The Last Farmhouse in Manhattan Still Stands After 235 Years

The Story of A 235-Year-Old Farmhouse in the Middle of Manhattan | VWVortex
The Story of A 235-Year-Old Farmhouse in the Middle of Manhattan
Lauren Christina
Published 9 months ago
Sticking Out Like a Sore Thumb
Anyone who has ever been to Manhattan before will know just how easy it is to get lost. As high-rises surround you, you can feel as though you're trapped by glass. But if you ever find yourself in the Inwood area on Broadway and 204th Street, there is an identifiable building that will help you find your way back home. However, you might want to check it out a bit before going home.
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Sticking out like a sore thumb amidst the big buildings and the bustling streets is an old farmhouse, with its rotten white cladding, beautiful balconies, and - a rarity for Manhattan - its own front and backyards.
Frozen in Time
Anyone looking at this farmhouse will quickly see that it's not your normal modern Manhattan building. It looks as though it's been frozen in time, and that's because it has been! According to historians, it was constructed back in 1784 when New York City was very different to the New York City that we know and love today. And while many of the people who call Manhattan their home love to walk past this stunning piece of architecture, there's no doubt that they have questions.
Facebook/Dyckman Farmhouse Museum
In a city where every available inch of space has been used to build even more skyscrapers and high-rise buildings, how has this farmhouse managed to stay standing all of these years?
The Family Behind It
Of course, to understand a little more about this intriguing farmhouse and the secrets within it, we need to learn a little more about the family who built it in the first place. Well, the history books confirm that the Dyckman family built this home in the 17th century. Like many others during this time, the Dyckman family had moved from the Netherlands to the United States of America to start a new chapter of their lives.
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However, the Dyckman Farmhouse wasn't built as soon as the family set foot on American soil. In fact, they lived in the U.S. for almost a decade before building it. So, what was so special about this particular plot?
When Tragedy Struck
Well, it wasn't the plot that inspired the Dyckman family to build their farmhouse. Before building the home synonymous with Manhattan history, the family had lived in a different part of New York City and were extremely happy with their setup. They loved their home and would have stayed there for the rest of their lives if they had the chance, but unfortunately, the world had other plans for them and their legacy.
Frank Cousins/NYPL Digital Collections
When tragedy struck, they had no choice but to find somewhere else to live. And it just so happened that the land the Dyckman house now stands on was within their budget.
Turned Into a Museum
In 2018, Meredith Horsford spoke to the Mail Online about the Dyckman family and the Dyckman farmhouse. But you might be wondering what Meredith has to do with the Dyckmans. Is she related to them? Is she the current owner of the house? Well, not quite. Today, the Dyckman Farmhouse is a museum, and Meredith serves as the museum's executive director. This means that she knows everything there is to know about the Dyckmans.
Facebook/Dyckman Farmhouse Museum
Meredith is clued up on everything to do with the farmhouse, from the Dyckman family tree to their movements throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. And she's the perfect person to share what happened to the family before they moved to the farmhouse.
Running Away From War
Speaking about the Dyckman family, Horsford said, "The Dyckman family came to America from the Netherlands in the 1600s. They were in what’s now called Harlem but then built their first home just northeast of where the current farmhouse is located." But what caused them to move? Well, the family felt the full effects of the Revolutionary War, and so they decided to flee their home in what they hoped would be a temporary move.
Facebook / Dyckman Farmhouse
When the family felt comfortable returning to their home in Harlem, they had hoped that they would be able to get their lives back on track. But they had never expected what happened next.
Deciding to Rebuild
When the Dyckmans returned to their home, they quickly realized that their home no longer existed. The whole building had been destroyed, and their land and orchards had been left in ruins. The family were devastated and just didn't know what to do. Was it even worth rebuilding on the same plot of land? In the end, they decided to start afresh - which is when they found a plot for sale on Broadway.
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The family rebuilt their home from scratch, resulting in the farmhouse that modern-day Manhattan dwellers and visitors can still see today. But their life at the farmhouse was far from easy.
A Family Bereavement
The Dyckman farmhouse had been built by William Dyckman. As a third-generation Dutch-American, he had grown up learning all about his grandfather, who had moved the Dyckman clan over from the Netherlands to the U.S. He wanted to make the whole family proud and respect the legacy his grandfather had built by building the farmhouse, but tragedy struck once again when William passed away just three years after the completion of the farmhouse.
YouTube/NYLandmarks
When William passed away in 1787, almost everyone in the Dyckman family agreed to sell the farmhouse and move elsewhere. But there was one particular Dyckman who put a spanner in the works.
Standing in the Way
Standing in the way of the family's plans to make money from the Dyckman Farmhouse was none other than William's son, Jacobus Dyckman. He couldn't bear the thought of the farmhouse falling into the hands of another family, and while he knew that tending to the land and growing the crops would be hard work, he was willing to put in that hard work if it meant keeping the house in the family.
YouTube/RC-3P0
So, he officially took over ownership of the farmhouse in 1793. As well as owning the house, he also owned 250 acres of farmland and a few other buildings to boot.
A Busy Estate
In fact, the Dyckman estate was a busy estate chock-full of people, buildings, and crops. It was down to Jacobus to tend to all of these things, including the corn cribs, cider mill, bar, and stable. And while he was proud to continue the family legacy and keep the farmhouse associated with the Dyckman name, there's no doubt about the fact that he struggled with the workload. It was a lot for him to deal with.
Village Preservation (Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation) / Flickr
Thankfully, he didn't have to tend to the crops, feed the animals, or look after the buildings all by himself. There were also a few other people by his side, too.
Jacobus and His Family
According to Meredith Horsford and historical records, Jacobus shared the Dyckman Farmhouse with nine others in 1820. These ten people all lived in the main house, and not just because there was enough space to go around. They all shared the main house because they were all a tight-knit family. After all, Jacobus lived there with his wife, his three children, and his niece and grandson. Not only that, but they also had many grown-up children who visited the house often.
Facebook/Dyckman Farmhouse Museum
Overall, Jacobus had 11 children, which meant the pressure for the farm to succeed was immense. That's why Jacobus also rented out the other buildings on his plot to locals.
A Struggling Community
All in all, there were 20 other locals who called the Dyckman Estate their home. It's believed that together, they made somewhat of a community, all patching together to tend to the crops, feed the animals, and maintain the integrity of the land and the legacy of the plot. However, like many other farms during this time, maintaining a farm wasn't easy, and Jacobus felt weighed down by the…

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