It all started in 1739...
Dr. James Henderson
In 1739, King George II granted 16,000 acres of land to Dr. James Henderson, a Scotsman, for services rendered at the Greenwich Hospital in England. With dreams of building a country house, he traveled to America only to find the land was a wild and desolate area inhabited by Mohawk Indians. He decided instead to build Greenwich House, a home on Greenwich Street in an area now known as Greenwich Village in New York City. The acres granted to him make up much of what we currently know as Herkimer County.
The Douglas Family
The Douglas brothers were industrious Scot descents who arrived in New York during the 1760’s destined to become wealthy. The Douglas fortune was mainly acquired through various businesses in New York and London, and by farming in Scotland. Of the four, two brothers returned to Scotland and acquired large tracts of land in Galloway. William Douglas built Gelston Castle and his brother James founded the town of Castle Douglas. George Douglas was the only brother to permanently settle in America and eventually married Margaret Corne.
Margaret Corne
Margaret Corne was the daughter of Captain Peter Corne and a granddaughter of Dr. James Henderson. The royal grant was passed down to Margaret who was the first of Dr. Henderson’s heirs to take an interest in the lands up in the Mohawk Valley. With her husband George Douglas, she had some land cleared and surveyed, then had a twenty-four room summer Cottage built in 1787.
Margaret and George Douglas had five children: Margaret (1787), Harriett (1790), George (1793), William (1795), and Elizabeth Mary (1799). George died of yellow fever at his wife’s home at King’s Ferry on the Hudson River.
Harriett Douglas
Known for her red-gold hair, Harriet Douglas was the social lioness of the 1800’s. She was perhaps the most strong-willed of her family, to the point that once she resolved something in her head, there was no stopping her. She spent most of her life traveling around Europe and America with her siblings circulating amongst the most elite of social societies collecting famous male acquaintances. She kept the company of famous names like Mrs. Anne Grant, with whom Harriet boarded while studying in Scotland and introduced her to the Literary Social Circle. Others include Maria Edgeworth who introduced her to Sir Walter Scott. William Wordsworth and James Fenimore Cooper were other names that frequented her company.
On her 43rd birthday, Harriet married her on-again, off-again suitor Henry Cruger who was of the most distinguished of New York families. Their stormy marriage only lasted eight years on account of her independent spirit and strong nature that tried controlling their relationship from the start. Perhaps examples of her character can be noted in her insistence that Henry take the Douglas name and they were known as Mr. and Mrs. Douglas Cruger.
When she visited her uncle Sir William Douglas’ residence, Gelston Castle, in Scotland as a young girl she vowed to one day build a replica of her own. As members of her family died, Harriett gained possession of the Henderson land and resolved to make her lifelong dream a reality and had a stone mansion built 50 ft. from her mother’s cottage in 1833. To accomplish her unusual and unique design she insisted it be built with stone blocks to resemble the houses of Scotland, and had them carried all the way from Little Falls, “fourteen miles in the snow”. It was published that Gelston Castle contained over 20 rooms, including ten bedrooms and three sitting rooms. They used the large hall as a dining room and the basement had five rooms, a kitchen and sitting room. The castle was adorned with fireplaces throughout.
Harriett wished to be buried on the Henderson family estate, but was instead buried at the family plot in a New York City churchyard in 1872.
Fannie Robinson and Douglas Robinson
Since Harriet had no children, the estate was passed down to Harriett’s niece, Fannie Robinson, born on April 14, 1824 to Elizabeth Mary Douglas and James Monroe, nephew of President James Monroe. Douglas Robinson, Fannie’s second cousin, was born on March 24 1824 in Lancashire, Scotland to William Rose and Mary (Douglas) Robinson. Fannie’s mother Elizabeth (Betsy) and Douglas’ mother Mary were first cousins.
Douglas Robinson, educated in Edinburgh University, moved to New York City in 1841 to seek fortunes. Douglas and Fannie fell in love, but due to his lack of riches was considered an unsuitable match for her, so she was sent away to Scotland to visit relatives. Possessing the true female spirit, Fannie returned in 1850 and married Douglas.
According to "Miss Douglas", the biography of Harriet Douglas, the couple wed at Fanwood, the house the Monroes built at Fort Washington, then a secluded suburb to the north of New York City. After being wed the couple temporarily lived at 55 Broadway that was lent to them by Aunt Harriett, and then later moved to New Jersey. Also noted in the book were visits to Aunt Harriett at her big house on Fourteenth Street in New York City with their two children, Douglas (born January 3, 1855) and little Harriett. The children would enjoy play dates with Theodore Roosevelt, who was their same age, and his sister Corinne, who would eventually marry the young Douglas Robinson.
Robinson Cemetery
The story of Robinson Cemetery begins with Fannie and Douglas who were the first two buried on the family estate in Herkimer. Fannie died on August 22, 1906 at her summer home, now known as Henderson House, which was the original 1787 cottage built by Margaret Douglas. Douglas Robinson died on November 30, 1893.
Also buried in the cemetery are their son Douglas Robinson and his wife Corinne, who were next to inherit Henderson House and Gelston Castle.
Douglas Robinson and Corinne Roosevelt
It can be considered romantic that Douglas and Corinne would meet as young playmates, then later after married would make their summer home at the estate that their Aunt Harriett cherished so dearly.
Corinne was born to Theodore Sr. and Martha Bulloch Roosevelt on September 27, 1861. She was the sister of President Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., and the youngest of four children. In her younger years, Corinne traveled extensively with her family throughout Europe and the Middle East, and had several volumes of poetry published. Amongst the names in attendance at her societal debut in 1880 were Astor and Vanderbilt. Her brother Theodore gave Corinne away in marriage to Douglas Robinson two years later in April 1882.
Being a community-oriented couple, Douglas and Corinne were amongst the major donors to have the Jordanville Library built. President Theodore Roosevelt did the dedication in 1908.
Theodore Douglas Robinson and Helen Roosevelt
The eldest son of Douglas and Corinne, Theodore, was born on April 28, 1883. Helen Roosevelt, a step-niece of Franklin D. Roosevelt, was born on September 26, 1881 to James and Helen Astor Roosevelt. The youngest Theodore in the family kept up the family tradition of keeping the Roosevelt name in the family when he married Helen and they continued to live at Henderson House. Under President Coolidge, he was the Assistant Secretary of the Navy. He also devoted 14 years to service Herkimer County, first as State Assemblyman then as State Senator.
Theodore and Helen had four children, amongst whom was a daughter named Martha Douglas Robinson that was born February 4, 1912, and was buried at Robinson Cemetery a month later when she died sadly on March 5.
The heirs to the family estate who lived in the mansion end with Theodore who died on April 10, 1934 and Helen who died July 8, 1962; both of whom are also buried in Robinson Cemetery.
Since 1962…
The property was sold to Mrs. Jan Blair in 1962, who restored it to its beauty after years of neglect. She ran an occupational therapy home caring for elderly nursing patients and was regarded for the exceptional care she gave.
In 1974, Mrs Blair sold the property to the Asian Conservation Laboratory who used it as an institute dedicated to the protection of Asian and Western art; then turned around in 1975 and sold it to Mrs. Francis Kudla who also operated a retirement home facility.
In 1979, the famous Russian Cellist/Conductor Mstislav Rostropovich purchased the property when he decided to make Jordanville his home after being exiled from Russia. What caught his attention, besides the natural seclusion the property afforded, was that it was close to the Holy Trinity Monastery, which was the first Russian Orthodox Church outside of Russia. His original intention was to restore Gelston Castle, but was advised against it, so instead has an 8,000 sq. ft. mansion built as a gift to his wife, soprano singer Galina Vishneskaya.
In 2005, with the estate on the market, Rostropovich was welcomed back to his former home of Russia where he remained until he died in 2007. The estate is currently owned by Safflyn Corporation, an environmental development company.