The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-09-09


stsna. o. modern pcbs. rszsy yFlegs. Ths.
Brueh Livinsstone In fsSs. Tor many year.
sTser vsr.d, he ~ T' ,h an ,s nosi, Rs. s2f scn., e 81:
manor house IN which Wellington and his Gen
erals planned the sieFe Of Yorktown, he passed
might be able 70 leave a valuable Inheritance 10
those who, came after him. He caused . portion
order to Invite population and enhance the value
Of the remaining portion.
had anticipated. Persons are now living on
tracts. bought by their ancestors at that sale for
t ,fSss . shaa p 20 weS t wGHlS MT Ths sf reset Of S H. ests aGs
gradually dwindled away, go that bis heirs prof,
livingstone manor house Is now the property OF
DIR. Joseph HasbrOuck of Dobbe Ferry.
the Fieid estate. Oe II consisted Of $50 acres. sitU I.
ated halt way between .Dob9s Ferry and Irving
ton, on the east side OF broadway and was occu;-
pied by several fine residences. Mi Field had
planned to make the estate a family heirloom, TO
be handed down to future generations. But
Hudson River property is averse to remaining In
one family for a long time 50 his magnificent
"TTyyndenburtt The fnmou. estete Of the aop,d
family, also has Its history OF disaster. Before
Jay Gould acquired it It belonged TO the late
when he purchased the property in 1884. and he
employed his means lavishly in laying out the
composed OF marshy meadows. A large force
of men was employed to drain OF the water
and rarest varieties Of trees. evcrgreens, and
shrubs were planted. about twenty acres were
erected ir the cultivation Of fiowers. was
When Mr.. Merritt died, in 1879. the eetate
was regarded rs the handsomest on the Hudson.
it was found that he had left his heirs scarcely
. dollar apart from his country seat. The place
lay in comparative neglect for seven years, until
II was bought by Jay Gould.
The great Beekman estate. north of larry
comprising an Incorporated village Of nearly
5000 inhabitants, has an interesting history;
from the Commissioners of Forfeiture after the
Revolutionary war, was. the grandson of Will
country. Like the representative Of the Van
Cortlandts and ,the Livlngstones. he kept up the
lord Of the N manor. The bulk Of his wealth HI1V con-.
sisted OF the lands he owned on the Hudson.
s SIsSt,S as r61n the early ~. i aSy5 sT w6 property was
At his death. in 1s22. his estate came into pos
session of his wife. ,CoEnelia Van Cortlandt
sold II considerable portion of her land in build
ing lots. At that time there were only twelve
ent Croton aqueduct. At that time. also, i'm
mense quantities OF potatoes; apples. and hogs
York markets, and. as there were no railroads,
were shipped by sl9ops down the Hudson.
lsndholdings, stretching, along. the Hudson
river for nearly two miles. and running back
were put into the market and sold in parcels.
The prices realized were ridiculously small
ESSR that IIsT sa. ' sold dH sie Light f6r Of fe!ps rf ,saa s sss sa
9cre has recently been purchased by John D.
ssifs rsaiiaeS dO hut siiiH is}ie f from nc the . nhe Be'sman
one OF the purchasers was Gen: James Watson
on the Hudson and running back to the old
Albany post road. Immed lately after gaining
I%prcSsme gf the fHFS s CHOSE me sn set em %G9 . %a Going
inanding a magnificent view Of the river north
s"a s that stand, ani 1 tRPere - al pt the presents prs erle d faSne there msn,
he enitrtainea with the lavish, hospitality char
sonaPes as William Ii. Xsrinwall. Pierre Van
Cortlandt, DIR. William Creighton. Capt. Slidell
Mackenzie, and Commodore Perry.
shortly after the civil war Gen. John G. Ere
mont mon purchased pure IA the property and lived there FOR FOR
Gen. Fremont became financially embarrassed
and vas Obliged 20 reiinquish the place. Il was
B.. Monroe OF Norwich. Conn. for 10000.
lockwood. the splendid estate OF William
the Aspinwsll family. was originally a part OF
the Bcekman estate. 1t was purchased by
chant, from a Mr.. Bartlett, and was for many
years considered the finest piece of suburban
cupied the site OF the present Rockefeller man
sion was a huge. rambling pile. with high.
OF which were covered with Ivy. As regards
architectural excellence 1t was far superior TO
When the Aspinwalis first occupied their es-
tate upon the Hudson they were. regarded as
the expense OF maintaining such a vast property
was too great, even for their means. and they
were finally Obliged TO abandon 1t.
From the foregoing examples IL will be seen
tina: there are causes that operate against the
OF establishing and maintaining for
any length of time large landed estates in this
The conditions here are very different
from those existing IN England; English land
are generally productive. There isa
considerable tenantry on every estate that
brings In an annual revenue sufficient TO main
tain the property. In America the landed es-
tates are generally unproductive. To maintain
them requires an enormous annual outlay.
They should be considered therefore as luxuries
that can be safely enjoyed only by persons Of
vast wealth during their lifetime.
As legacies they prove to be membranes
that cost a small fortune to maintain, and that
are very hard to turn into cash. The late David
Dows appreciated this when he remarked to q
friend that, although he was worth SIS. 000, 900,
he could not afford to own his beautiful country
place at Irvington. When his friend asked him
he answered. -" / have a large family OF
When my estate comes to be divided
among them. my country seat will be regarded
TO maintain. with only $4,000 900 or S3,-
1000 1t will prove a buroen."