The Lefferts HomesteadAriel Newland, Dunja Pantic, Hee Jung

The Lefferts Homestead is a historic house located in Prospect Park in the Prospect Lefferts Gardens neighborhood of Brooklyn. Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, who also designed Central Park, designed the park.

Currently, the house is open to the public as a museum through the Historic House Trust. It receives over 22,000 diverse visitors every year, including 3,000 children from school groups. The house is open to the public from Thursday to Sunday. It is also host to many special events, such as Flax and Fleece, where the public learns about how the Dutch used these materials in their daily lives.

The Lefferts HomesteadThe Lefferts came from Holland in 1660 and settled in Flatbush. The original house was burned by British troops during the American Revolution. House was rebuilt in 1783 and used by the Lefferts until 1918, when it was moved to its current location in the park. The house was occupied by five generations of the Lefferts family as well as their slaves and servants.

The Lefferts were a reasonably wealthy Dutch farming family. The family owned one of the largest farms in the area. Family members were leading citizens in Flatbush, active both in the church and the government.

King’s County was the first colony outside of Manhattan along the Native American trail. Flatbush developed as the trail was widened. It was a prominent farming area at the time. It was occupied by tribes of the Algonquin, who used the land for fishing and farming, leaving little impact on the landscape. For them, there were no owners of land, it was there to use and protect. When the Dutch arrived, they claimed pieces of land and pushed the Native Americans down to smaller segments, eventually causing them to leave the area all together.

The Dutch grew a variety of crops such as vegetables, wheat and hay. In the 1820s, major changes came to the agriculture of Flatbush. These changes included the opening of the Erie Canal, which allowed for major transport of grains from the Midwest, and the emancipation of slaves in New York in 1827. The Dutch began growing more vegetables to sell to the markets of Brooklyn and Manhattan. This market gave back to the farmers by providing manure to make the soil rich for growing plants. The Dutch also began to rent their land to Irish tenant farmers since they no longer had free labor from the slaves. In the late 1800s, John Lefferts and John A. Lott invested in wells, improved roads, gas, telegraph, and improved municipal services for the development of Flatbush. John Lefferts divided his land into hundreds of lots to create Lefferts Manor, a residential community restricted to middleclass whites. The establishment of Prospect Park also made this area very attractive to homeowners.

Educational ProgramsSchool Program 13 April 2007

We visited a school program and found many strengths and drew inspiration from the experience. The enthusiasm of the children and their knowledge of history was very impressive. The children were split into three groups and went to stations throughout the house. The first was upstairs, in Femmetje Lefferts’ room, where the children identified ways she would have kept warm and activities she would have done in the room. The next was in the front parlor, where the children identified and posed as the groups of people who once occupied Flatbush and dressed in copies of clothing from the time. The last was in the double parlor, where the children played with hands on objects and then selected one that they liked for the museum educator to discuss how it was used. Afterwards, they went to lunch in the wigwam next to the house.

Special EventsFlax and Fleece Day 29 April 2007

Fleece and Flax is one of the special events hosted by the house every year. Activities include plowing the ground, planting flax seeds, washing and carding wool, weaving, and observing a spinner dressed in period appropriate costume make balls of yarn from flax. This is a crucial event for the house as it engages the public in how the Dutch experienced daily life in Flatbush.

Strengths

- Educational element of the park

- The location

- Family friendly environment

- One of the well-documented historic houses

- Hands-on learning

- Enriches the history of Brooklyn

- Diversity of audience

Weaknesses- Unknown to the public (lack of PR)

- Needs more design aspects (more visible signage)

- Needs more visual recreation of history

- Needs more hands-on elements

In observing the strengths and weaknesses of the house, we found a problem we wanted to address in that people do not know about the house and it does not have a large presence in the activities at the park. Some of the proposals we came up with initially include:

• White linen sheets installation• Egg shells• Potato canon• Outdoor panel exhibition• Outdoor life-size game • Cell phone tagging• 80s board games outdoors

Initial Proposals

We looked at precedents for outdoor play spaces to inspire our design process including these samples of landscape architecture design by C.F. Shuler, Inc. These included a series of overlooks, play spaces, outdoor classrooms and interpretive facilities at a water recharge park and an outdoor learning garden for a nearby school.

Design Precedents

Goals

We wanted to incorporate physicality and educational history into a playful solution. We have proposed an educational play space. It is composed of a series of rolodexes of themed questions throughout the garden that create a journey adventure through the history of the area.

Our project sets out to achieve the following goals: - attract more people to the house- provides play and activity even when house is closed- provides historical information that may not be learned in a normal visit - make house more approachable to children- provides activity for children from general public- can be played by one person - does not require supervision from staff at the house

The rolodexes are made from brass, a material that was used by the Dutch. It is important that materials and aesthetics of the time are used in making objects for the house. The brass cards would be etched with the questions, with a color fill placed in the etched areas.

Each rolodex is composed of a series of historical themed questions. The cards are 38 inches from the ground, providing for ease of use by children as they are in their reach height. Each rolodex has a theme color.

LeffertsHistoric House

Slavery in flatbush

Dutch and Native American relations

Religion in Flatbush

Education in Flatbush

Fun, holidays and celebration

Tenant farming

Lefferts Homestead

History of Brooklyn

History of Flatbush Avenue (plank road)

The Dutch

Agriculture The Canarsee

Each rolodex has a theme involving history of Brooklyn. They are dispersed throughout the garden, with an effort to place them near areas they relate to. A player of the activity could start at any rolodex. By getting the answers to questions correct, he or she would then move between the rolodexes, creating the journey adventure through the history of the area. If he or she gets the answer wrong, they must remain at the rolodex until they get a correct answer. We have created sample cards for three of the rolodexes.

The Dutch

European merchants used “fashion dolls” to advertise their dresses to European women

in America. Describe your own dress.

Canarsee Agriculture

Great job!Go to: the Religion in Flatbush station

The Dutch learned much about the land of Long Island from the Canarsee. What native

Long Island plants did the Dutch utilize?

lettuce potatoes corn

squash apples seagrass

cornsquash seagrass

If you were right: go to the Canarsee stationIf you were wrong: stay here

In the 1620s and 30s the Dutch, along with other Europeans, settled the areas inhabited by the Canarsee, they had little understanding of the way of life of the Native Americans, nevertheless they learned a variety of skills from the population. Can you guess what

some of these skills were?

The gird and burn means of clearing the land

Using local plants for herbal remedies

If you were right: go to the Dutch and Native American Relations stationIf you were wrong: stay here

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fashion doll

The Dutch Canarsee Agriculture

Unlike how today’s children get toys from toy stores, children of Dutch settlers made their toys. Can you tell how to play it? Pretend

playing cup the ball.

Great job! Go to: the History of Brooklyn station.

The Dutch grew many types of fruits and vegetables. Match the plants with how they

grow.

lettuce potatoes corn

squashapples asparagus

tree

vine

above ground

below ground

lettuce

potatoes

corn

squash

apples

asparagus

tree

vine

above ground

below ground

If you were right: go to the Religion stationIf you were wrong: stay here

The Native Americans have lived by agriculture since 2000 BC. Maize was the most common grain, they also ate several varieties of beans and squash, potatoes, peanuts, chili peppers, cacao, and avocados. Which of the following foods were not eaten

by the Native Americans?

squash

hamburger

avocados

chili pepper

chocolate

pizza

If you were right: go to the Fun, Holidays and Celebration stationIf you were wrong: stay here

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cup the ball

The Dutch Canarsee Agriculture

Femmetje Lefferts (1753 – 1847) was a remarkable woman at the time. She ran the house and farm after her husband died. What would she have had in her

possession at the time?

If you were right: go to the Dutch and Native American Relations stationIf you were wrong: stay here

Who worked on a typical Dutch farm in Flatbush in the 1700s to early 1800s?

After slaves were freed in 1827?

slave men

slave women Dutch women Irish womenDutch children

slave childrenDutch men Irish men

If you were right: go to the Slavery stationIf you were wrong: stay here

1700s to early 1800s1700s to early 1800s

slave men

slave women Dutch women

Dutch childrenslave children

Dutch men

After 1827After 1827

Dutch women Irish women

Dutch children

Dutch men Irish men

The Native Americans did not have money as we do today, they had something called the “Wampum”, what do you think this was?

donuts marbles seashells

If you were right: go to the History of Brooklyn stationIf you were wrong: stay here

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bed warmer

fanwater basin

bed warmer fan

water basin

cell phone

The Dutch Canarsee Agriculture

Pieter Janse Hagewout Lefferts (1645 – 1704), the first of the Lefferts to settle in Flatbush, took the ship de Bronte Koe (the Spotted Cow) from the Netherlands and landed in New Amsterdam, now known as Manhattan. What kind of ship did he take?

If you were right: go to the Lefferts Homestead stationIf you were wrong: stay here

The Dutch had to milk their cows twice per day, once in the morning and once in the

evening. Pretend to milk a cow.

1. Pick opposite teats. 2. Push up and then squeeze gently. 3. Squirt milk from one side and then the other.

Great job! Go to the Lefferts Homestead station

The men and women in the various Native American tribes had different tasks to do, which of the following activities were carried

out by women and which by men?cooking

making potsfishing

raising childrenherding and shearing sheep

fetching waterfarming

spinning woolhunting

processing animal hidesprotecting the house

women: cooking, making pots, raising children, herding and shearing sheep, fetching water, spinning wool, processing animal hidesmen: fishing, hunting, farming, protecting the house

If you were right: go to the Tenant Farming stationIf you were wrong: stay here

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The Dutch Canarsee Agriculture

The Dutch settlement in Flatbush in the 1600s affected names of the area. Can you

recognize the following Dutch words?

Breukelen

Vladbos

Breukelen

Vladbos

Brooklyn was named after the Dutch town of Breukelen.

Flatbush came from the word Vladbos, which means wooden land.

If you were right: go to the Tenant Farming stationIf you were wrong: stay here

What helped the Dutch grow plants in Flatbush?

tractor

horse manure

flat land

rocky land

horse manure flat land

If you were right: go to the Flatbush Avenue stationIf you were wrong: stay here

When the Europeans came, the population of the Canarsee had decreased by 75% of 4000

people, why do you think this happened?

- The Europeans brought diseases from Europe, such as smallpox and diptheria

- The Dutch took over the land because they were more powerful.

-The Native Americans wanted to go to Europe.

- The Europeans brought diseases from Europe, such as smallpox and diptheria

- The Dutch took over the land because they were more powerful.

If you were right: go to the Education in Flatbush stationIf you were wrong: stay here

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Bibliography

Holliday, Billy. Personal Interview. 6 April. 2007.

Jablonski Berkowitz Conservation, Inc. Lefferts Homestead Historic Structure Report. Ed. Christopher S. Clarke, Ph.D. New York: Random, 2002.

Mendes, Isak. Personal Interview. 13 April. 2007.

NYC architecture. http://www.nyc-architecture.com/BKN/BKN006.htm

http://www.bklyn-genealogy-info.com/People/sud.html

http://www.richmondhillhistory.org/Lefferts.html

http://www.richmondhillhistory.org/man.html

http://www.historichousetrust.org/item.php?i_id=19

http://digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/

http://www.ostrom.us/Architectural-Graphics/Brass_Signs.htm