Opening August 2009 GRHS is looking forward to our upcoming exhibit, Royal Roots Revisited: Saluting the Dutch House of Orange-Nassau, comprising exquisite silver, ceramic and other works documenting the Dutch Royal Family's centuries-old connection with New York. Click to read more in the Juniper Berry, and here on the official NY400 Web site.
Last Chance to See Rites of Passage
Curated by Richard Asbell and George Miller, this exhibit on the cemeteries of Queens will only be at the Onderdonk House through June 2009. The Onderdonk House is open Saturdays, 1:00-5:00 PM. Donation $3.00.
Educators: Reserve class trips to the Onderdonk House.
We are raffling this beautiful quilt at our Annual Harvest Festival in October. Chances are $1.00 each or six for $5.00. Checks should be made out and mailed to Greater Ridgewood Historical Society, 1820 Flushing Avenue, Ridgewood, NY 11385. Send your name, address and phone number and you will be entered. If you become a member of the Society, you will automatically be entered. Memberships are $15.00 individual, $25 family, $250 for life. Download our membership form.
Front exterior view of the Onderdonk House from Flushing Avenue. (Photo: Ellen Brody-Kirmss, 2005) 
Rear exterior view of the Onderdonk House from Flushing Avenue. (Photo: Ellen Brody-Kirmss, 2005) 
Arbitration Rock, the most prominent marker along the January 7, 1769 Survey Line, settled the century-old boundary dispute between the towns of Bushwick and Newtown, and the counties of Queens and Kings. The rock was originally located 297 feet northwest of the Vander Ende-Onderdonk House, several feet below the current roadbed of Onderdonk Avenue. It was buried about 1930 when the area on the northerly side of Flushing Avenue was graded in preparation for the opening of part of Onderdonk Avenue. Arbitration Rock was moved to its current site behind the Onderdonk House along the old boundary line on August 8, 2001. (Photo: Robert Alan Espino, 2006)  | Welcome to the official Web site of The Greater Ridgewood Historical Society and The Vander Ende-Onderdonk House The Vander Ende-Onderdonk House, located in Ridgewood on the border of Queens and Brooklyn, is the oldest Dutch Colonial stone ho
Ridgewood, NY
Updated Friday, July 03, 2009 9:51 PM
Partly Cloudy | 73°F | High: 79°F
Low: 65°F
Wind: 14 mph
Humidity: 56%
|
Saturday
82° / 64° | 
Sunday
82° / 63° |
Monday
81° / 60° | 
Tuesday
78° / 62° |
|
|
|
use in New York City. Peter Stuyvesant granted the land it sits on in the mid-seventeenth century, and by 1660, Hendrick Barents Smidt occupied a small house on the site. In 1709, Paulus Vander Ende of Flatbush purchased the farm and began construction of the current house. The building was a prominent marker in the 1769 settlement of the boundary dispute between Bushwick in Kings County and Newtown in Queens County. During the 1820's, Adrian Onderdonk erected a small frame addition to the stone house immediately above the remnants of the foundation of the 1660 building. Its architectural features are typical of Dutch buildings in this period: a gambrel roof, Dutch doors, central hallway and double hung windows with shutters. The Greater Ridgewood Historical Society was established in 1975 by a group of local residents to prevent the demolition of the Vander Ende Onderdonk House. From 1975 until 1981, the GRHS raised funds to reconstruct the house which had been seriously damaged by fire, and in 1976, published a history of the greater Ridgewood area, entitled Our Community, Its History and People. In 1977, the House and property were listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and in 1978, granted the same status on the New York State Register. The House was given New York City landmark status in June of 1996. With the help of Federal, State and local funds, the Onderdonk House was opened to the public in 1982.  The House serves as a museum for a permanent exhibit on the archaeology of the Onderdonk site, as well as changing exhibits relating to history, the arts and culture. The Society also maintains a history and genealogical research library, and offers many cultural events annually, including: guided house tours, history lectures and programs, genealogy workshops, craft classes and special events, such as St. Nicholas Day and other Dutch celebrations. The history and location of the house provide a rich educational and cultural experience for visitors. Our programs are supported by public service contracts from the City of New York, Department of Cultural Affairs, State Assemblywoman Catherine Nolan, Queens Borough President, Helen Marshall, and the membership and friends of the Society. If you would like to receive notices about upcoming events, send your email address to info@onderdonkhouse.org and we will add you to our distribution list. 
Recently uncovered fireplace, the oldest in the house, with interior side bake oven. (Photo: Robert Alan Espino, 2007)
Antique Cash Register, kindly on loan from our friends at Waste Management. (Photo: Charles Sanchez, 2009)
|
This page was last modified on Saturday, June 27, 2009 01:49:44 PM