French Family Association

The Official Website of the Surname French

The Hannibal French House, 186 Main St., Sag Harbor, Long Island, NY, built in 1799.
See photos of the Hannibal French House.

Chart #207, Peter French, 1793
his son Hannibal French, 1817
Sag Harbor, Long Island, NY

Second Generation

http://www.frenchfamilyassoc.com/FFA/CHARTS/Chart207/

This chart updated by Mara French on 5/10/15. Send any corrections or comments to this chart to marafrench@mindspring.com. Although this is not my line, I make additions to it, and you will be notified when your data or someone else’s data is added. An asterisk (*) shows continuation of that line.

Links

FFA Home Page

Peter French Home Page

First Generation

Second Generation

Third Generation

Fourth Generation

Fifth Generation

Sixth Generation

Bibliography

Second Generation

Children of Peter French and Sarah “Sally” Smith, 1.1

2.1* Hannibal French, Sr., b. 13 Oct 1817, Orange County, NY, d. 5 May 1889, Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., LI, NY (Age 71 years). He retired as Postmaster at Sag Harbor in Nov 1884. Besides the whaling business (see below), Hannibal was part owner of the “Maidstone Steam Flouring Mill” in Sag Harbor. See photos of the Hannibal French House.

Marriage

He married Cornelia W. Hedges on 6 Oct 1846 in Suffolk Co., NY. She was b. 3 Mar 1822, d. 7 Jun 1890. She was age 58 in the 1880 census. They had 9 children between 1847-1860. Cornelia’s father was born in Sag Harbor, and her mother was born in Moriches, Suffolk Co., NY, also on Long Island. The name Hedges is seen abundantly in Sag Harbor.

Ships and the Whaling Business

Whaling is the practice or industry of hunting and killing whales for their oil, meat, or whalebone.

The three brothers, Hannibal French, Abel Smith French, and Stephen B. French were all in the ship whaling business. Hannibal and Stephen usually purchased the ships, while Abel was the ship’s Captain. For details, see [16] in the Bibliography.

The ship “Concordia” joined the fleet in 1837, made 12 voyages, the Captains were A. Smith French, Jeremiah W. Hedges, Loper, Thomas Cartwright, John Woodward, Samuel McCorkie, Rogers, Jonas Hamilton, Skinner, and Dunbar. It was sold to New London in 1871.

The ship “Highland Mary” (Parana) joined the fleet in 1853, made 6 voyages, captains were A. Smith French, Henry Green Jr., Thomas Royce, and Edward Smith. During the Civil War, the ship ran the blockage of southern ports, sailing under the English colors.

Hannibal French was a wealthy investor and businessman in the mid-19th century who, among other investments, was part owner of the whale ship and blockade runner called the “Highland Mary” with his brother Stephen Bull French. In 1860 the two brothers bought this ship for $2,250, and his other brother Abel Smith French was the Captain of that ship when it sailed on 3 Jul 1867 for the South Atlantic. Abel (known as A. Smith) was awarded a gold watch in testimony of his services to the British seamen. It was in 1873 that the end came to the Highland Mary, a Sag Harbor whaler that made six voyages, taking in products valued at $163,000 including barrels of sperm, whale oil, and bone.

The ship “Myra” which was the last whaling ship to leave Sag Harbor, was owned by Stephen Bull French and his brother Hannibal from 1863 until it was condemned in the Caribbean in 1874. Thus ended the ship whaling business. Capt. Henry A. Babcock* sailed the Myra, the last whaling brig owned by a Southampton firm, H. & S. French, on 17 Jul 1871, never to return, but was condemned at Barbadoes on 14 Dec 1874 [17]. See The Town of Southampton for 52 references to the French family.

During the 19th century, Sag Harbor, New York became one of the busiest ports in the northeast, where whalers of many nationalities could be seen walking the streets. In the bustling village young men from the East End often found work as whalers, a job that promised them the possibility of earning more money than they could make on the farm, and the chance to see places they had only dreamed of or heard about from other whalers. These young local men, together with foreign whalers, brought culture and customs, stories and lore from distant lands to Sag Harbor. During this time period Sag Harbor became a truly international port town, where diverse cultures came together for one pursuit: the hunt of the mighty whale.

After a century of being a premier whaling port, Sag Harbor's last whaleship, the brig Myra, departed in 1871.  Considered one of the smallest ships, weighing just 116 tons, she made several voyages. During one cruise a United States Cruiser detained the Myra off the coast of Africa, under suspicion of being a slaver. After much discussion, Captain Henry A. Babcock* finally convinced the naval officers that his ship was peaceably and legally engaged in whaling only. In 1871 this last, lone, remaining ship was sent to sea again under the command of Captain Babcock. The Myra's last voyage lasted three long years, and at the end of that time the wind and sea had reduced her to a useless wreck. The ship was condemned and broken up at Barbados in December 1874, the last of a proud and worthy fleet that sailed from Sag Harbor to the four corners of the world searching for the leviathan of the deep.

*Captain Henry A. Babcock was the husband of Sarah F. French who was the sister of Hannibal French, Abel Smith French, and Stephen B. French. He was b. 8 Apr 1821 and d. 29 Jul 1886.

Chronology

1820 census -- Just 3 years after Hannibal was born in Orange County, NY, Hannibal was living with his father Peter in New York Ward 6, NY, with a family of 4:
2 males under 10: Hannibal and Abel
1 male age 26-44, Peter, father
1 female age 24-44, Sarah, mother

1830 census, in Riverhead, Suffolk Co., NY
2 males under 5, b. 1825-1830, Chauncey, Stephen
2 males 10-14, b. 1816-1820, Hannibal, Abel
1 male 30-39, 1791-1800, Peter, b. 1793
1 female 30-39, 1791-1800, Sarah, b. 1799

1840 census, Peter was head of household, Southampton, Suffolk Co., NY, page 1 of 76. All these residents were free and white; 24 of them were employed in navigation of the ocean, and 4 were employed in commerce. The 2 remaining were the young children under 5. Other related surnames who appear are Wade, Fordham, Hedges, Smith, Babcock, and Hand, these and the other names come from England. In 1840, Sag Harbor may have been referred to as Southampton.

1 male under 5, b. 1835-1840, Peter Jr., b. 1838
2 males 10-15, b. 1825-1830, Chauncey, Stephen
2 males 15-20, b. 1820-1825,
10 males 20-30, b. 1810-1820, Hannibal, Abel,
5 males 30-40, b. 1800-1810,
2 males 40-50, b. 1790-1800, Peter Sr., b. 1793
1 male 50-60, b. 1780-1790,
2 males 60-70, b. 1770-1780,
1 female under 5, b. 1835-1840, Sarah
1 female 5-10, b. 1830-1835, Fanny, Anna
1 female 15-20, b. 1820-1825,
1 female 30-40, b. 1800-1810,
1 female 40-50, b. 1790-1800, Sally, b. 1799

1850 census -- living in Southampton, Suffolk, NY, and apparently had just married and had 2 children: Lawrence E. (2), Arthur S. (1).

1854 Feb 15 – from http://sizes.com/units/gill.htm.

In the United States, a unit of liquid capacity, = ¼ U.S. fluid pint, approximately 118.294 milliliters. The word “gill” is now almost never used in the United States; this quantity is referred to as a “half cup.”

Example:

That Hannibal French, late of the town of Southampton, in the county of Suffolk, merchant, and Charles J. Conklin, late of the same place, merchant, on the fifteenth day of February, one thousand eight hundred and fifty-four, with force and arms, at the town and in the county aforesaid, did willfully unlawfully and wrongfully sell, to divers persons, strong and spiritous liquors and wines, in quantities less than five gallons at a time, to wit, one gill of rum, one gill of brandy, one gill of whiskey, one gill of gin and one pint of wine, without having a license therefor granted.

Supreme Court. Dutchess General Term, April, 1856. Brown, S. B. Strong and Emott, Justices. Hannibal French and Charles J. Conklin, plaintiffs in error, v. The People, defendants in error.

in

Amasa J. Parker.

Reports of Decisions in Criminal Cases made at Term, at Chambers, and in the Courts of Oyer and Terminer of the State of New York. Vol. III.

Albany: W. C. Little & Co., 1868.

1860 census – East Hampton, Suffolk, NY, in Sag Harbor. Hannibal 42, Cornelia 38, Florence 12, Arthur 11, Blanc 9, Hannibal Jr. 7, Frank 5, Jenny 3, Henry 1.

1868 -- From the Sag Harbor Express, 26 Mar 1868:

1870 census – Hannibal is 52, living in Sag Harbor with his wife Cornelius W. 48, and their children Florence E. 22, Arthur V. 20, Blanche H. 19, Hannibal Jr. 17, Frank C. 16, Genevive 14, Henry 12, and Cornelia 9.

1872 Jun 4 – 1882 Feb 2 – Hannibal was a Commissioner of Highways.

1879 Jul 19 – The Sag-Harbor Bridge: A Sketch of Dr. John Smith Sage of Sag Harbor, NY.

THE SAG-HARBOR BRIDGE. 82
[From the Sag-Harbor Corrector, July 19th, 1879.]

The following, found sticking in one of the broken rails of the bridge to North Haven, has been sent to us for publication, by the finder:

THE HUMBLE PETITION OF THE SAG-HARBOR BRIDGE TO
HANNIBAL FRENCH, ESQ., COMMISSIONER OF HIGHWAYS.

Oh, Hannibal French ! Oh, Hannibal French !
Give ear to this earnest petition,

For nobody wishes you here to retrench,
While I'm in this wretched condition.
The half of my planks are all worn and decayed,
And great gaping fissures between them are made,
Whilst holes in some places are opened to view,
Where the leg of a horse can go easily through,
So that horses approaching, with fear and with dread,
Go picking their way, sadly shaking their head,
And saying, as far as they are able to say,
This is Hannibal's way ! This is Hannibal's way.

And should no impression be made in the least,
By the constant complaining of man and of beast,
Then I call to my aid your historical name,
And bid you remember great Hannibal's fame,
Who crossed o'er the Alps, though the snows were impeding,
His bold Carthagenians successfully leading,
As did also Napoleon, with whom you may claim,
Some connection at least, from the French in your name.
And if they with great armies could cross mountain ridges,
You surely could mend up the humolest of bridges.
Whilst Nickerson's yard is abounding in hoards
Of the very best planks and the strongest of boards,
My only defense to the dash of the spray,
Is some rotten old boards that are crumbling away.
My foot-planks, in part, are but worn out old slips,
The relics, I am told, of some broken up ships,
That rattle and jolt when a wagon goes by,
With their ends all devoutly turned up to the sky,
As saying, in view of their services past,
Oh, Hannibal French ! how long will this last?
Old friend, I should think the delight of your days,
Would be the employment of mending your ways,
Or if to such mending you do not incline,
I wish you would take to the mending of mine,
Or a horse will be damaged, in going across,
When the township, you know, has to pay for the loss,
And that's not the pleasantest thing to display,
When all is made known upon Town Meeting day,
And every one quotes in the old-fashioned rhyme —
What is saved by a stitch that is taken In time.

And Hannibal French, beware of the day,
When the Storm-King shall come in his fearful array,
And exposed to his terrible blast,
My shattered old fabric shall give up at last.
When 'mid loud peals of thunder,
My beams gape asunder,
And lightning is flashing,
And timbers are crashing.
And I finally fall from a terrible wrench,
With one piercing cry,
Going up to the sky,

Of Hannibal French ! Oh, Hannibal French !
The reference in the foregoing verses to a "badly kept bridge" was the bridge to North Haven, which in the year 1879 was so neglected that it became dilapidated and dangerous, and led to the publication of the above Jew d' espert, the effect of which was that the Commissioner of Roads repaired it so that it lasted until the present fine structure was erected, at a cost of $23,000, $18,000 of which was contributed by Sag-Harbor's public spirited citizen, Joseph Fahys, Esq.

1880 census -- Sag Harbor, Suffolk County, NY, Hannibal Sr. was age 62, wife Cornelia was age 58.

Children:
Florence A. (32),
Hannibal Jr. (27),
Frank C. (25),
Genevive (23),
(Cornelia) Nellie (19).

1884 Nov – Hannibal retired as Postmaster at Sag Harbor.

1889 May 5 – Hannibal French died in Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., LI, NY (Age 71 years). He died of Bright’s decease. He was the eldest brother of Police Commissioner French of New York. Hannibal was Postmaster at Sag Harbor until July 1887 when John T. Gallup was appointed. Hannibal had entered upon the discharge of his duties as Postmaster of Sag Harbor on 21 Nov 1884. On 29 May 1889 Miss Eva French (Hannibal’s daughter) was appointed Postmistress at Sag Harbor by President Harrison, vice Hannibal French, deceased.

Buried at the Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, in the same area are: Wade French, Harriet Wade French, Frank C. French, Emma Walton French, Henry French, Hannibal French Jr., Genevieve French, Florence E. French, Cornelia W. French, Hannibal French Sr., Arthur P. French, Arthur S. French, Anna L. French, Willie French, Timothy Rowland French Achenbach, Charlotte Moore French.

2.2 Abel Smith French, b. 13 Nov 1819, Riverhead, Suffolk Co., LI, NY, d. 10 Aug 1882, Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., LI, NY (age 62 years). He was a typical whalesman; more than once had he circum-navigated the globe carrying the emblems of Masonry and Masonic charity to the confines of the earth. He was raised in Hawaiian Lodge, No. 21, Sandwich Islands, but was a native of New York. The Sandwich Islands are now the Hawaiian Islands.

Ships and the Whaling Business

The three brothers, Hannibal French, Abel Smith French, and Stephen B. French were all in the ship whaling business. Hannibal and Stephen usually purchased the ships, while Abel was the ship’s Captain. For details, see Ships and the Whaling Business under Hannibal French.

Chronology

1820 census -- Just a few months after Abel was born in Orange County, NY, he was living with his father Peter in New York Ward 6, NY, with a family of 4:
2 males under 10: Hannibal and Abel
1 male age 26-44, Peter, father
1 female age 24-44, Sarah, mother

1850 census– Abel Smith was living with mother and siblings in Southampton, Suffolk, NY:

Sarah French, 52
Anna French, 17
Smith French, 28
Stephen B. French, 22
Sarah F. French, 14
Peter French, 12
Josephine French, 7

1860 census – cannot find

1870 census -- Abel was 50 and living in Sag Harbor with his mother, Sally, age 71, and his brother Peter, age 32, and sister Josephine, age 28.

1880 census – Abel was single living in Brooklyn, Kings Co., NY, working as a Custom House Officer, living as a boarder with the Fay family.

1882 Aug 10 -- Captain A. Smith FRENCH, brother of Police Commissioner FRENCH, of New York, died suddenly at Sag Harbor, L.I., on Thursday, of hemorrhage of the brain. Deceased was in the sixty-fifth year of his age, and in earlier years was a captain in the whale-ship service. At the time of his death he was a Custom House inspector in control of the district from North Fourth Street to Bushwick Creek. He has been a resident of Greenpoint for the past five year. Greenpoint is the northernmost neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, New York.

Buried at the Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, in the same area are: Mary A. Hand French, Forrest H. French, Cornelia French Round, Sally French McLaughlin, Howard Bascock, Sarah French Babcock, Henry A. Babcock, A. Smith French, Peter French Sr. (the earliest French in this cemetery, born 1793), Chancey H. French, Anna E. French Hinds, Sally French, Col. Peter French Jr., Josephine Bonaparte French, Fanny E. French, Selah Smith, and Ella Hinds.

From the Daily Eagle, Brooklyn, New York, 14 Aug 1882

2.3 Chauncey H. French, b. 15 Sep 1826, Riverhead, Suffolk Co., LI, NY, d. 22 Jun 1841, Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., LI, NY (age 14 years).

Buried at the Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, in the same area are: Mary A. Hand French, Forrest H. French, Cornelia French Round, Sally French McLaughlin, Howard Bascock, Sarah French Babcock, Henry A. Babcock, A. Smith French, Peter French Sr. (the earliest French in this cemetery, born 1793), Chancey H. French, Anna E. French Hinds, Sally French, Col. Peter French Jr., Josephine Bonaparte French, Fanny E. French, Selah Smith, and Ella Hinds.

2.4* Stephen Bull French, b. 16 Jan 1829, Riverhead, Suffolk Co., LI, NY, d. 3 Feb 1896, shot himself through the heart at home (age 67 years), at his home on the southwest corner of One Hundred and Fortieth Street and the boulevard in Brooklyn, (Kings County) NY, which was a 2 ½ story frame house.

Ships and the Whaling Business

The three brothers, Hannibal French, Abel Smith French, and Stephen B. French were all in the ship whaling business. Hannibal and Stephen usually purchased the ships, while Abel was the ship’s Captain. For details, see Ships and the Whaling Business under Hannibal French.

From “The Sentry” newsletter of the Sag Harbor Historical Society, dated Fall 2014.

Stephen B. French’s home in renovation in Sag Harbor, NY, first photo from “The Sentry” newsletter of the Sag Harbor Historical Society, dated Fall 2014. Second photo is dated April 2015, photo taken by Mara French. One can see that most of the boards were replaced.

From the historical section of “The Wave”, Rockaway Beach, NY, Thursday, April 3, 1958.

From the “History of Suffolk County, New York”. See also “Our Police Protectors: History of the New York Police from the Earliest” by Augustine E. Costello, p. 454 (can be searched on Google).

Stephen B. French was born in the town of Riverhead, Suffolk County, N. Y, January 16th 1829. His father, Peter French, was born in Montreal, Canada, and was of French Huguenot descent. His mother was a descendant of one of the original Dutch families who first settled Orange County, N. Y.

The parents of S. B. French removed in 1831 from Riverhead to Sag Harbor, where until his 13th year he attended school. He then entered the office of Captain John Budd, who was actively engaged in the whaling business, and with whom he remained some eighteen months. Afterward he entered the employ of Thomas Brown, a very energetic merchant, who pursued the like business.

The bewitching desire to sail on the sea impelled him to ship for a whaling voyage, which continued three years. On this voyage he visited Brazil, Chili, the Sandwich Islands (now called the Hawaiian Islands), and many other islands of the south Pacific.

Returning home in June 1847 in the ship " Acasta," of Sag Harbor, he had resolved to follow whaling as the business of his life. His father died while he was on this voyage. An elder brother was following the sea. The urgent entreaties of his mother, and his reverence for her, constrained him to remain at home and engage in mercantile pursuits.

Within eighteen months came the startling news of gold findings in California. On the 8th of February 1849, Mr. French sailed in the ship "Sabina" in a company of ninety from Sag Harbor, bound for San Francisco. Rounding Cape Horn they reached that port August 8th 1849. Then commenced a life full of adventure, arduous toil and changing fortune — working on Denison's exchange, ascending to the mines in a whaleboat, digging for gold, returning to San Francisco and keeping a hotel there, running a vessel thence to the Sandwich Islands, projecting an express to the northern mines, starting a store in Marysville, making and losing in five years two or three moderate fortunes. He sailed for the Sandwich Islands, and found there as shipmaster his brother, whom he had not seen for eight years; and returned home in the same ship, reaching Sag Harbor in June 1854.

As might be anticipated the visit home strangely lengthened out from week to week, until his marriage with a young lady, pure, beautiful, true and accomplished, whom the angel of death early summoned to the land of the blessed. During these years Mr. French was engaged in mercantile life as one of the firm of H. & S. B. French. (Hannibal and Stephen Bull French).

After the death of his wife, in 1866, he sought to forget his grief by interesting himself in politics and public affairs. He had been a Whig and always afterward a Republican. In 1868, on the resignation of Joseph H. Goldsmith as treasurer of Suffolk County, he was appointed to fill the position thus vacated. He was elected to this office in November 1869, and re-elected in 1872, running hundreds ahead of his ticket. In 1874 as a candidate for Congress he was defeated, although carrying the district outside of the vote in Long Island City. In 1875 as a candidate for county treasurer he was carried down, in the overwhelming defeat of the Republican party, by the meagre majority of 12 votes, running nearly 600 ahead of his ticket. In February 1876 he was appointed appraiser at the port of New York by President Grant. He removed to New York in March 1877; was appointed police commissioner of that city in May 1879; was elected president of the board in the year following, and still holds the position.

Trained in the hard school of adversity and subjected to conditions fluctuating and varied, tried in the perils of sea and land, on the shores of the Pacific and on Atlantic coasts, few men have gained the large experience in a long lifetime which has been crowded into the few years of the early life of this man. Mr. French has great rapidity of perception, strong powers of concentration, large capacity of endurance and almost intuitive knowledge of the material and immaterial facts of a case. He has extraordinary executive capacity, is well versed in human nature and the motives and springs of human action, with rare tact to adapt himself to changing circumstances in human affairs. He never forgets a favor or forsakes a friend. His sympathies are with the masses of mankind and their aspirations for freedom, education and mental culture; his character is positive; his convictions are decided; his action is prompt and resolute, and sometimes impulsive; his great generosity and kind heart are best known to his intimate friends.

He is short in stature, well-knit in frame, athletic in physical development. The dark, luminous eyes that gleam under a capacious forehead tell of the thought, penetration, energy and daring he is so well known to possess. There is great magnetism to his friends in his very presence, with something like unconscious defiance to foes. His positiveness is as attractive to the one as repellant to the other. As an organizer his capacity to master a multiplicity of details, to judge of men as agents to execute or obstruct, his tenacity of purpose, powers of endurance and clearness of conception conjoin to fit him admirably for the position he now occupies as chief of the commissioners of police in the empire city of this continent, and as a power in any political party to which he may belong.

If in these lines the reader sees an outline of a strong character, self-poised, not distracted by innumerable details, not disturbed by the presence or plots of foes, not given to chattering, moving straight forward to an end through storm and opposition, through competition and treachery, with front always to the foe — then the reader sees such a man as the writer intended, and as he has intimately known from a boy to the present time.

Marriages

Stephen m1. Mary Ann Hand on 15 Oct 1855 in Sag Harbor. She was b. 31 Mar 1837, d. 11 Feb 1865, buried at Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., NY. Mary Ann Hand’s mother was Louisa Pineo [11].

Stephen m2. Julia M. Prentis ca. 1867 in New London, CT, her hometown. She was b. 8 Mar 1849 and d. 17 Nov 1913.

Chronology

16 Jan 1829 – Stephen was born in Riverhead, Suffolk Co., LI, NY.

1831 – Stephen and his family moved to Sag Harbor.

1842 – He attended school until his 13^th year. He then entered the office of Captain John Budd, who was actively engaged in the whaling business, and with whom he remained some eighteen months. Afterward he entered the employ of Thomas Brown, a very energetic merchant, who pursued the like business.

1844 – Stephen went to sea on a whaling trip for 3 years; he was age 15. After this, he sailed between San Francisco and the Sandwich Islands, and in this business and other ways, made and lost several fortunes. On his voyage he visited Brazil, Chili, the Sandwich Islands, and many other islands of the south Pacific. His father died while he was on this voyage. An elder brother was following the sea.

1847 Jun – He returned home to Sag Harbor on the ship “Acasta”. He resolved to follow whaling as the business of his life. The urgent entreaties of his mother, and his reverence for her, constrained him to remain at home and engage in mercantile pursuits.

1849 Feb 8 – The Gold Rush began in California and Stephen sailed on the ship “Sabina” in a company of 90 from Sag Harbor, bound for San Francisco. Rounding Cape Horn, they reached that port on August 8, 1849. The commenced a life full of adventure, arduous toil and changing fortune — working on Denison's exchange, ascending to the mines in a whaleboat, digging for gold, returning to San Francisco and keeping a hotel there, running a vessel thence to the Sandwich Islands, projecting an express to the northern mines, starting a store in Marysville, making and losing in five years two or three moderate fortunes. He sailed for the Sandwich Islands, and found there as shipmaster his brother, whom he had not seen for eight years; and returned home in the same ship, reaching Sag Harbor in June 1854.

1850 census – It is unknown how, at this time, Stephen shows up in this census, because other records indicate he was in California or at sea. Stephen was living with mother and siblings in Southampton, Suffolk, NY:

Sarah French, 52
Anna French, 17
Smith French, 28
Stephen B. French, 22
Sarah F. French, 14
Peter French, 12
Josephine French, 7

1851 -- Stephen sailed for San Francisco and went to the California gold fields and worked in the mines in Tuolumne County, which is a county at the southern end of the Mother Lode. He also ran a hotel, perhaps the Niantic Hotel in San Francisco at the corner of Clay and Sansome Streets. The ship “Niantic” was a whaleship that brought fortune-seekers to Yerba Buena, later renamed San Francisco, during the California Gold Rush of 1849.

1852 – Stephen appears in the California State Census of 1852 living in Tuolumne County.

1854 June -- Stephen returned home to Sag Harbor. As might be anticipated the visit home strangely lengthened out from week to week, until his marriage with a young lady, pure, beautiful, true and accomplished, whom the angel of death early summoned to the land of the blessed. During these years Mr. French was engaged in mercantile life as one of the firm of H. & S. B. French.

1855 Oct 15 -- Stephen m1. Mary Ann in Sag Harbor. She was b. 31 Mar 1837, d. 11 Feb 1865, buried at Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., NY. They had 3 children: Clara, Forrest, and Eugene. Stephen m2. Julia M. Prentis ca. 1867 in New London, CT. She was b. 8 Mar 1849 and d. 17 Nov 1913. They had 3 children: May, Lester, and Stephen Jr.

1858 Jan 19 – Daughter Clara Slate French was born.

1860 ? 20 – Son Forrest French was born.

1860 census, Stephen B. French is head of household, b. 1829, living in Southampton, Suffolk Co., NY, married to Mary A. French, age 23, with daughter Clara French age 3, and son Forrest H. French, b. 1860. Mary died 11 Feb 1865, but not in childbirth. Stephen’s mother was also living in Southampton with some of her children:

Sally French, age 61, b. 1799 NY
A. Smith French, age 40, b. 1820 NY
Sarah French, age 24, b. 1836 NY
Josephine French, age 19, b. 1841 NY
Peter A. French, age 22, b. 1838 NY
Ella Hines, age 5, b. 1855

1862 Jan 23 – Son Eugene Smith French was born.

1862 – Stephen and his brother invested or partnered in local industry, including the 1862 development of Maidstone Flour Mills, which was destroyed by fire in 1877.

1863-1874 – Stephen and his brother, Hannibal, owned the ship “Myra”.

1865 Feb 11 – Stephen’s first wife Mary died and was buried at Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., NY. In this year, he entered into politics and public affairs to forget his grief. He had been a Whig and always afterward a Republican.

1865 census of New York – Stephen was 36, living with his daughter Clara 8 and his son Eugene 3, and his sister Josephine 23, and with Louisa Hand 62 (the mother of Stephen’s deceased wife).

1867 -- Stephen m2. Julia M. Prentis in New London, CT, her hometown. She was b. 8 Mar 1849 and d. 17 Nov 1913. They had 3 children: May, Lester, and Stephen Jr.

1868 -- On the resignation of Joseph H. Goldsmith as treasurer of Suffolk County, he was appointed to fill the position thus vacated. He was elected to this office in November 1869, and re-elected in 1872, running hundreds ahead of his ticket. In 1874 as a candidate for Congress he was defeated, although carrying the district outside of the vote in Long Island City. In 1875 as a candidate for county treasurer he was carried down, in the overwhelming defeat of the Republican party, by the meagre majority of 12 votes, running nearly 600 ahead of his ticket. In February 1876 he was appointed appraiser at the port of New York by President Grant. He removed to New York in March 1877; was appointed police commissioner of that city in May 1879; was elected president of the board in the year following.

1868-1874 – Stephen served as Suffolk County Treasurer. Following a failed Congressional run in 1874, his political loyalty was rewarded by the Republican Party with more lucrative appointments in New York City, where he moved his family to assume posts first as Appraiser of the Port of New York in 1876, and later as New York City’s Police Commissioner from 1879-1889.

1869-1876 – County Treasurer of Suffolk County, NY, succeeding Joseph W. Goldsmith, and was afterward re-elected to that office.

1870 census, Stephen B. French is head of household, b. 1829, living in Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., NY, with Julia Prentis French 22, Clara S. French 13, Eugene T. French 8, Mary P. French 1, and Sarah Caffee 20 (domestic servant). Julia Prentis lived in New London, New London Co., CT.

Stephen’s mother also lived in Sag Harbor:

Sally is 71 and lives in Sag Harbor with her sons Abel S. 50 and a mariner, and Peter 32 and a miller, and daughter Josephine 28 with no occupation, living next door to her son Hannibal and daughter-in-law Cornelius and their family. Also living with Sally was Ella Hinds, age 15, the daughter of Sally’s daughter Anna who died, and members of the Babcock family including Sally’s sister Sarah French Babcock. Everyone, including Sally, was born in New York.

1870 – Stephen road the first train into Sag Harbor during the official celebrations opening railroad service to Sag Harbor, which was he advocated.

1872 – Stephen was an unsuccessful candidate for congress in 1872 and was defeated for county treasurer in 1875.

1875 Sep 15 – Stephen’s mother,Sarah “Sally”, d. 15 Sep 1875 in Sag Harbor, age 76. She was born 19 Feb 1793, died at age 77.

1876 – Stephen was appointed an appraiser at the port of New York in 1876 by President Grant.

1880 census, Stephen B. French, head of household, married to Julia French age 31, Stephen was 51. Children: Clara 23, Eugene 18, May 11, Lester 9, and Stephen Jr. 5. Stephen was a retired Police Commissioner. Stephen indicates that his father was born in France and his mother in New York.

1884 Nov 25 – According to The Times-Picayne or New Orleans, LA, Stephen B. French was reappointed Police Commissioner of New York.

1887 May 26 -- Stephen succeeded Joel B. Erhardt as Police Commissioner and served as such until 22 May 1889. He was succeeded by James J. Martin. During the last part of his term, he was President of the Police Board.

1896 Feb 3 – Stephen shot himself through the heart at home (age 67 years).

From the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Monday, February 3, 1896.

Sag harbor cemetery = http://dunhamwilcox.net/ny/oakland_cem_li.htm

Buried at the Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, in the same area are: Eugene Smith French, Mary Prentis French Cox, William Cox, Stephen B. French Jr., Lester C. French, Stephen B. French Sr., and Julia Prentis French.

2.5 Frances (Fanny) E. French, b. Apr 1831, Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., LI, NY, d. 29 Sep 1832, Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., LI, NY (age 1 year, 5 months).

Buried at the Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, in the same area are: Mary A. Hand French, Forrest H. French, Cornelia French Round, Sally French McLaughlin, Howard Bascock, Sarah French Babcock, Henry A. Babcock, A. Smith French, Peter French Sr. (the earliest French in this cemetery, born 1793), Chancey H. French, Anna E. French Hinds, Sally French, Col. Peter French Jr., Josephine Bonaparte French, Fanny E. French, Selah Smith, and Ella Hinds.

2.6 Anna E. French, b. 10 May 1833, Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., LI, NY, d. 15 Jan 1858, Shakopee, Minnesota Territory (Age 24 years). She m. John Robert Hinds on 6 Sep 1853 in Sag Harbor. They had daughter Ella Hinds, 1854-1902, and son William. They moved to Shakopee, Scott County, MN. Anna wanted to be buried back with her family in Sag Harbor, and Ella, after the rest of the family died prematurely. Anna should be near a brother.  In Hinds correspondence her husband said that she wanted to be buried with "her brother" [10]. Ella was only age 4 when her mother died.

Email from Bill Darrow, wmdarrow@gmail.com, several emails back and forth during April 2015, website: http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/12478311/person/-174990500.

Hello - My piece of the French family is tragic. John Hinds, my GGGrandmother's youngest brother (and younger brother of James Hinds, the first US Congressman assassinated in office, in 1868), evidently got a teaching job in Sag Harbor around 1853 and met Anna French. The two married, in Sag Harbor, in 1854. Within a few years the couple moved to Shakopee, MN, where John's oldest brother, Henry Hinds, was a well-established attorney. John and Anna had two children, Ellen (Ella) Hinds (born 1854), and William Hinds (born 1858). In early January 1858, in Shakopee, Anna died in childbirth as William was born. She was 25. John was heartbroken, and wrote a tearful letter home to his family in Hebron, Washington County, NY (where all the Hinds kids were born). He described Anna's last days and final wishes, noting that: "she wanted her remains taken to Long Island in the Spring. She wanted me to get her sister Josephine to come and live with me and take care of the little ones. She gave me her watch to give to Ella, her rings she took from her finger only an hour before she died, and gave one to Ella and one to the Babe."

John honored Anna’s wishes, and arranged for her to be buried in her family plot in Oakland Cemetery, in Sag Harbor. He returned to Washington County, NY, with his two young children. Things did not work out with Anna French’s younger sister, Josephine. John settled in Schaghticoke, NY and became a physician. He remarried to Fannie Maxwell (1835 - ), and had two more children, Jenny (1863) and Howard R. (1866). As of the 1870 U.S. Census, as well as the 1875 New York State Census, the couple was raising the four children in Schaghticoke. Dr. Hinds died prematurely at age 47 in 1879.

Incredibly, the two sons of John Hinds both committed suicide. William, whose 1858 birth in Shakopee resulted in the death of his mother Anna French, shot himself in New York City in September, 1883, at the age of 25. His younger half-brother Howard committed a “copy cat” suicide three months later, at age 18. A Sept 3, 1883 New York Times article captioned “A Detective Commits Suicide” reports on the death of Det. Sgt. William Hinds, noting that he was a relative of Police Commissioner Stephen B. French. Evidently a work injury was plaguing him. A New York Tribune article dated Dec 5, 1883, reported the death of Howard Hinds. Captioned, “A Youth of 18 Shoots Himself,” the piece reported that “Howard B. Hinds, a relative . . . of Police Commissioner French, shot himself in the right temple in Howe’s concert hall, at No. 46 East Houston St, at 9 o’clock last night. . . . The following letter was found addressed to his mother: “DEAR MOTHER – I have been on a drunk and I am sorry that I cannot go home and remain with you. My only friend is gone – my brother. He put a bullet through his right temple. So do I. Good-bye, with love, from H.B. Hinds.” Two 1884 pieces in the Troy NY Daily Times report on the death of Howard Hinds. The first is captioned, “Followed His Brother,” and reads: “Howard R. Hinds . . . committed suicide at New York last evening. He was a son of the late Dr. Hinds of Schaghticoke, where he formerly resided. He was recently employed as a fireman on the Boston, Hoosac tunnel and Western railroad. His brother, Detective Sergeant William Hinds, recently committed suicide in New York.” The second piece is captioned “Suicide Follows Theft,” and reports that: “Howard Hinds, who committed suicide Tuesday night in a New York concert hall, is said to have stolen $430 from his uncle in Chester, Vt., last Thursday. He squandered the money in New York, and then killed himself. Hinds was formerly of Schaghticoke.” The “uncle in Chester” would have been Calvin Luther Hinds. Ella Hinds, the first child of Anna and John, lived and died in New York and never married. She is buried in Sag Harbor with her mother. Her obituary in the Sag Harbor NY Corrector, dated March 15, 1902, states: “The remains of Miss Ella Hinds, a former resident of this village, were brought here for internment in Oakland Cemetery, Thursday. . . . The deceased died at her residence in New York Monday. She was a daughter of John R. Hinds, who at one time taught the middle District School House in Sag Harbor, and who married Miss Anna French, oldest daughter of Peter French, and sister to Hannibal, Stephen B., Smith and Peter French, and Mrs. Sarah Babcock and Miss Josephine French.” In 1887 Ella’s half-sister Jennie Hinds married Swedish immigrant Eric W Lagerroth (1861-1919). The couple, evidently childless, lived in NY before retiring to Orlando, Florida (where they are both buried). Jennie died in 1922.

Note the above mention of "Police Commissioner French." That would be Stephen B. French, from the Sag Harbor family. Committed suicide by shooting in 1896. http://bklyn.newspapers.com/image/50336066/. Amazing. If you stop by Oakland Cemetery, I'd love to see Anna French's gravestone.

Best, thanks, Bill Darrow.

Buried at the Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, in the same area are: Mary A. Hand French, Forrest H. French, Cornelia French Round, Sally French McLaughlin, Howard Bascock, Sarah French Babcock, Henry A. Babcock, A. Smith French, Peter French Sr. (the earliest French in this cemetery, born 1793), Chancey H. French, Anna E. French Hinds, Sally French, Col. Peter French Jr., Josephine Bonaparte French, Fanny E. French, Selah Smith, and Ella Hinds.

2.7 Sarah F. French, b. 18 Sep 1836, Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., LI, NY, d. 7 Aug 1908, Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., LI, NY (Age 71 years). She was named after her mother. She was buried at the Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, Suffolk, Co., NY. She m. Henry A. Babcock, who was b. 8 Apr 1821 and d. 29 Jul 1886. They had son Howard C. Babcock, b. 9 Jun 1863, d. 30 Dec 1925.

1908 Aug 8 -- From The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Brooklyn, NY.

Buried at the Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, in the same area are: Mary A. Hand French, Forrest H. French, Cornelia French Round, Sally French McLaughlin, Howard Bascock, Sarah French Babcock, Henry A. Babcock, A. Smith French, Peter French Sr. (the earliest French in this cemetery, born 1793), Chancey H. French, Anna E. French Hinds, Sally French, Col. Peter French Jr., Josephine Bonaparte French, Fanny E. French, Selah Smith, and Ella Hinds.

2.8* Colonel Peter A. French, b. 20 May 1838 in Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., LI, NY, d. 19 Oct 1912, buried at the Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, Suffolk, Co., NY, served in the 81^st NYSV and 46^th NYSV.

Marriages

He m1. Mary Sherry, daughter of John Sherry of Sag Harbor. Mary Sherry Huntting was b. 13 Dec 1839 and d. 26 May 1867 (only 4 years after marriage) and is buried at the Oakland Cemetery in Sag Harbor. She was not buried with the French family, but with the Huntting and Sherry families.

He m2. Miss Catherine “Kate” Wilkinson of Poughkeepsie on 21 Apr 1881; she predeceased him. Peter was survived by his only living sister, Josephine B. French (she died 6 years later), and twin daughters from Kate: Miss Barbara French and Miss Katherine French. Catherine Wilkinson, age 50, was b. ca. 1820 in NY and lived in Bridgehampton, Sag Harbor, Suffolk County, NY in the 1870 census with her second husband Samuel Wilkinson, age 53.

Chronology

1839 Dec 13 – wife of Peter French, Mary Sherry, was born.

1850 census – Peter was living with his mother and siblings in Southampton, Suffolk, NY:

Sarah French, 52
Anna French, 17
Smith French, 28
Stephen B. French, 22
Sarah F. French, 14
Peter French, 12
Josephine French, 7

1861 Dec 20 – Enlisted in Sag Harbor, NY, Civil War Muster Roll, transferred in Nov 1862. He was 2^nd Lieutenant, commissioned an officer in Company H, New York 81^st Infantry Regiment on 23 Nov 1861. Promoted to Full 1^st Lieutenant on 6 Jul 1862. Promoted to Full Major on 19 Aug 1864. Mustered out on 19 Aug 1864. Commissioned an officer in on 19 Aug 1864. Discharged 3 Jun 1865.

1863 -- He m1. Mary Sherry, daughter of John Sherry of Sag Harbor. The following book is “A Sketch of Dr. John Smith Sage of Sag Harbor, N.Y.”

1965 census – Peter was age 27, lived with his siblings and mother in Southampton, Suffolk, NY.

1865 census – Catherine Wilkinson was 45, married to Samuel, 48, living with their children Margaret Wilkinson 22, Gansevoort Wilkinson 19, Frank Wilkinson 17, Bayard Wilkinson 19 in Canaan, Columbia, NY.

1867 May 26 – Mary Sherry French died (only 4 years after marriage) and is buried at the Oakland Cemetery in Sag Harbor.

1870 census – Peter was age 32, living with his siblings and mother in Sag Harbor, Suffolk, NY.

1870 census – Catherine Wilkinson lived in Bridgehampton, Sag Harbor, Suffolk County, NY, with her husband Samuel Wilkinson.

1879 Apr 14 – Passport Application to visit Cuba and the West Indies.

1881 Apr 21 -- Peter m2. Miss Catherine “Kate” Wilkinson of Poughkeepsie on 21 Apr 1881. At this time she was 60 years old?? Could that be? Peter’s obituary below states that he had 2 twin daughters. Unable to find them anywhere.

1900 census – Cannot be found.

1910 census – Cannot be found.

1912 Oct 19 -- From the Brooklyn New York Daily Eagle, 19 Oct 1912. He died in Manhatten, but was buried at Sag Harbor.

From The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, 23 Oct 1912.

Buried at the Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, in the same area are: Mary A. Hand French, Forrest H. French, Cornelia French Round, Sally French McLaughlin, Howard Bascock, Sarah French Babcock, Henry A. Babcock, A. Smith French, Peter French Sr. (the earliest French in this cemetery, born 1793), Chancey H. French, Anna E. French Hinds, Sally French, Col. Peter French Jr., Josephine Bonaparte French, Fanny E. French, Selah Smith, and Ella Hinds.

2.9 Josephine Bonaparte French, b. ca. 1842, Sag Harbor, Suffolk Co., LI, NY
d. 8 Dec 1918, New York, NY (age ~ 76 years). She never married and was always referred to a “Miss Josephine French”. She was a teacher at Heffley Institute in Brooklyn, NY.

Chronology

1850 census, she was age 7 and living with her mother and siblings in Southampton, Suffolk, NY. Her father Peter had died, and Sarah was head of household, living in Southampton, Suffolk, NY:

Sarah French, 52
Anna French, 17 (she died 8 years later)
Smith French, 28, b. 1822, was Abel Smith French
Stephen B. French, 22
Sarah F. French, 14
Peter French, 12
Josephine French, 7

1860 census – Southampton, Suffolk Co, NY

Sally French, age 61, b. 1799 NY
A. Smith French, age 40, b. 1820 NY
Sarah French, age 24, b. 1836 NY
Josephine French, age 19, b. 1841 NY
Peter A. French, age 22, b. 1838 NY
Ella Hines, age 5, b. 1855

1865 census of New York – Stephen was 36, living with his daughter Clara 8 and his son Eugene 3, and his sister Josephine 23, and with Louisa Hand 62.

1870 census of Sag Harbor living with her mother Sally, age 71, her brothers Abel 50 and Peter 32, and relatives Ella Hines 15 (her sister’s daughter and both parents had died), Henry A. Babcock 48 (her sister’s husband), Sarah Babcock 34 (her sister), Howard C. Babcock 7, William Williamson 35, and Bridget Meuan 25 a domestic servant. Living next door to them were Hannibal her brother and his large family.

1880 census, she was living in Sag Harbor, single, states that her father was born in New York City and her mother in Orange County, NY, Josephine was 38.

1895 Apr 18 -- From The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Brooklyn, NY. Josephine went to Europe during the summer after teaching.

1900 census – cannot find.

1901 Aug 11 -- From The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Brooklyn, NY. Mrs. Julia P. (Prentis) French was the wife of Stephen Bull French who died in 1896, the brother of Josephine. John Sherry was the father of Colonel Peter A. French’s wife, Mary Sherry, and Peter was Josephine’s brother.

1901 Aug 12 – From The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Brooklyn, NY.

1908 Aug 8 -- From The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Brooklyn, NY. Sarah Babcock was the sister of Josephine who married Henry A. Babcock..

1910 census – cannot find.

1813 Feb 8 -- From The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Brooklyn, NY. Heffley Institute is in Brooklyn, NY.

1918 Dec 8 – Josephine died in New York.

Buried at the Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, in the same area are: Mary A. Hand French, Forrest H. French, Cornelia French Round, Sally French McLaughlin, Howard Bascock, Sarah French Babcock, Henry A. Babcock, A. Smith French, Peter French Sr. (the earliest French in this cemetery, born 1793), Chancey H. French, Anna E. French Hinds, Sally French, Col. Peter French Jr., Josephine Bonaparte French, Fanny E. French, Selah Smith, and Ella Hinds.