The Blackledge–Kearney House is located within the Palisades Interstate Park in the borough of Alpine in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. The historic stone house was built around 1750 and was documented as Cornwallis Headquarters by the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) in 1936.[3] It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on July 24, 1984, for its significance in architecture and exploration/settlement.[1][4] It was listed as part of the Early Stone Houses of Bergen County Multiple Property Submission (MPS).[5] Lord Cornwallis was believed to have used the house as a temporary headquarters during his crossing of the Hudson River (during the Battle of Fort Lee) in 1776, but modern historians dispute this claim.[6]
Blackledge–Kearney House | |
 Blackledge–Kearney House in 2009 | |
    | |
| Location | Alpine Landing, Alpine, New Jersey |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 40°56′48.6″N 73°55′8.1″W / 40.946833°N 73.918917°W |
| Built | c. 1750 |
| MPS | Stone Houses of Bergen County TR |
| NRHP reference No. | 84002537[1] |
| NJRHP No. | 431[2] |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | July 24, 1984 |
| Designated NJRHP | October 3, 1980 |
History
editThe house was built at Closter Landing in the 1760s. Maria Blackledge, the daughter of Benjamin Blackledge lived in the house with her husband Daniel Van Sciver. The house was purchased in 1817 by James and Rachel Kearney. James died in 1831 and Rachel used the house as a tavern. The house was expanded to accommodate the tavern. In 1907 the house was purchased by the Palisades Interstate Park Commission. The house was used as a police station for the park in the 1920s.[7]
The park now uses the house as a museum known as Kearney House.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "National Register Information System – (#84002537)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ^ "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places – Bergen County" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection – Historic Preservation Office. March 25, 2024. p. 1.
listed as the Blackledge–Kearney House
- ^ "Cornwallis Headquarters". Historic American Buildings Survey. 1936.
- ^ "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Blackledge–Kearney". National Park Service. With accompanying photo.
- ^ Hoglund, David J.; Githens, Herbert J. (July 1979). "Early Stone Houses of Bergen County". National Park Service.
- ^ "On His Lordship's Mysterious Ascent". Palisades Interstate Park Commission.
- ^ "Kearney House". Palisades Interstate Park Commission.
External links
edit
- Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) No. NJ-115, "Cornwallis Headquarters, Palisade Interstate Park, Alpine, Bergen County, NJ", 5 photos, 7 measured drawings, 4 data pages
- Kearney House – official site