Henry Rutgers (October 7, 1745 – February 17, 1830)[1] was a United States Revolutionary War hero and philanthropist from New York City.

His son Hendrick inherited the property and in 1754 built a new farmhouse farther to the north and nearer the East River.

Fill was added to the water on either side at the ends of the larger streets that ran perpendicular to the shore, forming slips or inlets where small boats could dock.

[4] Rutgers continued to play a role in the defense of the young nation after the Revolution, presiding over a meeting held June 24, 1812, to organize American forces in New York in anticipation of a British attack in the ensuing War of 1812.

Rutgers supported the American Colonization Society, arguing against abolitionists that free people of color should be removed from the United States rather than allowed to grow as a population.

As a landowner with considerable holdings on the island of Manhattan (especially in the vicinity of Chatham Square), he donated land for the use of schools, churches, and charities in the area.

Rutgers' most lasting legacy, however, is due to his donations to Queen's College in New Brunswick, New Jersey, which at the time was suffering considerable financial difficulties and temporarily closed.

One road running alongside this New Jersey graveyard is now called Rutgers Street (signed as, but not technically part of, Route 7).

Misplaced by history for over 140 years, Rutgers' final grave was rediscovered in October 2007[11][12] by Civil War research volunteers sifting through burial records of the historical Green-Wood Cemetery.