Gaston Family

The Gaston family papers span at least four generations of a prominent Somerville, New Jersey, family. The earliest identified member of this family is William B. Gaston. He moved from Basking Ridge, New Jersey, to Somerville about 1824. His family was of Huguenot origin. He was a merchant, and held real estate. He was also an elder of the Second Reformed Church, and a lay judge of Somerset County.

William B. Gaston had at least four sons: Joseph, Frederick, Alexander and Hugh M. As the sons grew, they settled in various places in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Frederick Gaston (1821-1847) was a physician who resided for a time in Woodsville, Hopewell Township, Mercer County, New Jersey. Hugh M. Gaston (1818-1892) was a lawyer, and was admitted to the Bar in 1840. He drew up the charter for the Town of Somerville in 1862. Hugh Gaston married Frances Mallet-Prevost, daughter of Louis Mallet-Prevost of Frenchtown, New Jersey. Mr. Mallet-Prevost was a French banker who left that country at the time of their Revolution.

The H.M. Gastons had at least six children: Lizzie, Hugh Kirkpatrick, Louis Prevost, Mary Exton, Evelyn, and Frances P. Little information is available about Lizzie. Hugh K. Gaston was born August 10, 1858. He was admitted to the Bar in 1880. In 1888 he married Susan Cammann, who died in 1919 without children. Hugh K. died April 10, 1938.

Louis P. Gaston was born October 17, 1864. He attended Lehigh University and was graduated in 1888 with a degree in civil engineering. He was President of his own contracting firm, Richards and Gaston. He died in July of 1938.

Mary Exton Gaston was born in 1855. She attended Vassar College in the 1870s. She became a physician, and lived in the family’s home at 18 West High Street. She died in 1956.

Frances P. Gaston did not marry, and lived at home with Mary E. Gaston, who was also unmarried.

Evelyn Gaston married Augustus (“Gus”) VanderVeer on June 15, 1882. He seems to have been a civil engineer also, as he wrote several letters from Corning, New York, where he was working on a railroad construction project.

The Augustus VanderVeers had at least two children, Hugh and Elizabeth Kirkpatrick. Hugh VanderVeer worked for the Pennsylvania Railroad, at least from 1904 to 1906. Elizabeth (“Bess”) attended Vassar from 1902 to 1906. After that, she taught in the Dunellen Public Schools for a year. In 1918, she joined the American Expeditionary Forces Y.M.C.A., and subsequently worked in and near Bordeaux, France.

There are also other family members mentioned in these papers. Madge Safford appears to be a daughter-in-law of Frances M. Gaston. Various nieces and nephews of the H.M. Gastons are mentioned, including nieces Mary and Mado, and nephews Kay, Kenneth, Lynn, and Milton. Two of the earlier letters pertain to a member of the Exton family who was a relative. The earliest letters in the collection are to Margaret Blackwell, who was perhaps also an ancestor.

From the guide to the Gaston Family Papers, (Rutgers University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives)