Maj. Robert Gilbert Livingston (December 24, 1712 – August 27, 1789) was an American merchant and a

Loyalist Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...

during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

Early life

Livingston was born on December 24, 1712, in

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

in the

Province of New York The Province of New York was a British proprietary colony and later a royal colony on the northeast coast of North America from 1664 to 1783. It extended from Long Island on the Atlantic, up the Hudson River and Mohawk River valleys to ...

, a part of

British America British America collectively refers to various British colonization of the Americas, colonies of Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and its predecessors states in the Americas prior to the conclusion of the American Revolutionary War in 1 ...

. He was the eldest of fourteen children born to Cornelia (

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 ...

Beekman) Livingston (1693–1742) and Gilbert Livingston (1690–1746), a lawyer and politician in colonial New York. Among his siblings were Alida Livingston (wife of Jacob Rutsen and Hendrick van Rensselaer), Joanna Livingston (wife of

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 ...

), Margaret Livingston (wife of

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 ...

). His maternal grandparents were Joanna (née Lopers) Beekman and

Hendrick Beekman Col. Hendrick "Henry" Beekman JP (March 9, 1652 – 1716), was a colonial American judge and politician. Early life Beekman was born on March 9, 1652, in Kingston. He was the eldest son of the former Catalina de Boogh and Wilhelmus Beekman. H ...

, a large landowner, Colonel of Militia, and 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 ...

for over 40 years. His father was a younger son of Alida (née Schuyler) Van Rensselaer Livingston and

Robert Livingston the Elder Robert Livingston the Elder (13 December 1654 – 1728) was a Scottish-born merchant and government official in the Province of New York. He was granted a patent to 160,000 acres (650 km2/ 250 sq mi) of land along the Hudson River, becomin ...

, 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 ...

, who amassed one of the largest fortunes in 17th-century New York.

Career

During the

, Livingston was a prominent

who fought with the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

, reaching the rank of

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

. Livingston was a successful merchant and had a shop next to Samuel Hake, his son-in-law who was a wholesale merchant.

Personal life

In 1740, Livingston was married to Catharina McPheadres (1722–1792), a daughter of John McPheadris and Helena (née Johnson) McPheadris. Together, they were the parents of: * Robert Gilbert Livingston Jr. (1749–1791), who married Margaret Hude (1751–1824). * Helen Livingston (1751–1791), who married Samuel Hake,

Commissary General A commissary is a government official charged with oversight or an ecclesiastical official who exercises in special circumstances the jurisdiction of a bishop. In many countries, the term is used as an administrative or police title. It often c ...

of the British Army in North America. * Catherine Livingston (1756–1829), who married John Reade (1745–1808). * Gilbert Robert Livingston (1758–1816), who married Martha De Lancey Kane (1758–1843). * Henry Gilbert Livingston (1758–1817), who married Ann Nutter. * Simon Johnson Livingston (b. 1762) Livingston died on August 27, 1789, in

Poughkeepsie, New York Poughkeepsie ( ) is a city within the Poughkeepsie (town), New York, Town of Poughkeepsie, New York (state), New York. It is the county seat of Dutchess County, New York, Dutchess County, with a 2020 census population of 31,577. Poughkeepsie i ...

"after a tedious illness at an advanced age". His widow died on August 5, 1792, also in Poughkeepsie.

Descendants

Through his daughter Catherine, he was a grandfather of Catherine Livingston Reade (1777–1863), who married her cousin Nicholas William Stuyvesant, a great-great-grandson of

, the last Dutch

Director-General of New Amsterdam This is a list of Directors, appointed by the Dutch West India Company, of the 17th century Dutch province of New Netherland (''Nieuw-Nederland'' in Dutch) in North America. Only the last, Peter Stuyvesant, held the title of Director General. ...

. Through his daughter Helen, he was a grandfather of Helen Livingston Hake (1773–1807), who married Frederic de Peyster and was the mother of New York City lawyer Frederic de Peyster. Livingston left an extensive estate, including three farms in

Otsego County, New York Otsego County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,524. The county seat is Cooperstown. The county's population center is Oneonta. The name ''Otsego'' is from a Mohawk or Oneida word m ...

and extensive lands in

Duchess County, New York 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 orga ...

, to his granddaughter Helen. Through his son Gilbert Robert, he was a great-grandfather of Gilbert Livingston Beeckman, a prominent New York merchant who was the father of

Robert Livingston Beeckman Robert Livingston Beeckman (April 15, 1866 – January 21, 1935) was an American stockbroker, sportsman, and politician who served as the 52nd Governor of Rhode Island. Early life Beeckman was born on April 15, 1866, in New York City, New York. ...

, who served as the

Governor of Rhode Island The governor of Rhode Island is the head of government of the U.S. state of Rhode Island and serves as commander-in-chief of the state's Army National Guard and Air National Guard. The current governor is Dan McKee, a member of the Democrati ...

References

External links

Robert Gilbert Livingston
portrait attributed to John Mare,

Frick Art Reference Library Photoarchive The Frick Art Research Library’s Photoarchive in New York is a study collection of more than 1.5 million photographic reproductions of works of art from the fourth to the mid-twentieth century. It was founded in 1920 by Helen Clay Frick to faci ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Livingston, Robert Gilbert 1712 births 1789 deaths Robert Gilbert Loyalist military personnel of the American Revolutionary War Loyalists in the American Revolution from New York (state) People from Kingston, New York British America army officers Merchants from colonial New York 18th-century American merchants