Joseph Ellicott (November 1, 1760 in

Bucks County, Pennsylvania Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the Englis ...

– August 19, 1826 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

) was an American

surveyor Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. A land surveying professional is ca ...

city planner An urban planner (also known as town planner) is a professional who practices in the field of town planning, urban planning or city planning. An urban planner may focus on a specific area of practice and have a title such as city planner, town ...

, land office agent, lawyer and politician of the

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...

faith.

Life

Ellicott was born in

on November 1, 1760. He was the son of Quaker miller

Joseph Ellicott Joseph Ellicott (November 1, 1760 in Bucks County, Pennsylvania – August 19, 1826 in New York City) was an American surveyor, city planner, land office agent, lawyer and politician of the Quaker faith. Life Ellicott was born in Bucks Cou ...

(1732–1780) and Judith Blaker (1729–1809). Joseph's siblings included older brother Andrew Ellicott (1754–1820), a fellow surveyor, and younger brother

Benjamin Ellicott Benjamin Ellicott (April 17, 1765 – December 10, 1827) was a surveyor, a county judge and a member of the United States House of Representatives from the State of New York. Born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania in 1765, Benjamin Ellicott accomp ...

(1765–1827), a

U.S. Congressman The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

Career

In 1790, his brother Andrew Ellicott was hired by the federal government to survey the new federal district, where the new capital city of

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

was to be built. Joseph was Andrew's chief assistant during the latter part of the survey. Joseph Ellicott was subsequently sent to

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

to survey the boundary line, established by treaty with the

Creek tribe The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language), are a group of related indigenous (Native American) peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands

Holland Land Company

He was then engaged to survey some property in western

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, ...

which had been purchased by a group of

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

investors, who had formed the

Holland Land Company The Holland Land Company was an unincorporated syndicate of thirteen Dutch investors from Amsterdam who in 1792 and 1793 purchased the western two-thirds of the Phelps and Gorham Purchase, an area that afterward was known as the Holland Purchase ...

. He also extended the New York - Pennsylvania border westward. When the company purchased a huge tract of western

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

(that became known as The Holland Purchase), Ellicott was hired in 1797 and was sent to perform the monumental task of surveying it. Ellicott spent two years (1798–1800) living outdoors in summer and winter, laying out the townships of the new land in order to complete the Great Survey of the land in October 1800. In 1800, the principal agent of the company,

Paul Busti Paul Busti, or ''Paulus Busti'' or ''Paolo Busti'' (baptised 17 October 1749 – 23 July 1824), was the chief operating officer of the Holland Land Company from 1797 until his death. He was one of the first prominent real estate operators in the ...

, gave him a new position as their agent at their Land Office in

Batavia, New York Batavia is a city in and the county seat of Genesee County, New York, United States. It is near the center of the county, surrounded by the Town of Batavia, which is a separate municipality. Batavia's population as of the 2020 census was 15,6 ...

. From this office, for the next 21 years he supervised the sales of the tract, with his personal signature on many deeds. Ellicott was an observer for the investors at the Big Tree Treaty when the

Senecas The Seneca () ( see, Onödowáʼga:, "Great Hill People") are a group of Indigenous Iroquoian-speaking people who historically lived south of Lake Ontario, one of the five Great Lakes in North America. Their nation was the farthest to the west w ...

sold their rights to the land in Western New York. In 1801, he laid out

, and in 1804 the village of Buffalo, and established mill sites and communities. He advocated a canal to be built from 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 ...

Lake Erie Lake Erie ( "eerie") is the fourth largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has t ...

, and was among the

Erie Canal Commission The Commission to Explore a Route for a Canal to Lake Erie and Report, known as the Erie Canal Commission, was a body created by the New York State Legislature in 1810 to plan the Erie Canal. In 1817 a ''Canal Fund'' led by ''Commissioners of the C ...

ers appointed in 1816 to supervise the canal construction, but resigned in 1818 due to ill health. The

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing t ...

was finished in 1825. He also arranged for the contribution of more than of company land to this project. Joseph Ellicott Obelisk Apr 11

As seller and land agent, Ellicott offered generous terms to the buyers, some of whom purchased farms for as little as 25 cents down. When some buyers could not make payments he often extended the terms and sometimes forgave interest if they had made improvements. He offered some selected parcels free upon condition that the buyer would establish a mill or an inn, to help stimulate growth in the area. In later years, Ellicott became the target of complaints by citizens who were unhappy with the land company. Ellicott was held responsible for the state of New York's decision not to buy up unsold land of the land company, and he retired in 1821. He then attempted to finance the purchase of the unsold land himself, but no one would join his venture, and he had to abandon the plan.

Politics

Ellicott was a

presidential elector The United States Electoral College is the group of presidential electors required by the Constitution to form every four years for the sole purpose of appointing the president and vice president. Each state and the District of Columbia appo ...

1804 Events January–March * January 1 – Haiti gains independence from France, and becomes the first black republic, having the only successful slave revolt ever. * February 4 – The Sokoto Caliphate is founded in West Africa. * Februa ...

, voting for

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...

and George Clinton. From March 1806 to June 1807, he was First Judge of the Genesee County Court.

Personal life

Ellicott never married. His final years were marred by serious mental problems. Family members had him admitted to

Bloomingdale Insane Asylum The Bloomingdale Insane Asylum (1821–1889) was an American private hospital for the care of the mentally ill, founded by New York Hospital. It was located in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City, where Columbia U ...

, where he died in 1826 by hanging himself. Soon after his burial in New York City, he was exhumed and re-buried in Batavia, New York at the

Batavia Cemetery Batavia Cemetery is located on Harvester Avenue in Batavia, New York, United States. It opened in 1823 and contains over 8,000 graves, mostly from the 19th century. In 2002 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the first of t ...

. At his death left an estate valued at about $600,000 ().

Legacy

Places named after Ellicott: * Ellicottville, New York -

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

and

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

Cattaraugus County, New York Cattaraugus County (locally known as Catt County) is a county in Western New York, with one side bordering Pennsylvania. As of the United States 2020 census, the population was 77,042. The county seat is Little Valley. The county was created ...

. *

Ellicott, New York Ellicott is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Chautauqua County, New York, Chautauqua County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 8,771 at the 2020 census. The town is named after Joseph Ellicott (survey ...

- town in

Chautauqua County, New York Chautauqua County is the westernmost County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. As of the United States Census 2020, 2020 census, the population was 127,657. Its county seat is Mayville, New York, Mayville, an ...

. *

Ellicott Square Building The Ellicott Square Building is a historic office complex, completed in 1896, located in Buffalo, New York. It is found within the Joseph Ellicott Historic District. History The Ellicott Square Building was designed by Charles Atwood of D. H. ...

- an office building in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

* Ellicott Street - a street in downtown

and another in downtown

. * Ellicott Complex - a

dormitory A dormitory (originated from the Latin word ''dormitorium'', often abbreviated to dorm) is a building primarily providing sleeping and residential quarters for large numbers of people such as boarding school, high school, college or university s ...

at the

University at Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo, commonly called the University at Buffalo (UB) and sometimes called SUNY Buffalo, is a public research university with campuses in Buffalo and Amherst, New York. The university was founded in 1846 ...

. *

Ellicott Creek Ellicott Creek is a stream in Western New York, United States. It is a tributary of Tonawanda Creek, which in turn flows into the Niagara River. Course Ellicott Creek originates in southwest corner of Genesee County, just northeast of Darien L ...

- a stream in

Western New York Western New York (WNY) is the westernmost region of the U.S. state of New York. The eastern boundary of the region is not consistently defined by state agencies or those who call themselves "Western New Yorkers". Almost all sources agree WNY in ...

. * Ellicott Road - a road in Orchard Park, NY. * Ellicott Elementary School - an elementary school in Orchard Park, NY * Ellicott Run at

Sinnemahoning State Park Sinnemahoning State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Grove Township, Cameron County and Wharton Township, Potter County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The park is surrounded by Elk State Forest and is mountainous with deep valleys. ...

Grove Township, Cameron County, Pennsylvania Grove Township is a township in Cameron County, Pennsylvania, Cameron County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 183 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, up from 129 in 2000. Geography Grove Township is in eastern Cameron ...

. He also laid out the Caledonia Pike in Cameron & Elk Counties, Pennsylvania. * Ellicott Mall - A housing project in Buffalo, NY * Ellicott Historic District - a local historic district in Buffalo, New York

References

;Notes ;Sources
Brief information on Ellicott

''The New York Civil List''
compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (pages 40 and 360; Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858) *

External links

* "The Holland Land Company in Western New York", by Robert W. Silsby, Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society, Adventures in Western New York History, volume VIII, 1961, (provides account of Joseph Ellicott, downloadable from http://bechsed.nylearns.org/, click on Adventures in WNY History)
Joseph Ellicott and the Holland Land Company
bibliography of books and manuscripts in the library collection at the

Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society The Buffalo History Museum (founded as the Buffalo Historical Society, and later named the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society) is located at 1 Museum Court (formerly 25 Nottingham Court) in Buffalo, New York, just east of Elmwood Avenue and ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ellicott, Joseph American politicians who committed suicide American surveyors American urban planners 1760 births 1826 deaths Suicides by hanging in New York City New York (state) state court judges Erie Canal Commissioners People from Genesee County, New York People from Bucks County, Pennsylvania American Quakers 1804 United States presidential electors