Bull Stone House
Encyclopedia
The Bull Stone House is located in the town of Hamptonburgh
, in central Orange County
, New York
. It is a ten-room stone house built in the 1720s by William Bull and Sarah Wells, pioneer settlers of the area.
Bull, a stonemason
, met and married Wells, a fellow immigrant
to the Wawayanda Patent
(much of the present day towns of Goshen
, Hamptonburgh, Minisink
, and Warwick) while they were both working for the patent proprietors.
Sarah Wells arrived in the area as the patent's first female settler in 1712. She came there to work as a cook at the age of sixteen. She built her own log cabin
two years later. In 1715 Bull arrived in North America from Hamptonborough, England and also came to work at the Wawayanda Patent, where they met.
Their marriage in 1718, was the first between European settlers in Goshen.
Building the house was a joint effort between husband and wife. They received the land as a wedding gift and began building the house in 1726. Sarah carried the stones to the site and William cut and laid them, while they lived in a pair of temporary log cabins. It took thirteen years to complete, surviving a 1728 earthquake in the process. (Other sources place the date of the house's construction as 1722 or 1727). The completed building stands 40 feet square (1,600 sq ft, 144 m²) and has walls three feet thick (1 m).
Their descendants dispersed within the adjacent region, with the houses of Thomas
(now a county museum) and William III
also on the National Register. The family has lent its name to the hamlet of Bullville
and Thomas Bull Park.
Sarah Wells survived William Bull, who died in 1755. She remarried and lived to the age of 102, leaving 344 direct descendants. The county government has renamed Orange County Route 8, near the house, to Sarah Wells Trail, in her honor. The local Girl Scouts
council was named for her as well.
The house and surrounding property have remained in the Bull family's ownership. Today an eighth-generation descendant lives there as the resident caretaker. Tours are available for the general public for a small fee. Descendants from all over the United States have returned to the house every year since 1868 for a family reunion
. The house has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places
since 1974.
The 120-acre (48 ha) William Bull and Sarah Wells homestead boasts another historical structure of significance, a Dutch barn
.
Hamptonburgh, New York
Hamptonburgh is a town located in the northern part of Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 4,686 at the 2000 census. The name was provided by an early settler, William Bull....
, in central Orange County
Orange County, New York
Orange County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. It is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area and is located at the northern reaches of the New York metropolitan area. The county sits in the state's scenic Mid-Hudson Region of the Hudson Valley...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. It is a ten-room stone house built in the 1720s by William Bull and Sarah Wells, pioneer settlers of the area.
Bull, a stonemason
Masonry
Masonry is the building of structures from individual units laid in and bound together by mortar; the term masonry can also refer to the units themselves. The common materials of masonry construction are brick, stone, marble, granite, travertine, limestone; concrete block, glass block, stucco, and...
, met and married Wells, a fellow immigrant
British colonization of the Americas
British colonization of the Americas began in 1607 in Jamestown, Virginia and reached its peak when colonies had been established throughout the Americas...
to the Wawayanda Patent
Wawayanda Patent
The Wawayanda Patent was a land grant in colonial New York. It was granted in 1703, to John Bridges and eleven associates by the governor of New York and New Jersey, Edward Hyde, Lord Cornbury, and was confirmed by Queen Anne. Located in Orange County, New York, it comprised...
(much of the present day towns of Goshen
Goshen (town), New York
Goshen is a town in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 12,913 at the 2000 census.The Town of Goshen contains a village also called Goshen, the county seat of Orange County. The town is centrally located in the county....
, Hamptonburgh, Minisink
Minisink, New York
Minisink is a town located in southwest Orange County, New York northeast of the New Jersey border between the Town of Greenville and the Town of Warwick...
, and Warwick) while they were both working for the patent proprietors.
Sarah Wells arrived in the area as the patent's first female settler in 1712. She came there to work as a cook at the age of sixteen. She built her own log cabin
Log cabin
A log cabin is a house built from logs. It is a fairly simple type of log house. A distinction should be drawn between the traditional meanings of "log cabin" and "log house." Historically most "Log cabins" were a simple one- or 1½-story structures, somewhat impermanent, and less finished or less...
two years later. In 1715 Bull arrived in North America from Hamptonborough, England and also came to work at the Wawayanda Patent, where they met.
Their marriage in 1718, was the first between European settlers in Goshen.
Building the house was a joint effort between husband and wife. They received the land as a wedding gift and began building the house in 1726. Sarah carried the stones to the site and William cut and laid them, while they lived in a pair of temporary log cabins. It took thirteen years to complete, surviving a 1728 earthquake in the process. (Other sources place the date of the house's construction as 1722 or 1727). The completed building stands 40 feet square (1,600 sq ft, 144 m²) and has walls three feet thick (1 m).
Their descendants dispersed within the adjacent region, with the houses of Thomas
Bull-Jackson House
The Bull-Jackson House, also known as Hill-Hold Museum, is located on NY 416 in the town of Hamptonburgh in Orange County, New York. It has been on the National Register of Historic Places since May 17, 1974....
(now a county museum) and William III
William Bull III House
The Brick Castle of William Bull III, an early settler of the region, is located on a hill overlooking the Wallkill River in the Town of Wallkill in Orange County, New York. It was built by Bull sometime in the 1780s. Bull and his son William IV, on returning home from serving with Gen...
also on the National Register. The family has lent its name to the hamlet of Bullville
Bullville, New York
Bullville, New York is a hamlet in the Town of Crawford in Orange County, New York, USA. It is located at the junction of routes NY-17K and NY-302.Bullville was one of the original four important settlements in the Town of Crawford....
and Thomas Bull Park.
Sarah Wells survived William Bull, who died in 1755. She remarried and lived to the age of 102, leaving 344 direct descendants. The county government has renamed Orange County Route 8, near the house, to Sarah Wells Trail, in her honor. The local Girl Scouts
Girl Scouts of the USA
The Girl Scouts of the United States of America is a youth organization for girls in the United States and American girls living abroad. It describes itself as "the world's preeminent organization dedicated solely to girls". It was founded by Juliette Gordon Low in 1912 and was organized after Low...
council was named for her as well.
The house and surrounding property have remained in the Bull family's ownership. Today an eighth-generation descendant lives there as the resident caretaker. Tours are available for the general public for a small fee. Descendants from all over the United States have returned to the house every year since 1868 for a family reunion
Family reunion
A family reunion is an occasion when many members of an extended family get together. Sometimes reunions are held regularly, for example on the same date of every year....
. The house has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
since 1974.
The 120-acre (48 ha) William Bull and Sarah Wells homestead boasts another historical structure of significance, a Dutch barn
Dutch barn
Dutch barn is the name given to markedly different types of barns in the United States and Canada, and in the United Kingdom. In the United States, Dutch barns represent the oldest and rarest types of barns. There are relatively few—probably less than 600—of these barns still intact...
.
External links
- Bullhouse.org website
- Bullstonehouse.org
- Flickr.com, Photographs from the 2005 family reunion at FlickrFlickrFlickr is an image hosting and video hosting website, web services suite, and online community that was created by Ludicorp in 2004 and acquired by Yahoo! in 2005. In addition to being a popular website for users to share and embed personal photographs, the service is widely used by bloggers to...