Augustus Albert Hardenbergh (May 18, 1830 in

New Brunswick, New Jersey New Brunswick is a city (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Jersey City, New Jersey Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous

) was an American Democratic Party politician who represented

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

's 7th congressional district in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

from 1875 to 1879, and again from 1881 to 1883.

Early life and career

Hardenbergh was born in

New Brunswick, New Jersey New Brunswick is a city (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Rutgers College Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College and was aff ...

in 1844 and took up residence in

Jersey City, New Jersey Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous

in 1846 and was employed in a banking house in New York City. He was a clerk in the Hudson County National Bank in 1852. He served as a member of the

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts f ...

in 1853 and 1854. He was a member of the board of education in 1855 and 1856, and a member of the common council of Jersey City 1857-1863, serving as president in 1860. He moved to Bergen, New Jersey in 1863 and was a member of the city council of Bergen. He was elected State director of railroads in 1868, and moved to

Demarest, New Jersey Demarest is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 4,981, an increase of 100 (+2.0%) from the 2010 United St ...

, that same year. He was a delegate to the

1872 Democratic National Convention The 1872 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention held at Ford's Grand Opera House on East Fayette Street, between North Howard and North Eutaw Streets, in Baltimore, Maryland on July 9 and 10, 1872. It resulted ...

. He moved to Jersey City in 1873 and was elected president of the Northern Railroad of New Jersey in 1874.

Tenure in Congress

Hardenbergh was elected as a Democrat to the Forty-fourth and Forty-fifth Congresses, serving in office from March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1879, but declined to be a candidate for renomination in 1878. He was elected president of the Hudson County National Bank in 1878. He was elected to the Forty-seventh Congress, serving in office from March 4, 1881 – March 3, 1883, but was not a candidate for renomination in 1882. Hardenbergh was one of the rare Democrats willing to buck his party's overwhelming support for the exclusion of Chinese laborers in 1882. He condemned the prejudice which was a key force in the push for Chinese exclusion, asking "Is freedom incompatible with any race . . . ?" Hardenbergh was well aware of the stifling party pressure to support exclusion, but responded that "In the vindication of human rights I will know no party.13 Cong. Rec. Appendix 93

Later career

After leaving Congress, he was appointed a member of the Jersey City Board of Finance and Taxation in 1883-1889, and was appointed by Governor

Leon Abbett Leon Abbett (October 8, 1836December 4, 1894) was an American Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party politician and lawyer who served two nonconsecutive terms as the 26th Governor of New Jersey from 1884 to 1887 and 1890 to 1893. His ...

as a trustee of the State reform school in 1884.

Death and burial

He died in Jersey City on October 5, 1889. He was interred in Mount Pleasant Cemetery in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

Family

Hardenbergh was the son of Cornelius Low Hardenbergh (1790-1851), a mayor of

New Brunswick, New Jersey New Brunswick is a city (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

from 1792 to 1841, and was a graduate of that institution. His great-grandfather,

Jacob Rutsen Hardenbergh Jacob Rutsen Hardenbergh (22 February 1735/6 – 30 October 1790) was an American Dutch Reformed clergyman, colonial and state legislator, and educator. Hardenbergh was a founder of Queen's College—now Rutgers, The State University of New J ...

, helped found Rutgers in 1766 as Queen's College, and served as the institution's first President from 1786 to 1790. His 3rd great-grandfather was

Johannes Hardenbergh Major Johannes Hardenbergh (1670–1745), also known as Sir Johannes Hardenbergh, was the owner of the Hardenbergh patent of land in the Catskill Mountains. Biography He was born in Albany, New York, in 1670. His father's name was Gerrit, and he ...

, and the town of

Hardenburgh, New York Hardenburgh is a town located in the western part of Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 221 at the 2020 census.US Census Bureau, 2020 Census Report Hardenburgh, New York https://www.census.gov/search-results.html?searchType ...

is named after him. Hardenbergh is also a descendant of New Paltz Patentee (founder) and Huguenot Louis DuBois, and the

Hasbrouck family The Hasbrouck family was an early immigrant family to Ulster County, New York, and helped found New Paltz, New York. The Hasbrouck family were French Huguenots who fled persecution in France by moving to Germany, and then the United States. T ...

of Ulster County, New York. His second cousin, Cornelius A.J. Hardenbergh, was Town Supervisor of

Shawangunk, New York Shawangunk is a town in southwestern Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 13,563 at the 2020 census. The town takes its name from its largest stream, the Shawangunk Kill. The name Shawangunk is from the language of the Le ...

from 1861 to 1867 and 1876 to 1882, and a member of the New York State Assembly from 1885 to 1886. His third cousin,

Jacob Hardenbergh Jacob Hardenbergh (May 1823 New Paltz, Ulster County, New York – April 29, 1872 Albany, New York) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. Life He was the son of Richard Hardenbergh (1791–1870) and Catharine Maria (Crispell) Har ...

, served as a New York State Senator from 1870 to 1872.

Notes

References

External links

Augustus Albert Hardenbergh
at

The Political Graveyard The Political Graveyard is a website and database that catalogues information on more than 277,000 Politics of the United States, American political figures and List of United States political families, political families, along with other informa ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hardenbergh, Augustus A. 1830 births 1889 deaths American politicians of Dutch descent Democratic Party members of the New Jersey General Assembly Burials at Mount Pleasant Cemetery (Newark, New Jersey) People from Demarest, New Jersey Politicians from Jersey City, New Jersey Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New Jersey Politicians from New Brunswick, New Jersey Hardenbergh family 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the New Jersey Legislature