Madam Brett Homestead
Encyclopedia
The Madame Brett Homestead is an early 18th-century home located in the city of Beacon
, New York
, USA. It is the oldest standing building in its part of Dutchess County and has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places
since 1976.
Indians. After marrying British
Navy lieutenant Roger Brett in 1703, the couple moved onto the land in the summer of 1708. The home was built in 1709, notable as the residence of the first white woman to settle in the Hudson River highlands. It was subsequently occupied by her decedents until 1954, spanning a total of seven generations.
During the American Revolutionary War
, the building was used for as a shelter and storage facility by the Americans. Revolutionary leaders such as George Washington
, the Marquis de La Fayette
, and Baron von Steuben
are said to have been guests in the house.
In 1800, Catheryna Rombout Brett's great granddaughter Alice Schenck Teller purchased the house from her widowed mother and together with her husband Isaac Teller remodeled it. After Isaac's death the house was renamed "Teller's Villa" and operated as a boarding house. It is called the "Teller Mansion" because so many members of the Teller family were involved in its history and it is just off Teller Avenue in Beacon, NY. See "Historic Houses of the Hudson Valley" by Harold Eberlein and Cortlandt Van Dyke Hubbard.
and turned into a museum preserving a total of seventeen rooms, complete with original furnishings and a collection of China-trade porcelain.
The Madame Brett Homestead is located near Fishkill Creek, at 50 Van Nydeck Avenue, Beacon, New York 12508, USA.
Beacon, New York
Beacon is a city located in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The 2010 census placed the city total population at 15,541. Beacon is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger New York–Newark–Bridgeport,...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, USA. It is the oldest standing building in its part of Dutchess County and has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
since 1976.
History
The homestead, also called "The Teller Mansion" is named for Catheryna Rombout Brett (1687–1764), the daughter of Helena Teller and Francis Rombout, who inherited the land on which the house stands from her father Francis Rombout, who in turn had purchased it from the WappingerWappinger
The Wappinger were an American tribe native to eastern New York. The term "Wappinger" may also refer to:* Wappinger, New York, the Town of Wappinger named for the tribe...
Indians. After marrying British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Navy lieutenant Roger Brett in 1703, the couple moved onto the land in the summer of 1708. The home was built in 1709, notable as the residence of the first white woman to settle in the Hudson River highlands. It was subsequently occupied by her decedents until 1954, spanning a total of seven generations.
During the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
, the building was used for as a shelter and storage facility by the Americans. Revolutionary leaders such as George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
, the Marquis de La Fayette
Gilbert du Motier, marquis de La Fayette
Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette , often known as simply Lafayette, was a French aristocrat and military officer born in Chavaniac, in the province of Auvergne in south central France...
, and Baron von Steuben
Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben
Friedrich Wilhelm August Heinrich Ferdinand von Steuben , also referred to as the Baron von Steuben, was a Prussian-born military officer who served as inspector general and Major General of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War...
are said to have been guests in the house.
In 1800, Catheryna Rombout Brett's great granddaughter Alice Schenck Teller purchased the house from her widowed mother and together with her husband Isaac Teller remodeled it. After Isaac's death the house was renamed "Teller's Villa" and operated as a boarding house. It is called the "Teller Mansion" because so many members of the Teller family were involved in its history and it is just off Teller Avenue in Beacon, NY. See "Historic Houses of the Hudson Valley" by Harold Eberlein and Cortlandt Van Dyke Hubbard.
Today
In 1954, the building was considered for demolition to make room for a Supermarket. Instead, it was purchased by the Melzingah chapter of the Daughters of the American RevolutionDaughters of the American Revolution
The Daughters of the American Revolution is a lineage-based membership organization for women who are descended from a person involved in United States' independence....
and turned into a museum preserving a total of seventeen rooms, complete with original furnishings and a collection of China-trade porcelain.
The Madame Brett Homestead is located near Fishkill Creek, at 50 Van Nydeck Avenue, Beacon, New York 12508, USA.
Further Reading
- Great Houses of the Hudson River, Michael Middleton DwyerMichael Middleton DwyerMichael Middleton Dwyer is an architect practicing in New York City known for renovating historic structures and designing new ones in traditional vocabularies. He is also a writer of architectural history who was the editor of Great Houses of the Hudson River and author of Carolands...
, editor, with preface by Mark RockefellerMark RockefellerMark Fitler Rockefeller is a fourth-generation member of the Rockefeller family. He is the youngest son of Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller and Happy Rockefeller...
, Boston, MA: Little, Brown and CompanyLittle, Brown and CompanyLittle, Brown and Company is a publishing house established by Charles Coffin Little and his partner, James Brown. Since 2006 it has been a constituent unit of Hachette Book Group USA.-19th century:...
, published in association with Historic Hudson ValleyHistoric Hudson ValleyHistoric Hudson Valley is a not-for-profit educational and historic preservation organization headquartered in Tarrytown, New York, in Westchester County...
, 2001. ISBN 082122767X.