It is curious, but from all that I have been able to ascertain, very probable, that a well-known English actress, who has been leadin’ lady for years at a leadin’ New York theatre, is the descendant of a man who, several generations ago, made a big stir here in New York, and whose story is intimately associated with one of the most beautiful and notorious women in the history of old New York.
Two of the prettiest of women in America during the first war with England were a Miss Shippen of Philadelphia, and a Miss Moncrieffe, of New York. Both of these ladies had British proclivities; one of ‘em, Miss Shippen married Benedict Arnold, and by her influence over him helped to make him a traitor. The other, Miss Moncrieffe, tried to seduce Aaron Burr from his allegiance to the American cause, but failed.
Miss Moncrieffe’s father was a clever man, and occupied a high social position in New York. His daughter was one of the belles of the city, and Aaron Burr was one of her warmest admirers. The two loved each other; there can be no doubt about that. And altho’ Aaron Burr has been called all sorts of hard names, traitor, seducer, adventurer, infidel and murderer, there can be no doubt that he succeeded where Arnold and Hamilton failed, in resistin’ the influence of a woman he loved, and that he did not betray or behave dishonorably to Miss Moncrieffe, who always wrote and spoke of him to her dyin’ day in the highest terms.
But her didn’t marry her, and in course of time she did marry another man, a very handsome, dashin’ Englishman and officer, by name Captain Charles Coghlan.
This Coghlan came of good English family, his father bein’ a well-to-do merchant, and had been highly educated, and had traveled in his youth extensively. He was good lookin’, had easy manners and a dashin’ way with him, and soon became popular. He got goin’ among a high-livin’ and expensive set, and kept livin’ at the highest sort of pressure himself. Wine, women, cards, horses, etc., the usual racket.
After havin’ had a high old time in England and the continent, he came to this country and soon became one of the swells of old New York. He took a fancy to Charlie Loosely, the landlord of the King’s new tavern, in Long Island near New York, and gave a good many dinners and suppers to his military friends there. They were hard drinkers in those days and a three bottle man was nowhere. Regularly on the birthday of his majesty and the Prince of Wales, Coghlan and his set would have great times at Loosley’s Tavern, fine horses, fox huntin’, bear baitin’, and all sorts of sport, with a card party in the evenin’, or rather all night.
Coghlan spent a great deal of money; still he seemed to have a deal left to spend, and old Moncrieffe, who wanted particularly to see his pretty daughter well married to some rich Englishman, selected this Captain Charles Coghlan as his future son-in-law.
Miss Moncrieffe liked Coghlan well enough, liked him as well as any other man, but she didn’t love him, and she did love Aaron Burr. But her father hated the sight and name of Burr, and didn’t take any stock in a young girl’s love any way. So he insisted on his daughter givin’ up the man she loved and marryin’ the man she didn’t love, and after a short but sharp resistance the young lady yielded to her father’s wishes and surrendered her own.
As for Captain Coghlan, he had been through the mill. He had flirted with and loved a whole army of women all the over the world–had got played out–and was willin’ to marry any rich girl that came along. Miss Moncrieffe had the reputation of havin’ a rich papa and was a decidedly pretty girl in her own right. So Coghlan, without feelin’ any particular enthusiasm about the matter, wooed and won the belle of New York, and married her.
Their weddin’ made a big stir. It took place at old Trinity church, and all the swell people of New York were present at the ceremony. The bridal pair had a tremendous send off, and anybody would have been warranted in bettin’ heavy on their future happiness. But both lived and died wretchedly.
The couple went to the old country, and for a little while seemed to get along well together. But soon the novelty of matrimony wore off, and they came down to the “hard pan” of that favorite institution, and in this stage of the game only love, and plenty of it, will win happiness. But in this case there was no love on either side, so there soon got to be all sorts of troubles between Captain and Mrs. Charles Coghlan.
The troubles got deeper and darker with time, and finally wound up in a separation and livin’ apart. And Mrs. C., being still youthful and beautiful, didn’t live alone long, but became the favorite of several members of the British aristocracy.
As for poor Captain Charles Coghlan, he came to a worse end yet. He plunged, after he left his wife, into all sorts of dissipation, and utterly wrecked his health and his fortune. Then, havin’ got through his money, he found that he had got through his friends, and then, soured and sick, he went to a hospital–St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, I think–where, in poverty and misery, unknown and almost uncared for, died the once envied, popular, rich, handsome, brilliant and successful Captain Charles Coghlan.
And this unfortunate captain is reported to be a direct ancestor and connection of the present Charles Coghlan, the actor, and his sister Rose Coghlan of Wallack’s Theatre.
[Editor’s notes: Although the story of Margaret Moncrieffe is relevant to the history of New York during the Revolutionary War, the initial premise of this column is in error: the actors Charles Coghlan and Rose Coghlan were not direct descendants of the man who married Margaret Moncrieffe–whose name was Captain John Coghlan (not Charles). The grandfather of the actors was named William Thomas Coghlan, and he emigrated to South Carolina in the 1790s; he was about the same age as Captain John Coghlan.
Most Aaron Burr biographers minimize the alleged romance between Margaret Moncrieffe. Burr was on Gen. Israel Putnam’s staff at the time when Margaret was being held hostage for a prisoner exchange, and left in the care of General Putnam. The time when Burr and Moncrieffe were together was brief, and she was just about fourteen years old. Her father was a British officer, not a New York merchant.]
