Samuel L. Gouverneur

Samuel Laurence Gouverneur was born in 1799 in New York City. His father was Nicholas Gouverneur (1753–1802), a merchant associated with the firm Gouverneur & Kemble, and his mother was Hester Kortright Gouverneur (1770–1842), who was the sister of Elizabeth Kortright Monroe, the wife of James Monroe, the fifth President of the United States. Gouverneur's maternal grandparents were Lawrence Kortright, a merchant, and Hannah Aspinwall Kortright. His paternal grandparents were Samuel Gouverneur (1720–1798) and Experience Johnson Gouverneur (1720–1788). He had a younger sister, Maria Charlotte Gouverneur (1801–1867), who married Thomas McCall Cadwalader (1795–1873).

Gouverneur was a first cousin of U.S. Representative Gouverneur Kemble (1786–1875) through his aunt Gertrude Gouverneur, wife of merchant Peter Kemble. He graduated from Columbia College in 1817.

In his political career, Gouverneur was elected in 1824 as a member of the People's Party, a faction of the Democratic-Republican Party. He served in the 48th New York State Legislature in 1825 as a representative of New York County. On November 19, 1828, he was appointed Postmaster of New York City, succeeding Theodorus Bailey, who had died in office earlier that year. During his tenure as Postmaster, Gouverneur invested in racehorses and the Bowery Theatre, collaborating with James Alexander Hamilton, son of Alexander Hamilton, and Prosper M. Wetmore. Gouverneur served as Postmaster until July 4, 1836, when Jonathan J. Coddington succeeded him.

Gouverneur’s relationship with James Monroe was significant. He served as Monroe’s private secretary during Monroe’s presidency, which lasted from March 4, 1817, to March 4, 1825. He assisted Monroe in efforts before Congress to address his financial debts. After Elizabeth Monroe’s death in 1830, James Monroe resided with the Gouverneur family and died there in 1831. Gouverneur was the executor of Monroe’s estate, which was sold to settle debts. Monroe’s remains were initially interred in the Gouverneur family vault at the New York City Marble Cemetery, but were later moved to the James Monroe Tomb at Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia, in 2006. Monroe’s personal papers were bequeathed to Gouverneur, who once planned to publish them or a biography but did not complete this project. He also supported Monroe’s widow, Eliza Monroe Hay, the president’s daughter, after her death in 1840.

Following Monroe’s death, Gouverneur moved to Washington, D.C., where he worked in the Department of State’s consular bureau from 1844 to 1849. He proposed arrangements for the preservation of Monroe’s papers similar to those adopted for James Madison’s papers, which was executed in 1850.

Gouverneur married Maria Hester Monroe, his first cousin and the daughter of James Monroe, on March 9, 1820. The wedding took place in the White House and was the first wedding of a presidential child held there. The ceremony was small, with 42 guests, and was officiated by Reverend William Dickinson Hawley. Notable attendees included General Thomas Jesup, who served as groomsman. The couple’s honeymoon lasted one week, after which they hosted a reception at the Decatur House on May 20, 1820. They resided at 63 and 65 Prince Street in Manhattan.

Samuel and Maria had four children: a daughter who died in infancy in 1821; James Monroe Gouverneur (1822–1885), who was deaf and mute and died at the Spring Grove Asylum; Elizabeth Kortright Gouverneur (1824–1868), who married Dr. Henry Lee Heishell, James M. Bibby, and Colonel G. D. Sparrier; and Samuel Laurence Gouverneur Jr. (1826–1880), who married Marian Campbell and served as the first U.S. consul in Fuzhou, China.

In 1832, the Gouverneurs sold their Prince Street residence. Maria Gouverneur died on June 20, 1850, at the Oak Hill estate, which was later sold in 1852. In September 1851, Gouverneur married Mary Digges Lee (1810–1898), the granddaughter of Thomas Sim Lee. They retired to the Lee estate called “Needwood” near Frederick, Maryland, and Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.

During the Civil War, Gouverneur’s affiliations were with the Union government, contrasting with in-laws in the Confederate states. Gouverneur died at his Needwood estate on September 29, 1865, with his estate passed to his second wife.

His descendants include his granddaughter Rose de Chine Gouverneur (born 1860 in China), who married Roswell Randall Hoes. Their sons, Gouverneur Hoes and Laurence Gouverneur Hoes, established the James Monroe Museum and Memorial Library in Fredericksburg, Virginia.