American statesman. Edward Livingston was born at Clermont, one of the great estates of the Hudson River Valley, into one of the most prominent families in the American colonies, the youngest son of Judge Robert Livingston and his wife, the former Margaret Beekman. He trained as a lawyer and was admitted to the bar in 1785. Livingston began his public career as a young man, serving in the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 2nd district (March 4, 1795 – March 3, 1801). Following his tenure in the House of Representatives, he served as United States Attorney for New York and as mayor of New York City (1801-1803). He suffered a serious attack of yellow fever and during this time, through the actions of a clerk under his supervision, he became liable for a large amount of public money lost due to the clerk's actions. Livingston left New York for New Orleans in 1804 and began the practice of law in that city and by 1826 was able to repay the Federal government for the funds lost due to the mismanagement of the clerk under his supervision in New York. He helped in the drafting of the Louisiana Civil Code of 1825; served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Louisiana's 1st district (March 4, 1823 – March 3, 1829); and served as the United States Senator from Louisiana (March 4, 1829 – May 24, 1831). Subsequently, he served as the United States Secretary of State under President Andrew Jackson (May 24, 1831 – May 29, 1833) and was among his most trusted cabinet members. Later, he served as United States Minister to France (September 30, 1833 – April 29, 1835). Edward Livingston died on May 23, 1836, shortly before his seventy-second birthday at Montgomery Place, an estate near Barrytown, a hamlet within the town of Red Hook, Dutchess County, New York, left to him by his sister, Janet (Livingston) Montgomery, the widow of General Richard Montgomery, where he had settled in 1831. He was originally buried in the family vault at the Clermont Manor Cemetery in Columbia County, New York, but his remains were later transferred to a vault under the Methodist Church in Rhinebeck, New York, as referenced in a letter dated 18 Aug 1899 by Julia Barton Hunt to Cora Livingson Van Keuren and abstracted and published in The Quarterly Journal of the New York State Historical Association, Volume 7, Number 1 (January, 1926), page 70. The removal of his remains to Rhinebeck is also referenced in his entry in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.