Anthony Lispenard Bleecker (1741-1816)

He was born at New Rochelle, Westchester Co., New York, and he was named for his maternal grandfather. He was a brother of Major Leonard Bleecker, co-founder of both the New York Stock Exchange and the Society of the Cincinnati; and, the uncle of James W. Bleecker, President of the New York Stock Exchange. He started his career as a shipping merchant and on the outbreak of Revolution he was commissioned a Major in the 1st American Regiment. When the British occupied New York he moved with his family to New Jersey. When George Washington returned to Manhattan after the British evacuation in 1783, Bleecker was on the welcoming committee.

On his return to New York, Bleecker started the family real estate and auctioning business and he was soon one of the most influential merchants in the city. He was one of the original investors in the Bank of Manhattan Trust Company and by 1792, Anthony L. Bleecker & Sons had also moved into stockbroking. By 1818, four of the 28 seats on the New York Stock Exchange were occupied by the members of the Bleecker family. He inherited the 20-acre family farm that covered the eastern section of what is now Bleecker Street, named for him. He also purchased a 160-acre farm that constitutes present-day Greenwich Village. In 1763, he married Mary, daughter of New York's first bookseller, Garrat Noel. They lived at 74 Broadway and had twelve adult children (listed).