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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 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 ...
.


Early life

Beeckman was born on April 15, 1866, in
New York City, New York New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on New York Harbor, one of the world's largest natural harb ...
. He was the son of Gilbert Livingston Beeckman and Margaret Atherton (
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 ...
Foster) Beeckman. His sister, Katherine Livingston Beeckman, was married to Louis Lasher Lorillard, the son of
Pierre Lorillard III Pierre Lorillard III (October 20, 1796 – October 6, 1867) was the grandson of Pierre Abraham Lorillard, the founder of P. Lorillard and Company. Heir to a great tobacco fortune, Lorillard owned no less than of undeveloped land in New York's O ...
, and another sister, Martha Beeckman, was married to New York banker
Amos Tuck French Amos Tuck French (July 20, 1863 – November 15, 1941) was an American banker who was prominent in society. Early life French was born on July 20, 1863, in Boston, Massachusetts. He was the son of Ellen (née Tuck) French (1838–1915) and Fran ...
. His family ancestry can be traced back to Dutch settlers of New Amsterdam dating to 1654. His ancestors include
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 ...
, Declaration signer
Philip Livingston Philip Livingston (January 15, 1716 – June 12, 1778) was an American Founding Father, merchant, politician, and slave trader from New York City. He represented New York at the October 1774 First Continental Congress, where he favored imposi ...
and "The Chancellor" Robert Livingston. His family owned the financial firm Lapsley Beeckman & Co. When Beeckman was young, his family moved to
Newport, Rhode Island Newport is a seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Rhode Island, United States. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and nort ...
. He left school at the age of sixteen to become a stockbroker.


Career

At the age of 16, Beeckman began his career at a stock brokerage firm in New York. At age 21, Beeckman became one of the youngest ever members of the
New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is the List of stock exchanges, largest stock excha ...
, being a member from 1887 until 1906. By 1916, he retired from the brokerage business. After this time, he was a member of the board of directors of several corporations, including the Industrial Trust Company, the Newport Trust Company, the
International Silver Company The International Silver Company (1898–1983, stopped making silver), later known as Insilco Corporation and also known as the ISC, was formed in Meriden, Connecticut as a corporation banding together many existing silver companies in the i ...
, and the
Newport Casino The Newport Casino is an athletic complex and recreation center located at 180–200 Bellevue Avenue, Newport, Rhode Island in the Bellevue Avenue/Casino Historic District. Built in 1879–1881 by ''New York Herald'' publisher James Gor ...
.


Sportsman

Beeckman was also a prominent polo player and tennis player. He played in the finals of the 1886 United States National Tennis Championships, which took place in Newport. He lost to defending champion
Richard Sears Richard Sears may refer to: *Richard Warren Sears (1863–1914), founder of Sears, Roebuck and Co. * Richard Sears (pilgrim) (1595–1676), early settler of Yarmouth, Cape Cod, Massachusetts *Richard Sears (tennis) Richard Dudley Sears (October ...
with the score was 4–6, 6–1, 6–3, 6–4.


Political career

Beeckman's first political office was a Rhode Island state Representative in the
General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...
from Newport, from 1908 to 1912. At the time, Beeckman said "he was entering active politics because he believed it to be his duty. He felt the time had come for the step, which he had weighed carefully before accepting the responsibilities the office would incur." He was a state Senator from 1912 to 1914, until his election Elected 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 ...
in 1914, he held the office for three terms from January 5, 1915, to January 4, 1921.Sobel, Robert and John Raimo. ''Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789-1978''. Greenwood Press, 1988. During his administration, Beeckman pushed for reforms in State institutions including hospitals, prisons, and insane asylums, established an inheritance tax, and established a state Parole Board. Beeckman advocated for removing the property qualification for Rhode Island voters. He was the governor during the First World War. In formally greeting Marshall
Joffre Joseph Jacques Césaire Joffre , (; 12 January 1852 – 3 January 1931) was a French general who served as Commander-in-Chief of French forces on the Western Front from the start of World War I until the end of 1916. He is best known for re ...
in Boston alongside other New England governors, Beeckman "expressed the hope that France might find in American the same comfort and help that this country he United Statesfound in France in the dark days of the Revolution." He visited Rhode Island troops on the battlefield in France and pushed for state appropriations to provide for dependent families of servicemen. Beeckman was governor during the
Spanish flu The 1918–1920 flu pandemic, also known as the Great Influenza epidemic or by the common misnomer Spanish flu, was an exceptionally deadly global influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 subtype of the influenza A virus. The earliest docum ...
pandemic, which struck the state in early September 1918. Acting on the advice of superintendent of health
Charles V. Chapin Charles Value Chapin (January 17, 1856 – January 31, 1941) was an American pioneer in public health research and practice during the Progressive Era. He was superintendent of health for Providence, Rhode Island between 1884 and 1932. He es ...
, Beeckman delayed issuing a closure order until October 6. The peak of the pandemic occurred October 3–9, with over 6,700 cases reported. Beeckman lifted the closure order on October 25. A second, smaller wave hit Rhode Island schools in January, and the flu was declared eradicated in Rhode Island in February 1919. A close friend of then Ohio Senator
Warren G. Harding Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2, 1865 – August 2, 1923) was the 29th president of the United States, serving from 1921 until his death in 1923. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he was one of the most ...
, he was mentioned as a possible vice presidential candidate in 1920, but ultimately
Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States, serving from 1923 to 1929. A Republican Party (United States), Republican lawyer from Massachusetts, he previously ...
was selected and became president upon Harding's death in 1923. After stepping down from the governorship, he unsuccessfully ran in 1922 to represent Rhode Island in the
United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
, losing to the incumbent Democratic senator,
Peter Goelet Gerry Peter Goelet Gerry (September 18, 1879 – October 31, 1957) was an American lawyer and politician who served in the United States House of Representatives and later, as a U.S. Senator from Rhode Island. He is the only U.S. Senator in American hi ...
. During the campaign, it was alleged that Beeckman and his campaign manager, J. Henry Reuter, attempted to bribe Herve J. Lagage with $1,500. Beeckman admitted to the payment, but "insist dthat it was their understanding that Lagace had agreed to work for Beeckman and that the money paid to him was to be used for legitimate expenses of the campaign."


Personal life

Beeckman was married first to Eleanor Thomas of
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, in 1902. She was the daughter of Gen. Samuel Russell Thomas and Ann Augusta (née Porter) Thomas and the sister of
Edward Russell Thomas Edward Russell Thomas (December 30, 1875 – July 6, 1926) was an American businessman and sportsman. Early life and education Edward Russell Thomas was born in Columbus, Ohio on December 30, 1875. He was a son of Ann Augusta (née Porter) Thom ...
. Upon her father's death in 1903, she inherited the income from half of his $10,000,000 estate. After his first wife's death in 1920, he remarried Edna (née Marston) Burke at
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, in September 1923. Edna, who was divorced from Oscar Meech Burke, was the daughter of Edwin Sprague Marston, the former president and chairman of the board of directors of the Farmers' Loan & Trust Company (predecessor firm of
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), and Emma Bennett (née Doty) Marston. He had no children. He was an active member of the
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.The Political Graveyard: Freemasons, politicians, Rhode Island
at politicalgraveyard.com
In 1911, while staying at the Ritz Hotel in Paris during a tour of France, "a drunken man" lurched in front of Beeckman and his wife's automobile. "The drunken man in the roadway was killed on the spot," Beeckman broke his arm and cut his head, and despite being thrown ten feet from the car, his wife was not injured. In 1912, it was reported that "R. Livingston Beeckman, who has survived more railroad, polo, and yachting accidents than any other member of Newport society," was in a railroad accident in
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which he escaped without serious injury. He died on January 21, 1935, at his winter home in
Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara (, meaning ) is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States excepting A ...
, of a heart attack. He was interred at
Sleepy Hollow Cemetery Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York, is the cemetery, final resting place of numerous famous figures, including Washington Irving, whose 1820 short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is set in the adjacent burying ground of the ...
in
Sleepy Hollow, New York Sleepy Hollow is a village in the town of Mount Pleasant, New York, Mount Pleasant in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States. The village is located on the east bank of the Hudson River, about ...
. After his death, his widow remarried to Archibald Gourley Thacher in 1937.


Residences

In 1903, Beeckman purchased the former home of Wallace C. Andrews at 854
Fifth Avenue Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan in New York City. The avenue runs south from 143rd Street (Manhattan), West 143rd Street in Harlem to Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. The se ...
between 66th and 67th Streets for $325,000. He hired architects
Warren & Wetmore Warren and Wetmore was an architecture firm based in New York City, a partnership established about 1889 by Whitney Warren (1864–1943) and Charles D. Wetmore (1866–1941). They had one of the most extensive practices of their time, and were e ...
to build him a six-story Beaux-Arts residence which was completed in 1905. They owned the home until 1912 when they decided to live full-time in Rhode Island and, after leasing it to Pittsburgh banker Benjamin Thaw Sr. for a number of years, the home was sold to George Grant Mason for $700,000. The Beeckman's also owned a winter home in
Providence, Rhode Island Providence () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Rhode Island, most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, Rhode Island, Providence County, it is o ...
, which was damaged by a fire in January 1912. Their Newport estate, known as Lands End, was also damaged by a fire in September 1912. From 1913 to 1921, Beeckman leased 13 Brown Street, the Providence winter home of industrialist and Republican party supporter
Alfred M. Coats Alfred M. Coats (April 12, 1869 – July 21, 1942) was a Scottish-born American businessman who served as general manager of the J. & P. Coats plant in Pawtucket and as Rhode Island’s Federal Food Administrator during World War I. Early life ...
, which served as the Rhode Island executive mansion while Beeckman was in office as governor. He later became a winter resident of
Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara (, meaning ) is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States excepting A ...
, where he rented the home of Arthur Meeker, although he was renting the Edward Ryerson house at the time of his death.


References

Notes Sources {{DEFAULTSORT:Beeckman, Robert Livingston 1866 births 1935 deaths Republican Party governors of Rhode Island Burials at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery 19th-century male tennis players 19th-century American sportsmen American male tennis players Republican Party Rhode Island state senators Livingston family Beekman family 20th-century members of the Rhode Island General Assembly