Francis Redding Tillou (c. 1795 – July 10, 1865) was an American lawyer and politician from
New York, and co-founder of the
Children's Village
The Children's Village, formerly the New York Juvenile Asylum, is a private, non-profit residential treatment facility and school for troubled children. It was founded in 1851 by 24 citizens of New York who were concerned about growing numbers o ...
.
Early life
Tillou was born circa 1795. His family was said to have been descended from Pierre Tillou, a
Huguenot
The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
who fled
Saint-Nazaire,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
in 1681.
Career
In August 1835, the Federal Land Office at
Green Bay put up for sale the area which would become
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...
, and on October 7, 1835, Tillou bought the first 100 acres.
Tillou lived at a country estate which he named "Tillietudlem", in a place then known as Pleasant Valley in
Hackensack Township,
Bergen County, New Jersey. The house stood where now the Edgewater Public Library is located, at the corner of Undercliff and Hudson Ave. in
Edgewater, New Jersey
Edgewater is a borough located along the Hudson River in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough had a population of 11,513,/nowiki>''sic''/nowiki> Hill Road was an important route to the top o ...
.
On March 1, 1849, Tillou was granted the right to run a ferry-boat service from his estate's landing on the
Hudson River
The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. The landing was located approximately at the place of the present-day Edgewater Marina and Ferry Stop.
He ran a law practice with
Francis B. Cutting (1804–1870), known as Tillou & Cutting.
Public service
In November 1851,
Tillou was elected on the
Democratic ticket
Recorder of New York City
The Recorder of New York City was a municipal officer of New York City from 1683 until 1907. He was at times a judge of the Court of General Sessions, the Court of Special Sessions, and the New York Court of Common Pleas; Vice-President of the Boar ...
, and remained in office from 1852 until the end of 1854,
serving under Mayors,
Ambrose C. Kingsland and
Jacob A. Westervelt.
In November 1854,
Tillou was nominated on the Municipal Reform and the Temperance tickets for re-election, but was defeated by
James M. Smith, Jr. who had been nominated jointly by
Hard and Soft Democrats, while most other offices were won by the Whigs, defeating the split Democrats.
In November 1861, Tillou ran on the Union ticket (a fusion of
Republicans and
War Democrats
War Democrats in American politics of the 1860s were members of the Democratic Party who supported the Union and rejected the policies of the Copperheads (or Peace Democrats). The War Democrats demanded a more aggressive policy toward the C ...
) for the
New York State Senate (4th D.) but was defeated by Democrat
Christian B. Woodruff.
Personal life
On February 15, 1822, he married Caroline M. "Cara" Drake (ca. 1793).
His wife was a sister of
Joseph Rodman Drake
Joseph Rodman Drake (August 7, 1795 – September 21, 1820) was an early American poet.
Biography
Born in New York City, he was orphaned when young and entered a mercantile house. While still a child, he showed a talent for writing poems. He wa ...
(1795-1820), the poet, and Louisa Hannah Drake (a sister of Caroline and Joseph Rodman Drake), who was married to
Thomas Clark Nicholls. Louis and Thomas were the parents of
Francis Redding Tillou Nicholls, the
Governor of Louisiana who was named after his uncle-by-marriage.
Fitz-Greene Halleck
Fitz-Greene Halleck (July 8, 1790 – November 19, 1867) was an American poet and member of the Knickerbocker Group. Born and raised in Guilford, Connecticut, he went to New York City at the age of 20, and lived and worked there for nearly fo ...
, an usher at their wedding, wrote "''A Valentine''" for her on the eve of their wedding, which was later printed in 1872.
Together, they were the parents of:
* Charles Graham Tillou (1825–1891),
who married Sarah Condit (1824–1894),
daughter of
Stephen Condit (1791–1835).
* Edward Tillou (d. 1915)
* Julia Tillou (1837–1910), who married Gouverneur Kemble, Jr. (1835–1898),
a nephew of
Gouverneur Kemble
Gouverneur Kemble (January 25, 1786 – September 18, 1875) was a two-term United States Congressman, diplomat and industrialist. He helped found the West Point Foundry, a major producer of artillery during the American Civil War.
Early life and ...
(1786–1875),
on January 11, 1860.
* Alice Tillou (1840–1905),
who married Oscar Smedberg (1837–1877)
on June 12, 1860.
* Francis R. Tillou, Jr.
In 1846, he was purported to be worth $150,000.
Tillou died of paralysis on July 10, 1865 at his home "Tillietudlem" in New Jersery.
After a funeral at St. John's Church,
he was buried at
Green-Wood Cemetery
Green-Wood Cemetery is a cemetery in the western portion of Brooklyn, New York City. The cemetery is located between South Slope/ Greenwood Heights, Park Slope, Windsor Terrace, Borough Park, Kensington, and Sunset Park, and lies several blo ...
.
References
External links
*
Drawing of "Tillietudlem", showing the ferry landing in the foregroundat Historical Map Works
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tillou, Francis Redding
1790s births
1865 deaths
New York City Recorders
New York (state) Democrats
People from Edgewater, New Jersey