Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1915-10-21
TO PUT HOUSE IN !.
PRIlnITIvE STATE
Restoration of New York Struc-
ture Will Be of interest.
KIN GIVE up PROPERTY.


York City Will Be Restored to Co.
IoniaI Days Condtion-OnIy Dwell
ing In Manhattan Built In Accordance
With Dutch Tradition.
New York.-One hundred years ago
great herds of cattle brOwsed daily on
what has become the city's newest rec
reation spot-Dyckman House park.
Owing to an arrangement made by
Park Commissioner Ward the old
Dyckman farmhouse, which stands on
this property at Two Hundred and
Fourth street and Broadway, will be
restored to the same condition in which
it was in colonial days. Mrs. Bashford
Dean and Mrs. Alexander Mcmillan
Welsh, who have presented this house
to the city, have not only given the
surrounding park, but have agreed to
improve it in accordance with the plans
of the park department.
Some incidents which figured have
been furnished to Commissioner Ward
by Professor Bashford Dean, whose
wife Mary Alice Dyckman, is one of
the park donors Professor Dean is
curator of the collection Of armor in
the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He
has been at pains to produce the pic
turesqhe and accurate account Of the
house sand its. inhabitants, which fol-
lows: 80
The ancient Dyckman homestead,
which, stands on a knoll at the corner
Of Broadway and Two Hundred and
Fourth street, is enthusiastically the
! only remaining dwelling EeallslLii1n house on Man
haitian Island built BY IL Dutch family
in accordance with the past Dutch ira
ditiOnS. '.-i>e, -. -
Times have gone by, and many
changes have occurred. The last Of the
family bearing the name In the vicin
ity died recently in the person of Mrs
Fannie Blackwell Brown, widow of the
late Isaac Michael Dyckman and her
self of Dyckman descent in several
lines. Her two daughters, Mrs. Bash
ford Dean. who was Mary Alice Dyck-
man, and Mrs. Alexander Mcmillan
Welch, who was Fannie Frederick
Dyckman, have as the last Of the
Kingsbridge Dyckmans decided to per-
petuate the old :Dyckman house in
memory Of their parents. xs..
The Dyckman house in question was
built at the end of the war Of independs
ence. about 1885, .as.Snearly as records
r,o r. x.oe, t1,n,, thaf4hr 70 N, ;lx f,71.,x
ed to their lands after the perils of the
war. Their ancient home which had
been built opposite the present one,
nearer the river, had been burned down
by the British. So new house was
built on ground which was somewhat
higher and nearer the post road
James Dyckman and DR.. Jacobus
Dyckman were early graduates Of Co.
lumbia' college 1919. Both died
young one 4 lawyer and the other a
distinguished physician-he was health
commissioner of New York, author and
scientist. 1t was lie who is said to have
obtained for Columbia College when he
was secretary Of the 0ld Philosophical
society Of this city the relics of Benja-
min Franklin which it now has, Jaco-
bus Dyckman. son Of the builder of the
house. was one Of the best known men
in New York, long time alderman and
a member Of the constitutional conven@
tion<in 1921. -1ss <.s.. - :s.-...... Ia
It was Jacobus :.Dyckman who took
am especial liking to his young grand
son, Isaac Michael Dyckmai1,% which
/. aedaultimately atosi1is coming to stay In
! thet Kingsbridgel house hold HE was
then4sa beNbefasevan. thetsecondoS son of
,JacObus 9Rytkmanis. daughter Hannah.
whN had married Squire Caleb Smith
of Yonkers. So his name was not origi5
nally Dycknan. y The Dyckman estate
was so large it. required great care In
it's npkeep. So it came about that M
Isaac Dyckman, the surviving bachelor
uncle, looked, ultimately to bis nephew
for help. At that time. it. appeared, Mr..
Isaac Dyckman had probably more real
property in his hands than, any other
single property owner Of ;, Manhattan
has had before or since. At his death
in 1868 it was found that his estate
was to be divided among his. various
nephews and nieces. His favorite
nephew. however, received the. major
part. but with the, proyiso that his
name should be changed BY the legisla-
ture from James Frederick Dyckman
Smith to Isaac Michael Dyckman.
!. The latter did not retain the house. as
part. Of his heritage: It was no longer
as he remembered 1t. and he had him
self bui1t a house in the northern part
OF the property not Tar from his I'm
cle's. In. fact. the old house had chang
ed inside and out Even the old cook.
black Hannah. who was half indian
@and lived to be a hundred years Old
had gone away-to the old Indian Gem;
ietery formerly on the corner of Broad
way and Dyckman street. Then, too.
Mr.. Dyckman found that the approach
sof great city meant heavy assess
ments and taxes. when. In order 70
have pats stri sSf his tract developed, he
should Practically make people pres
tents of Ills leaseholds: Indeed, It was
this jan Dyckman who devised for this
whole region the farsighted plan of