Livingston Manor was a 160,000 acre tract of land granted to Robert Livingston the Elder through the influence of 5th GovernorThomas Dongan, and confirmed by royal charter of George I of Great Britain in 1715, creating the manor and lordship of Livingston. The original patent was obtained in July 1686. This tract embraced a large portion of what is now Columbia County. The lords of the manor were:
Robert Livingston the Elder, served from 1715–1728.
Philip Livingston, served from 1728–1749.
Robert Livingston, served from 1749–1790.
Although an English-deeded tract, some sources list Livingston Manor with the patroonships of New Netherland.
Division of land
The first division of the estate occurred in 1728 upon the death of Robert Livingston the Elder, who stipulated that his third son, Robert Livingston, be granted 13,000 acres from Livingston Manor's southwest corner, a tract which Robert christened Clermont Manor. In 1790, upon the death of the last lord of the manor, Robert Livingston, the remainder of Livingston Manor was divided among his heirs, rather than continue to pass down through primogeniture, as Robert disapproved of his eldest son, who had made many unwise financial decisions and was perennially in debt. The inheritors of the estate were all men who had distinguished themselves considerably during and after the American Revolution:
These four heirs subsequently divided the land among their own families, and the power of the Livingston family was slowly diminished. A portion of the estate is still held by the family. The town of Livingston, New York occupies part of the original tract.
, in present-day Sullivan County in New York State, capitalizes on the Livingston Manor name because Manor family members and descendants had a house there however it was not part of the original manor The Sullivan County community, which is about west of the original manor, was part of the Hardenbergh patent in 1716 which included much of the Catskill Mountains. In 1750, Robert Livingston, the third lord, bought in the area shortly after becoming the third Lord of the Manor of Livingston Manor. Most of the land would be sold or leased by 1780. Robert's third son John Robert Livingston deeded to his nephew Dr. Edward R. Livingston in 1822 around area then called Purvis, New York. In 1882, Purvis was renamed Livingston Manor. Edward's "manor," which was actually just a house, was on the site of the present village firehouse, according to a modern sign in the village, however other speculation says the house was on the location of the village Town Hall.
