Abraham Joseph Hasbrouck

Abraham Joseph Hasbrouck (October 16, 1773 – January 12, 1845) was a United States representative from New York and a slaveholder. He was born in Guilford, a hamlet that is now known as Libertyville in the town of Gardiner, Ulster County, New York. He was a member of the prominent Hasbrouck family, descendants of the Huguenot settlers who founded New Paltz in 1678. These ancestors were Protestant followers of John Calvin who fled persecution by the ruling Catholic authorities in what is now northern France and southern Belgium. The original settlement established by the Hasbroucks and related families survives as Historic Huguenot Street in New Paltz, a National Historic Landmark District that commemorates this early colonial community.

Hasbrouck received his education through private tutoring rather than formal schooling, a common practice among families of means in the Hudson Valley during the late eighteenth century. In 1795 he moved to Kingston, Ulster County, which would remain the center of his business and political life. There he engaged in mercantile pursuits, developing commercial interests that tied the agricultural interior of New York to the markets of New York City and contributing to the region’s growing river and canal trade.

In addition to his business activities, Hasbrouck became involved in banking and infrastructure development as the Hudson Valley economy expanded in the early nineteenth century. He was one of the organizers and a director of the Middle District Bank of Kingston, an institution that played a role in financing local commerce. He was also one of the incorporators of the Delaware & Hudson Canal, a major internal improvement project designed to transport coal and other goods from Pennsylvania to the Hudson River, thereby linking interior resources to coastal markets. Alongside his civilian pursuits, he held a commission as a first lieutenant of Cavalry in the New York Militia, reflecting the expectation that leading citizens contribute to local defense and public order.

Hasbrouck entered public office at the state level before serving in the national legislature. He was elected to the New York State Assembly, serving in 1811, where he participated in state legislative affairs during a period of growing tension that would culminate in the War of 1812. His legislative experience and local prominence in Kingston and Ulster County helped position him for higher office as the Democratic-Republican Party dominated New York politics in the early republic.

As a member of the Republican Party, more commonly known at the time as the Democratic-Republican Party, representing New York, Abraham Joseph Hasbrouck contributed to the legislative process during one term in office. He was elected as a Democratic-Republican to the Thirteenth Congress and served as a United States representative from March 4, 1813, to March 3, 1815. His service in Congress occurred during a significant period in American history, encompassing much of the War of 1812, when issues of national defense, trade restrictions, and relations with Great Britain dominated the federal agenda. During this time he participated in the democratic process and represented the interests of his constituents from New York. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1814 and returned to private life at the close of his term.

After leaving Congress, Hasbrouck resumed and expanded his commercial activities. He engaged in freighting goods by water between Kingston and New York City, taking advantage of the Hudson River as a major transportation artery and contributing to the flow of agricultural products and manufactured goods between the interior and the port city. He continued to be active in public affairs and was elected to the New York State Senate, serving in 1822, thereby returning to state-level legislative service during a period of ongoing debate over internal improvements, banking, and the evolving political alignments that would eventually give rise to new party formations.

Hasbrouck remained a notable figure in Kingston and Ulster County until his death. He died in Kingston, New York, on January 12, 1845, and was buried in Albany Avenue Cemetery in that city. His family connections extended his influence into later generations of public service and military leadership. His cousin, Abraham Bruyn Hasbrouck, also served as a U.S. Representative from New York, continuing the family’s political tradition. Both men traced their lineage to the original Hasbrouck settlers of New Paltz. Abraham Joseph Hasbrouck was the great-grandfather of Major General Henry Granville Sharpe, a senior officer in the United States Army, and of Robert W. Hasbrouck, further illustrating the enduring prominence of the Hasbrouck family in American civic and military life.