Jacob P. Perry House
Encyclopedia
The Jacob P. Perry House is a historic home on Sickeltown Road in Pearl River
, New York, United States. It was constructed around the end of the 18th century, one of the last houses in Rockland County
to have been built in the Dutch Colonial
style
more common before the Revolution
.
It is a stone structure with a detailed period interior. A later owner renovated it during the 1930s, and an addition was built onto it in the late 1970s. There are several other buildings and structures on the property, the remnant of a former farm. In 2003 the house and an adjacent well and wellhouse were listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
Route 26), an area of Pearl River known as Nauraushaun. The terrain is level, with a steep drop to the reflecting the proximity of Lake Tappan
and the Hackensack River
basin. Large trees grow around the property, in keeping with the suburban character of the area. Surrounding properties are all residential.
The main house itself is near the north corner of the lot, with an unpaved driveway from Sickletown running up to its west (front, originally the rear) elevation. Its main block is a one-and-a-half-story five-by-two-bay
structure of dressed red sandstone
blocks laid in rough courses
, a bit more randomly on the south. The south and north roof fields are sided in clapboard
It is topped with a broad gambrel roof with flared outward eaves shingled in split cedar
shakes
. On either side is a continuous shed-roofed dormer window; brick chimneys rise from either end. A sympathetic hyphen
connects it to a modern wood frame
addition on the south.
On the east elevation, the house's original front facade
, is a centrally located main entrance flanked by two windows on either side, echoed in the dormer fenestration above. Most of this is shielded by closely planted shrubbery and an awning
over the entrance, a double Dutch door
with original strap hinges. On the west, what is now the recessed front entrance has a small wooden porch with two wooden benches along the sides facing each other. It is flanked by a set of triple casement window
s on either side. The north and south elevations are similar despite the hyphen on the latter, echoed by ivy
on the other end. There are two windows on the attic level and a set of louver
ed quarter-rounds high in the gable field. The only difference is on the first story, where the south side has a wooden door into the hyphen, complemented by a French door to the exterior, whereas the north side has two windows to the west of the ivy with paneled wooden shutters
.
architrave
s leading to the parlor on the north, the dining room to the south and the other half of the entrance hall on the west, which also provides access to a small bathroom and closet. A stair with newel
and squared baluster
s is against the south wall. Walls and ceilings are plaster with a molded chair rail.
In the north parlor is a large fireplace with a detailed Federal style mantelpiece. It has a thin cornice
d molding, reeded
frieze
, fluted
pilaster
s and three large hearthstones in front. Next to the chimney is a Colonial Revival
dishware cabinet with glazed paired doors in a round, keystone
d arch and similar paneled doors below. Thirty-foot (30 feet (9.1 m)) tulip
beams with beaded edges run the length of the ceiling.
The dining room fireplace is in a large projecting chimney breast with a simple wood mantel
and similar hearthstones in front. A small separate room may be original; it is currently used as the kitchen. Its entrance door has a molded casing and a filled-in transom
opening; it may be an exterior door reused from another location. French doors lead into the hyphen.
Upstairs, the second floor has five rooms and two bathrooms with Federal detailing, including doors similar to the main entrance hall. In the attic are original hew
n roof timber framing and rough sheathing. The rafter
s rise from end plates to a purlin
where the roof pitch
changes. Rising from the center beam is a vertical member joined to the horizontal collar by mortise and tenon
. The cellar has stone-arch supports for the fireplaces above and a cold storage area.
to the Register listing.
To the east is a stone-lined cistern
, topped with a circular wellhouse of red sandstone and frame. Both of them are of the same historic period as the house and are considered contributing structures. The other structure, an ornamental pond, was added more recently and does not contribute.
and adjacent Bergen County, New Jersey
. After the Revolutionary War
, Michael Salyer, who had built a house nearby
, sold the western portion of his land to Peter Perry.
Whether the house was built in two sections or as one is not clear. A 1936 history of the house by Rosalie Bailey holds that it was, and if so Perry may have built the west half of the house by 1796, although it is not certain he ever lived in it as he died elsewhere. It is equally possible that, like the similar nearby Sickels-Vanderbilt House, it was built as one.
Perry's will left it to his son Jacob, who completed the current main house (if that was the case) in 1801. Its walls of locally quarried dressed red sandstone and broad gambrel roof with wide flared eaves reflect a Dutch Colonial
building tradition
much more common in houses built before the war. The Perry house is one of the last in that style from the period.
The interior, as it was built and refined over the next decades, reflects the then-popular Federal style. Jacob P. Perry died in 1839 and willed it to his son Jacob J. Perry, who died ten years later. From there it passed through other owners until it became the property of Clarence and Athens Chester around 1930.
The house had fallen into some disrepair by that time, and the Chesters undertook to renovate and restore
it. In the process they made some changes. The most significant changes made to the exterior were the installation of casement window
s, and the replacement of the single windows on the west elevation with the current bands of three. On the south elevation they added the front windows. Inside, they installed doors consistent with the other interior decoration and put the current oak flooring down over the original wide planking.
In 1955 the half-bath was added on the first floor. On the outside separate dormers were merged into the current continuous band. Two decades later, in 1978, the hyphen and south addition were added. There have been no other modifications to the house since. It continues to be a private residence.
Pearl River, New York
Pearl River is a hamlet , in the Town of Orangetown Rockland County, New York, United States located east of Nauraushaun; north of the state of New Jersey; south of Nanuet and west of Blauvelt...
, New York, United States. It was constructed around the end of the 18th century, one of the last houses in Rockland County
Rockland County, New York
Rockland County is a suburban county 15 miles to the northwest of Manhattan and part of the New York City Metropolitan Area, in the U.S. state of New York. It is the southernmost county in New York west of the Hudson River, and the smallest county in New York outside of New York City. The...
to have been built in the Dutch Colonial
Dutch colonization of the Americas
Dutch trading posts and plantations in the Americas precede the much wider known colonization activities of the Dutch in Asia. Whereas the first Dutch fort in Asia was built in 1600 , the first forts and settlements on the Essequibo river in Guyana and on the Amazon date from the 1590s...
style
Architectural style
Architectural styles classify architecture in terms of the use of form, techniques, materials, time period, region and other stylistic influences. It overlaps with, and emerges from the study of the evolution and history of architecture...
more common before the Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
.
It is a stone structure with a detailed period interior. A later owner renovated it during the 1930s, and an addition was built onto it in the late 1970s. There are several other buildings and structures on the property, the remnant of a former farm. In 2003 the house and an adjacent well and wellhouse were listed on 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...
.
Buildings and grounds
The house and outbuildings occupy a 5 acres (2 ha) lot at the south corner of the three-way intersection of Sickletown Road and Gilbert Avenue (Rockland CountyRockland County, New York
Rockland County is a suburban county 15 miles to the northwest of Manhattan and part of the New York City Metropolitan Area, in the U.S. state of New York. It is the southernmost county in New York west of the Hudson River, and the smallest county in New York outside of New York City. The...
Route 26), an area of Pearl River known as Nauraushaun. The terrain is level, with a steep drop to the reflecting the proximity of Lake Tappan
Lake Tappan
Lake Tappan is a reservoir that was formed by the Tappan Dam placed on the Hackensack River in 1967. It straddles the border between River Vale and Old Tappan, New Jersey...
and the Hackensack River
Hackensack River
The Hackensack River is a river, approximately 45 miles long, in the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, emptying into Newark Bay, a back chamber of New York Harbor. The watershed of the river includes part of the suburban area outside New York City just west of the lower Hudson River,...
basin. Large trees grow around the property, in keeping with the suburban character of the area. Surrounding properties are all residential.
The main house itself is near the north corner of the lot, with an unpaved driveway from Sickletown running up to its west (front, originally the rear) elevation. Its main block is a one-and-a-half-story five-by-two-bay
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
structure of dressed red sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
blocks laid in rough courses
Course (architecture)
A course is a continuous horizontal layer of similarly-sized building material one unit high, usually in a wall. The term is almost always used in conjunction with unit masonry such as brick, cut stone, or concrete masonry units .-Styles:...
, a bit more randomly on the south. The south and north roof fields are sided in clapboard
Clapboard (architecture)
Clapboard, also known as bevel siding or lap siding or weather-board , is a board used typically for exterior horizontal siding that has one edge thicker than the other and where the board above laps over the one below...
It is topped with a broad gambrel roof with flared outward eaves shingled in split cedar
Cedar wood
Cedar wood comes from several different trees that grow in different parts of the world, and may have different uses.* California incense-cedar, from Calocedrus decurrens, is the primary type of wood used for making pencils...
shakes
Shake (shingle)
A shake is a basic wooden shingle that is made from split logs. Shakes have traditionally been used for roofing and siding applications around the world. Higher grade shakes are typically used for roofing purposes, while the lower grades are used for siding purposes...
. On either side is a continuous shed-roofed dormer window; brick chimneys rise from either end. A sympathetic hyphen
Hyphen (architecture)
In architecture, a hyphen is a connecting link between two larger building elements. It is typically found in Georgian style architecture, where the hyphens form connections between a large central house and end pavilions in the Georgian five-part house, which was in turn derived from Palladian...
connects it to a modern wood frame
Timber framing
Timber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
addition on the south.
On the east elevation, the house's original front facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
, is a centrally located main entrance flanked by two windows on either side, echoed in the dormer fenestration above. Most of this is shielded by closely planted shrubbery and an awning
Awning
An awning or overhang is a secondary covering attached to the exterior wall of a building. It is typically composed of canvas woven of acrylic, cotton or polyester yarn, or vinyl laminated to polyester fabric that is stretched tightly over a light structure of aluminium, iron or steel, possibly...
over the entrance, a double Dutch door
Dutch door
A Dutch door , or stable door , or half door , is a door divided horizontally in such a fashion that the bottom half may remain shut while the top half opens...
with original strap hinges. On the west, what is now the recessed front entrance has a small wooden porch with two wooden benches along the sides facing each other. It is flanked by a set of triple casement window
Casement window
A casement window is a window that is attached to its frame by one or more hinges. Casement windows are hinged at the side. A casement window (or casement) is a window that is attached to its frame by one or more hinges. Casement windows are hinged at the side. A casement window (or casement) is a...
s on either side. The north and south elevations are similar despite the hyphen on the latter, echoed by ivy
Ivy
Ivy, plural ivies is a genus of 12–15 species of evergreen climbing or ground-creeping woody plants in the family Araliaceae, native to western, central and southern Europe, Macaronesia, northwestern Africa and across central-southern Asia east to Japan and Taiwan.-Description:On level ground they...
on the other end. There are two windows on the attic level and a set of louver
Louver
A louver or louvre , from the French l'ouvert; "the open one") is a window, blind or shutter with horizontal slats that are angled to admit light and air, but to keep out rain, direct sunshine, and noise...
ed quarter-rounds high in the gable field. The only difference is on the first story, where the south side has a wooden door into the hyphen, complemented by a French door to the exterior, whereas the north side has two windows to the west of the ivy with paneled wooden shutters
Window shutter
A window shutter is a solid and stable window covering usually consisting of a frame of vertical stiles and horizontal rails...
.
Interior
Inside, the house has a center-hall plan and many original finishings. From the former main entrance there are six-paneled doors, cased in moldedMolding (decorative)
Molding or moulding is a strip of material with various profiles used to cover transitions between surfaces or for decoration. It is traditionally made from solid milled wood or plaster but may be made from plastic or reformed wood...
architrave
Architrave
An architrave is the lintel or beam that rests on the capitals of the columns. It is an architectural element in Classical architecture.-Classical architecture:...
s leading to the parlor on the north, the dining room to the south and the other half of the entrance hall on the west, which also provides access to a small bathroom and closet. A stair with newel
Newel
A newel, also called a central pole, is an upright post that supports the handrail of a stair banister. In stairs having straight flights it is the principal post at the foot of the staircase, but it can also be used for the intermediate posts on landings and at the top of a staircase...
and squared baluster
Baluster
A baluster is a moulded shaft, square or of lathe-turned form, one of various forms of spindle in woodwork, made of stone or wood and sometimes of metal, standing on a unifying footing, and supporting the coping of a parapet or the handrail of a staircase. Multiplied in this way, they form a...
s is against the south wall. Walls and ceilings are plaster with a molded chair rail.
In the north parlor is a large fireplace with a detailed Federal style mantelpiece. It has a thin cornice
Cornice
Cornice molding is generally any horizontal decorative molding that crowns any building or furniture element: the cornice over a door or window, for instance, or the cornice around the edge of a pedestal. A simple cornice may be formed just with a crown molding.The function of the projecting...
d molding, reeded
Reeding
-Numismatics:In numismatics, reeded edges are often referred to as "ridged" or "grooved". Some coins, such as United States quarters and dimes, have reeded edges. One reason for having reeded edges was to prevent counterfeiting...
frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
, fluted
Fluting (architecture)
Fluting in architecture refers to the shallow grooves running vertically along a surface.It typically refers to the grooves running on a column shaft or a pilaster, but need not necessarily be restricted to those two applications...
pilaster
Pilaster
A pilaster is a slightly-projecting column built into or applied to the face of a wall. Most commonly flattened or rectangular in form, pilasters can also take a half-round form or the shape of any type of column, including tortile....
s and three large hearthstones in front. Next to the chimney is a Colonial Revival
Colonial Revival architecture
The Colonial Revival was a nationalistic architectural style, garden design, and interior design movement in the United States which sought to revive elements of Georgian architecture, part of a broader Colonial Revival Movement in the arts. In the early 1890s Americans began to value their own...
dishware cabinet with glazed paired doors in a round, keystone
Keystone (architecture)
A keystone is the wedge-shaped stone piece at the apex of a masonry vault or arch, which is the final piece placed during construction and locks all the stones into position, allowing the arch to bear weight. This makes a keystone very important structurally...
d arch and similar paneled doors below. Thirty-foot (30 feet (9.1 m)) tulip
Tulipwood
Most commonly, tulipwood is the pinkish yellowish wood yielded from the tuliptree, found on the Eastern side of North America and also in some parts of China. In the United States, it is commonly known as tulip poplar or yellow poplar, even though the tree is not related to the poplars. In fact,...
beams with beaded edges run the length of the ceiling.
The dining room fireplace is in a large projecting chimney breast with a simple wood mantel
Fireplace mantel
Fireplace mantel or mantelpiece, also known as a chimneypiece, originated in medieval times as a hood that projected over a grate to catch the smoke. The term has evolved to include the decorative framework around the fireplace, and can include elaborate designs extending to the ceiling...
and similar hearthstones in front. A small separate room may be original; it is currently used as the kitchen. Its entrance door has a molded casing and a filled-in transom
Transom (architectural)
In architecture, a transom is the term given to a transverse beam or bar in a frame, or to the crosspiece separating a door or the like from a window or fanlight above it. Transom is also the customary U.S. word used for a transom light, the window over this crosspiece...
opening; it may be an exterior door reused from another location. French doors lead into the hyphen.
Upstairs, the second floor has five rooms and two bathrooms with Federal detailing, including doors similar to the main entrance hall. In the attic are original hew
Hew
Hew is a masculine given name, and may refer to the following:* Hew Dalrymple, Lord North Berwick , Scottish judge and politician* Hew Dalrymple Ross , British soldier* Hew Fraser , British field hockey player...
n roof timber framing and rough sheathing. The rafter
Rafter
A rafter is one of a series of sloped structural members , that extend from the ridge or hip to the downslope perimeter or eave, designed to support the roof deck and its associated loads.-Design:...
s rise from end plates to a purlin
Purlin
In architecture or structural engineering or building, a purlin is a horizontal structural member in a roof. Purlins support the loads from the roof deck or sheathing and are supported by the principal rafters and/or the building walls, steel beams etc...
where the roof pitch
Roof pitch
In building construction, roof pitch is a numerical measure of the steepness of a roof, and a pitched roof is a roof that is steep.The roof's pitch is the measured vertical rise divided by the measured horizontal span, the same thing as what is called "slope" in geometry. Roof pitch is typically...
changes. Rising from the center beam is a vertical member joined to the horizontal collar by mortise and tenon
Mortise and tenon
The mortise and tenon joint has been used for thousands of years by woodworkers around the world to join pieces of wood, mainly when the adjoining pieces connect at an angle of 90°. In its basic form it is both simple and strong. Although there are many joint variations, the basic mortise and tenon...
. The cellar has stone-arch supports for the fireplaces above and a cold storage area.
Outbuildings
Immediately south of the house is a modern wooden cottage. Also on the property is a stone and wood barn. These, along with the addition, make up the other three buildings on the property, none of which contributeContributing property
In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing resource or contributing property is any building, structure, or object which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic district, listed locally or federally, significant...
to the Register listing.
To the east is a stone-lined cistern
Cistern
A cistern is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by their waterproof linings...
, topped with a circular wellhouse of red sandstone and frame. Both of them are of the same historic period as the house and are considered contributing structures. The other structure, an ornamental pond, was added more recently and does not contribute.
History
The land on which the house sits was originally part of the late 17th century Kakiat Patent, covering portions of what is today Rockland CountyRockland County, New York
Rockland County is a suburban county 15 miles to the northwest of Manhattan and part of the New York City Metropolitan Area, in the U.S. state of New York. It is the southernmost county in New York west of the Hudson River, and the smallest county in New York outside of New York City. The...
and adjacent Bergen County, New Jersey
Bergen County, New Jersey
Bergen County is the most populous county of the state of New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, its population was 905,116. The county is part of the New York City Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Hackensack...
. After the Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
, Michael Salyer, who had built a house nearby
Michael Salyer Stone House
The Michael Salyer Stone House is located on Blue Hill Road in Orangetown, New York, United States. It was built in the late 18th century....
, sold the western portion of his land to Peter Perry.
Whether the house was built in two sections or as one is not clear. A 1936 history of the house by Rosalie Bailey holds that it was, and if so Perry may have built the west half of the house by 1796, although it is not certain he ever lived in it as he died elsewhere. It is equally possible that, like the similar nearby Sickels-Vanderbilt House, it was built as one.
Perry's will left it to his son Jacob, who completed the current main house (if that was the case) in 1801. Its walls of locally quarried dressed red sandstone and broad gambrel roof with wide flared eaves reflect a Dutch Colonial
Dutch colonization of the Americas
Dutch trading posts and plantations in the Americas precede the much wider known colonization activities of the Dutch in Asia. Whereas the first Dutch fort in Asia was built in 1600 , the first forts and settlements on the Essequibo river in Guyana and on the Amazon date from the 1590s...
building tradition
Vernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture is a term used to categorize methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs and circumstances. Vernacular architecture tends to evolve over time to reflect the environmental, cultural and historical context in which it...
much more common in houses built before the war. The Perry house is one of the last in that style from the period.
The interior, as it was built and refined over the next decades, reflects the then-popular Federal style. Jacob P. Perry died in 1839 and willed it to his son Jacob J. Perry, who died ten years later. From there it passed through other owners until it became the property of Clarence and Athens Chester around 1930.
The house had fallen into some disrepair by that time, and the Chesters undertook to renovate and restore
Building restoration
Building restoration describes a particular treatment approach and philosophy within the field of architectural conservation. According the U.S...
it. In the process they made some changes. The most significant changes made to the exterior were the installation of casement window
Casement window
A casement window is a window that is attached to its frame by one or more hinges. Casement windows are hinged at the side. A casement window (or casement) is a window that is attached to its frame by one or more hinges. Casement windows are hinged at the side. A casement window (or casement) is a...
s, and the replacement of the single windows on the west elevation with the current bands of three. On the south elevation they added the front windows. Inside, they installed doors consistent with the other interior decoration and put the current oak flooring down over the original wide planking.
In 1955 the half-bath was added on the first floor. On the outside separate dormers were merged into the current continuous band. Two decades later, in 1978, the hyphen and south addition were added. There have been no other modifications to the house since. It continues to be a private residence.