Elmhurst residents are here to support to save the last remaining historic house in Elmhurst, NY. We would like to see this home saved  to then be restored and preserved for future generations. Elmhurst currently lacks any historic house and has very few structures remaining from its beginnings of a colony. This home in its own right is and has been for many years the last shining 'landmark' of the Elmhurst community and is loved and cherished by its residents! We need your help to make this happen or this opportunity will be gone forever, as much has already been lost in Elmhurst.

History:

1. This home and land it sits on has been in the same location and has ties to the community since 1700. The three families that owned this home were all Dutch and if not first settlers but early settlers of America, the east coast and New York: the Brinkerhoff family, the Bloom family and the Suydam family. In 1700 John Brinckerhoff purchased the farm which consisted of 40 acres. The original name of the home derived from Colonel Bernardus Bloom. He bought the farm from John Brinckerhoff in 1742 and consisted of 3 lots. The home currently sits on 3 NYC lots and it is a unique shaped lot indicating that this is still a large property and was once even larger. Therefore when referring to this house it was known as Colonel Bernardus Bloom Farmhouse. Col. Bloom willed his homestead to his grandson Bernardus Bloom as well. The next owner was Mrs. Suydam in 1852 and then ownership to J.S. Suydam in 1860. The Suydam’s were originally descendants from the Riker family (Rycken) but changed their family name to Suydam to possibly honor someplace in their mother country.*The Suydam family in 1862 altered the Bernardus Bloom farmhouse several times leading to what it looks like today unchanged from the early Victorian style. Currently the home standing sits on a foundation that has clues to the years and times it has been altered. There are large natural stones varying in sizes and other foundation materials. Presumably the stones were local and commonly used in building when the early settlers, Dutch and English colonized towns here in New York and other areas in America. This is a very rare specimen to have in the year 2015 and would prove interesting to further research and use for various study groups such as historians, architects and early American history.

2. Also commonly this house is referred to as the Horse Brook House because geographically this home is located adjacent to Justice Avenue (called Court Street when it was the Town of Newtown) where the Horse Brook Stream once ran in Elmhurst. The Horse Brook Stream although abolished from sight still runs underground. The Horse Brook Stream was a vital source to the Elmhurst community as well as the surrounding Queens communities in Native American and colonial times up till it was abolished from the community for development. This home is a reminder of an era and river once gone and therefore residents have this home to remind them of the long gone Horse Brook Stream. Currently right across from the home there is a NYC Parks small traffic triangle properly named “Horsebrook Island” to keep the memory of the stream alive. The park triangle is bounded by Justice Avenue, 56th Avenue and 90th Street.
Here is the internet link: http://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/horsebrook-island-q152/highlights/12231

3. This home is located across from Newtown Field. Newtown Field and the Newtown Playground (which is a NYC park) was once the Old Newtown Cemetery. This cemetery was the oldest cemetery in Newtown and is no longer visible or even acknowledged. This home’s location is pivotal in the early settler’s lives and beginnings of Elmhurst. All these lost historical facts would be able to be awakened and told by saving this home.
Here is the link to NYC Parks: http://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/newtown-playground/history

Why is this home important?
The families that owned this home starting from the Brinckerhoff’s all the way to the Suydam family were important families in the town of Newtown before it became Elmhurst and before Queens was part of NYC. Newtown became a settlement in 1652 by a group of Englishmen. Newtown was later renamed Elmhurst in 1896, two years before Queens was incorporated into the City of Greater New York. The Brinckerhoff’s along with the Blooms’ and Suydam families were the original colonists of the Newtown. They in fact were the original Dutch families of Newtown. Their families can also be found throughout early U.S. history from early colonial times and part of the original colonists of this country. The Dutch were fewer in numbers compared to the English in Newtown. The Dutch remained a strong tight knit community and commonly intermarried amongst their own. It is amazing that this home, location and land remained amongst Dutch families for so many years.
The Suydam/Riker family connection is a very important factor as well. The Riker family was an integral part of Queens’ history. The Riker families were also original Dutch settlers, owned land, farms and were a big part of this founding city and nation. James Riker in particular was a resident of Elmhurst-Newtown; he was the historian and wrote the book “Annals of Newtown”. The “Annals of Newtown” is the best historical book and research of the neighborhood Elmhurst and adjacent towns which was then Newtown the first settlement of Queens County.
Examples of Riker family ties in Queens County are of course Riker’s Island and the Lent-Riker-Smith homestead in East Elmhurst, Queens.
Link : http://www.rikerhome.com/
Besides from these facts the previous owner before the Suydam family was Col. Bernardus Bloom, he was a strong and important figure in Newtown. Col. Bernardus Bloom was a tavern keeper and a blacksmith by trade. By the time of the revolution, he was already a colonel in the militia. In 1775, he was one of the signers declining to recognize the Continental Congress. In June of 1829 Col. Bloom was appointed first postmaster of Newtown which was the 9th Post Office in Queens.

Our Initiative:
We would like to see the last remaining historic residential home from the beginnings of Elmhurst as a bustling colonial community saved and preserved. This house today as it stands today has survived throughout time and is a living museum of our past and our future. It would serve best as a historical house museum that focuses on the history of Elmhurst and as an important historical neighborhood in Queens County and in New York City. This is extremely important to our beginnings and how far we have come to becoming one of the most cultural and diverse neighborhoods in the U.S. It would be the first and much needed museum of Elmhurst; it can hold events, exhibits, and cultural events to Elmhurst and neighborhoods surrounding it. With very few green spaces or parks in Elmhurst this home would also serve as an open space oasis to the abundant development around it. It is not only the last historic house but this is the last untouched land in Elmhurst from our farming past and natural terrain.