Adam Blake II (abt. 1830 - 1881)

Born about 6 Apr 1830 in New York, United States [uncertain]

Husband of Catherine (Benjamin) Blake — married about 1867 in New York

Descendants

Died 7 Sep 1881 at about age 51 in Albany, Albany, New York, United States

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Biography

Adam Blake II is Notable.

Adam Blake was the builder and owner of the Kenmore Hotel in Albany, New York.^[1]

Adam Blake born in 1830. He was the son of Adam Blake and Sarah Richards.

He was was named for his father, Adam Blake, who was a slave of General Stephen van Rensselaer III at the Manor House. Adam Blake, Jr., was considered a "worthy and respected citizen, and first-class caterer for the public" and as the "richest and best-known business man of his race" in Albany County, New York. Adam Blake had owned the hotel Congress Hall on the corner of Washington Avenue and Park Street until it was demolished by the state of New York to make way for the new New York State Capitol building in 1878. Adam Blake then had the Kenmore Hotel built on the corner of North Pearl Street and Columbia Street. It was built in 1878 and owned by him until his death in 1881, at which time it was taken over by his widow Catherine Blake, who continued until 1887. Source: Wikipedia

"In 1865 Adam Blake secured the lease for the Congress Hall Hotel, adjacent to the Old Capitol on the corner of Park St and Washington Ave. This was a fabled landmark (Lafayette stayed the night during his 1824 Albany visit), but fallen on hard times. He acquired 3 adjacent buildings (Gregory’s Row), combined them with the Hotel, and spent a large sum furnishing it in a sumptuous fashion. The Hall was a lucrative concession – its location was favored by legislators and other politicians for lodgings, meals, receptions and meetings. It boasted French chefs and an array of fine wines. It was the destination of Charles Dickens when he came to Albany in 1868 (hoping to be handsomely “remunerated”) on his second lecture tour in America. In 1878 the Hall needed to be demolished for the new Capitol building; Adam Blake received $190,000 compensation from New York State. He used the money to open a large hotel on North Pearl Street that remains today. The hotel was built for Adam Blake by the son of the late Dr. James McNaughton (former president of the Albany Medical Society) on land they owned; it was named the Kenmore after the small village in Scotland in which Dr. James McNaughton was born. The hotel was designed by the Ogden and Wright, leading Albany architects, and no expense was spared.

Throughout his life Adam Blake moved easily among both the African and White communities, and was as widely respected as his father had been. After the Civil War he was Treasurer of the New York State Equal Rights League (formed in Albany in 1865 in what is now the AME Israel Church). In the 1870's he hosted and promoted an appearance by the Fisk Jubilee Singers, a choral group that toured to raise funds for one of the first African American colleges in Tennessee. In the early 1870's he worked diligently in the fight to desegregate Albany’s public schools, along with James Matthews who represented William Dietz, the man suing the Albany Board of Education.

Adam Blake was known as a generous man “who never turned away a stranger or neighbor in need.” Local newspapers of the time note financial contributions by Adam Blake to all sorts of worthy causes. Adam Jr.’s activities in the Abolitionist movement are not as well documented as his father’s, but the Blake family house on Third Street was situated directly behind that of Stephen Myers on Livingston Avenue, leading figure in Albany’s Underground Railroad, and at one point Adam Blake lived at 198 Lumber Street (now Livingston Avenue ), 2 doors away from the Myers’ home. It is improbable to think that neither father nor son was not involved in the Underground Railroad.

Sadly, Adam Blake died in summer 1881, at the age of 51, never getting the opportunity to enjoy the success of his beloved Kenmore. The description of his funeral notes pall bearers of both races, and the presence of people from all walks of life. The Delavan Hotel on Broadway, the chief rival of the Kenmore, lowered its flag to half-mast to honor Adam Blake. He is buried in Albany Rural Cemetery in Menands, New York.^[2]

Shortly after his death a memorial stained glass window was installed the AME Church. Upon the dedication of the church window, Dr. William Johnson delivered a speech commemorating Blake in which he said:

“He loved liberty and abhorred slavery. He believed in the equality of all, in the manhood of all and in the common brotherhood of all. He was identified with Frederick Douglass, Stephen Myers, Drs., Smith and Pennington and their compatriots, in untiring efforts tending to the overthrow of slavery…. he took active part in state and national councils of the oppressed and served in honorable official capacity in the Equal Rights League of the state….”.

At the time of his death his private fortune was estimated far in excess of $100,000, an astonishing sum for anyone, let alone the son of a slave with a grade school education.

For the next decade or so the Hotel was managed by his widow, Catherine, who was equally good at business, accumulating real estate all over the Albany, including 2 row houses on Spring St. near Lark St. that stand today When the lease on the Kenmore Hotel expired in 1887, Catherine left the hotel business, selling the furnishing and the Hotel’s goodwill for a tidy sum to the new owners. While the Blakes were involved with the Kenmore, they lived on Columbia Street, but when Mrs. Blake gave up the Kenmore, she moved to First Street to an elegant townhouse (that remains today), between S. Hawk Street and South Swan Street, taking her place among the other wealthy families of Albany, just above the Ten Broeck Triangle.

So the real importance of the Kenmore Hotel is not glitz and glamour or historic architecture (although those are cool), but of the man whose dream it was. Adam Blake, Jr. was an African-American from the city who started with nothing, and through tenacity and perseverance was able to realize his dream. And along the way he earned the respect and admiration of those whose lives he touched, while fighting for the rights of his community. Over 140 years later that dream still stands in the middle of downtown Albany, and needs to celebrated for what it represents." Source: Julie O’Connor, Friends of Albany History

18 August 1870: Albany, Albany, New York; Occupation of Adam: Congress Hall Proprietor; Adam Blake 40 New York; Catharine Blake 38 New York; Mary K Blake 5 New York; https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M8JF-R8D

10 June 1880: Albany, Albany, New York; North Pearl Street, Kenmore Hotel; Occupation of Adam: Kenmore Hotel Proprietor; Adam Blake Self 50 New York/New York/New York; Cathrine M Blake Wife 38 New York/New York/New York; Jessie Blake Dau 12, At School, New York; Cathrine Blake Dau 15, At School, New York; Adam Blake Son 9, At School, New York; Carrol C Blake Son 6 New York; Marion Blake Dau 3 New York; https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MZCP-TX1

NOTES: Donald Hyman, a Black historical re-enactor, premiered a one-man show about Blake’s life on 9 February 2021 at the Sand Lake Historical Society as part of a Black History Month program. It was streamed online due to COVID-19 restrictions. https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Grondahl-Albany-s-dashing-pioneering-Black-15972563.php

Sources

1. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenmore_Hotel
2. ↑ Memorial: Find a Grave (has image)
   Find A Grave: Memorial #109785747
   Memorial page for Adam Blake (6 Apr 1830-7 Sep 1881), citing Albany Rural Cemetery, Menands, Albany County, New York, USA (plot: lot 22, sec 42); Maintained by #47687144 (contributor 47687144).

Find A Grave: Memorial #109785747 Adam Blake

SECONDARY SOURCE: Family Tree https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/L6XY-9KN

https://lostnewengland.com/2020/12/kenmore-hotel-albany-new-york/

https://friendsofalbanyhistory.wordpress.com/2019/10/20/the-real-story-of-albanys-kenmore-hotel-adam-blake-jr-albanys-african-american-horatio-alger-and-his-dream/?fbclid=IwAR2TNF5skoQkYMzcOW-I4G-_nJx1M4AA8hFbMXmqoQ6t95r6h5Zni21_5ZQ