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| Aryyl house in 1869 |
Eugene Livingston was born on January
6, 1845 in Philadelphia. His parents were Eugene Augustus Livingston and
Harriet Coleman. Eugene Augustus was the son of Robert L. and Margaret Maria
Livingston, He would have spent at least part of his childhood at Arryl House,
formerly the home of his grandfather Chancellor Robert R. Livingston and now
the home of his brother, Montgomery Livingston.
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| Teviot |
Eugene Augustus and Harriet soon made
a home at Teviot, the Hudson River estate immediately south of Clermont.
Harriet gave birth to a daughter they named Mary Coleman Livingston. Unfortunately,
Harriet died shortly thereafter. Eugene Augustus married Elizabeth Rhodes
Fisher in 1851.
At the same time the country was
falling apart. Following the election of 1860 and the inauguration of Abraham
Lincoln as president, eleven southern slave holding states illegally withdrew
from the union and revolted against the United States.
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| Eugene Livingston's enlistment record from the National Archives |
The war was expected to end quickly
but after a humiliating defeat at the First Battle of Manassas the Union ramped
up recruitment for the army as well as production of war materials.
On February 1, 1862, the younger
Eugene enlisted in the 95th New York Infantry and was mustered in
that same day. He lied about his age. He was 17 but his enlistment record says
he was 21. We do not know what inspired Eugene to enlist. Perhaps he felt
strongly about saving the Union or ending slavery. Perhaps he was worried about
being called a coward if he did not fight. Perhaps he was inspired by stories
of his famous ancestors. Whatever his reasons, Eugene gave up his life of
comfort and safety on the Hudson River to join a brutal war.
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| Monument to the 95th Regiment at Gettysburg |
The
95th would go on to see some of the most intense fighting of the
Civil War. They served at; The Second Battle of Manassas, Antietam, Gettysburg,
Chancellorsville, Spotsylvania and Appomattox. Eugene saw none of this.
On March 8, 1862 Eugene posed for a
photo in uniform. Ten days later his regiment finally left New York City.
They were assigned to help defend Washington D.C. Shortly after arriving in the
capital Eugene fell sick with Tuberculosis. On April 27, 1862, he was
discharged from the army with a surgeons’ certificate of disability.
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| Eugene Livingston |
Eugene never recovered his health. He
returned to his father’s house, Teviot, hoping the country air would cure his consumption.
It did not. On Wednesday December 31, 1862 Eugene died at Teviot, a week short
of his 18th birthday.
In
the untimely loss of your noble son, our affliction here, is scarcely less than
your own. So much of promised usefulness to one's country, and of bright hopes
for one's self and friends, have rarely been so suddenly dashed, as in his
fall.
Abraham Lincoln, May
25, 1861 Letter to Ephraim D. and Phoebe Ellsworth
