Henry Rutgers Beekman (December 8, 1845 – December 17, 1900) was an American lawyer, judge, and government official. A member of the

Beekman family The Beekman family (sometimes spelled Beeckman) is a family of Dutch descent that was prominent during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries in the area now known as the state of New York. Members of this family played a critical role in the format ...

, he served as a justice of the Supreme Court of New York and was

New York City Parks Commissioner The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, also called the Parks Department or NYC Parks, is the department of the government of New York City responsible for maintaining the city's parks system, preserving and maintaining the ecolog ...

Biography

Beekman was born in

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 ...

to William Fenwick Beekman and Catherine Alexander (Neilson) Beekman on December 8, 1845. His great-grandfather was prominent New York merchant James Beekman, and his great-great-grandfather was

New York governor The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor ha ...

Gerardus Beekman Gerardus Willemse Beekman (c. August 1653 – October 10, 1723) was a wealthy physician, land owner, and colonial governor of the Province of New York. Early life He was christened August 17, 1653 at Corlaer's Hook Plantation, New York, the seco ...

, son of

Wilhelmus Beekman Wilhelmus Hendricksen Beekman (April 28, 1623 – September 21, 1707) — also known as William Beekman and Willem Beekman (or Beeckman) — was a Dutch immigrant to America who came to New Amsterdam (now New York City) from the Netherlands in the ...

, Treasurer of the Dutch West India Company, who also served as Mayor of

and Governor of

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

and

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. He graduated from Columbia College in 1865 before earning his LL.B. from

Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked i ...

in 1867. He was admitted to the bar in 1867 and started a practice with fellow lawyer David B. Ogden. In 1894, Beekman was appointed judge of the Supreme Court of New York. From 1885 to 1887 he was the

, appointed by Mayor

William Russell Grace William Russell Grace (May 10, 1832 – March 21, 1904) was an Irish-American politician, the first Roman Catholic mayor of New York City, and the founder of W. R. Grace and Company. Early life Grace was born in Ireland in Riverstown near the C ...

. From 1887 to 1888, he was a member and president of the

New York City Board of Aldermen The New York City Board of Aldermen was a body that was the upper house of New York City's Common Council from 1824 to 1875, the lower house of its Municipal Assembly upon consolidation in 1898 until the charter was amended in 1901 to abolish ...

. He also served as the

Corporation Counsel of New York City The New York City Law Department, also known as the Office of the Corporation Counsel,http://www.nyc.gov/html/law/downloads/pdf/NYLD%20History%20Card.pdf is the department of the government of New York City responsible for most of the city's lega ...

from 1888 to 1889. He became a justice of the New York Supreme Court in 1896. Beekman died on December 17, 1900. He was a member of the

University Club of New York The University Club of New York (also known as University Club) is a private social club at 1 West 54th Street and Fifth Avenue in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Founded to celebrate the union of social duty and intellec ...

Union Club of the City of New York The Union Club of the City of New York (commonly known as the Union Club) is a private social club in New York City that was founded in 1836. The clubhouse is located at 101 East 69th Street on the corner of Park Avenue, in a landmark building de ...

, Century Association, and the Manhattan Club. His son, Henry Rutgers Beekman, was a watercolorist.

References

1845 births 1900 deaths {{DEFAULTSORT:Beekman, Henry Rutgers Beekman family Columbia College (New York) alumni Columbia Law School alumni New York Supreme Court Justices New York City public officials Lawyers from New York City