built into one structure. Here under one roof the Voorlezer on Sunday led the singing and read from the scriptures, and on weekdays tried to instill in the young ones the simple rules of reading, writing and arithmetic. At night when his day’s work was over he adjourned to his rooms leading from the meeting room to enjoy a domestic quiet, interrupted occasionally, perhaps, by the visit of a good neighbor dropping in to have a letter or legal document composed and written. A Voorlezer’s House which is the name continually used in old documents referring to a building of this sort was only temporarily intended to be used for its many purposes. For when the village or town whose people it served became prosperous enough, separate buildings were erected for church, school or clerk’s office. Few houses were built for the Voorlezer after 1700, for by that time most of the Dutch settlements had become established and churches and schools, built to replace the earlier Voorlezer’s House. Naturally one would expect to find none of these early buildings still standing. The discovery that the Voorlezer’s House, built before 1700 at Richmond, Staten Island, was still standing, came, therefore, as a great surprise. This important discovery is a result of the research work undertaken by Mr. Raymond Safford of the Staten Island Historical Society in connection with his model of the village of Richmond as of 1775. In the course of this work, the title of the property on which 63 Arthur Kill Road stands
After the 1890s wing was demolished and remaining house was pushed 15 feet back from the road, the restoration of the building began. (Photo circa 1939)
was searched. This property was found to be on or so near the original location of the Voorlezer’s House as mentioned in the filed land reords, that a careful study was determined upon to see if No. 63 could be the Voorlezer’s House itself. In a study to identify an old structure there are three steps: documentary, structural and traditional. These have been listed in the order of their importance aand usually only the first two are necessary or of real value in an identification. For unfortunately it has too often been the case that tradition alone has been thought sufficient to identify a building. This step records the
The Voorlezer’s House was given an 1840s historical interpretation from 1942 up into the early 1990s. The chamber room, shown here, is furnished in mid-19th century, containing a great wheel and table-setting of the age.
memories of old residents and with all proper respect to these worthy people, very often proves erroneous. Concerning the Voorlezer’s House at Richmond, tradition carries it to the Revolution but unfortunately, discloses no hint as to its former use. However, as described below, the documentary and structural story proved without question that 63 Arthur Kill Rd. is the Voorlezer’s House. The documentary identification is based entirely on the chain of title and property descriptions as recorded in the Richmond County Clerk’s Office and the State Archives at Albany. On December 30, 1680, Robert Rider received a patent for 320 acres at the head of the Fresh Kills. This is the first record of a land transaction covering part of the village of Richmond and was followed shortly afterwards by grants to Aaron Prall and Capt. James Hubbard which three grants included all the village. The early history of Richmond, its founding and growth is lost. We can be certain, however, that in 1679 when D