The Clermont State Historic Site, also known as the Clermont estate, the Clermont Manor or just Clermont, is a

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

State Historic Site in southwestern

Columbia County, New York Columbia County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 61,570. The county seat is Hudson, New York, Hudson. The name comes from th ...

, United States. It protects the former estate of the

Livingston family The Livingston family of New York (state), 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 s ...

, seven generations of whom lived on the site over more than two centuries.

History

The name Clermont derives from "clear mountain" in French and was inspired by the view of the

Catskill Mountains The Catskill Mountains, also known as the Catskills, are a physiographic province and subrange of the larger Appalachian Mountains, located in southeastern New York. As a cultural and geographic region, the Catskills are generally defined a ...

across the

Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...

from the estate. The estate was established by Robert Livingston of the famous

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. Located between the Hudson River and the Massachusetts border, the Livingston Manor was locate ...

, in 1728; while most of the manor was inherited by the eldest son Philip Livingston, in the southwest corner, later named Clermont, was willed to Robert. The original house was built about 1740. Robert Livingston of Clermont died on June 27, 1775, and the estate passed to his son, Robert, who was known as 'Judge Livingston' to distinguish him from his father. Judge Livingston was a member of the

New York General Assembly The General Assembly of New York, commonly known internationally as the New York General Assembly, and domestically simply as General Assembly, was the Parliamentary sovereignty, supreme Legislature, legislative body of the Province of New York d ...

from 1759 to 1768, served as judge of the admiralty court from 1760 to 1763 and was a delegate to the

Stamp Act Congress The Stamp Act Congress (October 7 – 25, 1765), also known as the Continental Congress of 1765, was a meeting held in New York City in the colonial Province of New York. It included representatives from most of the British colonies in Nort ...

of 1765. He married Margaret Beekman, daughter of Colonel Henry Beekman. Their son, Robert R. Livingston, later known as "Chancellor", was a

Founding Father of the United States The Founding Fathers of the United States, often simply referred to as the Founding Fathers or the Founders, were a group of late-18th-century American Revolution, American revolutionary leaders who United Colonies, united the Thirteen Colon ...

and served on the

Committee of Five The Committee of Five of the Second Continental Congress was a group of five members who drafted and presented to the full Congress in Pennsylvania State House what would become the United States Declaration of Independence of July 4, 1776. Th ...

that drafted the

United States Declaration of Independence The Declaration of Independence, formally The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen States of America in the original printing, is the founding document of the United States. On July 4, 1776, it was adopted unanimously by the Second Continen ...

. Judge Robert died about six months after his father, on December 9, 1775.

Burning and rebuilding

In October 1777, British ships sailed upriver from New York City in support of General John Burgoyne who was north of Albany. That same force had already stormed two forts in the Hudson Highlands and burned

Kingston, New York Kingston is the only Administrative divisions of New York#City, city in, and the county seat of, Ulster County, New York, United States. It is north of New York City and south of Albany, New York, Albany. The city's metropolitan area is grou ...

. Major General John Vaughan led a raiding party to Clermont and burned Livingston's home because of the family's role in the

rebellion Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...

. Margaret Beekman Livingston rebuilt the family home between 1779 and 1782. Robert R. Livingston became the estate's most prominent resident. Chancellor Livingston administered the oath of office to President George Washington, became Secretary of Foreign Affairs, and negotiated the

Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase () was the acquisition of the Louisiana (New France), territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. This consisted of most of the land in the Mississippi River#Watershed, Mississipp ...

."Clermont State Historic Site", NYS Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation
/ref> In 1793, Robert Livingston built a second mansion on the property, confusingly named "Clermont", which subsequently became known as both "Arryl House" and "Idele", which burned in 1909. The ruins of that house are still visible at the south end of the property. He also partnered with

Robert Fulton Robert Fulton (November 14, 1765 – February 24, 1815) was an American engineer and inventor who is widely credited with developing the world's first commercially successful steamboat, the (also known as ''Clermont''). In 1807, that steamboat ...

in 1807, to create the first commercially successful

steamboat A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. The term ''steamboat'' is used to refer to small steam-powered vessels worki ...

, the ''

North River Steamboat The ''North River Steamboat'' or ''North River'', colloquially known as the ''Clermont'', is widely regarded as the world's first vessel to demonstrate the viability of using steam propulsion for commercial water transportation. Built in 1807, ...

'', later known as the ''Clermont'', which stopped at the house on its inaugural trip."A Brief History of Clermony", Friends of Clermont
The home's final Livingston owners were John Henry Livingston and his wife Alice. They added to the home and greatly valued the home's important historical role. Alice Livingston was responsible for creating many of the landscaped gardens that are continued to this day. Following John Henry's death, Alice turned the mansion and property over to the state in 1962 so that all the people of New York could experience it.

Present day

The house is now a

New York State Historic Site The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (NYS OPRHP) is a state agency within the New York State Executive Department Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Law § 3.03. "The office of parks, recreation and h ...

and was designated a

United States National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

in 1972. and It is a

contributing property In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic dist ...

to another National Historic Landmark, the

Hudson River Historic District The Hudson River Historic District, also known as Hudson River Heritage Historic District, is the largest Federally designated historic district (United States), district on the mainland of the contiguous United States.The Nantucket Historic Di ...

. Although located in the town of Clermont, its mailing address is in the nearby town of Germantown.

References

Notes Further reading * *Moore, Lela (1921
''A Brief History of Tivoli''
(pamphlet) pp. 11–14

External links

Friends of Clermont websiteClermont State Historic Site, NYS Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation
*

Historic American Buildings Survey The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...

(HABS): ** ** {{Authority control Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) American Revolutionary War sites Museums in Columbia County, New York Biographical museums in New York (state) New York (state) historic sites National Historic Landmarks in New York (state) Livingston family residences Houses completed in 1782 Hudson River Historic house museums in New York (state) Houses in Columbia County, New York Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area Historic American Buildings Survey in New York (state) Historic district contributing properties in New York (state) National Register of Historic Places in Columbia County, New York 1782 establishments in New York (state) Homes of United States Founding Fathers Gilded Age mansions

History

Burning and rebuilding

Present day

See also

References

External links