Philipse Manor History
The southwest corner, the oldest part of the structure,
was built around 1682 by Dutch-born carpenter and trader Frederick Philipse, a son-in-law of Stephanus Van Cortlandt, who
by the time of his death had amassed a 52,000-acre (208 km²) estate that encompassed the entire modern city of Yonkers,
as well as several other Hudson River towns.
During Philipse's life, the building was
used primarily as a stopover point on the long journey up and down the river between his home in New Amsterdam and the northern
parts of his estate. His grandson, Frederick Philipse II, and his great-grandson, Frederick Philipse III, successively enlarged
and enhanced the building, making it the primary family residence.
On November 28, 1776,
nearly five months after the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the start of the American Revolution, Frederick
Philipse III and over 200 of his contemporaries signed a document declaring their allegiance to the British crown and their
unwillingness to support the Revolutionary cause. (Modern historians often refer to this document as a “Declaration
of Dependence.”) Because of his Loyalism, Philipse was branded a traitor and placed under arrest on orders signed by
General George Washington. He was held in Connecticut for a time, but was given special permission to travel back to Yonkers
to settle his affairs on the condition that he not aid the British cause. In violation of his parole, he and his family fled
to British-occupied New York City and later to Great Britain, leaving their estate and Philipse Manor Hall behind.
Philipse Manor Hall was sold at public auction following the Revolution, and occupied by various families throughout
the 19th century. In 1868, the building became Yonkers' municipal center (as Village Hall, and later, as City Hall) and
remained such until 1908. During this period, an elaborate monument to those Yonkers natives who had died during the American
Civil War was installed on the east lawn (1891). See the original program for that day, September 17, 1891 below.
By 1908, the growing complexity of city government had made the building nearly obsolete as a government center.
Public meetings were held, and options such as adding wings onto the building and tearing it down outright were discussed.
The question became moot when Eva Smith Cochran, matriarch of a wealthy local carpet milling family, stepped in and donated
$50,000 to the city as a nominal reimbursement for their care of the building during the previous 40 years. This allowed the
City to turn ownership of the building over to the State of New York. Between that time and the 1960s, the building was owned
by the state but cared for by the American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society. (Since the dissolution of the Society,
the building is owned, maintained and curated by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.)
From 1911–1912, the most intense restoration project in the building’s history brought the house
back to a semblance of its colonial appearance. The building has been open as a museum of history, art and architecture since
1912 and was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1961.
(Source: Wikipedia)
