Rutan-Journeay House

7647 Amboy Road | Tottenville | built 1955

Open on the map4 entries

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

1. 1848

   Ship carpenter James M. Rutan builds a cottage on Amboy Road

   James M. Rutan built this house in 1848, about a year after the William H. and James M. Rutan Shipyard began operating next to the site of today's Henry H. Biddle House. Shipbuilding and repair grew into Tottenville's biggest employer after the oyster trade itself, since oystermen needed boats and places to fix them.

   Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

2. 1848

   The Rutan-Journeay House pairs a Dutch-style frame with a Greek Revival porch

   The house began as a three-bay, one-and-a-half-story clapboard cottage with a hall-and-parlor plan, a gable roof and an end chimney. Its wide Greek Revival doorway and original porch were up to date, while the small second-story windows likely carry over 18th-century Dutch framing. The west wing was probably added in 1850, and four rear wings came in the 20th century.

   Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

3. 1850

   March 25

   Blacksmith John S. Journeay buys the house from James Rutan

   James Rutan and his wife Leah lived here for several years before moving across from the shipyard. On March 25, 1850, John S. Journeay, a prosperous blacksmith of about 30, bought the house. The 1855 census lists Journeay and Lamond as ship blacksmiths, and an 1859 map marks a Journeay's Shipyard on the Arthur Kill.

   Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

4. 1900

   Widow Isabel Journeay takes in boarders, including a dental factory machinist

   After John Journeay died around 1890, the house passed to his second wife, Isabel, born in England to Scottish parents. The 1900 census found three family members and three boarders living here. One boarder worked as a machinist at the S. S. White dental factory in Prince's Bay, and another sold cigars.

   “One boarder was a machinist at the S. S. White Dental Factory, Prince's Bay, and another a cigar salesman.”

   Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

Nearby

• George Cunningham Store173 Main Street | 4 entries
• Theodore F. and Elizabeth J. De Hart House134 Main Street | 4 entries
• James L. and Lucinda Bedell House7484 Amboy Road | 4 entries
• P.S. 1 Tottenville58 Summit Street | 1 entry
• New York Public Library, Tottenville Branch7430 Amboy Road | 4 entries
• Church of Our Lady Help of Christians7396 Amboy Road | 3 entries

All 9 buildings with stories in Tottenville