale University, now engaged in the oil busi- ness in West Virginia. 3. Edmund Pendle- ton, born October 23, 1889, student at Yale University.

The family name of VAN ALSTYNE Van Alstyne is derived from the Dutch, and signifies from the old or high stone; doubt- less those who first bore the name dwelt upon the top of a rocky eminence. or near to some boulder which for years had been a prominent landmark among all the families- of that neighborhood. The early records show that it was also spelled Van Aelsteyn, V'an Aalsteyn. Van Alstyn, Van Alstein and Van Alstine: but in 1900 these forms were reduced to Van Alstine, Van Alstyne and Al- styn, one family having eliminated the Dutch. prefix.

It is claimed with reason, following the preserved records in Holland, that the fam- ily may be traced back to the year 936, at the crowning of Otho. The family name first appears under the name of Ralsko, which it abandoned in order to take that of War- temberg, which it bore for several centuries. Jean Ralsko, who died in Flanders in 1236, had built there the Chateau de Waldstein, the name of which he took to distinguish himself from his brother, who bore that of Wartem- berg. The family has been traced under the name of Balstein in Spain, Wallenstein in France, Halsteyn in Flanders and Van Al- stein in Holland. From Waldstein, the name changed to Wallenstein, Walstein, Valstein, and finally became Van Alstein. Those who located in Flanders were loyal to the church of Rome, and those living in Holland allied themselves to the Reformation of Martin Luther, and displayed the courage of their convictions. Those who came to America have particularly demonstrated their courage of independent thought and action, and were well represented in the war of American in- dependence as well as in the civil war. In- variably they have been men of middle ground, neither acquiring vast riches nor suffering poverty, freed both from the worries of life and the cares of wealth. In the same meas- ure they have been prominent in politics and religion, as well as the professions.

(I) The progenitor of the family in Amer- ica was Jan Martense Van Alstyne, son of Marten Van Alstyne, of Holland. There is record of his being in New Amsterdam (New York City), as early as 1646, where one finds an entry on the date December 11. 1646, being a bill of sale, Thomas Hall and Jan Peterson to Hendrick Jansen and Jan Mar- tense, of a yacht. It is not known just how long he remained in that place ; but he is re- corded, in 1657, as owning a lot in Albany, on the east side of Broadway and north of Columbia street, which he held as late as

HUDSON AND MOHAWK VALLEYS

1693, and in the meantime had become pat- entee of two tracts of land in Ulster county. He likewise purchased a large tract of land "behind" Kinderhook, New York, not many miles from Albany. This became the real home of the family, and the locality was then given the name because in the Dutch it sig- nified "Children's Point," thought to have been bestowed because of the great number of Indian children who ran out on the point of land the better to observe Hudson pass in his "Half Moon," or else because the In- dians living there had an unusual number of children in their families. The first pro- prietor resided there until his death, about 1698, and the land continued for more than two centuries in the possession of the de- scendants of his son, Abraham, to whom he conveyed the farm in 1695, conditioned on his paying the other heirs certain sums of money as provided explicitly. He married Dirckje Harmense, a woman endowed with all the characteristics necessary to make her a fitting helpmate for a pioneer husband. Children: Marten ; Abraham; Lambert, see forward; Isaac, and possibly others.

(II) Lambert Janse, son of Jan Martense and Dirckje ( Harmense) Van Alstyne, emi- grated to this country in 1665, and settled in Kings county, but no record has been found of his birth. About 1684 he came into possession of a tract of land lying on the east side of Kinderhook creek, and adjoining the lands of his father. This he acquired by purchase of the patent, or lease, from the heirs of Peter Van Alen. He held it until his death. which occurred October 13, 1703. About 1682 he married Jannetje, daughter of Thomas and Marritje Abrahamse (Vos- burgh) Mingael, she and her husband being first cousins, once removed, as her father and her husband were first cousins. There is no record of her birth; but she was doubtless much younger than he, for following his de- mise, she married, February 2, 1713, Jochem Lambertse Van Valkenburgh and had five sons. As all their children excepting the first born were baptized in Kinderhook, it is safe to believe that the eldest was born in Kings county, New York, and all the others after his removal, about 1684, in Kinderhook. Chil- dren: Catharine, born about 1683, married Bartholomeus Van Valkenburgh; Marritje, baptized December 27, 1685; Thomas, bap- tized August 22, 1688, see forward; Johan- nes, baptized August 11, 1691 ; Dirckje, bap- tized May 26, 1695, married Peter Vosburgh ; Antje, baptized January 16, 1698, died young ; Annetje, baptized July 28, 1700; Pieter, bap- tized August 9, 1702.

(III) Thomas, son of Lambert Janse and Jannetje Mingael, Van Alstyne, was baptized in Kinderhook, New York, August 22, 1688. On the death of his father in 1703, he came into possession of the homestead lying along Kinderhook creek, adjacent to the farm of his grandfather, the pioneer settler. He was a member of the Dutch church of Muitzeskill, where were baptized most of his offspring, although one of them, Maria, was baptized in Albany. In 1752 he bought a tract of land in the district of Claverack, described in the records kept at Hudson, New York, as lying between the Claverack and Kinderhook creeks. His will, dated November 15, 1760, and on file in Albany, devises the farm oc- cupied by William, and his big gun to that son, provided that he pay off the debt on it amounting to one hundred pounds, and di- vided his property among five children after providing for the support of his wife during life, and to Peter his bouwery or whole farm, with all belongings thereto, provided that he pay his brother, Lambert, four hundred pounds in current money within six years of the testator's death. He died in August, 1765, at Kinderhook. He married, December 12, 1718, Maria Van Alen. She was baptized June 21, 1695, and was the daughter of Wil- liam and Marritje (Van Patten) Van Alen. Children: Jannetje, baptized March 6, 1720, died young ; William, baptized December 10, 1721, see forward ; Lambert, baptized October 4, 1724, married (first) Alida Conyn, mar- ried (second) Aletteka Osterhout ; Maria, baptized September 10, 1727, died young ; Catharine, baptized January 17, 1731, mar- ried Petrus Hoffman; Maria, baptized No- vember 18, 1733, married Dr. Johannes Pat- terson ; Pieter, baptized May 16, 1736, mar- ried Marritje Conyn.

(IV) William, son of Thomas and Maria (Van Alen) Van Alstyne, was baptized in Muitzeskill. December 10, 1721. In 1752 he- and his wife were members of the Dutch church of Kinderhook. He probably settled upon the farm which had just come into pos- session of his father by purchase of the patent from John Van Rensselaer, and which was. bequeathed to him outright on his father's. death, situate between Kinderhook and Clav- erack creeks. One or two records are of in- terest. On May 1, 1772, he leased a house, shop and a fulling mill, with dam and two acres, to Thomas Avery, and as much wood as he required for burning. In August, 1791, he bought a farm in Hillsdale from John Collier. A document bearing date October 19, 1793, deeds a negro boy named Tom to. his son, Lawrence. July 12, 1799, he sold

HUDSON AND MOHAWK VALLEYS

to the same sou the farm he had bought of Nicholas and Philip Hoffman a few years before. He was commissioned a captain in Colonel Jeremiah Hogeboom's regiment, which served in the revolutionary war; his commission, signed by Governor Cadwalader Colden, preserved by the Holland Society, bears date April 4, 1770. He died May 22, 1802, and his tombstone was found a century later on the farm which he had bought from the Hoffmans. He married ( first) in 1744, Christina Van Alen, who was baptized June 16, 1723, daughter of Steph- anus and Mary (Muller) Van Alen, by whom he had five children ; married ( second) September 17, 1762, Catharine Knickerbocker, who was baptized October 19, 1731. daughter of Lawrence and Catharine (Van Horne) Knickerbocker, by whom he had four chil- dren. Children: Maria, baptized March 23. 1745, married Richard Esselstyn; Hilletje, baptized January 25, 1746, died young ; Jan- netje, baptized February 29, 1749, married William Winne, Jr. ; Albertina, born in 1754, married John DeForest ; Thomas, born Feb- ruary 18, 1765, see forward; Lawrence, born June 22, 1767, married Mary Murdock ; Wil- liam, born January 31, 1770, married Maria Vosburgh; Mary, born January 6, 1773, mar- ried John Leggett.

(\') Thomas (2), son of William and Cath- arine (Knickerbocker) Van Alstyne, was born February 18, 1765. In the Columbia county records, under date of May 7, 1795, it is stated that he and his wife, together with other ownership claimants, deeded the farm which was apparently the property of the first Thomas Van Alstyne secured from John Van Rensselaer in 1752, to Thomas Goldthwait. He died September 10, 1838. He married Mabel Butler, born January 3. 1768, died Jan- uary 10, 1832, daughter of Ezekiel and Ma- bel (Jones) Butler. Her father displayed so much zeal in the American cause for liberty that the British offered a reward for his head, dead or alive, and it is probable that he died before the close of hostilities because he was privately buried for fear that his body would be disinterred for the sake of the reward. Mabel Butler was a lineal descendant of Col- onel John Jones, one of the regicides of Charles the First, whose wife was Henrietta Cromwell, sister of Oliver Cromwell. Chil- dren : 1. William, born November 12, 1791; married Polly Ostrander; died October 12, 1867. 2. Maria, married February 14, 1815, Martin Barton. 3. Catharine, married, March 13, 1819, Scovil Martin. 4. Thomas Butler, born July 27, 1797, see forward. 5. John Thomas, born September 28, 1800; married,

February 8, 1826, Jane Ackerman ; died Feb- ruary 10, 1876. 6. Temperance, born in 1802, died October 29, 1877. 7. Jane, born March 4, 1805; married, December 27, 1827, Dr. Levi B. Skinner ; died December 18, 1886. 8. Lawrence, born February 16, 1807; married, March 28, 1829, Eliza Van Hoesen; died January 18, 1835. 9. Sally, married John Van Bramer. 10. Ezekiel Butler, born No- vember 6, 1811. II. Louisa, born Novem- ber 27, 1813; married, December 14, 1839, Rev. Nicholas Van Alstine; died February II, 1871.

(VI) Dr. Thomas Butler Van Alstyne, son of Thomas (2) and Mabel (Butler) Van Al- styne, was born in Ghent, Columbia county, New York, July 27, 1797. He was a well- known physician of Richmondville, Scholarie county, New York. Having completed a common school education, he began as a clerk in a general merchandise store in Hud- son, but not finding this occupation at all congenial to his tastes, he prepared for the profession of his real choice, that of medi- cine, commencing his studies under Dr. Samuel White of the same place, then grad- uated from the Fairfield Medical College in 1818, and, following his advice, located the following year at Richmondville, where he continued to practice for over forty years. He met with considerable success, and be- came widely known in that section, and although often summoned elsewhere for con- sultation in critical cases and offered a medi- cal college professorship, he favored his work and declined. He was a forceful advocate of the abolition of slavery and not only prac- ticed but frequently preached abstinence from intoxicants as a beverage. He died Octo- ber 26, 1867. Dr. Van Alstyne married, Au- gust 10, 1820, Eliza Shepard Giles, born Oc- tober 28, 1799, died May 13, 1877. Children : I. Jane Ann, born May 22, 1821 ; married, October 8, 1839, Rev. Joseph Kingsley Bar- ry ; died December 4, 1853. 2. Thomas W., born December 12, 1822, died April 25, 1825. 3. Thomas Jefferson, born July 25, 1827, see forward. 4. Sylvester Memford, born Feb- ruary 28, 1833; married, July 9. 1855, Cyn- thia E. Whitney : died October 28, 1882. 5. Fayette Edgar, born June 15, 1837, died Sep- tember 30, 1905 ; married, August 19, 1857, Rose M. Markel. 6. John Lawrence, born October 8, 1840; married, October 8, 1868, Carrie A. Shults. 7. Mary Eliza, born March 18, 1846; married, November 7, 1873, J. Les- lie Multer.

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Hudson-Mohawk genealogical and family memoirs, Volume I, Part 10

Author: Reynolds, Cuyler, 1866-1934, ed Publication date: 1911 Publisher: New York, Lewis historical publishing company Number of Pages: 656

Author: Reynolds, Cuyler, 1866-1934, ed
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: New York, Lewis historical publishing company
Number of Pages: 656