Published: Thursday, January 27, 2011, 9:50 AM Updated: Thursday, January 27, 2011, 10:00 AM
By
James G. Ferreri/Present, Past, Future
Share
Email
The large home at 146 Bentley Street bears hallmarks of the Gothic Revival style in mid-19th-century America: A steep central gable at the front with a multitude of cornice brackets and drip mold caps above the front entrance.
On June 1, 1861, a land sale took place in Tottenville for the then-astronomical price of $20,000. The large parcel was described as farm land bordering on both sides of Amboy Road and extending through to the west side of Bentley Street.
The property was bought by Joel Smith “of the city of Perth Amboy” from a member of the well-known Staten Island family, the Biddles. In fact, it was Henry Hogg Biddle himself, owner of the fabulous Greek Revival gem at 70 Satterlee Street, the landmark Biddle House.
Biddle, a sea captain, ran a ferry service from Tottenville to Perth Amboy, which may account for his contact with and eventual sale of this portion of his large land holdings to Smith. The same day that Smith purchased the large parcel, he sold two lots to three men, the Messrs Kingsbury, Fessenden and Gilbert.
One of the lots was a waterfront property with dock at the foot of Amboy Road; the other comprised what today is known as 146 Bentley Street.
RENTAL PROPERTY
At the time of the sale, the wonderful Gothic Revival house on this lot, built by Henry Hogg Biddle as a rental property, circa 1855, was occupied by Abraham Romain, who later purchased the house and lot from Kingsbury, Fessenden and Gilbert on July 1, 1861, for $936.95.
A census from 1850 lists Romain as a “ship joiner.” The census 10 years later reveals Romain to now be married to his wife, Eliza.
ALL THE HALLMARKS
The large home at 146 Bentley Street bears all the hallmarks of the Gothic Revival style so prevalent in America in the mid-19th century: drip mold caps above the front entrance, a steep central gable at the front with a multitude of cornice brackets, and, though it no longer exists, the home most probably had a full front porch.
The Gothic Revival style actually is credited with introducing the romantic era into our domestic architecture. Interestingly, the Gothic Revival style was extremely rare in Tottenville.
Never as popular as Greek Revival or Italianate styles nationally, the Gothic Revival style was mostly popular between 1840 and 1860 for houses. It also was a popular style nationally for churches, right up through the 1940s and was most abundant in the Northeast. The style began in England in 1749 to romanticize medieval styles.
The first American Gothic house in America was designed by Alexander Jackson Davis in 1832, in Baltimore. Davis was the first American architect to promote the Gothic style in his 1837 book “Rural Residences,” the first house plan book published in the United States.
Andrew Jackson Downing, a friend of Davis’, helped popularize the style through his pattern books and public speaking tours.
A RURAL STYLE
The Gothic Revival was mostly promoted as a rural style, not thought to be adaptable to urban areas, since its buildings didn’t fit typical city lots. It was made even more popular with Downing’s 1842 book, “Cottage Residences,” which had 13 editions printed up to 1887.
At one time, the Gothic Revival style was the predominant architectural style for homes on Staten Island’s north and east shores.
By 1870, that year’s census shows Eliza Romain still living at 146 Bentley Street, but by this time, she’s living with Charles and Mary Androvette. An atlas from 1874 clearly shows the house with “C. Androvette” listed as its owner.
The house had passed to the Androvettes in Abraham Romain’s will — Mary Androvette being Eliza and Abraham’s daughter. By 1907, the house is still listed as belonging to “Chas. Androvette.”
On August 16, 1918, Ada W. De Hart bought title to the house and lot for one dollar from Gertrude De Hart, “only heir of Mary Androvette, deceased, of Tottenville.” Gertrude Androvette was the granddaughter of Abraham and Eliza Romain.
The home remained in the De Hart family until 1955, at which time it was purchased by Roger and Eleanor Hawkins for $5,000. The Hawkins’ lived at 32 Grand Street in Manhattan, and bought the house from Ada De Hart’s estate.
In 1991, Guy and Sherri Milanazzo owned 146 Bentley Street, having purchased it for $10 from Roger and Eleanor Hawkins; the house remained in that family through 1998.
This ancient survivor built by one of Tottenville’s most illustrious citizens, a home with links to some of the most familiar names from Tottenville’s past, remains an alluring presence on Bentley Street, more than 150 years after Henry Hogg Biddle erected it as an investment property.
I’d say he made an excellent investment.
Present, Past, Future appears on the last Friday of the month in Home. Marjorie Decker Johnson assists in researching the history of properties featured in the column.
Open all references in tabs: [1 – 3]