Staten Island Historic Districts 
Staten Island Historic Districts and Landmark Homes
Here you will find informaton on Staten Island historic districts including information on New York City Landmarks and National Register of Historic Places. Here you will find detailed information about the history of both individual landmark homes and the people that help shape Staten Island.
There are currently 13 blog entries related to this category.
The St. George / New Brighton Historic District Staten Island
Saturday, November 12th, 2011 at 9:33am. 205 Views, 0 Comments.
Between the years of 1835 and 1987, dozens of buildings were constructed at the northern tip of Staten Island. Over the years, architectural styles changed and the buildings began to stand out due to their individuality. Having been well-kept over the years, a hearing was held by the Landmarks Preservation Commission to designate the buildings, as well as their boundaries, as a Historic District. On July 19, 1994, the historic district was established as the St. George/New Brighton Historic District.
Several of the buildings in the district had been demolished over the years, leaving some scattered vacant lots. However, seventy-six of the St. George/New Brighton Historic District’s original buildings are still intact. The designated buildings…
Staten Island Historic District at St. George (Part 2)
Saturday, November 12th, 2011 at 7:25am. 235 Views, 0 Comments.
The latter half of the nineteenth century saw the popularization of Colonial Revival architecture, which lasted half-way into the next century. In 1890, Edward A. Sargent constructed a Colonial Revival-style home, at 103 St. Marks Place, for broker Frederick L. Rodewald. A few years later, in 1894, the home that he had constructed in the Gothic Revival-style at 83 St. Marks Place was extended and altered much, where it became a Colonial Revival-style home. At the turn of the century, between 1905 and 1906, lumber merchant George W. Allen had four of these types of houses constructed. Samuel R. Brick, Jr. built the first three, which were located at 29, 31, and 35 St. Marks Place. The last was designed by Edward A. Sargent and was located at 27…
The Historic District of St. George/New Brighton Staten Island (part 3)
Saturday, November 12th, 2011 at 7:24am. 261 Views, 0 Comments.
From 1880 until the turn of the century, the Shingle Style had become increasingly popular. These houses were influenced by the English Colonial, which were common from the early seventeenth century up until the middle of the nineteenth century. From 1886 until 1907, one dozen Shingle Style houses were constructed within the St. George/New Brighton Historic District. The first of these houses, built in the first couple of years for the wealthy banker, Anson Phelps Stokes, were located at 48, 52, and 56 St. Marks Place. Three more houses were built for the same man in 1890 at 7-8, 9-10, and 11 Phelps Place. These houses were designed by architect Douglas Smyth.
Edward A. Sargent, the well-known architect of whom we spoke earlier, designed a few of…
The St. George Historic District. Staten Island... (Part 4)
Saturday, November 12th, 2011 at 7:23am. 258 Views, 0 Comments.
Many houses are solely vernacular in architectural style. Four of these, which were built between the last half of the nineteenth century and the first quarter of the twentieth century, are located within the St. George/New Brighton Historic District. The first home to be built in the District using local resources was erected between 1853 and 1874. It is uncertain whether this home, which is located at 17 Carroll Place, was built for Henry P. Robertson, who owned the oldest house in the District, or James Wilkinson, who was part of Crabtree & Wilkinson silk dyeworks.
The next three Vernacular-style homes were built during the early twentieth-century. In 1902, Norman Young built a home at 226 Hamilton Avenue for George Gregory. It has not…
Snug Harbor Cultural Center, Staten Island- A place to visit near the Staten Island Ferry.
Sunday, November 6th, 2011 at 8:15am. 190 Views, 0 Comments.
In 1756, the Marine Society of New York was formed. Captain Thomas Randall, a philanthropic seafarer became a member of the society, which served as a charitable organization for seamen. His prominence in the society and as a sea captain led to his son, Robert Richard Randall, getting involved in the Marine Society. In fact, he was so strongly involved that when he died in 1801, he requested in his will that after much of his money was divided and given to inheritors, the rest would be used to build a facility on his estate to be used “for the purpose of maintaining and supporting aged, decrepit and worn-out sailors.”
In 1833, Randall’s dream saw fruition, as Sailors’ Snug Harbor opened for the purpose stated in his will. For years, the…
English Colonial Style Home Architecture
Monday, October 31st, 2011 at 7:11am. 248 Views, 0 Comments.
The majority of today’s society has heard of the Salem Witch Trials of late-seventeenth-century Massachusetts. Those who are familiar with the origins of the trials know that the mass hysteria erupted due to the beliefs of Puritans. The Puritans were English Protestants, similar to the French Huguenots we speak of so often on here, who had a very strict belief system. They believed that any
hardships they had were due to the work of the devil and that anybody who strayed even the slightest from their beliefs was in cahoots with the devil, and persecuted as a witch.
These beliefs began with the Puritans in England and accompanied them in the years between 1620 and 1640, when the “Great Migration” took place to New England, in America. …
Queen Anne Style Home Architecture - A flair for the dramatic
Monday, September 12th, 2011 at 1:51pm. 504 Views, 0 Comments.
Queen Anne ruled Great Britain from March 8, 1702 until May 1, 1707. During her reign, art and science progressed. The architect Sir John Vanbrugh, for example, designed many new buildings during her time. By 1870’s, the name Queen Anne became a popular name for houses of a certain type of architecture in Britain. By 1880, the name Queen Anne was used to classify houses being built in the United States. None of these three architectural styles, however, have anything to do with one another.
Up until about 1910, Queen Anne-style houses were very popular in the United States. There are several distinguishing features which classify the architectural style. For the most part, Queen Anne-style houses have delicate, turned spindles. Others…
Greek Revival Style Home
Monday, September 5th, 2011 at 5:01pm. 144 Views, 0 Comments.
In 1762, “The Antiquities of Athens and Other Monuments of Greece” was published by James Stuart and Nicholas Revett, two architects from England who had travelled to Greece to study its ancient architecture. Upon their return from Greece, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Lyttelton, had Stuart create Hagley Hall, the first Greek building to be constructed in England. Many architects used this newfound style for ideas, but it was kept quiet until the nineteenth century. During the early years of the 1800’s, William Wilkins went on to be become a prominent architect of the Greek Revival-style in England.
“The Antiquities of Athens and Other Monuments of Greece” was not only popular among architects in England. In 1803,…
Part 5 of 5: The Stapleton Historic District on Staten Island's North Shore in conclusion...
Sunday, August 21st, 2011 at 10:48pm. 502 Views, 0 Comments.
Between 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…
The Stapleton Heights Historic District - Part 4
Sunday, August 21st, 2011 at 10:31pm. 229 Views, 0 Comments.
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…
