Pieter Claesen Wyckoff House
By ARTHUR P. KIRMSS
May 10, 2010
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| Pieter Claesen Wyckoff House. Photograph by Arthur P. Kirmss. |
The Pieter Claesen Wyckoff House, located in the Canarsie section of Brooklyn, New York, is one of America's 10 oldest wooden structures. The landmark was erected on a small scale in 1652. Wings were constructed around 1740; a subsequent addition dates to 1820.
Having visited numerous historic homes in the Upstate and Downstate New York areas, the Wyckoff House is comparatively warm, welcoming and altogether cozy. Its charming atmosphere encourages people to return there again and again. The building's spirit recalls some 350 years of continuous close family life as witnessed by generations of Wyckoffs who lived there. Far-flung descendants today number some 50,000 people spread across the continental United States.
The 1652 room has huge wooden beams, each measuring about 1 foot high by 6 to 7 inches wide and 16 to 17 feet in length. Ceilings rise to the height of at least 7 feet. Original sections of the 1600s wall are preserved, revealing early period insulation made of hardened mud stuffed with corn cobs. Daylight shining through windows and doorways is used effectively to illustrate 17th- and 18th-century working conditions by natural illumination alone.
Recent Acquisitions
Director Byron Saunders gladly fielded questions about the Wyckoff House's recent acquisitions. One relative donated a 1920s book about St. Nicholas and Zwarte Pieter (Black Pete), his assistant. The text describes how the revered early Christian and his trusty African companion visit children and their families each year around December 6th, St. Nicholas' Day. Another important addition to the house's permanent collection is a Wyckoff descendant's painted portrait (ca. 1850).
Wyckoff-Durling Barn Project
The Durlings, a New Jersey branch of the Wyckoff family, are donating an early 1800s barn to the Canarsie location. Saunders revealed that construction bids, along with design modifications and material costs, are being considered. The projected time for raising the barn is nine months.
Educational Programs
The Wyckoff House may seem small on the outside. Yet its interior spaces are large, rich and varied. Education Director Shirley Brown Alleyn and her staff of teaching guides offer students a fascinating program of intellectually diverse on-site activities. Their success is measured in numbers. Attendance by school children and others for 2009 was 5,300. Since January 2010, over 5,000 people of all ages visited the house. Alleyn's outreach programs also continue to contribute significantly to the institution's educational impact.
School initiatives include visits to the house's different period rooms. Docents Dessa and Patricia show groups of students large copies of historic maps of the 1600s, illustrating the Wyckoffs' geographic origins. Participants answer reading questions to stimulate their interest. Exact reproductions of colonial household items, including a tin candle mold, a lantern and the like, are handled by students who discuss the objects' use and significance. Original Wyckoff family relics, among them an engraved toaster and waffle iron, are displayed and described. 17th-century foods and the use of spices in their preservation are explained. Students are often shocked to find out that a family of 13 people during the 1650s lived in (and around) a room less than 20 square feet in size. Staff members frequently elicit cries of surprise when they detail early cooking and baking techniques because of the tremendous work involved in making and serving food in the 1600s. Butter churning is one such activity demonstrated.
On the house's ample and well-manicured grounds, students participate in various hands-on activities and early household chores. Children experience the joy of colonial hoop and stick spinning as well as lawn bowling with wooden pins and balls. The backyard features a superb herb garden where beets are grown, turned into juice and mixed with vinegar and a salt fixative to make ink. Writing with colonial-style feather quill pens is shown.
Community Activities
Director Saunders, an enthusiastic fundraiser, has been instrumental in recruiting two new advisory board members and working more closely with local Community Board 17. Summer programs for neighborhood block associations have been expanded, emphasizing "good neighbor" relations with the Wyckoff House. One example of these efforts is the upcoming Scout Day on May 22, 2010. Boy and Girl Scouts can earn a badge for civic commitment as they develop their respect for local history. Saunders is committed to spurring genuine interest in historic preservation and stewardship among young visitors as they mature into adults.
On the subject of a greenmarket held at the house, vendors will sell fresh vegetables, fruit and baked goods. The appearance of a fishmonger is planned for the event.
Warm vibrations radiate from within the Pieter Claesen Wyckoff House. A strong and palpable sense of comfort and domesticity is aglow within its walls. The building is more than just a house. It was — and still is — a home. Go there for a thoroughly enriching experience.
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