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For the past 8 years, the Northwest Bergen History Coalition in Bergen County, NJ has been holding a themed History Day. On History Day, several historic sites in the area are open, running tours and stamping passports. This year, the theme was ‘How Immigration & The Railroad Shaped Our Towns’ with 10 sites participating.
The Old Stone House in Ramsey dates back to the early 1700s. It is actually the Westervelt–Ackerson House, but the highway directional sign as well as the NHRP sign out front refer to it as the Old Stone House. It is a Dutch Colonial farmhouse built from rustic materials including straw and hogs hair.
The Westervelts purchased the land from the Lenape Nation for 50 ounces of silver. After the family moved from the farmhouse, it became a stagecoach stop and then a tavern. It is rumored that Aaron Burr stopped at the tavern for the night before he continued on to the Hermitage to marry Theodosia Prevost.
Today, the Old Stone House is awkwardly situated inside a clover leaf exchange off Route 17. Originally, the State of NJ had purchased the property with the intent to demolish it to build an overpass. But local community groups intervened, saved the home from destruction and now manage it as a museum.
I managed to tour five of the participating sites that day. To see my posts on the other NW Bergen County historic sites, click on the following links:
- The Old Stone House (Ramsey)
- The Schoolhouse Museum (Ridgewood) – Coming Soon
- The Hermitage (Ho-ho-kus) – Coming Soon
- The Zabriskie House (Wyckoff) – Coming Soon
- The John Fell House (Allendale) – Coming Soon
Location: 2538 Island Road, Ramsey, NJ 07446
Designation: National Register of Historic Places
Date designation declared: 7/20/1977
Date of my visit: 4/28/2018
Thank goodness someone has the foresight to preserve these historic buildings. Thanks for sharing. Allan
Unfortunately a lot of these old places fall on hard times…pass to descendants who can’t afford the upkeep and wind up selling to developers for the land. It’s nice to see the local community band together to save them now and then!
So glad the community saved this historic structure and its stories!
Me too! Thanks for reading!
Another great place to see.
Thanks! They only open it for visits during special events…I think they have something going on around the holidays too
Thank you. I will have to look into it.
Interesting! Glad they saved it. We have a very similar sort of thing in Tennessee.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sparta_Rock_House
Thank goodness there are people who recognize that we don’t need another condo complex or highway connector if it means knocking these old places down. Of the 5 places I visited on history day, 4 of them were preserved by concerned groups of private citizens. The 5th was donated to the town by the last surviving heir. Posts coming soon…
Thank you for Posting this. Here, around my area in PA, there are a number of old Stone Homes that have been preserved. I have posted about some of them. The Oley Valley region has many homes similar to this. I have always enjoyed History that is around my area.
Thanks for commenting! It’s surprising how many of these revolutionary-war-era gems we have in the Northeast, once you start looking for them.
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