Samuel Leggett (1782-1847)
President of the New York Gas Light Company, of 7 Cherry Street, New York City
He was a staunch Quaker who inherited a sizeable fortune from his father. He was said to be, "always genial... the antithesis of his severely stern wife. Mrs. Leggett needed no suffrage privilege to make her master of the household and she was as fastidious about personal appearance as her husband at times was indifferent." In 1822, he co-founded and became the first President of the New York Gas Light Company. Being an untested commodity, people were fearful, and to assuage their fear Leggett plumbed his own house (see images) with gas and held a reception in September, 1823, to demonstrate its efficacy, cleanliness, and safety. As can be imagined, seeing the house all lit up caused uproar, and a crowd gathered in expectation of watching the house go up in flames. They were of course disappointed, and "by lighting his own home with gas, Samuel Leggett had set New York's tongues wagging". He reluctantly accepted the position of President of the faltering Franklin Bank which duly failed and damaged his reputation, but he lived to see hundreds of homes and businesses across New York illuminated by gas courtesy of his ingenuity and positive mindset.
