| John Stevens (inventor) |
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Born in New York, New York , the son of John Stevens (1715-1792), secretary to Governor Livingston of New York, and his wife, the former Elizabeth Alexander. He graduated King's College (which became Columbia University ) in May 1768 . At age 27 he was appointed a Captain in Washington 's army, and was afterwards treasurer of New Jersey , and bought at public auction from the state of New Jersey land which had been confiscated from a Tory landowner. The land, described as "William Bayard's farm at Hoebuck" comprised approximately what is now the city of Hoboken . In 1802 he built a screw-driven steamboat, and in 1806 he built the ''Phoenix'' , a steamboat that ultimately sailed from Hoboken to Philadelphia in 1809 , thereby becoming the first steamship to successfully navigate the open ocean. On October 11 , 1811 Stevens' ship the ''Juliana'', began operation as the first Steam -powered Ferry (service was between New York, New York , and Hoboken, New Jersey ). The first Railroad charter in the U.S. was given to Stevens and others in 1815 for the New Jersey Railroad . He designed and built a Steam Locomotive capable of hauling several passenger cars at his estate in Hoboken, New Jersey in 1825 . He helped develop United States Patent Law . On 17 October 1782 he married Rachel Cox, a descendant of the Langfeldts who originally settled New Brunswick, New Jersey. They had nine children:
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