Housman House

308 St John Avenue | Westerleigh | built 1899

Open on the map6 entries

The lot about 1940
About 1940. Via 1940s.nyc
The lot about 1985
About 1985. Via 80s.nyc

The city photographed every building for its tax records around 1940 and again in the 1980s. NYC Municipal Archives.

Written with AI from the source each entry cites, then fact-checked.

  1. 1730

    A one-room stone farmhouse goes up on the Dongan family's Castleton manor

    The oldest part of the house, a small one-room stone dwelling, was built around 1730 on Castleton, the Dongan manor. It stands on the old Watchogue Road, whose name the Landmarks Preservation Commission traces to "Watch Oak." In the 18th century the road linked the ferry at the Watering Place, now Tompkinsville, with New Blazing Star, now Rossville, as part of the New York to Philadelphia stagecoach route.

    Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

  2. 1760

    Millwright Peter Housman buys 46 acres and adds a clapboard wing to the stone house

    In 1760 Peter Housman, a prosperous millwright, bought forty-six acres of the Castleton manor from Thomas Dongan, heir of Walter Dongan, a nephew of New York governor Thomas Dongan. Housman then added a larger clapboard section to the stone house. That wing is also a story and a half but stands taller than the older part, with two dormers in a less steeply pitched roof.

    Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

  3. 1784

    Peter Housman is killed resisting a robbery by a band of Jersey raiders

    In 1784 Peter Housman was murdered when he resisted a robbery attempt by raiders from New Jersey. His will left his eldest son, John, five pounds and his pick of the silver watches on top of his share, with the estate divided among Housman's eleven children.

    “…the murder of Peter Housman In 1784, when he resisted an attempted robbery by a party of Jersey raiders.”

    Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

  4. 1826

    Spring

    Judge John Housman's debts force the family farm onto the auction block

    John Housman bought the farm from his father's executors and lived here while serving Richmond County in several posts, among them county supervisor, assemblyman, surrogate and Common Pleas judge. After he died in 1825 his goods could not cover the claims against him, so in spring 1826 his administrators advertised the 59-acre farm, suggesting it would suit a tanyard. John Baker bought it at auction.

    Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

  5. 1887

    The old farm becomes Prohibition Park, a summer colony for temperance supporters

    After passing through Vanderbilt and Vreeland hands, a buyer in 1887 took the house and twenty-five acres to cut into small lots for Prohibition Park, a summer resort for members of the temperance movement. Its streets honored the movement's leaders, including former Kansas governor St. John, whose name is on the house's address. Three lots were kept for the house, and the area grew into Westerleigh.

    “…sold, in 1887, to be laid out in small lots as a summer resort, known as "Prohibition Park", for members of the temperance movement.”

    Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

  6. 1970

    October 13

    The Landmarks Preservation Commission designates the Housman House

    Following a May 26, 1970 hearing, with the owner and Staten Island Community Board 1 both in favor, the commission named the house one of the city's few surviving 18th-century Dutch farmhouses. It noted the older section's deep roof overhang and heavy plank front door, and the Greek Revival doorway with Greek key pilasters sheltered by a rustic log porch.

    “…the Housman House Is one of the few remaining 18th century Dutch farmhouses in New York City…”

    Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

Further reading

Nearby

All 3 buildings with stories in Westerleigh