Sedgwick family
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| Sedgwick family | |
|---|---|
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| Name | Sedgwick |
| Type | Family |
| Origin | England |
| Founded | 17th century |
| Notable members | Robert Sedgwick (colonist), Charles Sedgwick (judge), William Sedgwick (minister), Edwin Sedgwick, Henry Dwight Sedgwick III, Edie Sedgwick, Kyra Sedgwick, Hope Emerson, John Sedgwick, Sally Draper, Amy Sedgwick |
Sedgwick family The Sedgwick family is a lineage with roots in England and significant branches in New England, New York City, and California, producing figures active in colonial America, the American Civil War, 19th-century literature, 20th-century cinema, and contemporary television. Members have held roles in law, politics, ministerial work, military service, business, and arts and letters, intersecting with institutions such as Harvard University, Yale University, Columbia University, and cultural centers like Broadway and Hollywood.
Origins and early history
The family traces back to Sedgewick-area gentry in Cumbria and migration to New England during the 17th century alongside settlers involved with the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Plymouth Colony, and trading networks linking Boston and London. Early colonial members engaged with the Pequot War, held commissions in militia actions contemporaneous with the King Philip's War, and participated in mercantile exchanges with Kingston upon Hull and Bristol. Their legal and clerical contributions intersected with institutions such as Eton College, Cambridge University, and later Harvard College.
Prominent family members
Prominent individuals include colonial administrators and soldiers like Robert Sedgwick (colonist) and Civil War generals linked to engagements like Battle of Antietam and Battle of Gettysburg; jurists and scholars educated at Yale University and Harvard Law School; authors and critics active in circles around The Atlantic Monthly, The New Yorker, and publishing houses such as Harper & Brothers and Random House. In the 20th century, socialites and models associated with Andy Warhol and The Factory—notably figures appearing in exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art—brought wider cultural notice, while actors trained at Juilliard School and affiliated with Los Angeles institutions achieved success on Broadway and in Hollywood cinema.
Political and public service
Family members served in elected and appointed roles within Massachusetts General Court, New York State Assembly, and municipal offices in Boston and New York City. Military service includes officers who served in regiments attached to Union Army formations and participated in campaigns around Richmond, Vicksburg, and the Appomattox Campaign. Public-service roles extended to judiciary posts within State Supreme Court systems, diplomatic postings near Washington, D.C. and consular work tied to postings in Paris and London. They engaged with reform movements present in Progressive Era politics and interacted with organizations like the Red Cross and the YMCA.
Arts, literature, and entertainment
The family produced novelists and critics publishing in venues such as The Atlantic Monthly, Harper's Magazine, and The New Yorker, and playwrights whose works appeared on Broadway and at venues tied to Lincoln Center. Actors and filmmakers from the family have credits in films distributed by MGM, Paramount Pictures, and Universal Pictures and performed in television series on networks like NBC, ABC, and CBS. Associations include collaborations with artists from the Pop Art movement, screenings at the Cannes Film Festival and the Sundance Film Festival, and exhibitions at institutions including the Whitney Museum of American Art.
Business and philanthropy
Commercial activities spanned mercantile houses trading with London and Amsterdam, banking relationships with institutions like Chemical Bank and participation in corporate boards of railroads and manufacturing firms during the Gilded Age. Philanthropic involvement included endowments to Harvard University, benefactions to hospitals such as Massachusetts General Hospital, support for Smithsonian Institution initiatives, and donations to cultural institutions including Metropolitan Museum of Art and American Museum of Natural History. Family foundations funded programs in public health tied to Johns Hopkins Hospital and educational scholarships administered through trusts modeled after Carnegie Corporation grants.
Family residences and estates
Residences associated with the family include colonial-era houses in Salem, Massachusetts and country estates in the Hudson Valley, manor properties near Lenox, Massachusetts used during the Gilded Age summer season, and urban brownstones in New York City close to Gramercy Park and Greenwich Village. West Coast homes were established in Los Angeles neighborhoods proximate to Hollywood Hills and estates near Santa Barbara. Several properties are documented by preservation entities like the National Trust for Historic Preservation and listed in inventories maintained by state historic commissions.
Legacy and cultural impact
The family's legacy is reflected in archival collections at repositories such as Harvard University Library, Yale Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, and the New York Public Library, and in scholarship appearing in journals like American Historical Review and Journal of American History. Cultural references to family members appear in biographies published by Knopf, Penguin Books, and academic presses like Oxford University Press, and in documentary features broadcast on PBS and aired by networks including BBC and CNN. Historic houses linked to the family are subjects of listings in the National Register of Historic Places and guidebooks produced by National Park Service partners.