John Hendricks House and Dutch Barn
Encyclopedia
The John Hendricks House and Dutch Barn is located along Old Post Road in Staatsburg
, New York, United States. It is a late-18th-century stone house that once served as an inn along the Albany Post Road
.
A Dutch barn
on the property also dates to that era. It underwent a number of renovations and additions in the Picturesque
mode in the 19th century. The house was restored
to its original appearance in the late 20th century. In 1984 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
between Old Post Road, US 9 and Hughes Avenue. Its west (front) facade
is opposite Margaret Lewis Norrie State Park
. The barn is located just to its southeast. The only other building on the property is a house on Hughes. It is modern and considered non-contributing
.
The house itself is built into a gentle slope. It is a rectangular building, five bays
wide by two stories tall. The west and south sides (visible from the road) are faced in stucco
; the other two retain their original fieldstone
. It is topped with a gable
d roof from which four brick chimneys rise.
The west elevation features a two-story porch supported by six pillars. Its upper story has a balustrade. All doors and windows have simple wood trim. On the east is a partially enclosed one-story frame
wing. Its southern three bays have a porch with a miter-arched frieze
and square columns.
Inside the house has many original finishings, including its flooring and Federal mantels
. The center-hall floor plan remains intact, with some features suggesting early use as an inn. The main room is divided by what appears to be a bar, and the north room contains some aspects of the original beehive oven
.
To the southeast of the house is the Dutch barn. It retains its original 18th-century form but has had some later additions, such as cross-gabling, a hip-roofed
cupola
, board-and-batten
siding and quatrefoil
windows. Small oculi
are located in the gable apexes, and a similarly sided and fenestrated frame wing extends from the southwest corner.
, and the layout of the first floor provides some support for this.
On Hendricks' death in 1815, the property was acquired by George Lamoree, a major speculator in land in the area during the early 19th century. At the time it was over 90 acres (36 ha). His heirs sold the property to William Dinsmore in 1884. He added it to his large estate and remodeled the barn to match those at his main farm complex further north.
By the mid-20th century the house had become vacant. A succession of owners in the century's later decades restored
it to its original appearance.
Staatsburg, New York
Staatsburg is a hamlet in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The population was 911 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger New York–Newark–Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA Combined...
, New York, United States. It is a late-18th-century stone house that once served as an inn along the Albany Post Road
Albany Post Road
The Albany Post Road was a post road - a road used for mail delivery - in the U.S. state of New York. It connected the cities of New York and Albany along the east side of the Hudson River, a service now performed by US 9.The rough route was as follows:...
.
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...
on the property also dates to that era. It underwent a number of renovations and additions in the Picturesque
Picturesque
Picturesque is an aesthetic ideal introduced into English cultural debate in 1782 by William Gilpin in Observations on the River Wye, and Several Parts of South Wales, etc. Relative Chiefly to Picturesque Beauty; made in the Summer of the Year 1770, a practical book which instructed England's...
mode in the 19th century. The house was restored
Building restoration
Building restoration describes a particular treatment approach and philosophy within the field of architectural conservation. According the U.S...
to its original appearance in the late 20th century. In 1984 it was 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...
.
Property
The two buildings are located near the west boundary of a wedge-shaped 30-acre (12 ha) lotLot (real estate)
In real estate, a lot or plot is a tract or parcel of land owned or meant to be owned by some owner. A lot is essentially considered a parcel of real property in some countries or immovable property in other countries...
between Old Post Road, US 9 and Hughes Avenue. Its west (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 opposite Margaret Lewis Norrie State Park
Margaret Lewis Norrie State Park
Margaret Lewis Norrie State Park is a state park in Dutchess County, New York in the USA. The park is located on the east shore of the Hudson River in the Town of Hyde Park...
. The barn is located just to its southeast. The only other building on the property is a house on Hughes. It is modern and considered non-contributing
Contributing 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...
.
The house itself is built into a gentle slope. It is a rectangular building, five bays
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:...
wide by two stories tall. The west and south sides (visible from the road) are faced in stucco
Stucco
Stucco or render is a material made of an aggregate, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture...
; the other two retain their original fieldstone
Fieldstone
Fieldstone is a building construction material. Strictly speaking, it is stone collected from the surface of fields where it occurs naturally...
. It is topped with a gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
d roof from which four brick chimneys rise.
The west elevation features a two-story porch supported by six pillars. Its upper story has a balustrade. All doors and windows have simple wood trim. On the east is a partially enclosed one-story frame
Framing (construction)
Framing, in construction known as light-frame construction, is a building technique based around structural members, usually called studs, which provide a stable frame to which interior and exterior wall coverings are attached, and covered by a roof comprising horizontal ceiling joists and sloping...
wing. Its southern three bays have a porch with a miter-arched 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...
and square columns.
Inside the house has many original finishings, including its flooring and Federal mantels
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...
. The center-hall floor plan remains intact, with some features suggesting early use as an inn. The main room is divided by what appears to be a bar, and the north room contains some aspects of the original beehive oven
Beehive oven
A beehive oven is an early type of oven. It gets its name from its domed shape, which resembles that of an old-fashioned beehive, and was in common use in the Americas and Europe from the Middle Ages to the advent of the gas and electric ovens. Beehive ovens were common in households used for...
.
To the southeast of the house is the Dutch barn. It retains its original 18th-century form but has had some later additions, such as cross-gabling, a hip-roofed
Hip roof
A hip roof, or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope. Thus it is a house with no gables or other vertical sides to the roof. A square hip roof is shaped like a pyramid. Hip roofs on the houses could have two triangular side...
cupola
Cupola
In architecture, a cupola is a small, most-often dome-like, structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome....
, board-and-batten
Batten
A batten is a thin strip of solid material, typically made from wood, plastic or metal. Battens are used in building construction and various other fields as both structural and purely cosmetic elements...
siding and quatrefoil
Quatrefoil
The word quatrefoil etymologically means "four leaves", and applies to general four-lobed shapes in various contexts.-In heraldry:In heraldic terminology, a quatrefoil is a representation of a flower with four petals, or a leaf with four leaflets . It is sometimes shown "slipped", i.e. with an...
windows. Small oculi
Oculus
An Oculus, circular window, or rain-hole is a feature of Classical architecture since the 16th century. They are often denoted by their French name, oeil de boeuf, or "bull's-eye". Such circular or oval windows express the presence of a mezzanine on a building's façade without competing for...
are located in the gable apexes, and a similarly sided and fenestrated frame wing extends from the southwest corner.
History
Hendricks bought the property and built the house around 1785, when the Pawling Patent was first subdivided. Local tradition holds that it was an inn for travelers using the Albany Post RoadAlbany Post Road
The Albany Post Road was a post road - a road used for mail delivery - in the U.S. state of New York. It connected the cities of New York and Albany along the east side of the Hudson River, a service now performed by US 9.The rough route was as follows:...
, and the layout of the first floor provides some support for this.
On Hendricks' death in 1815, the property was acquired by George Lamoree, a major speculator in land in the area during the early 19th century. At the time it was over 90 acres (36 ha). His heirs sold the property to William Dinsmore in 1884. He added it to his large estate and remodeled the barn to match those at his main farm complex further north.
By the mid-20th century the house had become vacant. A succession of owners in the century's later decades restored
Building restoration
Building restoration describes a particular treatment approach and philosophy within the field of architectural conservation. According the U.S...
it to its original appearance.