The San Francisco call., 1897-08-29

focracy than any one who can be men,
toned. His family had been settled in
New York for nearly two centuries, during
the whole of which period they had been
prosperous members of society and con-
spicuous for respectability and honor.
Ihe founders of the family were French
Huguenots. The first one of them whose
name IS found in our colonial annals was
Jean Goelet, who was driven from his
native land by the persecution of the
Protestants inaugurated by Louis XIV in
his latter years under the instigatlon OF
Madame de Maintenon. In 1718 this Jean
Goelet married a New Amsterdam girl,
and raised large family. He never quite
got over his French extraction, nor forgot
the skies under which his forefathers had
sailed the stormy seas and one of them
had won the name, or nickname, of Goe-
lette, the schooner.
In the last quarter of the eighteenth
century the head of the family was Peter
Goelet. who was an ironmonger and lived
in rooms above his store at lib and lis
Pearl street, New York. He was stout
American and had no use for Tory
He lived to see the American cause tri-
umphant, then passed away peacefully,
leaving his store, his business and his
principles'to his son Peter P, who con-
tinued to sell axes and saws, knives and
| nails, with content to his customers and
profit to himself, till the days of John
Quincy Adams.
Peter T. was man who felt his oats.
He vacated the rooms his father had occu-
pied and took a house 10 live in at So
Broadway. though the business was still
conducted at 113 Pearl. He entertained
good deal. Among his intimates were
General Moroccan and family, who had
been exiled from France by the First
Consul. But his closest friend was his
brother Robert, who was also dealer in
hardware, and about whom the chronicles
| of the early decades of the century have
much to say. He and his friend Oelrichs,
who was the American representative of
the house of Widow John Lang, were the
idols of the girls in their day, though they
were both corpulent men, and one was
known as "fat Oelrichs" and the other as
''fat Goelet" They were both athletes.
and people used to go to Robinson's bath
to see them swim. Goelet could lie on
his back ell day in the water smoking
cigar.
Peter P. and his bro ther Robert married
sisters daughters of Thomas Buchanan,
an old Scotchman who could not be con-
yerted and remained Tory to his dying
day. He became wealthy merchant and
owned ships. One of them was in an
English port when Bunker Hill was
fought, and the owner ordered his captain
to remain there till 1.-THE rebellion was
suppressed" The order was obeyed, SO
10 ho biy1r hr1f bo
tain skipped away to France, got a mid
shipmans commission in the American
navy from Ben Franklin and returned
home to take part in his country's
struggle.
One grandson of this stiff old Tory, and
the son OF Peter P. was called plain Peter,
after his grandfather; another was Rob-
ert. They both inherited such fortunes
that they were enabled to move uptown
and to rank among the rich men OF New
York, but the father, Peter P, could not
be induced to leave his house on the
Bowling Green, and he died there. His
funeral was a historical event. Those
who were invited were waited upon by
negro servants in black liveries with
white napkins on their arms. The whole
house was thrown open, and In the dining
room supper was served, with Madeira
wine a hundred years old and dust an inch
thick on the bottles.
Peter Goelet, grandson of the iron
monger Of the Revolution, was more than
ordinarily eccentric. He built himself or
bought house on Nineteenth street and
Broadway, at an angle to the street. 1t
was in that house, or in one which then
stood on the spot, that Nine. Jumel
spent her last years when she was in name
and in law the vile of Aaron Burr, and
there she died. When the house passed
into the ownership of Peter Goelet he Sc
cluded himself therein so completely that
he passed for a morose hermit. He re-
ceived no visits, seldom went out, never
answered letters. His grounds were sur
rounded by high fence, and in the in
closure were cow and sOme melan choly
peacocks, which were a source of great
diversion to the street boys. at one time
the lower windows were barred. and people
wondered whether the unsightly device
was intended to keep burglars out or an
insane owner in.
Peters brother Robert married a dangh-
ter Of Jonathan Ogden, whose name has
been perpetuated in many families 1t
was the Christian name OF one of New
York's greatest jurists; 1t is borne by our
own Darius Ogden Mills; it was the only
given name of the millionaire who has
iut died. Jonathan Ogden built the
largest dry-goods store erected in New
York up TO his day; he was merchant OF
high repute and great wealth. People not
unnaturally inclined to call their children
after him.
To his eldest son Robert Goelet gave the
name of Ogden. and left him besides
trifle OF thirty or forty millions to support
existence on. He owns, or did own. a
little tract of land in the city of New
York extending from the Windsor Hotel
to the Forty-second street depot. He
married after he had reached years OF
mature discretion, a daughter the South
ern banker. r. T. Wilson, who is said to
hav secured more brilliant matches for
his daughters than any other father in
New York. One of them married the
brother of the Earl of Penn broke, and runs
some risk OF becoming countess with
one OF the oldest titles in the British aris-
| tocracy; another is the wife of Cornelius