Lott, Gertrude

The presence of the Lott family in Brooklyn extends back to 1652, when Peter Lott, a French Huguenot, emigrated from the Netherlands and settled in the town of Flatbush in the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam. Flatbush would later become part of Kings County (now the borough of Brooklyn) in 1664 after the British took control of New Amsterdam, renamed it New York, and Anglicized its place names. Several of Peter Lott's descendants were prominent citizens of Kings County who held influential public office positions at the local and state levels.

This collection chiefly relates to members of the second through eighth generations of the Lott family, beginning with Engelbart Lott (1654-1730), son of Peter, who was married to Cornelia De La Noy and resided for a time in New Castle, PA before returning to settle permanently in Flatbush. Engelbart and Cornelia had several children, including Abraham Lott (1684-1754), who was married to Catherine Hegeman (1691-1741) and became owner of the family farm after his father's death. Abraham was also elected a Representative of Kings County in the Colonial Legislature of New York.

Abraham and Catherine's son, Engelbert Lott (1719-1779), also resided in Flatbush and was married to Maritje Ditmas. He too became owner of the family farm after Abraham's death, and was also the principal land surveyor in Kings County and a Judge of the Kings County Court of Common Pleas.

Engelbert and Maritje Lott's son, Johannes E. Lott (1746-1811), was the First Surrogate of Kings County and was also a Judge of the County's Court of Common Pleas. He and his wife, Catharine Vanderbilt Lott (1757-1840), had several children, among them Abraham (d. 1840), a farmer and resident of Flatlands, and Jeremiah (1776-1861), who like his father resided in Flatbush and was Surrogate of Kings County, as well as a surveyor and Clerk of the Board of Supervisors.

Jeremiah and his wife, Lydia Lloyd Lott (1789-1865), had a daughter, Catharine (1807-1881), who in 1829 married John A. Lott (1806-1878), the son of the above-mentioned Abraham Lott (d. 1840) and one of 19th-century Brooklyn's most celebrated citizens. John was a senior member of the law firm Lott, Murphy, & Vanderbilt, along with prominent Brooklyn politician Henry Cruse Murphy and Judge John Vanderbilt. He was later First Judge of the Kings County Court of Common Pleas, a member of the New York State Assembly, Senator from the first district, Justice of the New York State Supreme Court, Associate Justice of the New York State Court of Appeals, and Chief Justice of the Commission of Appeals.

John A. and Catharine Lott's daughter, Maria Jane Lott (1840-1916), married wealthy lumber merchant John H. Livingston (1825-1907) in 1868. Their son, Charles L. Livingston, Sr. (1869-1944), was also a lawyer and married Sarah Ryder Longmire (1876-1961). Among Charles and Sarah's children were Charles L. Livingston, Jr. and John H. Livingston (d. 1995), who were partners in the family law firm of Lott & Livingston (the successor of the firm Lott, Murphy, & Vanderbilt). John H. Livingston was married to Elizabeth Sloan Pratt Livingston.

From the guide to the Lott family papers, 1702-1954, (Brooklyn Historical Society)