The Bronck House, also known as the Pieter Bronck House, is a
historic house museum
A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that has been transformed into a museum. Historic furnishings may be displayed in a way that reflects their original placement and usage in a home. Historic house museums are held to a ...
west of
Coxsackie in
Greene County, New York. With a construction history dating to 1663, it is believed to be the oldest surviving building in
Upstate New York
Upstate New York is a geographic region consisting of the area of New York State that lies north and northwest of the New York City metropolitan area. Although the precise boundary is debated, Upstate New York excludes New York City and Long Is ...
,
and is a well-preserved example of early Dutch and Swedish Colonial architecture. It was declared a
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
in 1967.
It is now a museum property managed by the county historical society.
Description and history
The Bronck House is located on Pieter Bronck Road, off
US 9W, between the
New York Thruway
{{Infobox road
, state = NY
, type = NYST
, alternate_name = Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway
, maint = NYSTA
, map = {{maplink, frame=yes, plain=yes, frame-align=center, frame-width=290, type=line, stroke-width=2, type2=line, from2=New Yor ...
and the town of
Coxsackie on the west side of the
Hudson River
The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
. The house consists of a series of connected structures, oriented roughly north–south on the south side of Pieter Bronck Road east of Coxsackie Creek. The southernmost section is the oldest part: it is a single-pile structure with thick stone walls, with a steeply pitched gable roof. Its interior as built consisted of single open chambers on two floors, with a loft space in the attic. The interior has original and restored elements, including wide floor boards and doors with original hardware.
This house was built about 1663 by Pieter Bronck, a native of
Jönköping
Jönköping (, ) is a city in southern Sweden with 112,766 inhabitants (2022). Jönköping is situated on the southern shore of Sweden's second largest lake, Vättern, in the province of Småland.
The city is the seat of Jönköping Municipa ...
,
Sweden who came here with his Dutch wife as part of the
Dutch colonization of the Hudson River valley. Bronck was a relative of
Jonas Bronck
Jonas Bronck (alternatively Jonas Jonsson Brunk, Jonas Jonasson Bronk, or Jonas Jonassen Bronck) was born around year 1600 and died in 1643. Bronck was an immigrant to the Dutch colony of New Netherland after whom the Bronx River, and by extension ...
, for whom
The Bronx
The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...
is named.
In 1738, Leender Bronck, Pieter's grandson, built a larger brick house that was connected to the first house by a brick passageway. In 1792 the Broncks added a stone addition to the rear of the 1738 structure, using construction methods similar to that of the 1663 building.
The house remained in the Bronck family until 1938. It now is owned and operated as a museum by the Greene County Historical Society.
The
Bronck Farm 13-Sided Barn is related to, but listed separately from the Bronck House. It was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 1984.
The house is reputed to be the location where the
Coxsackie Declaration of Independence was signed, more than a year before the Continental Congress signing in 1776.
See also
*
List of the oldest buildings in New York
This article attempts to list the oldest buildings in the state of New York, including the oldest houses and any other surviving structures. Some dates are approximate and based on architectural studies and historical records; other dates are bas ...
*
List of National Historic Landmarks in New York
References
External links
*
Revolutionary War Heritage Trail: Bronck Museum*
{{National Register of Historic Places in New York
Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state)
National Historic Landmarks in New York (state)
Houses completed in 1663
U.S. Route 9W
Museums in Greene County, New York
Historic house museums in New York (state)
Houses in Greene County, New York
Historic American Buildings Survey in New York (state)
National Register of Historic Places in Greene County, New York
1663 establishments in the Dutch Empire