United States historic place
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Wheeler Hill Historic District |
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| Location | Wheeler Hill Rd., Wappinger, New York |
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| Area | 320 acres (130 ha) |
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| Architect | Post, George B. |
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| Architectural style | Late 19th And 20th Century Revivals, Late Victorian, Federal |
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| NRHP reference No. | 91000678[1] |
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| Added to NRHP | June 14, 1991 |
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Wheeler Hill Historic District is a federally recognized historic district located at Wappinger in Dutchess County, New York. It includes 49 contributing buildings, 15 contributing sites, and four contributing structures. It encompasses the estates of Obercreek, Elmhurst, Edge Hill, and those of Henry Suydam, William Crosby, and Carnwath Farms that were developed between 1740 and 1940. Also included are two 18th century riverfront commercial structures, the Lent / Waldron Store and Stone House at Farmer's Landing.[2] It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.[1]
History
This area was originally part of the Rombout Patent granted to the children of Gulian Verplanck on October 17, 1685, and contains six contiguous former Hudson River estates.
Carnwath Farms Historic Site & Park
Carnwath Farms Historic Site & Park was originally built in 1850 for William and Lydia Willis, relatives of the Mesier family in nearby Wappingers Falls. The estate was named from a Manor home set in Scotland. Willis was a retired hardware merchant from New York City. He sold the house after the Civil War and then built Obercreek. The property then was purchased by civil war General G. Barclay who sold it to his son in law Francis Robert Rives, later his son inherited the estate, who was elected supervisor of Wappinger in 1900. In the early 1900s the property was known as Rives Hill. Around 1910 the property was sold to Isaac Untermyer, who was famous for defending William "Boss" Tweed. By the 1920s the Order of the Brothers of Hermits purchased the property and built the dormitory building and chapel in the mid-1950s. The property was purchased by the Town of Wappinger in 1999[3] as a park, with hopes to restore the Manor House, Carriage House, and other structures on the property. It is also home to the Sports Museum of Dutchess County, and soon to be the home of the Town of Wappinger Museum & Visitor Center. Carnwath Farms Historic Site & Park Restoration Group maintains and holds events at the estate.
Obercreek
Obercreek was built by William H. Willis in 1856 as their new home after they sold Carnwath Farms just down the road. Since the Willis' were related to the Mesiers the estate was passed down to them and finally to the Reese family who presented plans for development of the property to the Town in 2007.[4]
Elmhurst
Samuel S. Sands built "Elmhurst" in 1865. Sands was a banker and broker in partnership with William Henry Reese and joined the New York Stock Exchange in 1854. He acted as broker for a number of important financial interests, including the Astors. Sands died at the age of sixty-six at his country estate, "Elmhurst", July 26, 1892.[5] Elmhurst once housed the Deer Hill Conference Center.
EdgeHill
Henry Suydam was born in New York City in 1803. The brother of artist James Augustus Suydam, he was descended from an old New York merchant family. He started a successful tea business before retiring some time in his 40s to turn to his private interests of writing and art. Henry suydam was an artist in his own right, whose works are displayed at the National Academy of Design. In 1846 Suydam purchased a farmhouse and a parcel of surrounding land from Job Angel for his country estate. In 1882 he privately published a book detailing the history of his mother's family, the Mesiers, combined with a history of the Zion Episcopal Church.
