Elias Hasbrouck came to Woodstock, ultimately, by way of New Paltz and Kingston - and a small thing called the Revolutionary War. Born in May of 1741, Hasbrouck was the youngest of eight sons born to Huguenot parents, Solomon and Sara Hasbrouck. In the early fall of 1757, a young Elias Hasbrouck was apprenticed to the Livingston family. By the mid-1760s, Hasbrouck had established himself as a merchant in Kingston where he sold such items as teapots, spectacles, writing paper and snuff. Hasbrouck was also someone who steadily came to believe in the cause of American independence and would put both his name and his life on the line for that cause.
Marker honoring Elias Hasbrouck
Located at the front of the Woodstock Cemetery
Located at the front of the Woodstock Cemetery
Following the outbreak of hostilities at Lexington and Concord, Hasbrouck, along with more than 200 other citizens from New Paltz and Kingston, lent his support to the colonial cause by affixing his signature to the Articles of Association, expressing alarm and concern over the raising of taxes and the "bloody" events being played out in Massachusetts. Vowing never to become "slaves," the local signers "under the ties of religion, honor and love to our country" pledged "to adopt and endeavor to carry into execution, whatever measure may be recommended by the Continental Congress."
In June 1775, Hasbrouck received a commission as Captain in the Third Regiment. In addition to serving with General Richard Montgomery, he also served as a quartermaster in charge of supplying troops protecting the Hudson Highlands, sought out spies and conspirators and, additionally, transported supplies on the Hudson for both American and French troops. On October 16, 1777 Hasbrouck, along with other outnumbered colonials, fought in the defense of Kingston as the British took the war, and their torches, to the heart of Ulster County. The destruction of the city at the hands of the British included the burning of Hasbrouck's own shop located in what is now uptown Kingston.
In 1785, Hasbrouck moved to the Lake Hill area of Woodstock and established yet another shop and inn at the corner of what is now Route 212 and Mink Hollow Road. Two years later, on June 5, 1787, Hasbrouck became Woodstock's first Supervisor following the official creation of the town by New York State in April of that same year.
The work of Woodstock’s first “administration,” however, was decidedly different from the efforts of their “founding brothers” in Philadelphia as the Continental Congress endeavored to adopt a constitution and implement a system of government untried in the modern world. Under Hasbrouck, Woodstock’s early attempt at governing presented a more provincial form of experiment; an effort to organize and a craft a town out of the wilderness as they grappled with creating laws that would control livestock, govern taverns, raise revenue, and maintain roads and fences.
Though elected twice as Supervisor, Hasbrouck would not see the end of his second term. As recounted by local historian, Louise Hasbrouck Zimm, it is believed that, on October 8, 1791, he "passed away while out hunting and was found sitting against a stump with his gun across his knees.” If the story is true, writes Zimm, "it was a fitting end for the old warrior-hunter, whose best years had been spent in dangerous service on the frontier where, at least, through their own efforts, he and his brother soldiers were able to settle in peace.”[1] Elias Hasbrouck had lived but fifty years and yet, in that short span, had been witness to both the birth of a nation and instrumental in the birth of a small town in the Catskills. His life knew the fire of revolution and the tranquility and blessings of the land.
As “founding fathers” go, not bad. Not bad at all.
Richard Heppner, Woodstock Town Historian
[1] Zimm, Louise Hasbrouck. "Captain Elias Hasbrouck, 1741-1791,” Publications of The Woodstock Historical Society, September 1951.
