Van Vechten Veeder

Van Vechten Veeder (July 4, 1867 – December 4, 1942) was a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Early Life and Family[]

Born Coles Van Vechten Veeder on July 4, 1867, he was the son of John Wynkoop Veeder (1822-1899) and his second wife, Margaret (nee Van Vechten) Veeder (1844-1916). His parents had married on December 16, 1863. He had a younger brother, James Wygant Veeder and a younger sister, Florence Veeder Hoyt.

His father's first wife had passed away in 1861, and his father had five children from this first marriage, including Commander Ten Eyck DeWitt Veeder (1854-1923) of the United States Navy, a graduate of the United States Naval Academy in 1873. His son, Lieutenant Ten Eyck DeWitt Veeder, Jr. (1895-1925), known as Ted, was also a Naval Academy graduate (1918) and died mysteriously in 1925 after landing an aircraft.

His paternal grandmother was Maria (DeWitt) Veeder (1787-1861), a descendant of the DeWitt family, which includes New York Governor DeWitt Clinton.^[1]

Education and career[]

Born in Schenectady, New York, Veeder attended Columbia University and the University of Virginia, then read law in 1890. He worked in private practice in Chicago, Illinois until 1900, and subsequently in New York City, New York until 1911.^[2]

Federal judicial service[]

On January 13, 1911, Veeder was nominated by President William Howard Taft to a new seat on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York created by 36 Stat. 838. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on January 26, 1911, and received his commission the same day. Veeder's service was terminated on December 31, 1917, due to his resignation.^[2]

Later career and death[]

Following his resignation from the federal bench, Veeder returned to private practice in New York City until 1942. He served as Counsel to the West Chicago Street Rail Road Company, and as Special Master for the United States Circuit Court of Appeals in 1935. He died on December 4, 1942, in New York City.^[2]

Personal life[]

On June 30, 1909, in Hurley, New York, Veeder married his third cousin Margaret Lounsbery DeWitt (1875-1956). Hurley was her birthplace, the daughter of Abraham Gaasbeek DeWitt and Sarah (nee Lounsberry) DeWitt. Her brother, Matthew TenEyck DeWitt, served as Hurley's Town Supervisor four different times. Her uncle, William Lounsbery, was mayor of Kingston, New York and a United States Congressman from New York. She descends from the Hasbrouck family. They are both descendants of Louis DuBois (Huguenot).

Van Vechten and Margaret had two children:

1. John Van Vechten Veeder (1910-1976); married (1) Elizabeth Hope Lathrop (1915-1964); married (2) Helen Letham Townley (1916-2004)
2. Margaret DeWitt Veeder (1914-1989); married art historian Frederick Hartt

References[]

External links[]

• Van Vechten Veeder at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.