Stephen VanRensselaer Watson

Stephen was born June 13, 1817 to RI natives Rufus Watson and Mercy Stanton in their adopted home of Rensselaerville, Albany County, NY.  In 1841 he married his 2^nd cousin Julia Watson, daughter of Elisha Watson Jr and Ann Cole.  ( Stephen’s brother Robert Dunbar Watson married Julia’s sister Laura.) Julia died in 1845 at the age of 23 leaving Stephen with 2 children under the age of 3, Stanton and Julia.

In 1847 Stephen married Charlotte Amelia Sherman, 10 years his junior, daughter of Pardon Sherman and Anna Margaret VanDalsem.  Together they had 4 children:  Rufus, Anna Margaret, Jeannie and Gertrude.  In 1850, he lost his first born son, Stanton, at the age of 8 and in 1871 daughter Julia died in a terrible railway disaster with her husband Arthur W Pease.

Stephen had relocated to Buffalo in the 1840s where he ventured into real estate, built one of the largest and most prominent grain elevators in 1862, was a founder and president of the Buffalo street railroad, a founder of the Erie Savings Bank and Manufacturers & Traders Trust company.  IN 1870 he built an impressive mansion for his family at 388 Delaware Avenue (now the Buffalo Club), although he lost it a few years before his death due to financial difficulties.

Stephen was also philanthropic and fostered the institution that became the Buffalo Public Library.  His wife Charlotte commissioned two impressive stained glass windows by John LaFarge for Trinity Church, opposite their home, one in memory of their daughter Julia lost tragically in a train disaster.  Charlotte outlived Stephen by 20 years.

A recap of Stephen’s children:

            Stanton, died age 8

            Julia married Arthur Pease, died 1871, one daughter

            Rufus, died age 2

            Anna married Samuel S Spaulding, died 1924, 4 children

            Jeannie married Porter Norton, died 1922, 2 children

            Gertrude, unmarried, died 1938

            

Stephen was named in honor of Stephen Van Rensselaer III (1764-1839), Lt Governor of New York, statesman, soldier, and heir to one of the largest estates in the New York region encompassing Albany County where the Watsons settled. Check his Wikipedia entry for interesting information regarding early patroon land ownership.