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Alexander Hamilton Descendants Feted In White Plains, Irvington

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. – White Plains historians took advantage recently of the public’s renewed interest in Alexander Hamilton to point out his local connections, and to fete one of his direct descendants.

Douglas Hamilton, a direct descendant of Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, visited an historic site in White Plains recently associated with his famed ancestor.

Douglas Hamilton, a direct descendant of Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, visited an historic site in White Plains recently associated with his famed ancestor.

Photo Credit: Douglas Hamilton/Facebook
Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, who rose from poverty to establish the nation's financial system, was Gen. George Washington's right-hand man during the Battle of White Plains in 1776.

Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, who rose from poverty to establish the nation's financial system, was Gen. George Washington's right-hand man during the Battle of White Plains in 1776.

Photo Credit: Wikipedia
A direct descendant of Alexander Hamilton recently visited the Jacob Purdy House in WHite Plains. The homestead served as one of George Washington's many headquarters during the Revolutionary War.

A direct descendant of Alexander Hamilton recently visited the Jacob Purdy House in WHite Plains. The homestead served as one of George Washington's many headquarters during the Revolutionary War.

Photo Credit: encounter-america.org
From left, White Plains Mayor Tom Roach; White Plains Historical Society president John Vorperian; Cynthia Kaufmann (historical re-enactor); Douglas Hamilton and Nicole Scholet, vice president of the Alexander Hamilton Awareness Society.

From left, White Plains Mayor Tom Roach; White Plains Historical Society president John Vorperian; Cynthia Kaufmann (historical re-enactor); Douglas Hamilton and Nicole Scholet, vice president of the Alexander Hamilton Awareness Society.

Photo Credit: Courtesy: White Plains Historical Society

According to John Vorperian, president of the White Plains Historical Society, the founding father’s great-great-great-great-great grandson, Douglas Hamilton, took part in a program Sunday sponsored by the Alexander Hamilton Awareness Society.

He toured the Jacob Purdy House, a historic home on Park Avenue that was used as George Washington’s headquarters in 1778, and also likely was used two years earlier during the Battle of White Plains.

Hamilton, who is famed for overcoming poverty and illegitimacy, rose to become Washington’s right-hand man – not to mention the founder of the nation’s financial system and the subject of a wildly popular current Broadway play.

His New York Artillery Company fought in many strategic Revolutionary War battles in New York City and surrounding areas, such as White Plains, where Hamilton’s cannons were used to fend off an advance by Hessian soldiers.

Vorperian said Douglas Hamilton, who works for IBM, also visited the White Plains Library to look at a mural there depicting his ancestor in the Battle of White Plains.

According to a report by The Examiner News, Douglas Hamilton was greeted by the city’s mayor, Tom Roach.

Historical society members attended an event Saturday at the Nevis Mansion on South Broadway in Irvington, where they met another Hamilton descendant and new celebrity, Alan Key, The Examiner News reported.

According to the Irvington Historical Society, Alexander Hamilton’s son James built a stately home in the village in 1835 and named it “Nevis,” after his father’s birthplace, a small island in the Caribbean.

Columbia University now owns the Grecian-style manse and estate.

The White Plains Historical Society plans to commemorate the Battle of White Plains this fall, Vorperian said Thursday.

A re-enactment and ceremony is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m Sunday, Oct. 23, at the Jacob Purdy House, 60 Park Ave., White Plains.

For more information about the historical society, call (914) 328-1776 or click here.

To read the full The Examiner News story, click here.

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