Seguine Mansion

In 1598, the Edict of Nantes was issued in France by King Henry IV, granting the Protestants, or Huguenots, freedom and civil rights. In 1685, this edict was revoked by King Louis XIV. At this time, he issued the Edict on Flontainbleau, which made Protestantism illegal. As a result, hundreds of thousands of Huguenots fled France to find a new residence. King Louis XIV was the monarch of New France, as well, which consisted of many of the mid-eastern states in North America, as well as much of Canada. Due to this, the Huguenots were banned from settlings there and instead settled in the Dutch New Netherland, which was encompassed by the western states of America.

In 1706, a census was taken of Staten Island's inhabitants. At this time,…

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Alice Austen House, Staten Island NYDuring the late seventeenth century and early eighteenth century, a single-room, half-timbered Dutch Colonial home was built at 2 Hylan Boulevard. From its construction up until 1775, many additions were made to the house. Between the years of 1725 and 1750, a second room was added to the house. During the years between 1750 and 1775, another addition was made to the house, giving it an L-shape.

On maps from the early 1800's, various structures were shown as being on the property. In 1844, John Haggerty Austen purchased the home. Many repairs and renovations were made to the house, including the demolition of the structures not attached to the house. The years between 1844 and 1878 saw the addition of another room, a porch, and a projecting bay…

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Spanish Colonial in StapletonBetween the years of 1919 and 1931, a handful of houses were built in many different architectural styles. Most of which were of the Arts & Crafts-style, though there were a few others. 131 Marion Avenue, a Colonial Revival-style house, was built in 1922 for Edward W. Thompson, using the designs of Otto Loeffler. That same year, Mediterranean Revival-style 173 St. Paul's Avenue was built for surgeon Dr. Charles L. Reigi, using the designs of James Whitford. In 1923, a house was constructed using the designs of architect A. Schoeler for Emma and Clarence E. Brady. This house was built in the Foursquare-style, with features of Mediterranean Revival-style architecture.

Of the remaining Arts & Crafts style houses, the first was built in 1919 at 36…

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Trinity Lutheran Church, Stapleton Staten Island  About ten years after Otto Loeffler's Neo-Colonial-style houses began to be built, another prominent Neo-Colonial architect, Henry G. Otto, had houses of his designs built. In 1910, the first of his houses, 151 Cebra Avenue, was constructed for Ernest Lindemann, a realtor and lawyer. That same year, 169 Cebra Avenue, a house of Neo-Colonial and Arts & Crafts-style architecture was built for a Mrs. C. Nordenholt. The following year, 155 Cebra Avenue was constructed for attorney Arnold J.B. Wedemeyer, who had served as a State Assemblyman for a few years and a municipal judge for a few decades. In 1919, the next of Otto's designed was constructed at 45 Pommer Avenue for Captain Ned Alexander Port. In 1921, 35 Marion Avenue and 37 Marion Avenue, two…

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Histoic Deginated home on St. Paul's Ave., Staten IslandIn 1887, a handful of houses were constructed in the Queen Anne architectural style. These were 18 Marion Avenue, which was built for George P. Savacool and sold the following year to Henry M. Cattermole, a ferry captain who had operated the ferry between Manhattan and Staten Island at the age of twenty; 387 St. Paul's Avenue, which was designed by Hugo Kafka, Sr, of the firm Kafka & Lindenmeyr, for brewery owner George Bechtel, who had it built for his daughter Anna and her husband Leonard Weiderer; 403 St. Paul's Avenue, which was built for merchant John C. Siemer; and 413 St. Paul's Avenue, another home built by Siemer, possibly for his daughter Margaretha.

A few of the Queen Anne houses consisted of Shingle-style elements. These included 239 St.…

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Landmark Home in Staten Island Historic DistrictBetween 1845 and 1860, Italianate architecture became very popular on Staten Island. During this time, a sextet of altered Italianate houses was built in, what is now the Stapleton Heights Historic District. These are 417 St. Paul's Avenue, which was originally located elsewhere, but moved by John Siemer during the late 1880's; 210-212 St. Paul's Avenue, which has been built with Second Empire modifications for Israel Denyse; 364 St. Paul's Avenue, which had been sold by Albert Ward to maritime pilot John Martino; 168 Cebra Avenue, which had been sold to broker James Wood, also by Albert Ward; 356 St. Paul's Avenue, the home of Sandy Hook pilot Thomas H. Metcalfe, who had also purchased his land from Albert Ward; and 352 St. Paul's Avenue, home of…

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Stapleton Heights Historic District SignIn March of 2004, a public hearing was held by the Landmarks Preservation Commission in which twenty-one speakers testified in favor of making an area of Staten Island a Historic District. Their area of choice was located in Stapleton Heights, along a section of St. Paul's Avenue and portions of neighboring streets. These streets include Cebra Avenue, Dyson Street, Marion Avenue, Occident Avenue, Pommer Avenue, Taxter Place, and Trossach Road. In August of that same year, they addressed their proposal to the City Council. One month later, it was accepted.

In 1807, Daniel D. Tompkins became the Governor of the State of New York. During his time as governor, Tompkins purchased over 600 acres of land on Staten Island. In 1816, the village of…

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Every day, I look at the pre-foreclosure list on Staten Island (lis pendens), and I can honestly say that the majority of these homes either never enter the market or, if they do enter the market, they don't sell at all.  It has come to my understanding that many homeowners never do anything about their situation.  In all honestly, I can see why; it's a combination of many factors: uncertainty of their financial situation, anxiety, failure, and embarrassment all factor into the lack of seeking help.  Now is as good a time as any to review the basics of a short sale.

What is a short sale?

When a homeowner can no longer afford to continually pay their mortgage, they have more options than having their property foreclosed.  One of those options is a…

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The Renaissance, which roughly translates to "rebirth", began in Florence, Italy during the fourteenth century.  This movement called for a change in the culture of Florence.  The rebirth took advantage of the art, literature, politics, religion, and science.  By the fifteenth century, the art portion had spread to the city's architecture.  This change in architecture was based mostly on symmetry and spread from Florence, to the rest of Italy, and finally to the rest of Europe.  The Renaissance lasted until the early seventeenth century, which brought again a change in the architecture.italianate style Home landmark property New Dorp

By the nineteenth century, a change needed to be made to the symmetrical buildings populating Europe.  In 1802, the first significant change in architecture was…

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