When you think of New York City, you might think of giant skyscrapers, a constant stream of crowds and taxis, and modern buildings. It seems as though this concrete jungle is constantly on the go, and you’d be forgiven for thinking that Manhattan was the same as every other NYC borough. But you’ve obviously never seen this old farmhouse nestled in between the high-rise buildings. One look at this farmhouse will make you feel as though you’ve been transported back in time, but what is the farmhouse still doing there? And why hasn’t it been torn down? Well, this is its intriguing story.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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 hard work and pressure.
To make matters even worse, Jacobus also struggled immensely in his person life during this time. He suffered tragedy after tragedy, and he just didn’t know how he would go on.
Dwindling Numbers
As Jacobus was the oldest of those who lived in the Dyckman Farmhouse, he hadn’t expected to be surrounded by so much death – especially in regard to his children. He had always hoped that they would outlive him and his wife, but that didn’t happen. Between 1809 and 1822, Jacobus not only lost five of his children but also lost his wife and one of their grandchildren. It was too much for him to bear.
After losing seven people over the course of 13 years, many expected Jacobus to crumble. But no matter how sad he felt on the inside, he knew that he had to continue working.
Keeping Things Running Smoothly
Despite everything going on in his life, Jacobus wanted to keep things running as smoothly as possible. After all, Dyckman Farmhouse wasn’t just their home – it was also their livelihood. So, with the help of his farmhands, he was able to keep the crops growing and make the most of the land that they were provided with. It wasn’t easy, but it was enough to keep them going for a while.
In fact, their farm was able to thrive while others around them struggled to stay afloat. And before too long Jacobus was able to expand their home and their business into something truly special.
Expanding Their Empire
As Jacobus and his team managed to grow and sell some of the best fruits and vegetables in Manhattan, Jacobus made the decision to expand his empire. By the time the late 1860s came around, the Dyckmans owned over 300 acres of land around the borough. Today that would be worth billions of dollars in real estate. To him, though, it was just his home, his business, and his legacy.
And while he was pleased with the progress that was being made, he was also very conscious of the fact that he was getting older and wouldn’t be able to continue for much longer. That’s when everything changed.
Taking Over the Farm
Sadly, Jacobus Dyckman passed away in 1832, leaving a heartbroken family behind him. As his closest relatives tried to make sense of the estate that he’d left behind, it was decided that his two sons, Michael and Isaac, would move into the Dyckman Farmhouse and preserve its legacy. Amazingly, that’s exactly what they did for two whole decades, before they decided that they no longer wanted to live there anymore.
They didn’t move far, though, as they simply moved to different properties on the estate. But this still left a big question on everyone’s minds… who was going to look after the Dyckman Farmhouse now?
Taking on the Family Legacy
As you may remember, there was a time when Jacobus lived in the Dyckman Farmhouse with one of his grandsons. He was called James Frederick Smith, and he had always had dreams of one day owning the farmhouse he had once called home. That opportunity presented itself when Isaac passed away in 1868, and he made the move to become the rightful owner of the Dyckman Farmhouse. But there was a catch.
Although Isaac had made it clear in his will that he was happy for James to take over the farmhouse, there was something he needed to do before the deeds could be transferred. And it wasn’t a small task, either.
What’s in a Name?
Isaac had strong terms when it came to the transference of the Dyckman Farmhouse – as well as the whole estate. In fact, he made it very clear that he wanted around 340 acres of the estate to be sold and the money divided between the rest of the family members. Included in the sale would also be the farmhouse. But he did want some of the estate to stay within the family, under one condition.
If James wanted to own the small section of the estate, he would need to change his name to Isaac Michael Dyckman legally. So, James had a big decision to make.
Close to the Family
After much deliberation, James decided to agree to the terms. When he became the owner of some of the Dyckman estates, he also became Isaac Michael Dyckman in the process. But he didn’t just lose his birth name. As a result of the first Isaac’s wishes, a huge section of his family’s estate had been bought by strangers who wanted their own slice of the agricultural pie. This meant he also had to say goodbye to the farmhouse.
At the time, it seemed as though the Dyckman family had cut all ties with the Dyckman Farmhouse. But nobody could have expected what happened over the next few years.
Drawn to the Farmhouse
Over the course of his life, Isaac Michael Dyckman had two children of his own, daughters Fannie and Mary. They grew up on their small section of the Dyckman estate, and they loved where they lived. They loved how much open space they had, they loved the buildings, and they loved the fact that their family had once owned the whole estate. In fact, they kept being drawn back to the farmhouse.
The older they got, the more they realized that the farmhouse wasn’t being looked after in the way that it was supposed to be. So, in 1915, they decided to buy the farmhouse back to stop it from being torn down.
Restoring Its Former Glory
What’s so amazing about Fannie and Mary is the fact that they didn’t buy the Dyckman Farmhouse to live in it. They knew how much the farmhouse meant to their family and how it had impacted their legacy, so they wanted to honor that in a way that would do it justice. So, they focused on doing it up and restoring it to its former glory. Then, they handed the keys over.
No, they didn’t sell it. But in 1916, they decided to hand the keys over to officials in New York who would control and run the farmhouse as a museum.
Much Time Has Passed
At the time, Fannie and Mary assumed that the museum would continue to survive for as long as people were interested – or until New York officials were greeted with a development proposal that would line their pockets with extra cash. But, surprisingly, the farmhouse still stands tall today, nestled amongst skyscrapers and high-rise buildings that are synonymous with Manhattan. Not much has changed inside or outside of the farmhouse, either.
In an effort to preserve as much of the Dyckman Farmhouse as possible, museum officials have done very little to the house in terms of maintenance or decoration. And you won’t believe what it looks like inside.
Rising Even Higher
Before we get to see what’s inside the Dyckman Farmhouse, we have to talk about the outside. After all, so much has changed in terms of the exterior – but also, nothing has changed at all! That’s because there was once a time when the farmhouse was equal level to the sidewalk next to it. But as time has passed and the New York sidewalks have been lowered 15 feet, the farmhouse has been raised up even higher.
The buildings around the farmhouse have also changed over the years. There was a time when the farmhouse was surrounded by its own land. Today, it’s surrounded by imposing buildings.