John Cox Stevens

John Cox Stevens (September 24, 1785 – June 10, 1857) was the founding Commodore of the New York Yacht Club. He was a member of the America syndicate which, in 1851, won the trophy that would become the America's Cup.

Early life Stevens was born at his family's estate at Castle Point in Hoboken, New Jersey on September 24, 1785.

His paternal grandparents were John Stevens Jr., a prominent New Jersey politician who served as a delegate to the Continental Congress, and Elizabeth (née Alexander) Stevens, who was the daughter of James Alexander, the Attorney General of New Jersey, and Mary (née Spratt) Provoost Alexander, a prominent merchant. His aunt Mary Stevens married Robert R. Livingston, the first Chancellor of the State of New York.

Career Stevens graduated from Columbia University in 1803. He ran the company that had the first steam ferry between Hoboken, New Jersey and New York City.

Stevens once served as president of The Jockey Club and set up the 1823 Great North-South Match. The race stoked sectional tensions when the Northern horse, "American Eclipse", defeated the southern colt, "Sir Henry". The northern victory encouraged a northern enthusiasm for horse racing but embarrassed southerners with their pretensions of superiority in breeding, training, and racing horses. He was also a founding member of New York's oldest gentlemen's society, the Union Club of which he served as the second president.

Personal life On December 27, 1809, he was married to Maria Cambridge Livingston (1799–1865), a member of the socially prominent Livingston family. Maria was the daughter of Robert "Cambridge" Livingston and Elsie Swift Livingston and the granddaughter of Robert Livingston, the 3rd Lord of Livingston Manor. John and Maria did not have any children. where he built a Grecian mansion, known as "Stevens' Palace", located at the corner of College Place and Murray Street and designed by prominent architect Alexander Jackson Davis.

Stevens died in New York City on June 10, 1857. He was buried in the family crypt located under Christ Church in South Amboy, New Jersey.