LOWER HUDSON

Philipsburg Manor

http://www.hudsonvalley.org/historic-sites/philipsburg-manor

150 White Plains Road

Tarrytown, NY 10591

Hours: Philipsburg Manor is closed January and February. In March, it is open weekends from 10:00am to 4:00pm. From April to October, it is open every day except Tuesday from 10:00am to 5:00pm. For the months of November and December is open every day except Tuesday from 10:00am to 4:00pm.

Phone: (914) 631-3993

 

Historical Description:

Philipsburg Manor was a commercially successful property owned and operated by the Philipse family. The original land was purchased by Frederick Philipse I in 1672. The estate grew over the years, encompassing a grist mill, farm land, bake house, wharf, and workshops for blacksmiths, carpenters, and coopers. It became one of the most commercially developed properties in colonial New York. The Manor is also significant for the great number of slaves who worked there. Though most Hudson River Valley families owned around 2 or fewer slaves, the Philipse family owned between 23 and 40 at the height of the manor's production. The slaves were responsible for almost every task at the Manor, from tending the fields to working in the gristmill. Resentment at working conditions resulted in two slave disturbances, in 1712 and 1741. A committed Loyalist during the Revolution, Fredrick Philipse III lost his manor after signing the Declaration of Dependence in 1776 and being arrested by General Washington. He eventually fled to England where he died a poor, broken man, showing how political views cost him and his fellow Loyalists their possessions and positions in society as well.

 

The Site:

The Philipsburg Manor is a late seventeenth, early eighteenth century milling, farming, and trading complex owned by an Anglo-Dutch family of merchants. The site includes a stone manor house filled with period furnishings and a working water-powered gristmill and millpond. The grounds are also home to historic breeds of cattle, sheep, and chicken as well as an eighteenth century barn and slave garden. The site also includes a visitor center, a gallery with changing exhibits, a cafe, and a museum shop.

 

Directions:

From North/South Routes In Westchester County Or Lower Connecticut: Take Cross Westchester Expressway (I-287) West or NYS Thruway (I-87) North to Thruway Exit 9, last exit before Tappan Zee Bridge, Route 9, Tarrytown. At light turn left onto Route 119 West. Go one block to traffic light; turn right onto Route 9 North. Continue approximately 2 miles to Philipsburg Manor on left. From Northern Westchester County: Take Route 9 South into Sleepy Hollow. The entrance to Philipsburg Manor is on the right at the second traffic light. From Upstate New York Or New Jersey: Take NYS Thruway (I-87) South ; cross the Tappan Zee bridge and exit after the toll at Exit 9N Route 9 (Tarrytown). At the light at the end of the exit ramp, turn right onto Route 9 North. Continue approximately 2 miles to Philipsburg Manor on left.

 

Research Patron: Atwood Collins