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William Livingston (November 30, 1723 – July 25, 1790) was an eminent American politician, attorney, newspaper columnist, and statesman who participated in the signing of the United States Constitution and served as a delegate for the Philadelphia Convention and the First and Second Continental Congresses. He also served as the Governor of New Jersey from 1776 to 1790.
A member of the powerful Livingston political dynasty, Livingston was the son of Philip Livingston (1686-1749) and the brother of Philip Livingston (1716-1778). Graduating from university in 1741, Livingston studied law in New York City before becoming active in politics. A staunch Presbyterian, Livingston fought to undermine the control of the Anglican church within the colony of New York. By writing in his Independent Reflector, and later other newspapers, Livingston became a leading political voice in his colony.
Moving to New Jersey in 1772, Livingston established an estate he called Liberty Manor. Livingston represented New Jersey in the First and Second Continental Congresses, where he would leave abruptly to protest the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. He was elected as Governor of New Jersey in 1776 and would be repeatedly re-elected until his death. Livingston also served as a delegate to the Philadelphia Convention, fully supporting the New Jersey Plan. A loyal friend of George Washington, Livingston gave the general political and personal support during the American Revolution. After the war, he helped to found the New York Society Library with his brother-in-law William Alexander. Livingston also published a compendium of the laws of New York before he died in 1790.
[edit] Early life
William Livingston was born in Albany, New York in 1723, as the fifth of nine children born to Philip Livingston (1686-1749) and Catharina Van Brugh. His father, patriarch of the powerful Livingston political dynasty, was a member of the New York Provincial Council.[1] His mother was the daughter of the politician Pieter Van Brugh.[2] Born on his family's estate, Livingston was raised by his grandmother, Sara Cuyler Van Brugh, until the age of fourteen. He also stayed for a time as the guest of a missionary among the Mohawk Indians, despite the fact that there were brewing tensions between the natives and his father over land ownership.[3] Livingston was a capable scholar; he graduated from Yale University in 1741 at the top of his class. He then proceeded to pursue a career in law directly against his family's wishes.[4] He studied under James Alexander at his New York City law office. Livingston married Susanna French, the daughter of a prominent New Jersey land owner, in 1745. She would bear him thirteen children.[4] He was admitted to the bar in 1748 and began his practice in New York. He moved to Elizabethtown, New Jersey in 1772, where he built a large country home to house his growing family. The house, known as Liberty Hall, still stands today.
The home became a center of activity, in part due to its proximity to Francis Barber's academy and visits from young men. (Alexander Hamilton, a boarder at the academy, was a frequent early visitor.) Three of Livingston's daughters — Sarah, Susan, and Catherine — came to be known as 'the three graces'. The height of social activity during this era was the wedding, at Liberty Hall, in April 1774 of Sarah to a young New York lawyer, John Jay.
Livingston was a member of the Continental Congress from July 1774 to June 1776. In October 1775, he was commissioned a brigadier general of the New Jersey Militia and served until August 1776 when he was elected Governor of New Jersey — holding the office until his death in 1790. For much of the time between 1776 and 1779, the family was located in Parsippany for safety. Liberty Hall was frequently visited by British troops or naval forces since there was a substantial reward for Livingston's capture. The family returned in 1779 to begin restoring their looted home. Livingston's daughter, Susannah, married John Cleves Symmes in 1780 and became the stepmother-in-law of President William Henry Harrison. A descendant of William Livingston was Julia Kean, mother of New York Governor / Congressman Hamilton Fish. William Livingston's sister Sarah was married to Continental General William Alexander (aka Lord Stirling); their daughter was married to William Duer (1747-1799) and became the parents of William Alexander Duer and the grandparents of William Duer (1805-1879).
Livingson was a delegate to the 1787 Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and one of the signers of the Constitution.
Livingston was originally buried in Trinity Church, New York, but was reinterred at Green-Wood Cemetery, in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, in 1846.
Because he was the first Revolutionary governor, he is often cited as the first governor of New Jersey. The current numbering of New Jersey governors reflects this.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Van Deusen, Mary S. The Livingston Branch. Livingston genealogy page. 1997. Retrieved on October 7, 2006.
- ^ Bielinski, Stefan."Catharina Van Brugh Livingston". The People of Colonial Albany: A Community History Project. New York State Museum. retrieved on October 7, 2006.
- ^ Lamb, Martha J. and Harrison, Burton. A History of the City of New York: It's Origin, Rise, and Progress. New York: A. S. Barnes and Company, 1896. Accessed through Google Books at [1]
- ^ a b "The Founding Fathers: New Jersey". National Archives and Record Administration. Retrieved October 7, 2006.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by William Franklin (the last Royal Governor of New Jersey) |
New Jersey Governor 1776–1790 |
Succeeded by Elisha Lawrence |
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