Effingham B. Sutton

Effingham Brown Sutton (April 17, 1817 – May 27, 1891)^[1] was an American shipping merchant and real-estate developer best known as an early builder in the area of Manhattan that later became known as Sutton Place. During the California Gold Rush, Sutton prospered not by mining but by operating ships serving the booming New York–San Francisco trade.^[2]

Sutton was a shipping merchant who profited during the 1849 California Gold Rush, when American clipper ships rapidly expanded service to San Francisco.^[2]

In 1875, Sutton built a row of brownstone houses between East 57th and 58th Streets along a formerly disconnected segment of Avenue A on Manhattan’s East River.^[2] The area was later renamed Sutton Place (1883) and, in the 20th century, became a fashionable enclave following redevelopment by architects such as Mott B. Schmidt.^[3]

Beyond Manhattan, Sutton maintained a Long Island estate known as Effingham Park at West Islip. Photographs and genealogical materials relating to the estate are preserved in the Richard C. Sutton papers at the New York Public Library.^[4]

Sutton died in 1891.^[1] In 1997, New York City renamed a series of vest-pocket parks along the East River between 53rd and 59th Streets as "Sutton Place Park" in his honor, reflecting his role in the area’s 19th-century development.^[2]

• Christopher Collora, Long Island Historic Houses of the South Shore — includes discussion of Effingham Park in West Islip.