Robert Livingston Tillotson (1788 – July 22, 1878) was an American lawyer and politician.
Robert L. Tillotson | |
|---|---|
| U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York | |
| In office 1819–1828 | |
| Preceded by | Jonathan Fisk |
| Succeeded by | John Duer |
| Secretary of State of New York | |
| In office 1816–1817 | |
| Preceded by | Peter Buell Porter |
| Succeeded by | Charles D. Cooper |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Robert Livingston Tillotson 1788 |
| Died | July 22, 1878 (aged 89–90) Rhinebeck, New York |
| Spouse | Emily Gouverneur |
| Relations | Robert R. Livingston (grandfather) Edward Livingston (uncle) Robert R. Livingston (uncle) |
| Parent(s) | Thomas Tillotson Margaret Livingston |
Early life
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He was the son of Dr. Thomas Tillotson and Margaret (née Livingston) Tillotson. Among his siblings were Janette Maria Tillotson (who married Judge James Lynch),[1][2] and John C. Tillotson, who married their cousin Maria Livingston (a granddaughter of Speaker Walter Livingston). His father was Surgeon General of the Northern Department of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War and, afterward, served as a member of the New York State Assembly, New York State Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, and Secretary of State of New York from 1807 to 1808.[3]
His maternal grandparents were Judge Robert R. Livingston and Margaret (née Beekman) Livingston. Among his maternal family were uncles, U.S. Secretary of State Edward Livingston and Chancellor Robert R. Livingston. Through his brother John, he was uncle to the same named Robert Livingston Tillotson, who served in the Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War.[4]
Career
editTillotson served as the Judge-advocate charged with the defense of Gen. William Hull in his 1814 court-martial trial.[5] The trial was presided over by Gen. Henry Dearborn, with future President Martin Van Buren as the special judge advocate in charge of the prosecution.[6][7] Hull was convicted of cowardice and neglect of duty and was sentenced to be shot, however, President James Madison commuted the sentence to merely dismissing him from the Army in recognition of his heroic service during the Revolutionary War.[8]
He was Secretary of State of New York from 1816 to 1817.[9] He was U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York from 1819 to 1828.[2] During his tenure, the Norwegian sloop Restoration was seized by the port authorities upon its arrival at New York, and he filed the papers in the U.S. District Court. The owners, Norwegian immigrants, got the ship released by a pardon signed by President John Quincy Adams.
From 1854 to 1857, he was a special judge in Sullivan County, New York.[5]
Personal life
editOn February 19, 1817,[10] Tillotson married Emily Caroline Gouverneur (1792–1833),[11] a daughter of Nicholas Gouverneur and Hester (née Kortright) Gouverneur.[12] Among her siblings were Samuel L. Gouverneur (son-in-law of President James Monroe) and Maria Charlotte Gouverneur (wife of Thomas McCall Cadwalader).[13] Together, they were the parents of:[14]
- Howard V. Tillotson (1818–1891)
- Gouverneur Tillotson (b. 1820)
- Charles Henry Tillotson (1823–1904)
- Emily Gouverneur Tillotson (1825–1905)
- Marie Livingston Tillotson (1830–1918)
- Henry Tillotson (1830–1832)
- Gouverneur Tillotson (1832–1907)
Tillotson died on July 22, 1878 in Rhinebeck, Dutchess County, New York.[15]
References
edit- ^ Jordan 1911, p. 1051.
- ^ a b Hanyan, Craig; Hanyan, Mary L. (10 August 1996). De Witt Clinton and the Rise of the People's Men. McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. p. 71. ISBN 978-0-7735-6618-7. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ Musso, Anthony P. (January 10, 2017). "Rhinebeck mansion razed in late '60s to build spiritual retreat". Poughkeepsie Journal. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record. New York Genealogical and Biographical Society. 1880. pp. 62, 157, 184. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ a b "Robert Livingston Tillotson". vanburenpapers.org. Papers of Martin Van Buren. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ See (Hannings 2012), p. 327.
- ^ Hammond, Jabez D. (1842). The History of Political Parties in the State of New-York, From the Ratification of the Federal Constitution to December, 1840, 2 vols. C. Van Benthuysen. pp. 1:418, 440, 569. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ Greenspan, Jesse (2012-07-12). "How U.S. Forces Failed to Conquer Canada 200 Years Ago". www.history.com. History.
Hull was later court-martialed in a trial held by the United States Army and the U.S. War Department, convicted of cowardice and neglect of duty.
- ^ Hough, Franklin Benjamin (1860). The New-York Civil List: Containing the Names and Origin of the Civil Divisions, and the Names and Dates of Election Or Appointments of the Principal State and County Officers, from the Revolution to the Present Time. Weed, Parsons & Company. pp. 33, 463. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ American Antiquarian Society (1961). S-Z. Hall. p. 3645. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ "DEATHS". American Railroad Journal, and Advocate of Internal Improvements. D.K. Minor: 576. 1833. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ Gouverneur, Marian Campbell (1911). As I Remember: Recollections of American Society During the Nineteenth Century. D. Appleton. p. 120. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ Pintard, John (1940). Letters from John Pintard to His Daughter, Eliza Noel Pintard Davidson, 1816-1833. New-York Historical Society. p. 181. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ Miller, Laura (1951). GENEALOGIES OF MILLER AND TILLOTSON BY ELBERT H. T. MILLER FRASER, CHRISTIE, SMITH, WHEELER (PDF). Scottsville, New York. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ "DIED" (PDF). The New York Times. July 25, 1878. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
Sources
edit- Hannings, Bud (2012), The War of 1812: A Complete Chronology with Biographies of 63 General Officers, Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co., ISBN 978-0-7864-6385-5
- Jordan, John W. (1911). Colonial Families of Philadelphia. Vol. II. New York, NY: Lewis Publishing Company. ISBN 9785880233557.