Lewis Gouverneur Morris (August 19, 1808 – September 19, 1900) was an American maritime

advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. List of country legal systems, Different countries and legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a ba ...

and sheep and cattle

breeder A breeder is a person who selectively breeds carefully selected mates, normally of the same breed, to sexually reproduce offspring with specific, consistently replicable qualities and characteristics. This might be as a farmer, agriculturalist ...

who was a member of the prominent Morris family of Morissania.

Early life

Morris was born on August 19, 1808, in

Claverack, New York Claverack is a town in Columbia County, New York, United States. The population was 6,058 at the 2020 census.US Census Bureau, 2020 Census Results, Claverack town, Columbia County, New York QuickFacts https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/claverackt ...

. He was the youngest son of Robert Richard Morris and Frances Ludlam. His elder sister, Mary Morris, was married to James Alexander Hamilton, third son of

Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the first U.S. secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795 dur ...

and

Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton Elizabeth Hamilton (née Schuyler ; August 9, 1757 – November 9, 1854) was an American socialite and philanthropist. She was the wife of Founding Fathers of the United States, American Founding Father Alexander Hamilton and was a passionat ...

. His paternal grandparents were Richard Morris, Chief Justice of the

New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the superior court in the Judiciary of New York. It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as a court of civil ju ...

, and Sarah (

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 ...

Ludlow) Morris, the sister of William Henry Ludlow. His great uncle was

Gouverneur Morris Jr. Gouverneur Morris Jr. (February 9, 1813 – August 20, 1888) was an American railroad executive and the son of a founding father of the United States, Gouverneur Morris. Early life Gouverneur Morris was born on February 9, 1813, Morrisania, Bro ...

and his great-great uncle was

Gouverneur Morris Gouverneur Morris ( ; January 31, 1752 – November 6, 1816) was an American statesman, a Founding Father of the United States, and a signatory to the Articles of Confederation and the United States Constitution. He wrote the Preamble to the ...

, 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 ...

, signatory to the

Articles of Confederation The Articles of Confederation, officially the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, was an agreement and early body of law in the Thirteen Colonies, which served as the nation's first Constitution, frame of government during the Ameri ...

and

U.S. Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. Originally including seven articles, the Constituti ...

who wrote the

Preamble to the United States Constitution The Preamble to the United States Constitution, beginning with the words We the People, is a brief introductory statement of the Constitution's fundamental purposes and guiding principles. Courts have referred to it as reliable evidence of ...

and has been called the "Penman of the Constitution.".

Career

Morris, who inherited "Mt. Fordham", his family's estate, was a resident of Morris Heights,

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 * ...

, maintained a small farm at Fordham, until it was encroached upon. He then purchased another farm in Scarsdale and on these farms bred sheep and cattle. In 1838, he took up his lifelong fight to restore and improve the

Harlem River The Harlem River is an tidal strait in New York City, flowing between the Hudson River and the East River and separating the island of Manhattan from the Bronx on the United States mainland. The northern stretch, also called the Spuyten Duyvi ...

. After careful legal consultation and planning, on September 14, 1838, he led a raid on the Macombs Dam, and restored the channel. After a long legal battle with the dam's owner, he persevered in ''Renwick v. Morris''. The removal of the dam was justified as being a

public nuisance In English criminal law, public nuisance is an act, condition or thing that is illegal because it interferes with the rights of the general public. In Australia In ''Kent v Johnson'', the Supreme Court of the ACT held that public nuisance is ...

in violation of the original provisions of the dam's public authorization. Morris also championed the design of the

Croton Aqueduct The Croton Aqueduct or Old Croton Aqueduct was a large and complex water supply network, water distribution system constructed for New York City between 1837 and 1842. The great aqueduct (water supply), aqueducts, which were among the first in t ...

to soar over the Harlem River at High Bridge, rather than block the channel. He also pushed to see the

Harlem River Ship Canal Spuyten Duyvil Creek () is a short tidal estuary in New York City connecting the Hudson River to the Harlem River Ship Canal and then on to the Harlem River. The confluence of the three water bodies separate the island of Manhattan from t ...

become a reality. He was president of the New York State Agricultural Society and a member of the

Royal Agricultural Society of England The Royal Agricultural Society of England (RASE) promotes the scientific development of English agriculture. It was established in 1838 with the motto "Practice with Science" and was known as the English Agricultural Society until it received i ...

Military service

In 1840, Morris was appointed inspector of the

New York State Militia The New York Guard (NYG) is the State Defense Force (SDF) of New York State, and is one of the four branches of the New York Military Forces (NYMF), the other three branches being the New York Army National Guard, New York Air National Guard ...

, 4th Division, with the rank of

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

. During the U.S. Civil War, he was prominent and active in support of the Union, serving as a member of the War Committee. In August 1862, he again was appointed Colonel and was noted for recruiting the 135th Regiment of Infantry, later known as the

6th New York Heavy Artillery Regiment The 6th Regiment New York Heavy Artillery, U.S. Volunteers, the " Anthony Wayne Guard", was an artillery regiment of the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was originally mustered in as the 135th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment, ...

, under the command of Brigadier Gen. William H. Morris, son of

George Pope Morris George Pope Morris (October 10, 1802 – July 6, 1864) was an American editor, poet, and songwriter. Life and work With Nathaniel Parker Willis, he co-founded the daily ''New York Evening Mirror''Sova, Dawn B. ''Edgar Allan Poe: A to Z''. New Yo ...

, the poet, although neither were members of his Morris family.

Personal life

In July 1839, he married Emily Lorillard (1819–1850), the daughter of Jacob Lorillard (1774–1836) and granddaughter of Pierre Abraham Lorillard, founder of the

Lorillard Tobacco Company Lorillard Tobacco Company was an American tobacco company that marketed cigarettes under the brand names Newport (cigarette), Newport, Maverick (cigarette), Maverick, Old Gold (cigarette), Old Gold, Kent (cigarette), Kent, True (cigarette), True, ...

. Her sister Eliza Meier Lorillard married

Nathaniel Platt Bailey Nathaniel Platt Bailey (June 7, 1809 – October 12, 1891) was an American merchant and philanthropist. Early life Bailey was born on June 7, 1809, at Chateangay near Plattsburgh, New York. He was the son of William Bailey (1763–1840) and hi ...

. Together, they were the parents of four sons, two of whom died young. Their two surviving sons were: * Fordham Morris (1842–1909), who married Annie Louisa Westcott, daughter of Joseph H. Westcott, in 1872. * Francis Morris (1844–1883), who married Harriet Hall Bedlow, daughter of Henry Bedlow. After his death, she married John Rex Guelph-Norman (1861–1932), who claimed to be the son of King

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910. The second child ...

and rightful heir to the throne, in 1898. They divorced after she discovered he had a wife in India. Morris died at his home, Mt. Fordham, on September 19, 1900, at the age of 92.

Descendants

Through his son Fordham, he was the grandfather of Emily Lorillard Morris, who married Rolaz Horace Gallatin, son of Frederic Gallatin and Almy Goelet (née Gerry), and cousin of

Albert Eugene Gallatin Albert Eugene Gallatin (July 23, 1881 – June 15, 1952) was an American artist. He wrote about, collected, exhibited, and created works of art. Called "one of the great figures in early 20th-century American culture," he was a leading proponent ...

and nephew of Commodore

Elbridge Thomas Gerry Elbridge Thomas Gerry (December 25, 1837 – February 18, 1927), usually called "Commodore" Gerry due to the office he held with the New York Yacht Club from 1886 to 1892, was an American lawyer and reformer. His paternal grandfather was U.S. ...

, in April 1896. Through his son Francis, he was the grandfather of Lewis Gouverneur Morris Jr. (1882–1967), the original proprietor of the Lewis G. Morris House, was married to Princess Anita of Braganza (1886–1977), the daughter of William Rhinelander Stewart and widow of

Prince Miguel, Duke of Viseu Prince Miguel of Braganza, Duke of Viseu (22 September 1878 – 21 February 1923) was a member of the exiled branch of the House of Braganza. The eldest son of the Miguelist pretender to the throne of Portugal, he married an American heiress in 190 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Lewis G. 1808 births 1900 deaths Morris family (Morrisania and New Jersey) Lorillard family People from the Bronx