USA > New York > Westchester County > Westchester county in history; manual and civil list, past and present. County history: towns, hamlets, villages and cities, Volume III > Part 4
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That Horace Greeley coveted the Presidential nomination of the Liberal Republicans is a fixed fact. But he received the nomination only after a hard struggle in the convention. Many forgot the sacrifices he had made for his party when that party was in sore need of supporters. Six ballots were taken by the delegates. Charles Francis Adams, of Massachusetts, led on the first, third and fourth ballots, while Greeley led on the second and fifth. On the sixth ballot, Adams had 324 votes and Greeley 332, with 57 votes scattered. Before the result of this ballot had been announced, the Greeley delegates raised a tremendous cheer on behalf of their favorite, which stampeded the convention en masse to Greeley.
The Democratic National Convention, held in Baltimore, Md., on July 9, 1872, decided that it was advisable to endorse the candidacy of Mr. Greeley, the Liberal Republican candidate; the ballot taken on the question of endorsement being 686 in favor, out of a total vote of 732. The platform of the Liberal Republican party was also adopted.
The story of the outcome of that election is told, as far as Greeley is concerned, in the one word " defeat." One of the classics of American politics to-day is the saying, " Beaten worse than Horace Greeley." President Grant's renomination was unanimous and his re-election by the people was overwhelm- ing; his victory was more than a tidal wave, it was almost a flood. Only five States of the Union voted in favor of Greeley. It was estimated that for every Republican that voted for
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Greeley, two Democrats voted for Grant, or stayed away from the polls. Certain Democrats would not forget the times that Greeley had been the bitterest opponent of their party, in his editorials and in his speeches, and wished by their votes, or their absence from the polls, to show that they did not approve of Greeley's nomination, or endorsement, by Democratic leaders.
From this defeat Horace Greeley never fully recovered. The ingratitude of those he had so loyally served dealt him a blow most unkind. This defeat was believed by many of his friends to be a cause that hastened his end.
Success or defeat, let no man despise Horace Greeley. For no man's place in American history is surer than his. Greeley's services to the people cannot be measured by his vote-getting ability. No honors that might be bestowed or withheld in the way of public office could add to or take from his splendid character. He may not have been what is considered a success- ful politician, one who can trim sail to every varying wind; probably the fault, if any, lay in his construction, he preferred principles to gain, and for principles he was willing to make sacrifices. While his ability gave him a National character, his gentle, kind nature made him a friend of the humblest.
Mr. Greeley was born on February 3, 1811, and died at his home in Chappaque, November 29, 1872; his death prevente .? the Presidential Electors chosen in his favor voting for him in the Electoral College. Mrs. Mary Y. C. Greeley died just one month before her husband.
At the time of their death they had two daughters, Ida and Gabrielle M. The will of Mary Y. C. Greeley divided her real and personal property equally between her two daughters. Horace Greeley, in the will probated at White Plains, made a similar division of his estate.
Mr. Greeley's last will, written by himself on two sheets of note paper on Nov. 9, 1872, just twenty days before his death, devised his entire estate to his daughter Ida Greeley, " one-half to be by her used at her own discretion to the education and sup- port of her sister, Gabrielle M. Greeley." Objection to the pro- bate of the last will was made before the Surrogate on the ground that it did great injustice to Gabrielle M. Greeley, and Ida Greeley voluntarily agreed to permit the probate of the earlier will, thus surrendering one-half of the estate to her sister.
Ida Greeley, who had married Col. Nicholas Smith, died on April 11, 1882, without leaving a will and her estate passed to
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her surviving husband and her three children, Horace, Nixola and Ida, of whom the eldest was then five years of age.
At the time of Ida Greeley's death neither Mr. Greeley's estate nor that of his wife had ever been divided.
Gabrielle M. Greeley married the Rev. Frank M. Glendennin, and with her husband and family resides on part of the old farm. On February 3, 1911, the hundredth anniversary of Mr. Greeley's birth was celebrated with interesting ceremonies, not only in Chappaqua, but also in New York city and in Albany.
At his old home, in the chamber of the New York Board of Aldermen, by members of Typographical Union No. 6, at the New York Theater, and by the adjournment of both branches of the State Legislature.
At Chappaqua, the celebration, arranged by the Chappaqua Historical Society, was held at the home of Mrs. Gabrielle Greeley Glendennin, a daughter, on the Greeley farm.
Conspicuous among those present were Gen. Stewart L. Wood- ford, who traced an intimate picture of his old friend Greeley, and General Edwin A. Merritt, now 84 years old, who was Con- sul-General to London and Collector of the Port of New York. He was probably the oldest living associate of Horace Greeley in attendance. James Toole, president of Typographical Union No. 6, of Manhattan, headed a delegation of that body.
Gen. Woodford delivered the principal address, in which he in part said: "Mr. Greeley's work is done, but his influence will abide while this Nation lives. His work for the slaves, clean politics and organized labor will ever live. His work for sound currency no banker can ever forget. His words were 'the way to resume is to resume.' He was a firm friend of Lin- coln, and the latter's nomination was due to the courage, domi- nation and instance of Horace Greeley. One of the greatest things Mr. Greeley ever did was when he went on the bail bond of Jefferson Davis, which, the speaker declared, was a great pledge of brotherhood that assured the unity of the Nation. To the very end he lived a life that was devoted to charity, to brotherhood of man, to labor, to the development of national resources and to the strengthening of the national Union. His was a great life."
At the printers' celebration in New York city, United States Senator Albert J. Beveridge, of Indiana, was the orator.
It has been decided to erect in Chappaqua a memorial statue in honor of Mr. Greeley, to cost $16,000.
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ALEXANDER HAMILTON is given a place in the annals of Westchester County on account of his association with the County's early history.
It was at Peekskill, in this County, in 1777, that he received from Gen. Washington his commission as Adjutant-General of the Continental Army, an appointment given him as recogni- tion of heroic service rendered as aid on the staff of the Com- mander-in-Chief, a position he had accepted at the urgent request of Washington, he acting as Washington's confidential secretary, thereby becoming a member of that general's mili- tary family and his close friend.
As a former resident of this County he may be considered as of us. When he brought his charming wife to New York and settled in that city for the practice of law, he took up his residence in the lower section of the county, in what has been known as the town of Morrisania, the town being named in honor of the family whose sons were most intimate, personal and political, friends of Hamilton. It was through a Morris that he received, in 1781, an appointment as Receiver of Taxes for the State of New York. Though he at first declined this office, fearing it might interfere with his professional pursuits, the persistency of the Morrises influenced him to accept. To Hamilton this appointment was of no little importance, for it gave him an opportunity of establishing his reputation for busi- ness talent and political ability. The nation, too, was the gainer, for Hamilton was thus introduced into public life many years before he would have reached notoriety as a statesman through the slow course of forensic occupations.
From the early period and to the present day descendants of General Hamilton have been honored residents of West- chester County. General Alexander Hamilton, a descendant as well as a namesake, who earned his title in the Civil War, died in 1908, at his home in Tarrytown, this County, at the age of eighty-seven years, a man highly respected for his amiability and other good qualities.
Another link in the chain that connects Gen. Hamilton with this County, is the knowledge that he and John Jay together edited patriotic literature and were closely allied as the nearest confidential friends of General Washington. It was Hamilton and Jay who assisted President Washington in the preparation of all important State papers. Even when President Wash- ington, on retiring from office, had determined to leave behind
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him as a legacy the declaration of his principles of action, to serve as an example to his successors, this being his farewell address, he chose as his advisers Jay and Hamilton. Of the service rendered Washington on this occasion, by these two men, an early writer, speaking of the farewell address, said: "Its conception could only have arisen in the mind of Wash- ington himself, yet it would have been less perfect as a com- position had it not passed through the hands of Hamilton; and even their united efforts might not have exhibited the high and delicate finish afforded by the classical pen of Jay."
Gouverneur Morris, of Morrisania, for whom latter place was named, who was made assistant national superintendent of finance on July 6, 1781, was indebted to Hamilton for many valuable suggestions, which were adopted, providing a financial policy for the country. It was doubtless his knowledge as to the solution of financial problems, that suggested to the Mor- rises his fitness for the office he received about this time.
Shortly before his tragic death, in 1804, General Hamilton purchased a tract of land just over the southern border line of Westchester County, and within the rural limits of New York city, not far from the Hudson river. On this land he built his celebrated country-seat, "The Grange." Here the soldier and statesman passed the last days of his busy and brilliant career, surrounded by his friends, but not entirely free from the animosities of political life-enmities that finally culminated in the fatal encounter between himself and Aaron Burr. The thirteen elm trees planted by General Hamilton near his house, to celebrate the thirteen original States of the Union, were saved, with the other property, by a Westchester County citizen some few years ago. Hon. Orlando Potter, of Ossining, paid $140,000 for the ground upon which these noble trees stood, purchasing the same from the estate of an owner subsequent to General Hamilton. It was the desire of Con- gressman Potter that New York city or State or some society later possess the property that it might be preserved on account of historic associations and out of regard for General Hamilton as patriot, statesman and distinguished member of the bar.
Hamilton was not a native of the United States. He was born in the Island of Nevis, then, as now, a possession of Great Britain, on January 11, 1757. His mother was descended from a French Huguenot family (another Westchester County tie) ; he was the youngest child. Quite young he came to New York
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to secure an education, entering King's College (afterward Columbia, where Jay was also educated), the separate estate of his mother providing the means to meet necessary expenses.
Hamilton arrived in New York at a most interesting epoch. A spirit of resistance to the acts of the Parliament of Great Britain, which were justly considered as not only contrary to national rights, but even to the admitted privileges of the Britons, was fast rising to that height at which the colonists finally threw off, not only the obnoxious usurpations of the legislature, but even their own character of subjects to a king. The deep thought he was known to have devoted to the con- troversies between the parent country and the colonies led to his being urged to address a public meeting in the city of New York. This was the first appearance of the youthful student (he was then about sixteen years of age) as a public speaker, and was made under many disadvantages. His real youth, and still more the appearance of it, growing out of his slender figure and small stature, must have given him the appearance of a boy presuming to mingle in the councils of men. He proved a success and his fame began from that date. His able con- tributions to newspapers assisted in rousing the people.
When an appeal to arms was sounded he was one of the first to respond, young as he was; in spite of his juvenile appearance, he was, after a strict examination, appointed captain of the Provincial Company of Artillery. To raise this com- pany and equip the recruits, he expended the last remittance he received from his mother. In command of this company he took a prominent part and distinguished himself at the battle of White Plains, in this County, and materially aided Washington in gaining the object of his wishes, the safe retreat of his army. It was his bravery during this battle that caused Washington to take a fancy to the youth, and to ask Hamilton to become an aid on his staff. It was not without reluctance that he relinquished the prospect of promotion in the line of the army, to which his distinguished services during the most arduous campaign of the Revolution would have entitled him, for a place on the staff. His affection for General Washington decided him to accept, and this act proved of great profit to the Commander-in-Chief, who found Hamilton always loyal and faithful, worthy of trust in most troublesome times, when Washington found himself hampered by jealous rivals.
History tells of Hamilton's most remarkable and honorable
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career, as soldier, brilliant and conscientious lawyer and states- man. As a soldier he aided Washington in rallying the retreat- ing battalions at Monmouth, led the forlorn hope at Yorktown, aided in preventing the consummation of Arnold's treachery at West Point, and did various other things creditable to a soldier fighting for the country's freedom; as a statesman he took a directing part in formation of laws successfully estab- lishing a new nation, and his cleverness as a financier enabled him to suggest a desirable financial policy for adoption by Congress; as a lawyer his ability made him a leader of the bar in the principal city of the new Republic. Elsewhere in this volume Hamilton's connection with the political history of this nation is referred to.
Hamilton was rather below the middle size, and in his youth extremely slender. In more mature age his figure assumed a degree of fulness, without approaching to corpulency. His eyes were blue, and his hair a light brown, although, in the fashion of the day, it was always covered with powder. His motions were graceful, and the tones of his voice agreeable in the highest degree. To these natural requisites he added high powers of argument, readiness of expression, and simple elegance of thought and diction. He thus, as an orator, is said to have been pre-eminent even in a country so prolific in public speak- ers. Whether at the bar or in the deliberative assembly, he was equally distinguished for his commanding eloquence. Am- bitious to no little degree, he sought no offices of honor and emolument, nor would have accepted them except as oppor- tunities of being useful to his country. He looked for his recompense in the consideration of the virtuous and patriotic of his fellow citizens, or the more sure gratitude of posterity, not in wealth or the pride of elevated rank. With such dis- interested views, each call to the public service involved him in pecuniary loss, and he gradually contracted a debt of con- siderable amount, which remained unpaid at his decease. His appointment as Inspector-General in the provisional army (which he accepted at Washington's urging after the war), interrupted the growth of a lucrative professional business, and, at the same time, deprived him of the means of meeting the interest on large purchases of land ("The Grange" property) which he had entered into, in full confidence that his labors as a lawyer would enable him to hold it. To prevent the abso- lute sacrifice of his landed property, his friends and admirers
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united after his death in a subscription, by which his debts were paid, and the proceeds of the estate finally reimbursed their advances, but left little or no surplus to his family.
General Hamilton was married on December 14, 1780, to Miss Elizabeth Schuyler, second daughter of General Philip Schuyler, a trusted aid and adviser of General Washington; the marriage took place in the Schuyler mansion in Albany, and later they went to New York, and, as stated, resided in Morrisania, in this County, until they took up their residence at " The Grange."
Of this marriage there were several children. The eldest son, Philip, named for his maternal grandfather, was killed in a duel, growing out of political agitation in which he defended his father; the boy had just reached years of manhood. The second son, who had inherited the literary tastes of his father, was the author of a very ably written "Life of Alexander Hamilton," using valuable data gained from important papers left by his father. A son laid the corner-stone of the first monument erected in Tarrytown, in 1853, in honor of André's captors.
General Hamilton was killed in a duel with Aaron Burr, in July, 1804. At his untimely death all America mourned, but the terrible sorrow of his family, to which he was unusually devoted, can not be described.
His wife, the sweetheart of his boyhood, survived her hus- band for fifty long, lonesome years. When she died, at the age of ninety-seven years, a pleasant, sweet-faced old lady, praised for her sunny nature and her quiet humor, a pocket- book was found in her possession, containing within a yellow, timeworn letter, written on the morning of the duel, and was Hamilton's farewell to his "beloved wife."
The following is a summary of his life:
When Hamilton began to be active in aid of the struggling colonies he was but a school boy, about 16 years of age; a year later he became a captain of artillery in the Continental army, and then an aid on General Washington's staff; when 20 years old he held the important office of Adjutant-General in the army; at 22, he devised a financial policy which was adopted for the nation; at 23, he was married and then fol- lowed his appointment as State Receiver of Taxes; at 24, he had established an enviable reputation in the legal profession in New York city and State; when 25 years old we find him a
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leader in Congress, an expounder of the Constitution which he helped to frame, and the father of important financial meas- ures adopted by Congress; at 26 he began organizing one of the political parties of the country; at the age of 32 he accepts President Washington's offer of Secretary of the Treasury of the United States, and when 38 he resigned as Secretary of the Treasury, to resume the practice of law in New York city; at the age of 47 years he met a tragic death.
That part of the "Hamilton Grange" on which stood the thirteen famous "Hamilton Elms"-almost the last of this his- toric tract remaining vacant-is soon to be covered with apart- ment houses, if present plans are allowed to be carried out. Restrictions placed on the property twenty-five years ago, per- mitting private dwellings only, expired in November, 1910. The sale of this property to apartment house builders is to be regretted, as it brings to an end the efforts on the part of various patriotic and historical societies to have New York city, or New York State, purchase this ground and erect thereon some suitable memorial. The old Hamilton house is still stand- ing at the rear of St. Luke's Church at Convent Avenue and 141st Street, and is used by the church as its rectory. It is regretted that at Mr. Potter's death the property had to be sold, and that it did not fall into possession of a person or society, to insure forever its preservance on account of its his- toric associations.
The illustrious subject of this sketch had six worthy sons. The eldest named Philip, for his mother's father, was killed in a duel, as told in this volume; the second son was John C., who wrote a history of his father after latter's death; the third son was Col. James A., who resided in Dobbs Ferry, in this County, and who took part in erecting the first monument at Tarrytown in honor of the captors of André; the fourth son, Gen. William, won distinction in the Black Hawk Indian War; the fifth son was Alexander; the sixth son, born shortly after the death of the eldest son, and not long before his father was likewise killed in a duel, was named Phillip; he lived to a good old age, dying in Poughkeepsie, when 90 years old; his son Dr. Allen McLean Hamilton, of New York city, is a noted specialist.
Gen. Alexander Hamilton, 3d, who served through the Civil War and won his title by distinguished services, a grandson of Gen. Alexander Hamilton, head of the family, and son of the second son, John C., died in Tarrytown, his home, in 1909, at
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the age of 92 years. The author of this book had the pleasure of sailing up the Hudson River in his company on the occasion of his 92d birthday celebration.
John C. L. Hamilton, who resides at Elmsford, in this County, is a great-grandson of Gen. Alexander Hamilton, a grandson of John C., the second son, and a son of John C. A. Hamliton.
WASHINGTON IRVING, the diplomat, poet, etc., who re- sided and died and was buried in this County, was born in the city of New York, on April 3, 1783, a son of and the eleventh child, the youngest, of William and Sarah Irving. The father a Scotchman, from the Orkney Isles, at the extreme north of Scotland; his mother was of a most gentle type, an English woman who came from the extreme south of England. The Irvings resided in what is now one of the principal down- town business districts, at No. 128 William street, between John and what is now Fulton, but was then Partition street. It was a two-story house, with a garden running down to the East River. It had a high, steep roof with gabled windows, and the juvenile Washington used to delight in climbing out of these in the evening when he was supposed to be in bed, creeping along the eaves like a cat and dropping pebbles down the chimney of the parlor, where his elders were reading by the fire. For Washington-christened, by the way, after George Washington, who had entered New York with his army only a few months before the boy was born-was a mischievous lad. He took much more after his gentle mother than after his stern father.
Washington remained at school until he was sixteen years old, when he entered a law office, and so began the career that made him American Minister to European Courts, author of such famous books as the "Sketch Book," "Tales of a Traveler," and "The Alhambra," and one of the brightest lights in the firmament of American literature.
He honored Westchester County the many years he spent among us; as a resident of Irvington, named in his honor.
Mr. Irving was appointed United States Minister to Spain in 1842.
He was first spoken of for a position in the diplomatic corps of this country in 1831, when Martin Van Buren, of this State,
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was, for a short period, Minister to England. In a letter, dated November 25, 1831, which he sent from London to President Jackson, Mr. Van Buren recommended Mr. Irving in the fol- lowing complimentary language:
"Washington Irving has been staying for some weeks in my house, and will, I hope, continue to do so through the winter. He leaves for the United States in the spring. An intimate acquaintance with him has satisfied me that I was mistaken in supposing that his literary occupation had given his mind a turn unfavorable to practical business pursuits, and I am not sure you did not entertain the same impression. I think it but just to correct the error. If an opportunity should present itself in which you can employ him as Charge d'Affaires, I am confident you may count with confidence on his faithful dis- charge of the duties imposed upon him, and I am quite sure that a truer American or a more honest man does not live."
In spite of this high opinion expressed by Jackson's most intimate friend, Washington Irving, the great author, was for- gotten by President Jackson, and even by Van Buren too, when latter became President and could appoint the man on his (Van Buren's) own recommendation. It was not until both these Presidents closed their terms of office that the reward came. It was in 1842 when President Tyler appointed him Minister to Spain, on the recommendation of Daniel Webster, Secretary of State in Tyler's Cabinet.
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