Hadden was born at
Aberdeen, Scotland on October 13, 1773, and on September 22, 1778, he was "admitted an infant
Guildburgess of Aberdeen."[2] He was the son of Elspet (
née Young) Hadden and Alexander Hadden,
Bailie of
Aberdeen,[2] and merchant with Alexander Hadden & Sons.[3] His older brothers, James Hadden of Persely, [3] and
Gavin Hadden were each
Provost of Aberdeen.
His maternal grandparents were Rachel (née Cruickshank) Young and James Young,
merchant-burgess of Aberdeen.[4]
Career
Hadden apprenticed with a cloth manufacturer in
Leeds in
Yorkshire before setting up his own business there.[2]
He departed
Liverpool for New York, aboard the New Guide, on September 23, 1806, arriving nearly two months later on November 18, 1806. After arriving in New York, he established the merchant house known as David Hadden & Sons on Pine Street in
Lower Manhattan. The firm, which was later called Hadden & Co., was extremely successful and imported
raw silks and mattings.[5] In 1845, his wealth was estimated at $200,000 (equivalent to $6,540,000 in 2023).[6] After his death, his descendants kept the firm going.[7]
On May 16, 1809, Hadden was married to Ann Aspinwall (1786–1845) at
Flushing on
Long Island. Ann was the daughter of fellow merchant William Smith Aspinwall and Mary (née Bostwick) Apsinwall. Together, they lived at 20
Lafayette Place in New York City, the most exclusive location in the city at the time,[8] and were the parents of eleven children:[5]
Isabella Hadden (1810–1842), who married Charles Tomes, brother of
Robert Tomes.[2]
William Alexander Hadden (1811–1880),[9] who married Frances Sanderson Smith, daughter of James Elnathan Smith, in 1849.[2][10]
Mary Aspinwall Hadden (b. 1812), who lived at 18
East 33rd Street in New York.[2]
Sarah Platt Hadden (1814–1850), who died unmarried.[2]
Margaret Frances Hadden (1815–1879), who died unmarried in
Florence, Italy.[2]
Anna Hadden (b. 1816), who also lived at 18 East 33rd Street in New York.[2]
John Aspinwall Hadden (1818–1906),[11] who married Frances "Fanny" Mactier, daughter of Alexander Mactier, in 1855.[2]
Eleanor Hadden (1820–1894),[12] who married Francis Tomes Jr., also a brother of
Robert Tomes.[2]
David James Hadden (1825–1826), who died in infancy.[2]
Elizabeth Farquhar Hadden (1828–1887), who lived at 18 East 33rd Street and died unmarried.[2]
His wife died on September 3, 1845, and was buried at St. Thomas' Church. Hadden died at his residence in
New York City on June 3, 1856.[15] After a funeral at St. Thomas Church conducted by the Rev.
Francis L. Hawks, he was buried in a vault at
Trinity Church Cemetery (where his wife was re-interred).[2]
Through his daughter Laura, he was a grandfather of Ann Aspinwall Curtis (b. 1859), William Hadden Curtis (b. 1861), and Dr. Benjamin Farquhar Curtis (1857–1924),[21] a prominent physician who graduated from
Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and was the attending surgeon at
St. Luke's Hospital in New York.[14]