Philip Hamilton II (June 2, 1802 – July 9, 1884) was the youngest child of Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton and Alexander Hamilton. He was named in memory of his oldest brother, Philip Hamilton.
Contents
Early life
Hamilton was born in New York City. The day of his birth in 1802 was June 2 by his son's account, or June 1 according to his New York Herald obituary and his gravestone.
The youngest child of Alexander Hamilton and Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, he was born less than a year after the death of his oldest brother, Philip Hamilton, after whom he was named. He was called "Little Phil" by family, and later was formally known as "Philip Hamilton (the Second)". The older Philip, who was named for his grandfather Philip Schuyler, was killed in a duel with George Eacker on November 24, 1801.
According to Hamilton's son, psychiatrist Allan McLane Hamilton, the younger Philip "manifested much of his father's sweetness and happy disposition, and was always notably considerate of the feelings of others, and was punctilious to a fault in his obligations." Due to his widowed mother's poverty after Alexander Hamilton's death in 1804, during his childhood Philip "was denied those advantages accorded to his elder brothers, and had, in every sense, to make his own way."
Hamilton stood nearly six feet tall. He had no college education but was able to enter the profession of law after studying with one of his brothers in New York.