The Timothy Knapp House
The Timothy Knapp House is said to be the oldest house in Westchester County, built in the late 1600s. It started out as a couple of rooms - a keeping room downstairs and a bedroom upstairs. Mr. Knapp farmed the land and even collected taxes and was a constable for the town. He was also a big part of Grace Church (which is now Christ's Church), even holding services there before a proper church was built.
Fast forward to 1749, and Ezekiel Halsted, a wealthy landowner, bought the house and made some serious upgrades. The Halsted family owned the place for over a century and a half, during which time they gave the house its distinctive saltbox shape and fish scale shingles. They even held religious services there after converting to Methodism in the early 1800s.
In 1906, the Ford family bought the house as a summer home for their kids. They added a studio for their daughter, Lauren, who was an artist, but other than that, they left it pretty much the same.
Today, the Knapp House is owned by the Rye Historical Society and is home to Rye's archives. It's even listed on the New York State and National Registers of Historic Places.
