Seven restored houses along New Paltz's quiet Huguenot Street offer a
glimpse into the lives of the French settlers who founded the village in the
17th century.
The sturdy homes belonged to families of Protestant
French Huguenots escaping religious persecution in Catholic France; they
purchased 40,000 acres along the banks of the Wallkill River from the Esopus
Indians in 1677. (Before coming to America, the 12 families first settled in
the Pfalz region of Germany, hence the name for their community, New Paltz.)
Some of the buildings contain traces of the earliest permanent stone
dwellings, built in the 1680s; most date from the early 18th century.
Tours of the houses reflect the changing tastes of the Huguenot families
over 300 years. Several have been restored to their early 18th-century
appearance; most impressive of these is the stone Jean Hasbrouck House
(constructed in 1721), with its steeply pitched roof, jambless fireplace,
and massive ceiling beams. Others include a 1799 Federal-style brick home
and a house greatly enlarged in the Victorian style in the 1890s. All are
furnished in the appropriate period, largely with possessions that belonged
to the original families. The community's 1717 French Church has also been
reconstructed.
The houses are maintained by the nonprofit Huguenot
Historical Society, which also owns two other restored properties nearby:
the 1738 Terwilliger House, a Dutch homestead, and the elegant Locust Lawn,
a Federal-style mansion.
Guided tours of the stone houses on
Huguenot Street in New Paltz are offered from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tues.-Sun. from
May-October. Tours leave from the DuBois Fort visitor center. For
information about tours of the historical society's other houses, call
ahead. Admission fee. 845-255-1660.