Christian Cape was born in Dresden, Saxony a state in the Holy Roman Empire ca 1795. Saxony was briefly occupied by Prussia in 1756 following the Seven Years War but regained its independence in the 1763 Treaty of Hubertusburg. He died in Manhattan, New York 8 Aug 1837 and was buried in Manhattan at New York City Marble Cemetery, vault 166 (of which, he was the owner). He married Hannah Maria Resler, daughter of Henry and Elizabeth (Long) Resler, on 16 Sep 1820 in Manhattan. She was born in Manhattan 31 Jan 1803. She died in Manhattan 3 May 1865 and was buried in Manhattan at New York City Marble Cemetery, vault 166.
Christian Cape started his pork packing-house in Manhattan in 1818. Shortly thereafter, he married Hannah Maria Resler. Christian and Hannah Maria initially lived with her parents, Henry and Elizabeth (Long) Resler, at their 114 Pump Street home in Manhattan. After Elizabeth’s death on 29 Oct 1820, Hannah Maria became the surrogate mother for her seven siblings. Sometime after Elizabeth’s death, the family moved a few blocks north to 77 Rivington Street. This would be the family home for more than 30 years.
In 1829, George Avery Trowbridge came to New York City as a young man. He received a situation from Christian Cape and was soon taken into the firm. Shortly thereafter, the firm became known as Cape & Trowbridge. George married Hannah Maria’s sister, Susannah, in 1834. Christian Cape’s pork packing-house would go on to become the largest in the country before the great West had grown. Hannah Maria’s father and two of her brothers, Henry Resler Jr. and David Resler, were both butchers. It is likely that her third brother, William, was either a butcher or provisioner too. Virtually the entire family was involved in the business in one way or another. The firm was located at the corner of Broom and Allen Streets with a branch in Fulton Market.
The Resler/Cape household must have been a very hectic place. The 1830 U.S. Federal Census reported that Christian Cape was the head of this large family, which included 13 people. The family consisted of Christian and Hannah Maria, their first three children, Hannah Maria’s father Henry and her seven siblings. Christian and Hannah Maria would have one more child in 1832, five in all.
Christian and Hannah Maria (Resler) Cape’s fourth child, Hannah Maria Cape, died on 11 May 1834. She was 4 years and 6 months old.
Christian Cape was also very active in the community. He was a member of lodge #322 (now lodge #54) of the German Union Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons in 1827. Fluency in German was a requirement for membership at that time.
He participated in a meeting of the citizens of the Tenth Ward at Military Hall on 20 Sep 1831. The Evening Post reported that “an appeal was made by Alderman Quackenboss to the citizens of this Ward, in favor of the gallant Poles, who forcibly urged the necessity of immediate measures being taken to assist them in their glorious struggle for liberty.” Christian was appointed to a committee to receive donations from the citizens of the Ward to support the cause. It was resolved at the meeting that the proceedings of the meeting be published in all papers friendly to the cause of the oppressed Poles. This cause was undoubtedly a familiar one to Christian as Saxony, the land of his birth, directly bordered on Poland.
A group of civic minded businessmen had bought out Henry Astor’s interest in the Bull’s Head Tavern and moved it safely out of town to Third Avenue and 24th Street. In 1830, this new location fell into the hands of Daniel Drew, who turned the Bull’s Head into a sort of bank, marketplace and social club for cattlemen, upgrading the establishment and building his own reputation as a savvy financier. The neighborhood was even sometimes referred to as Bull’s Head Village. On 26 Sep 1834, Christian Cape took out an add regarding a lost leather pocket book in the vicinity of the Bull’s Head Tavern. The leather pocket book contained “bank notes at or near $20 [and] also a note of hand for $2,000 at 12 months, dated April 1834 in favor of Christian Cape and by him endorsed.” Though a reward was offered for the return of the leather pocket book, it is not known whether it was finally recovered.
Christian was politically active. Like his father-in-law, he participated as an elector of the Democratic-Republican Party at their meetings on 26 Oct 1829, 8 Apr 1831, 4 Nov 1831, 1 Nov 1833 and 7 Apr 1837. He also took a great interest in the German community in New York City. The German population there grew from 2,500 in 1790 to 24,000 in 1840, or about 8% of the population of the City. In an effort to harness the political potential of the German community, “the Germans of the City of New York friendly to the present administration and desirous to preserve and sustain the constitution and the laws, convened according to public notice, at Tammany Hall, on Monday the 27th [of October 1834]” according to the Evening Post. Christian Cape was appointed as one of the Vice Presidents of this meeting, which was known at the time as The Great German Meeting. The organizers of the meeting hoped to identify all of the German citizens of the City and then to attempt to bring them into the political process on the side of the Democrats (the “friends of liberty”) over the Whigs (the federalists). They printed 5,000 copies of the proceedings of the meeting for distribution and resolved to encourage the establishment of a German newspaper.
The German Society of the City of New York was created in 1784 as a charitable organization to assist newly arrived German immigrants in their orientation to the United States. Thirteen men created the Society, basing it on the model of the Philadelphia German Society. By year’s end, membership had increased to 34. At the second annual meeting Henry Astor became a member and John Jacob Astor joined in 1804. The German Society incorporated as a New York City corporation in 1804. In 1837, John Jacob Astor became president of the German Society of New York City, working hard to set it on the right course and generously supporting it financially. The exact extent of Christian Cape’s involvement with the German Society is not known.
Christian Cape died intestate on Tuesday morning, 8 Aug 1837. He was 42 years old. Members of both the German Union Lodge and the German Society were invited to attend his funeral the following day. He had four surviving children on the date of his death, and left an estate valued at $12,000.
Following Christian’s death, Hannah Maria succeeded him as a partner in the firm. Their eldest daughter, Elizabeth Christina Cape, married Benjamin Whitney Floyd on 14 Apr 1837. He also joined the firm at around that time. The name of the firm was again changed, this time to Cape, Trowbridge & Co. William Martin Cape, Christian and Hannah Maria’s eldest son also joined the firm.
In the 1840 U.S. Federal Census, Hannah Maria (Resler) Cape was listed as the head of the household. As with the 1830 U.S. Federal Census, there were 13 family members reported in the census that year. While the size of the family remained the same, there were some notable changes since 1830. Christian had died as had their daughter, Hannah Maria Cape. Hannah Maria’s two eldest brothers, Henry Resler Jr. and William Resler, had also died. Her sister Susannah had married George Avery Trowbridge and had moved out to start a family of her own. The new members of the household included Christian and Hannah Maria’s son Henry Christian Cape who was born in 1832, their son-in-law Benjamin Whitney Floyd, a granddaughter and her later brother William’s widow Cecelia and their daughter Emeline Resler.
Hannah Maria’s father, Henry Resler, died on 23 May 1850. Henry divided his estate into seven equal shares. In recognition of Hannah Maria’s financial responsibilities vis-a-vis the family, Henry left her share of his estate to her outright (rather than in trust).
Children of Chrisitian and Hannah Maria (Resler) Cape born in Manhattan:
1. Elizabeth Christina Cape, b. 6 Oct 1820, d. 1 Feb 1900; m. Benjamin Whitney Floyd (Provisioner).
2. William Martin Cape (Provisioner), b. ca. 1822, d. 23 Dec 1851.
3. Catherine Ann Cape, b. ca. Jun 1827, d. 18 Sep 1902; m. Edward White Burr (Jeweler).
4. Hannah Maria Cape, b. ca. Nov 1829, d. 11 May 1834.
5. Henry Christian Cape (Lawyer), b. ca. 1832, d. 22 Sep 1880; m. Sarah Willis.
Bio by: Steven Tynan
Christian Cape started his pork packing-house in Manhattan in 1818. Shortly thereafter, he married Hannah Maria Resler. Christian and Hannah Maria initially lived with her parents, Henry and Elizabeth (Long) Resler, at their 114 Pump Street home in Manhattan. After Elizabeth’s death on 29 Oct 1820, Hannah Maria became the surrogate mother for her seven siblings. Sometime after Elizabeth’s death, the family moved a few blocks north to 77 Rivington Street. This would be the family home for more than 30 years.
In 1829, George Avery Trowbridge came to New York City as a young man. He received a situation from Christian Cape and was soon taken into the firm. Shortly thereafter, the firm became known as Cape & Trowbridge. George married Hannah Maria’s sister, Susannah, in 1834. Christian Cape’s pork packing-house would go on to become the largest in the country before the great West had grown. Hannah Maria’s father and two of her brothers, Henry Resler Jr. and David Resler, were both butchers. It is likely that her third brother, William, was either a butcher or provisioner too. Virtually the entire family was involved in the business in one way or another. The firm was located at the corner of Broom and Allen Streets with a branch in Fulton Market.
The Resler/Cape household must have been a very hectic place. The 1830 U.S. Federal Census reported that Christian Cape was the head of this large family, which included 13 people. The family consisted of Christian and Hannah Maria, their first three children, Hannah Maria’s father Henry and her seven siblings. Christian and Hannah Maria would have one more child in 1832, five in all.
Christian and Hannah Maria (Resler) Cape’s fourth child, Hannah Maria Cape, died on 11 May 1834. She was 4 years and 6 months old.
Christian Cape was also very active in the community. He was a member of lodge #322 (now lodge #54) of the German Union Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons in 1827. Fluency in German was a requirement for membership at that time.
He participated in a meeting of the citizens of the Tenth Ward at Military Hall on 20 Sep 1831. The Evening Post reported that “an appeal was made by Alderman Quackenboss to the citizens of this Ward, in favor of the gallant Poles, who forcibly urged the necessity of immediate measures being taken to assist them in their glorious struggle for liberty.” Christian was appointed to a committee to receive donations from the citizens of the Ward to support the cause. It was resolved at the meeting that the proceedings of the meeting be published in all papers friendly to the cause of the oppressed Poles. This cause was undoubtedly a familiar one to Christian as Saxony, the land of his birth, directly bordered on Poland.
A group of civic minded businessmen had bought out Henry Astor’s interest in the Bull’s Head Tavern and moved it safely out of town to Third Avenue and 24th Street. In 1830, this new location fell into the hands of Daniel Drew, who turned the Bull’s Head into a sort of bank, marketplace and social club for cattlemen, upgrading the establishment and building his own reputation as a savvy financier. The neighborhood was even sometimes referred to as Bull’s Head Village. On 26 Sep 1834, Christian Cape took out an add regarding a lost leather pocket book in the vicinity of the Bull’s Head Tavern. The leather pocket book contained “bank notes at or near $20 [and] also a note of hand for $2,000 at 12 months, dated April 1834 in favor of Christian Cape and by him endorsed.” Though a reward was offered for the return of the leather pocket book, it is not known whether it was finally recovered.
Christian was politically active. Like his father-in-law, he participated as an elector of the Democratic-Republican Party at their meetings on 26 Oct 1829, 8 Apr 1831, 4 Nov 1831, 1 Nov 1833 and 7 Apr 1837. He also took a great interest in the German community in New York City. The German population there grew from 2,500 in 1790 to 24,000 in 1840, or about 8% of the population of the City. In an effort to harness the political potential of the German community, “the Germans of the City of New York friendly to the present administration and desirous to preserve and sustain the constitution and the laws, convened according to public notice, at Tammany Hall, on Monday the 27th [of October 1834]” according to the Evening Post. Christian Cape was appointed as one of the Vice Presidents of this meeting, which was known at the time as The Great German Meeting. The organizers of the meeting hoped to identify all of the German citizens of the City and then to attempt to bring them into the political process on the side of the Democrats (the “friends of liberty”) over the Whigs (the federalists). They printed 5,000 copies of the proceedings of the meeting for distribution and resolved to encourage the establishment of a German newspaper.
The German Society of the City of New York was created in 1784 as a charitable organization to assist newly arrived German immigrants in their orientation to the United States. Thirteen men created the Society, basing it on the model of the Philadelphia German Society. By year’s end, membership had increased to 34. At the second annual meeting Henry Astor became a member and John Jacob Astor joined in 1804. The German Society incorporated as a New York City corporation in 1804. In 1837, John Jacob Astor became president of the German Society of New York City, working hard to set it on the right course and generously supporting it financially. The exact extent of Christian Cape’s involvement with the German Society is not known.
Christian Cape died intestate on Tuesday morning, 8 Aug 1837. He was 42 years old. Members of both the German Union Lodge and the German Society were invited to attend his funeral the following day. He had four surviving children on the date of his death, and left an estate valued at $12,000.
Following Christian’s death, Hannah Maria succeeded him as a partner in the firm. Their eldest daughter, Elizabeth Christina Cape, married Benjamin Whitney Floyd on 14 Apr 1837. He also joined the firm at around that time. The name of the firm was again changed, this time to Cape, Trowbridge & Co. William Martin Cape, Christian and Hannah Maria’s eldest son also joined the firm.
In the 1840 U.S. Federal Census, Hannah Maria (Resler) Cape was listed as the head of the household. As with the 1830 U.S. Federal Census, there were 13 family members reported in the census that year. While the size of the family remained the same, there were some notable changes since 1830. Christian had died as had their daughter, Hannah Maria Cape. Hannah Maria’s two eldest brothers, Henry Resler Jr. and William Resler, had also died. Her sister Susannah had married George Avery Trowbridge and had moved out to start a family of her own. The new members of the household included Christian and Hannah Maria’s son Henry Christian Cape who was born in 1832, their son-in-law Benjamin Whitney Floyd, a granddaughter and her later brother William’s widow Cecelia and their daughter Emeline Resler.
Hannah Maria’s father, Henry Resler, died on 23 May 1850. Henry divided his estate into seven equal shares. In recognition of Hannah Maria’s financial responsibilities vis-a-vis the family, Henry left her share of his estate to her outright (rather than in trust).
Children of Chrisitian and Hannah Maria (Resler) Cape born in Manhattan:
1. Elizabeth Christina Cape, b. 6 Oct 1820, d. 1 Feb 1900; m. Benjamin Whitney Floyd (Provisioner).
2. William Martin Cape (Provisioner), b. ca. 1822, d. 23 Dec 1851.
3. Catherine Ann Cape, b. ca. Jun 1827, d. 18 Sep 1902; m. Edward White Burr (Jeweler).
4. Hannah Maria Cape, b. ca. Nov 1829, d. 11 May 1834.
5. Henry Christian Cape (Lawyer), b. ca. 1832, d. 22 Sep 1880; m. Sarah Willis.
Bio by: Steven Tynan
Christian Cape was born in Dresden, Saxony a state in the Holy Roman Empire ca 1795. Saxony was briefly occupied by Prussia in 1756 following the Seven Years War but regained its independence in the 1763 Treaty of Hubertusburg. He died in Manhattan, New York 8 Aug 1837 and was buried in Manhattan at New York City Marble Cemetery, vault 166 (of which, he was the owner). He married Hannah Maria Resler, daughter of Henry and Elizabeth (Long) Resler, on 16 Sep 1820 in Manhattan. She was born in Manhattan 31 Jan 1803. She died in Manhattan 3 May 1865 and was buried in Manhattan at New York City Marble Cemetery, vault 166.
Christian Cape started his pork packing-house in Manhattan in 1818. Shortly thereafter, he married Hannah Maria Resler. Christian and Hannah Maria initially lived with her parents, Henry and Elizabeth (Long) Resler, at their 114 Pump Street home in Manhattan. After Elizabeth’s death on 29 Oct 1820, Hannah Maria became the surrogate mother for her seven siblings. Sometime after Elizabeth’s death, the family moved a few blocks north to 77 Rivington Street. This would be the family home for more than 30 years.
In 1829, George Avery Trowbridge came to New York City as a young man. He received a situation from Christian Cape and was soon taken into the firm. Shortly thereafter, the firm became known as Cape & Trowbridge. George married Hannah Maria’s sister, Susannah, in 1834. Christian Cape’s pork packing-house would go on to become the largest in the country before the great West had grown. Hannah Maria’s father and two of her brothers, Henry Resler Jr. and David Resler, were both butchers. It is likely that her third brother, William, was either a butcher or provisioner too. Virtually the entire family was involved in the business in one way or another. The firm was located at the corner of Broom and Allen Streets with a branch in Fulton Market.
The Resler/Cape household must have been a very hectic place. The 1830 U.S. Federal Census reported that Christian Cape was the head of this large family, which included 13 people. The family consisted of Christian and Hannah Maria, their first three children, Hannah Maria’s father Henry and her seven siblings. Christian and Hannah Maria would have one more child in 1832, five in all.
Christian and Hannah Maria (Resler) Cape’s fourth child, Hannah Maria Cape, died on 11 May 1834. She was 4 years and 6 months old.
Christian Cape was also very active in the community. He was a member of lodge #322 (now lodge #54) of the German Union Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons in 1827. Fluency in German was a requirement for membership at that time.
He participated in a meeting of the citizens of the Tenth Ward at Military Hall on 20 Sep 1831. The Evening Post reported that “an appeal was made by Alderman Quackenboss to the citizens of this Ward, in favor of the gallant Poles, who forcibly urged the necessity of immediate measures being taken to assist them in their glorious struggle for liberty.” Christian was appointed to a committee to receive donations from the citizens of the Ward to support the cause. It was resolved at the meeting that the proceedings of the meeting be published in all papers friendly to the cause of the oppressed Poles. This cause was undoubtedly a familiar one to Christian as Saxony, the land of his birth, directly bordered on Poland.
A group of civic minded businessmen had bought out Henry Astor’s interest in the Bull’s Head Tavern and moved it safely out of town to Third Avenue and 24th Street. In 1830, this new location fell into the hands of Daniel Drew, who turned the Bull’s Head into a sort of bank, marketplace and social club for cattlemen, upgrading the establishment and building his own reputation as a savvy financier. The neighborhood was even sometimes referred to as Bull’s Head Village. On 26 Sep 1834, Christian Cape took out an add regarding a lost leather pocket book in the vicinity of the Bull’s Head Tavern. The leather pocket book contained “bank notes at or near $20 [and] also a note of hand for $2,000 at 12 months, dated April 1834 in favor of Christian Cape and by him endorsed.” Though a reward was offered for the return of the leather pocket book, it is not known whether it was finally recovered.
Christian was politically active. Like his father-in-law, he participated as an elector of the Democratic-Republican Party at their meetings on 26 Oct 1829, 8 Apr 1831, 4 Nov 1831, 1 Nov 1833 and 7 Apr 1837. He also took a great interest in the German community in New York City. The German population there grew from 2,500 in 1790 to 24,000 in 1840, or about 8% of the population of the City. In an effort to harness the political potential of the German community, “the Germans of the City of New York friendly to the present administration and desirous to preserve and sustain the constitution and the laws, convened according to public notice, at Tammany Hall, on Monday the 27th [of October 1834]” according to the Evening Post. Christian Cape was appointed as one of the Vice Presidents of this meeting, which was known at the time as The Great German Meeting. The organizers of the meeting hoped to identify all of the German citizens of the City and then to attempt to bring them into the political process on the side of the Democrats (the “friends of liberty”) over the Whigs (the federalists). They printed 5,000 copies of the proceedings of the meeting for distribution and resolved to encourage the establishment of a German newspaper.
The German Society of the City of New York was created in 1784 as a charitable organization to assist newly arrived German immigrants in their orientation to the United States. Thirteen men created the Society, basing it on the model of the Philadelphia German Society. By year’s end, membership had increased to 34. At the second annual meeting Henry Astor became a member and John Jacob Astor joined in 1804. The German Society incorporated as a New York City corporation in 1804. In 1837, John Jacob Astor became president of the German Society of New York City, working hard to set it on the right course and generously supporting it financially. The exact extent of Christian Cape’s involvement with the German Society is not known.
Christian Cape died intestate on Tuesday morning, 8 Aug 1837. He was 42 years old. Members of both the German Union Lodge and the German Society were invited to attend his funeral the following day. He had four surviving children on the date of his death, and left an estate valued at $12,000.
Following Christian’s death, Hannah Maria succeeded him as a partner in the firm. Their eldest daughter, Elizabeth Christina Cape, married Benjamin Whitney Floyd on 14 Apr 1837. He also joined the firm at around that time. The name of the firm was again changed, this time to Cape, Trowbridge & Co. William Martin Cape, Christian and Hannah Maria’s eldest son also joined the firm.
In the 1840 U.S. Federal Census, Hannah Maria (Resler) Cape was listed as the head of the household. As with the 1830 U.S. Federal Census, there were 13 family members reported in the census that year. While the size of the family remained the same, there were some notable changes since 1830. Christian had died as had their daughter, Hannah Maria Cape. Hannah Maria’s two eldest brothers, Henry Resler Jr. and William Resler, had also died. Her sister Susannah had married George Avery Trowbridge and had moved out to start a family of her own. The new members of the household included Christian and Hannah Maria’s son Henry Christian Cape who was born in 1832, their son-in-law Benjamin Whitney Floyd, a granddaughter and her later brother William’s widow Cecelia and their daughter Emeline Resler.
Hannah Maria’s father, Henry Resler, died on 23 May 1850. Henry divided his estate into seven equal shares. In recognition of Hannah Maria’s financial responsibilities vis-a-vis the family, Henry left her share of his estate to her outright (rather than in trust).
Children of Chrisitian and Hannah Maria (Resler) Cape born in Manhattan:
1. Elizabeth Christina Cape, b. 6 Oct 1820, d. 1 Feb 1900; m. Benjamin Whitney Floyd (Provisioner).
2. William Martin Cape (Provisioner), b. ca. 1822, d. 23 Dec 1851.
3. Catherine Ann Cape, b. ca. Jun 1827, d. 18 Sep 1902; m. Edward White Burr (Jeweler).
4. Hannah Maria Cape, b. ca. Nov 1829, d. 11 May 1834.
5. Henry Christian Cape (Lawyer), b. ca. 1832, d. 22 Sep 1880; m. Sarah Willis.
Bio by: Steven Tynan
Christian Cape started his pork packing-house in Manhattan in 1818. Shortly thereafter, he married Hannah Maria Resler. Christian and Hannah Maria initially lived with her parents, Henry and Elizabeth (Long) Resler, at their 114 Pump Street home in Manhattan. After Elizabeth’s death on 29 Oct 1820, Hannah Maria became the surrogate mother for her seven siblings. Sometime after Elizabeth’s death, the family moved a few blocks north to 77 Rivington Street. This would be the family home for more than 30 years.
In 1829, George Avery Trowbridge came to New York City as a young man. He received a situation from Christian Cape and was soon taken into the firm. Shortly thereafter, the firm became known as Cape & Trowbridge. George married Hannah Maria’s sister, Susannah, in 1834. Christian Cape’s pork packing-house would go on to become the largest in the country before the great West had grown. Hannah Maria’s father and two of her brothers, Henry Resler Jr. and David Resler, were both butchers. It is likely that her third brother, William, was either a butcher or provisioner too. Virtually the entire family was involved in the business in one way or another. The firm was located at the corner of Broom and Allen Streets with a branch in Fulton Market.
The Resler/Cape household must have been a very hectic place. The 1830 U.S. Federal Census reported that Christian Cape was the head of this large family, which included 13 people. The family consisted of Christian and Hannah Maria, their first three children, Hannah Maria’s father Henry and her seven siblings. Christian and Hannah Maria would have one more child in 1832, five in all.
Christian and Hannah Maria (Resler) Cape’s fourth child, Hannah Maria Cape, died on 11 May 1834. She was 4 years and 6 months old.
Christian Cape was also very active in the community. He was a member of lodge #322 (now lodge #54) of the German Union Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons in 1827. Fluency in German was a requirement for membership at that time.
He participated in a meeting of the citizens of the Tenth Ward at Military Hall on 20 Sep 1831. The Evening Post reported that “an appeal was made by Alderman Quackenboss to the citizens of this Ward, in favor of the gallant Poles, who forcibly urged the necessity of immediate measures being taken to assist them in their glorious struggle for liberty.” Christian was appointed to a committee to receive donations from the citizens of the Ward to support the cause. It was resolved at the meeting that the proceedings of the meeting be published in all papers friendly to the cause of the oppressed Poles. This cause was undoubtedly a familiar one to Christian as Saxony, the land of his birth, directly bordered on Poland.
A group of civic minded businessmen had bought out Henry Astor’s interest in the Bull’s Head Tavern and moved it safely out of town to Third Avenue and 24th Street. In 1830, this new location fell into the hands of Daniel Drew, who turned the Bull’s Head into a sort of bank, marketplace and social club for cattlemen, upgrading the establishment and building his own reputation as a savvy financier. The neighborhood was even sometimes referred to as Bull’s Head Village. On 26 Sep 1834, Christian Cape took out an add regarding a lost leather pocket book in the vicinity of the Bull’s Head Tavern. The leather pocket book contained “bank notes at or near $20 [and] also a note of hand for $2,000 at 12 months, dated April 1834 in favor of Christian Cape and by him endorsed.” Though a reward was offered for the return of the leather pocket book, it is not known whether it was finally recovered.
Christian was politically active. Like his father-in-law, he participated as an elector of the Democratic-Republican Party at their meetings on 26 Oct 1829, 8 Apr 1831, 4 Nov 1831, 1 Nov 1833 and 7 Apr 1837. He also took a great interest in the German community in New York City. The German population there grew from 2,500 in 1790 to 24,000 in 1840, or about 8% of the population of the City. In an effort to harness the political potential of the German community, “the Germans of the City of New York friendly to the present administration and desirous to preserve and sustain the constitution and the laws, convened according to public notice, at Tammany Hall, on Monday the 27th [of October 1834]” according to the Evening Post. Christian Cape was appointed as one of the Vice Presidents of this meeting, which was known at the time as The Great German Meeting. The organizers of the meeting hoped to identify all of the German citizens of the City and then to attempt to bring them into the political process on the side of the Democrats (the “friends of liberty”) over the Whigs (the federalists). They printed 5,000 copies of the proceedings of the meeting for distribution and resolved to encourage the establishment of a German newspaper.
The German Society of the City of New York was created in 1784 as a charitable organization to assist newly arrived German immigrants in their orientation to the United States. Thirteen men created the Society, basing it on the model of the Philadelphia German Society. By year’s end, membership had increased to 34. At the second annual meeting Henry Astor became a member and John Jacob Astor joined in 1804. The German Society incorporated as a New York City corporation in 1804. In 1837, John Jacob Astor became president of the German Society of New York City, working hard to set it on the right course and generously supporting it financially. The exact extent of Christian Cape’s involvement with the German Society is not known.
Christian Cape died intestate on Tuesday morning, 8 Aug 1837. He was 42 years old. Members of both the German Union Lodge and the German Society were invited to attend his funeral the following day. He had four surviving children on the date of his death, and left an estate valued at $12,000.
Following Christian’s death, Hannah Maria succeeded him as a partner in the firm. Their eldest daughter, Elizabeth Christina Cape, married Benjamin Whitney Floyd on 14 Apr 1837. He also joined the firm at around that time. The name of the firm was again changed, this time to Cape, Trowbridge & Co. William Martin Cape, Christian and Hannah Maria’s eldest son also joined the firm.
In the 1840 U.S. Federal Census, Hannah Maria (Resler) Cape was listed as the head of the household. As with the 1830 U.S. Federal Census, there were 13 family members reported in the census that year. While the size of the family remained the same, there were some notable changes since 1830. Christian had died as had their daughter, Hannah Maria Cape. Hannah Maria’s two eldest brothers, Henry Resler Jr. and William Resler, had also died. Her sister Susannah had married George Avery Trowbridge and had moved out to start a family of her own. The new members of the household included Christian and Hannah Maria’s son Henry Christian Cape who was born in 1832, their son-in-law Benjamin Whitney Floyd, a granddaughter and her later brother William’s widow Cecelia and their daughter Emeline Resler.
Hannah Maria’s father, Henry Resler, died on 23 May 1850. Henry divided his estate into seven equal shares. In recognition of Hannah Maria’s financial responsibilities vis-a-vis the family, Henry left her share of his estate to her outright (rather than in trust).
Children of Chrisitian and Hannah Maria (Resler) Cape born in Manhattan:
1. Elizabeth Christina Cape, b. 6 Oct 1820, d. 1 Feb 1900; m. Benjamin Whitney Floyd (Provisioner).
2. William Martin Cape (Provisioner), b. ca. 1822, d. 23 Dec 1851.
3. Catherine Ann Cape, b. ca. Jun 1827, d. 18 Sep 1902; m. Edward White Burr (Jeweler).
4. Hannah Maria Cape, b. ca. Nov 1829, d. 11 May 1834.
5. Henry Christian Cape (Lawyer), b. ca. 1832, d. 22 Sep 1880; m. Sarah Willis.
Bio by: Steven Tynan
Gravesite Details
Christian Cape was the owner of this vault.
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