Davenport family papers
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Abstract
The Davenport family papers date from 1700 to 1915, with the bulk of the material dating from 1840 to 1899. Document types include correspondence, deeds, bonds, receipts, indentures, stock certificates, and military commissions. A large portion of the collection consists of the personal and business documents of Brooklyn real estate dealer Amzi B. Davenport and his son, attorney Henry B. Davenport.
Biographical note
The Davenport family of Brooklyn descended from the Reverend John Davenport, a Puritan minister who helped found the colony of New Haven and Yale University. Amzi B. Davenport (1817-1894), the son of William Davenport and Abigail Benedict, moved from Connecticut to Brooklyn in 1836. In Brooklyn, he opened the Willoughby Street Academy, served as a deacon of Plymouth Church, and worked in real estate in his later years. Amzi Davenport was also the author of The History and Genealogy of the Davenport Family in England and America, published in 1851, and a member of the Long Island Historical Society (now the Brooklyn Historical Society).
Amzi Davenport's son, Henry B. Davenport (1854-1920), was educated at the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn and worked as an attorney in Brooklyn. He was the founder and president of the Home Title Insurance Company, and a founder and officer of the Flatbush Savings Bank. Henry and his wife Flora Lufkin (m. 1877) had one son, Maurice Davenport.
Sources
- Davenport, Robert Ralsey. The Davenport Genealogy: History and Genealogy of the Ancestors and Descendants of the Rev. John Davenport, Founder of New Haven, Connecticut, and of Yale College. Cambridge, MA: R. R. Davenport, 1982.
Scope and Contents
The Davenport family papers measure 0.42 linear feet and date from 1700 to 1915, with the bulk of the material dating from 1840 to 1899. Document types include correspondence, deeds, bonds, receipts, indentures, stock certificates, and military commissions. A large portion of the collection consists of the personal and business documents of Brooklyn real estate dealer Amzi B. Davenport and his son, attorney Henry B. Davenport. Amzi Davenport's business correspondence covers land transactions during the mid to late 19th century in Brooklyn, as well as Stamford, New Canaan, and New Haven, Connecticut. Henry Davenport's business papers focus primarily on the legal aspects of land transfers in Brooklyn, such as title searches, as well as Davenport's work with the Flatbush Savings Bank. The personal correspondence of both men includes family history, touching on the researching and publication of Amzi Davenport's family genealogy.
Other Davenport family members represented in the collection with correspondence, deeds, and indentures include Maurice Davenport, Benjamin Butler Davenport, Jane Davenport, and the Rev. John Davenport. In addition to Davenport family papers, the collection also includes deeds, receipts, contracts, indentures, stock certificates, and military commissions related to prominent Brooklyn families and individuals, such as the Cortelyou, Dimon, Brevoort, Martense, Murphy, and Schoonmaker families, as well as Teunis Joralemon, Thomas Northall, David Treadwell, Amos Lufkin, and Henry Van Dyke. Many of these families were related to the Davenport family by marriage.
Subjects
Organizations
Families
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Conditions Governing Access
Open to researchers without restriction.
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, date (if known); Davenport family papers, 1977.345, Box and Folder number; Brooklyn Historical Society.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Source and date of acquisition for the collection are unknown.
Other Finding Aids
A complete folder list is available in paper form at the Brooklyn Historical Society.
About this Guide
Processing Information
Minimally processed to the collection level.
