A slight inheritance from Philip Schuyler helped with that, as did the private raising of money from Hamilton's friends that enabled Elizabeth to stay in the house she and Hamilton had shared. But at the time of Hamiltons death, he still had a mortgage and owed money to the builders, and his wife struggled under the weight of all that debt. He eventually became a prominent landowner, with tens of thousands of acres in the Albany area. During one such interlude, in the summer of 1791, Hamilton began an affair with Maria Reynoldsthat, when publicly revealed six years later, exposed Elizabeth to a humiliation augmented both by Hamilton's insistence on airing the adultery's most lurid details and a hostile press that asked, "Art thou a wife? 2021 Associated Newspapers Limited. Philanthropy and "Hamilton: An American Musical", "American Experience | Alexander Hamilton | People & Events | Elizabeth Hamilton (17571854) | PBS", "James Alexander Hamilton - People - Department History - Office of the Historian", "George Washington II: The Forging of a Nation", "Why I'm Convinced Hamilton Is Actually Named After Eliza", "We got comfortable with Hamilton. Born in 1757, Eliza was the second daughter of Revolutionary War general Philip Schuyler and Catherine van Rensselaer, a member of one of New York's richest families. Hamilton followed three years later. In 1806, two years after her husband's death, she, along with several other women including Joanna Bethune, founded the Orphan Asylum Society. } . Elizabeth was then only 47 years old. Married to American Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, she was a defender of his works and co-founder and deputy director of Graham Windham, the first private orphanage in New York City. She came from a well-established, highly-regarded family, he was an orphaned immigrant. [12] She was said to have been something of a tomboy when she was young;[13][pageneeded] throughout her life she retained a strong will and even an impulsiveness that her acquaintances noted. Biography and associated logos are trademarks of A+E Networksprotected in the US and other countries around the globe. While she was in her nineties she helped Dolly Madison to raise money for the Washington Monument. Elizabeth Hamiltons parents were the noted American Revolutionary war general, Philip Schuyler and Catherine Van Rensselaer of the Manor of Van Renselaerswyck. When Eliza went away to her mother's funeral in 1803 Hamilton wrote to her from the Grange telling her: I am anxious to hear of your arrival at Albany and shall be glad to be informed that your father and all of you are composed. Twice a week we compile our most fascinating features and deliver them straight to you. Elizabeth did not believe the rumors at first, but eventually Hamilton lived up to it. One of the ways she found solaceand honored his memorywas to found two institutions in New York that supported lower-income children. We remember Maria's older brother dying in a brawl with Tony from West Side Story. Elizabeth Schuyler was born on August 7, 1757, in Albany, New York, the second daughter of wealthy landowner and Revolutionary War general Philip Schuyler. They had met briefly a few years before, but now Alexander Hamilton was smitten, "a gone man," in the words of another aide. In 1780, Hamilton wrote Angelica a letter describing his infatuation with Eliza: Hamilton and Eliza married that year. Eliza didnt believe the charges when they were first leveled against her husband, but in 1797, Hamilton published a pamphlet, later known as theReynolds Pamphlet, admitting to his one-year adulterous affair. As Mazzeo notes, Eliza was simply passionate about children's welfare, and where she saw problems she tried to find solutions.. But when George Washington asked him to become his aide-de-camp, Hamilton embarked on what was, arguably, the second most important relationship of his life. But Eliza, understandably, is devastated, and responds by burning all the letters that Hamilton has ever sent her. In 1818, she opened the first school in the neighborhood of Washington Heights (where, decades later, Lin-Manuel Miranda would grow up). Just a teenager, he made a name for himself writing pamphlets and articles supporting the Revolutionary cause. After moving to Washington, D.C., she helped Dolley Madison and Louisa Adams raise money to build the Washington Monument. In 1848, she left New York for Washington, D.C., where she lived with her widowed daughter Eliza until 1854. [40], In 1797, an affair came to light that had taken place several years earlier between Hamilton and Maria Reynolds, a young woman who had first approached him for monetary aid in the summer of 1791. He found work at a local import-export firm, where he quickly impressed his bosses. Elizabeth and Alexander Hamilton had eight children: The Hamiltons also raised Frances (Fanny) Antill, an orphan who lived with them for ten years beginning in 1787 when she was 2 years old. Angelica first appears in Hamilton during the song . Eliza descended from some of America's most prominent early families Born in August 1757, she was one of eight surviving children of Philip Schuyler and Catherine Van Rensselaer. Eliza was beside him as he died. The following year, according to another newspaper account in the New York Tribune, the school building was destroyed in a fire. Hamiltons wife Eliza Schuyler was a key part of his life, but she was also an important historical character in her own right. By focusing on children, Eliza found connection to her late husbands legacy. In short she is so strange a creature, that she possesses all the beauties, virtues and graces of her sex without any of those amiable defects which from their general prevalence are esteemed by connoisseurs necessary shades in the character of a fine woman.. But while his brilliance was apparent to those who met him, Hamilton was eager to prove himself on the field, not just with the pen. Eliza was an ardent supporter of her husband, but it wasnt always plain sailing in their marriage. Her oldest son Philip died in a duel, just as his father would three years later. In 1796, Hamilton took aim at Jefferson in an essay that hinted at the sexual relationship Jefferson had with his slave, Sally Hemmings. We don't get that often in fiction. WATCH: Hamilton: Building America on HISTORY Vault. For the first time since its debut in 2015, Lin Manuel Miranda's groundbreaking Broadway hit Hamilton is available to watch from the comfort of your own couch, courtesy of Disney+. [52] By the time she left she had been with the organization continuously since its founding, a total of 42 years. In 1772, after writing a powerful essay describing the devastation inflicted on Nevis by a recent hurricane, a group of local businessmen took up a collection to send young Hamilton to America to continue his education. [citation needed]. When he paid her a visit decades after the Reynolds scandal, she refused to speak with him. In one letter Angelica told Elizabeth that she loved Hamilton "very much and, if you were as generous as the old Romans, you would lend him to me for a little while." [citation needed], When she was a girl, Elizabeth accompanied her father to a meeting of the Six Nations and met Benjamin Franklin when he stayed briefly with the Schuyler family while traveling. first directress in 1821. A noted beauty, she was a bright star on the social scene of Albany before and after her marriage. Oldest sister Angelica formed a deep friendship with Hamilton, and the two would exchange political and personal advice until Hamiltons death. Portrayed by Phillipa Soo, Eliza played a key role in safeguarding her husband's legacy after his death. She re-organized all of Hamiltons letters, papers and writings with the help of her son, John Church Hamilton. Chernow, Ron, Alexander Hamilton, Penguin Press, 2004, Randall, William Sterne, Alexander Hamilton: A Life, Harpers-Collins, 2003, Roberts, Warren, A Place in History: Albany in the Age of Revolution, 1775-1825, Albany: NY State University Press, 2010, Wikipedia, especially for main picture (portrait by Ralph Earl), Peter Douglas's Totidem Verbis Eliza was also able to collect Alexander's pension from his service in the army from congress in 1836 for money and land. Reynolds spilled the beans about the affair, but also said that Hamilton had been involved in his pension scheme. But she held onto her grudge against Monroe. According to the Smithsonian Magazine, Eliza was a beloved figure and entertained often: "Some visitors sought her imprimatur for new legislation, while others went simply to bask in the glow of history." Eliza Hamilton and her benefactors moved quickly, and by the end of May, theyd already built a one-room, 1,050-square-foot schoolhouse with a slanted roofbig enough for 40 to 60 studentsaround what is now Broadway between W. 187th and W. 189th streets. In 1802, the same year that Philip was born, the house was built and named Hamilton Grange, after Alexander's father's home in Scotland. Angelica was also laid to rest at Trinity, in the Livingstons' private vault, while Eliza's eldest son Philip had an unmarked grave near the churchyard. For the rest of her life, she experienced what Hamilton biographer Ron Chernow describes as an "eternal childhood," unable to live independently and referring always to her dead brother as if he. She also became a founder of the Orphan Asylum Society, the citys first private orphanage, which built a Greenwich Village facility that provided a home for hundreds of children. [52] In 1821, she was named first directress, and served for 27 years in this role, until she left New York in 1848. And I am grateful . In 1848, she left New York for Washington, D.C., where she lived with her widowed daughter Eliza until 1854. Peggy Schuyler was born in Albany, New York on September 19, 1758, the third daughter of Catherine Van Rensselaer Schuyler (1734-1803) and Philip Schuyler (1733-1804), a wealthy patroon and major general in the Continental Army during the American Revolution. "She has good nature, affability and vivacity unembellished with that charming frivolousness which is justly deemed one of the principal accomplishments of a belle. ", At 22, Eliza met Alexander Hamilton, who was at the time serving under General George Washington, and fell in love "at first sight," per historical accounts. He published the pamphlet in order to refute the charges that he had been involved in public misconduct with Marias husband James Reynolds, and to avoid accusations of embezzlement. Emma Dibdin is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles who writes about culture, mental health, and true crime. [24] Earlier that year, Angelica and her husband John Barker Church, for business reasons, had moved to Europe. Philip Schuyler shared similar politics with Hamilton, and, like Eliza and others, realized that Hamiltons star was on the rise thanks in no small part to his role at Washingtons side. [53], Eliza defended Alexander against his critics in a variety of ways following his death, including by supporting his claim of authorship of George Washington's Farewell Address and by requesting an apology from James Monroe over his accusations of financial improprieties. [citation needed], By 1846, Eliza was suffering from short-term memory loss but was still vividly recalling her husband. But if you're an astute historian, you might notice that Alexander Hamilton was killed in that famous duel way back in . She died in 1854, at the age of 97, one of the nation's last remaining links to its founders. In real life, two years after Hamilton's death, Eliza really did help to establish the Orphan Asylum Society of the City of New York, which still exists today as a family services agency named Graham Windham. The Schuyler Sistersreal historical figuresshow us that those bonds can exist and are possible. There were 14 siblings in total. Hamilton met Maria Reynolds in Philadelphia in 1791, when she visited the then-Secretary of the Treasury to request financial support for her struggling family. Elizabeth Schuyler was born on August 9, 1757, the daughter of the Revolutionary War leader Major General Philip Schuyler. As a child, she was strong-willed and impulsive. She was born inAlbany, New York To Philip Schyler and Catherine Van Rensselaer Schuyler. Largely educated at home, she was bright and good-natured. After the war he was active in both local and national politics, even serving as a U.S. senator from New York from 1789 to 1791 losing his seat to none other than Aaron Burr (who would eventually kill his future son-in-law Alexander in a duel). Born Elizabeth Schuyler, and later known as Eliza Hamilton, Alexander's wife was the co-founder and deputy director of the first private orphanage in New York City. "I Meet You in Every Dream" She loves owls, hates cilantro, and can find the queer subtext in literally anything. However, We know that Mrs. Hamilton did regularly visit the school and give out awards on prize days, so she remained involved with the school's central mission and with celebrating its achievements.. Historian Jenny L. Presnell writes, "The entire Schuyler family revered Alexander as a young political genius." Here's what happened to Angelica in real life, and how she ended up back together with Hamilton under sad circumstances. The three sisters were three of seven siblings who lived to adulthood. She's based (and born and raised) in Brooklyn, New York. Legislators approved the application and the school received some annual city funding. [38] Hamilton resigned from public office immediately afterwards[39] in order to resume his law practice in New York and remain closer to his family. Whether Elizabeth received this as sisterly banter or something more serious is not known; one of her few surviving letters does say that marriage made her "the happiest of women. Sign up for the American Experience newsletter! Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton was born on August 9, 1757 in Albany, New York and died on November 9, 1854 in Washington, D.C. at the advanced age of 97. She married Hamilton in 1780 and he died in a duel in 1804. Her relationship with Hamilton grew quickly, even after he left Morristown, only a month after Elizabeth, 22 years old, arrived there. She is most unmercifully handsome and so perverse that she has none of those pretty affectations which are the prerogatives of beauty," he wrote in a letter to Eliza's sister Angelica, per Smithsonian Magazine. To clear his name in the more serious financial allegations, Hamilton released the Reynolds Pamphlet, in which he admitted to the affair but denied any criminal misdeeds. They became officially engaged in early April with her fathers blessing. [citation needed] She was so devoted to Alexander's writings that she wore a small package around her neck containing the pieces of a sonnet that Alexander wrote for her during the early days of their courtship. When Eliza Hamilton died in November 1854 at age 97, the uptown school was still in existence, but it clearly had seen better days. The first, Elizabeth, named for Eliza, was born on November 20, 1799. In 1806, two years after her husbands death, she, along with several other women, founded the Orphan Asylum Society. ", A Happy Union HBO Max Comedies Thatll Put You in a Good Mood, Everything to Know Ahead of 'Mando' Season 3. She had outlived her husband by 50 years, and had outlived all but one of her siblings (her youngest sister, Catherine, 24 years her junior). "I meet you in every dream," Hamilton wrote in one of his swooning letters, "and when I wake I cannot close my eyes for ruminating on your sweetness." And yes,. Eliza and the other women arranged to rent a small two-story house on Raisin Street in Greenwich village and hired a married couple to care for the young residents. Before their eighth child was born, however, they lost their oldest son, Philip, who died in a duel on November 24, 1801. Where Did the 'Perfect Match' Couples End Up? Despite the move, Eliza retained a connection to people who lived a few miles away from her old home. When he visited the boarding house where she was staying to deliver the funds, Maria invited him to her room, where, as Hamilton would later write in his pamphlet about the affair, it became "apparent that other than pecuniary consolation would not be unacceptable.". Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton at age 94 When she was 95 years old and President Millard Fillmore was the 13th President of the United States, Elizabeth Hamilton was invited to dinner at the White House, and the First Lady, Abigail Filmore, gave up her chair to her. She also met and became friends with Martha Washington, a friendship they would maintain throughout their husbands political careers. After Vice President Aaron Burr killed Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton in a duel in 1804, Hamilton's widow, Elizabeth Schuyler "Eliza" Hamilton, had to find a way to go on without her. Her two famous sisters were Angelica Schuyler Church and Margarita Schuyler Van Rensselaer. Even so, according to Gill, Eliza eventually became unable to afford the estates upkeep, and in 1813, she was forced to sell it and move to humbler quarters downtown. See how you do with some of the questions a petitioning citizen must answer. [citation needed] There she met Alexander Hamilton, one of General George Washington's aides-de-camp,[1] who was stationed along with the General and his men in Morristown for the winter. Alexander Hamilton died on July 12, 1804, with Eliza and all seven of his surviving children by his side. Despite her advanced pregnancy and her previous miscarriage of November 1794, her initial reaction to her husband's disclosure of his past affair was to leave Hamilton in New York and join her parents in Albany where William Stephen was born on August 4, 1797. 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Some parts of his 31-page letter to Robert Morris, laying out much of the financial knowledge that was to aid him later in his career, are actually in her handwriting.