Robert Livingston (1688–1775)
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Robert Livingston (July 24, 1688 – June 27, 1775) of
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 * '' ...
, known as Robert of Clermont, son of
Robert Livingston the Elder The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...
and father of Robert Livingston. He was a member of New York colonial assembly from 1726 until 1727.


Early life and family

Robert Livingston was born on the afternoon of July 24, 1688 at his father's Albany, New York townhouse, at "Elm Tree Corner", the intersection of State and Pearl Streets and one of early Albany's principal crossroads.Bielinski, Stefan. "Elm Tree Corner", New York State Museum
/ref> He was the fifth child, and third son, of Alida (née Schuyler) Van Rensselaer Livingston and
Robert Livingston the Elder The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...
, who was downriver in New York engaged in business with Governor Dongan at the time of Robert's birth. Among his eight siblings were elder brother
Philip Livingston Philip Livingston (January 15, 1716 – June 12, 1778) was an American merchant and statesman from New York City. He represented New York at the October 1774 First Continental Congress, where he favored imposing economic sanctions upon Great B ...
and younger brother Gilbert Livingston. His maternal grandfather was
Philip Pieterse Schuyler Colonel Philip Pieterse Schuyler or Philip Pieterse (1628 – 9 May 1683) was a Dutch-born colonist landowner who was the progenitor of the American Schuyler family. Early life Philip Pieterse Schuyler was born in Amsterdam, Holland in the Republ ...
(1628–1683) and his paternal grandfather was Reverend John Livingston, a
Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...
minister who died in exile in 1673. His mother, Alida, had previously been married to Nicholas van Rensselaer, but after his death, she married Robert Livingston in 1679. Alida taught her children to read and write both English and Dutch. At the invitation of his brother William, Robert the Elder sent his eleven-year-old son, Robert, to Scotland to be educated at the Latin school in Leith. Later he studied at the High School in Edinburgh. He went to London for the completion of his education and studied law there at the Temple. Upon reaching the age of twenty-five, he returned to America and opened a law office in Albany. He abandoned the profession in 1713 to move to New York and begin a mercantile career. However, he returned to Livingston Manor to help with the management thereof.Naramore, Bruce. "That 'Witty Boy': Robert Livingston, the Builder of Clermont", Clermont State Historic Site
/ref>


Clermont

Following the death of his father, the first Lord of
Livingston Manor Livingston Manor was a tract of land in the Province of New York granted to Robert Livingston the Elder during the reign of George I of Great Britain. History Livingston Manor was a tract of land in the colonial Province of New York granted ...
, in 1728, most of the manor was inherited by the eldest surviving son
Philip Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...
, but 13,000 acres (53 km²) south of the
Roeliff Jansen Kill The Roeliff Jansen Kill is a major tributary to the Hudson River. Roeliff Jansen Kill was the traditional boundary between the Native American Mahican and Wappinger tribes. Its source is in the town of Austerlitz, New York, and its mouth is at th ...
was willed to Robert. Known as the "Lower Manor", Robert named his estate "Ancram", after the parish where his grandfather, Rev. John Livingston had served. It was also the same name his brother Philip had given to the ironworks at Livingston Manor. Around 1730, Robert built a large stone and brick Georgian house, and sometime after 1740 renamed the estate "Clare Mount" ("clear mountain"), a reference to the view of the Catskills that rise across the river from the front door of the house. At that time Robert was heavily involved in land speculation in the Catskill Mountains land, and would eventually own nearly 500,000 acres."The Clermont Estate", Town of Clermont
/ref> After the house was burned by the British in 1777, the family adopted the name Clermont."A Brief History of Clermont", Friends of Clermont
The house was rebuilt by his daughter-in-law, Margaret Beekman Livingston, wife of Judge Livingston, and is today a state park and listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
.


Personal life

In 1717, he married Margaret Howarden (1693–1758), at the Reformed Dutch Church in New York. His mother, Alida, did not attend. Margaret was the daughter of a wealthy English merchant in New York and granddaughter of Captain Bethlow, a Huguenot after whom Bedloe's Island is named. Bedloe's Island, in New York harbor is now known as Liberty Island and the site of the Statue of Liberty. Their only child was: *
Robert R. Livingston Robert Robert Livingston (November 27, 1746 (Old Style November 16) – February 26, 1813) was an American lawyer, politician, and diplomat from New York, as well as a Founding Father of the United States. He was known as "The Chancellor", afte ...
(1718–1775), who married Margaret Beekman, daughter of Henry Beekman and Janet Livingston. Margaret died in December 1758 and was interred in a burial vault constructed 200 yards north of the Livingston family home at Clermont. Livingston died on June 27, 1775 at the age of 87 and was buried with his wife in the family vault. Upon his death, the "Lower Manor" became the property of his only child,
Robert R. Livingston Robert Robert Livingston (November 27, 1746 (Old Style November 16) – February 26, 1813) was an American lawyer, politician, and diplomat from New York, as well as a Founding Father of the United States. He was known as "The Chancellor", afte ...
, or Judge Livingston as he was known in Provincial New York.


Descendants

His grandson,
Edward Livingston Edward Livingston (May 28, 1764May 23, 1836) was an American jurist and statesman. He was an influential figure in the drafting of the Louisiana Civil Code of 1825, a civil code based largely on the Napoleonic Code. Livingston represented both ...
(1764–1836) described Robert of Clermont at eighty-four as: "... a gentleman... tall and somewhat bent, but not emaciated by age which had marked, but not disfigured, a face once remarkable for its regular beauty of features, and still beaming with the benevolence and intelligence that had always illuminated it. He marked the epoch at which he retired from the world by preserving its costume: the flowing wool powered wig, the bright brown coat, with large cuffs and square shirts, the cut velvet waistcoast, with ample flaps and the breeches scarcely covering the knee, the silk stocking, rolled over them with embroidered clocks, and shining square-toed shoes, fastened near the ankle and small embossed gold buckles. These were retained in his service, not to affect a singularity, but because he thought it ridiculous at his time of life to follow the quick succession of fashion." He always rose at five and read until breakfast. The year before his death, he took up the study of German and spoke it fluently. "The patriarch of Clermont was in many ways the spoiled younger son of the
self-made man "Self-made man" is a classic phrase coined on February 2, 1842 by Henry Clay in the United States Senate, to describe individuals whose success lay within the individuals themselves, not with outside conditions. Benjamin Franklin, one of the Foun ...
. A failure in the law, in business, and in the eyes of his own parents, he nonetheless entered his final years with the satisfaction that he had not only maintained the estate passed on to him by his father, but had increased it 40-fold through his speculation in Catskill Mountain lands."


References


See also

*
Livingston family The Livingston family of New York is a prominent family that migrated from Scotland to the Dutch Republic, and then to the Province of New York in the 17th century. Descended from the 4th Lord Livingston, its members included signers of the Unite ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Livingston, Robert (1688-1775) 1688 births 1775 deaths American people of Dutch descent American people of Scottish descent Robert (1688-1775) Members of the New York Provincial Assembly Speakers of the New York General Assembly Members of the New York General Assembly People of the Province of New York Schuyler family