Henry Beekman (January 4, 1687 – January 3, 1775) was a prominent colonial American politician and landowner.

Early life

Beekman was born in

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 ...

. the son of Judge Hendrick "Henry" Beekman (1652–1716) and his wife, Johanna (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

de Loper) Davidson Beekman. His mother was the widow of Joris Davidson. His father served as a justice of the peace for Ulster County. His sister was Cornelia Beekman, who married Gilbert Livingston, a son of Robert Livingston, 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 ...

. Through his sister Cornelia, he was uncle to Margaret and Joanna Livingston. Margaret married

Peter Stuyvesant Peter Stuyvesant ( – August 1672)Mooney, James E. "Stuyvesant, Peter" in p.1256 was a Dutch colonial administrator who served as the Directors of New Netherland, director-general of New Netherland from 1647 to 1664, when the colony was pro ...

, a great-grandson of the

(who was the last Dutch director-general of New Netherland) and Joanna married

Pierre Van Cortlandt Pierre Van Cortlandt (January 10, 1721 – May 1, 1814) was an American politician who served as the first lieutenant governor of New York. He was first elected to the New York Assembly in March 1768 and served in that body as the representative ...

, the first

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

of the

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 * ...

. His paternal grandparents were Catalina (née de Boogh) Beekman and

Wilhelmus Beekman Wilhelmus Hendricksen Beekman (April 28, 1623 – September 21, 1707) – also known as William Beekman and Willem Beekman (or Beeckman) – was a Dutch immigrant to America who came to New Amsterdam (now New York City) from the Netherlands on May ...

, who served as the governor of the Colony of Swedes and acting

mayor of New York City The mayor of New York City, officially mayor of the City of New York, is head of the executive branch of the government of New York City and the chief executive of New York City. The Mayoralty in the United States, mayor's office administers all ...

from 1682 to 1683 under Governor Anthony Brockholls. His uncle Gerardus Beekman was elected president of the council and acting governor of the Province of New York in 1710. His maternal grandparents were Captain Jacob de Loper and Cornelia Melyn (a daughter of Cornelius Melyn,

Patroon In the United States, a patroon (; from Dutch '' patroon'' ) was a landholder with manorial rights to large tracts of land in the 17th-century Dutch colony of New Netherland on the east coast of North America. Through the Charter of Free ...

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...

Career

From his father, Beekman inherited the large Beekman estate consisting of two large tracts of land in

Dutchess County Dutchess County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 295,911. The county seat is the city of Poughkeepsie. The county was created in 1683, one of New York's first twelve counties, and later org ...

in the Province of New York. One in the area of

Rhinebeck, New York Rhinebeck is a village (New York), village in the Rhinebeck (town), New York, town of Rhinebeck in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The population was 2,657 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Kiryas Joel–Poughkeepsie–Newburgh metr ...

and the other, called the "Back Lots" or Beekman Patent, in the south east corner of Dutchess County. From 1725 to 1759, he represented Dutchess County in 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 ...

Personal life

Beekman was twice married. His first wife was Janet Livingston (1703–1724), a daughter of Robert Livingston the Younger. Together, they were the parents of: * Margaret Beekman (1724–1800), who married Robert Livingston, a cousin of Gilbert and the only child of Robert Livingston of Clermont. After his first wife's death in 1724, he married Gertrude van Cortlandt (1682–1777) in 1726. Gertrude was a daughter of

Stephanus Van Cortlandt Stephanus van Cortlandt (May 7, 1643 – November 25, 1700) was the first native-born mayor of New York City, a position which he held from 1677 to 1678 and from 1686 to 1688. He was the patroon of Van Cortlandt Manor and was on the governor ...

, the 10th and 17th

Mayor of New York City The mayor of New York City, officially mayor of the City of New York, is head of the executive branch of the government of New York City and the chief executive of New York City. The Mayoralty in the United States, mayor's office administers all ...

. Beekman died in Rhinebeck, New York on January 3, 1775. His widow died two years later on March 23, 1777.

Descendants

Through his daughter Margaret, he was a grandfather of Robert R. Livingston, the Chancellor of New York; Janet Livingston (wife of Gen.

Richard Montgomery Richard Montgomery (2 December 1738 – 31 December 1775) was an Irish-born American military officer who first served in the British Army. He later became a major general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, and ...

); Margaret Livingston (wife of Thomas Tillotson, an army surgeon who became New York Secretary of State); Henry Beekman Livingston, who commanded the 4th New York Regiment at the

Battles of Saratoga The Battles of Saratoga (September 19 and October 7, 1777) were two battles between the American Continental Army and the British Army fought near Saratoga, New York, concluding the Saratoga campaign in the American Revolutionary War. The seco ...

and

Monmouth Monmouth ( or ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated on where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. The population in the 2011 census was 10,508, rising from 8 ...

and during the winter at

Valley Forge Valley Forge was the winter encampment of the Continental Army, under the command of George Washington, during the American Revolutionary War. The Valley Forge encampment lasted six months, from December 19, 1777, to June 19, 1778. It was the t ...

and married Ann Hume Shippen, daughter of Prof. Dr. William Shippen; Catharine Livingston (who married Freeborn Garrettson); John R. Livingston, a merchant who married Margaret Sheafe and, after her death, Eliza McEvers; Gertrude Livingston (wife of Gov. Morgan Lewis); Joanna Livingston (wife of Peter R. Livingston, acting

Lieutenant Governor of New York The lieutenant governor of New York is a Constitution of New York, constitutional office in the executive branch of the Government of the State of New York. It is the second highest-ranking official in state government. The lieutenant governo ...

); Alida Livingston (wife of John Armstrong Jr., a

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

U.S. Secretary of War The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of the C ...

, and U.S. Minister to France); and

Edward Livingston Edward Livingston (May 28, 1764May 23, 1836) was an American jurist, statesman and slaveholder. Database at He was an influential figure in the drafting of the Louisiana Civil Code of 1825, a civil code based largely on the Napoleonic Code. Li ...

, a

and U.S. Secretary of State who married Mary McEvers, the sister of

Auguste Davezac Auguste Davezac (May 30, 1780 – February 15, 1851) was a Saint Dominican-American diplomat who served twice as United States Ambassador to the Netherlands. Biography Auguste Genevieve Valentin D'Avezac was born in May, 1780, near Aux Cayes in ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beekman, Henry 1687 births 1775 deaths Livingston family People from colonial New York Members of the New York General Assembly Beekman family