Kingsland Homestead is an 18th-century house located in

Flushing Flushing may refer to: Places * Flushing, Cornwall, a village in the United Kingdom * Flushing, Queens, New York City ** Flushing Bay, a bay off the north shore of Queens ** Flushing Chinatown (法拉盛華埠), a community in Queens ** Flushin ...

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. It is the home of the remains of

The Weeping Beech The Weeping Beech was a historic tree located at Weeping Beech Park in Flushing, Queens, New York City. It was the mother of all European weeping beeches in the United States. The Weeping Beech was imported by horticulturalist Samuel Parsons ...

, a landmark weeping

beech tree Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''E ...

, believed to have been planted in 1847. The homestead is also close to the 17th-century Bowne House, the location of the first Quaker meeting place in New Amsterdam. The homestead is operated by the Queens Historical Society, whose quarters are inside; the homestead is open to the public as a

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make thes ...

. The Kingsland Homestead is a member of the

Historic House Trust The Historic House Trust of New York City was formed in 1989 as a public-private partnership with the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation to preserve the historic houses located within New York City parks, although most of the houses ...

, and is both a

New York City designated landmark The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and cu ...

and a

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 ...

listing.

History

Kingsland was built by Charles Doughty in approximately 1785 and the name "Kingsland" is believed to derive from Doughty's son-in-law,

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

sea captain Joseph King, who bought the home in 1801. Due to encroaching development from the proposed extension of the New York City Subway's Flushing Line in 1923, it was moved to the site of a stable, also built by King. The house was threatened again in 1965, by the construction of the Murray Hill Shopping Center, but the community was able to save the house and in that same year it was one of the first buildings in the city to be declared a landmark by the

Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and cu ...

. When further construction threatened the house in 1968, the then three-year-old Kingsland Preservation Committee (now the Queens Historical Society) arranged for the transfer of the house to its present location. After significant delays, the Homestead was officially dedicated as a museum in March 1973. In October 1996 a $330,000

renovation Renovation (also called remodeling) is the process of improving broken, damaged, or outdated structures. Renovations are typically done on either commercial or residential buildings. Additionally, renovation can refer to making something new, ...

that completely restored the house and included the addition of track lighting and a sprinkler system to protect the house was completed. Further structural work was required in 1999.

Exhibits

The Homestead has been interpreted to the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...

, although it has included a wide range of exhibits since its dedication as a museum. A

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

exhibit highlighted what happened in Queens during the War and included local newspapers from the time as well as real-estate ads that highlighted the borough's growth, and an exhibit on

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

showcased its impact in Queens and on Long Island.

Weeping Beech

Within the main park that houses the Homestead is the Weeping Beech Park, once dominated by a weeping beech tree. The beech tree, designated as a city landmark in 1966, was one of only two living landmarks in New York City. It is believed to have originated in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, transported to the U.S. by horticulturalist

Samuel Parsons Samuel Bowne Parsons Jr. (8 February 1844 – 3 February 1923), was an American landscape architect. He is remembered as being a founder of the American Society of Landscape Architects, helping to establish the profession. Early years Parsons w ...

, and is also believed to be the source of all weeping beeches in the United States. The tree survived for 151 years before succumbing in 1997. A funeral was held for the tree in December 1998. The remains of the tree were given to artists to use for sculptures and benches along a heritage trail in downtown Flushing, save for a ten-foot section that would remain in the park as a memorial, Seven direct descendants remain in the park, shadowing the Homestead.

References

External links

* * {{National Register of Historic Places in New York Houses completed in 1785 Museums established in 1973 Historic house museums in New York City New York City Designated Landmarks in Queens, New York Historical society museums in New York City Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Queens, New York Historic American Buildings Survey in New York City Museums in Queens, New York Flushing, Queens National Historic Landmarks in New York City

History

Exhibits

Weeping Beech

See also

References

External links