Editors note: This post originally ran in 2011 and has been updated. You can read the previous post here.

Bay Ridge is an old town, settled by the Dutch as part of the larger town of New Utrecht, in the mid-1600s. The area used to be called Yellow Hook due to the color of the clay, but in 1853, after a series of horrific yellow fever epidemics, the town changed its name to Bay Ridge. The new moniker celebrates the neighborhood’s pride and joy – that incredible view of the Narrows and New York Bay.

brooklyn architecture bennett farrell feldman 119 95th street bay ridge

Nearby, the town of Fort Hamilton grew up around the fort, an important defensive battlement built on the Narrows headlands between 1815 and 1831. By the mid-1800s, Fort Hamilton was a wealthy summer suburb, with large villas built along the meandering and scenic Shore Road, which connected the two towns. In 1847, Joseph Bennett built this Greek Revival villa on a nice piece of land inherited from his grandparents on the beautiful Shore Road.

brooklyn architecture bennett farrell feldman 119 95th street bay ridge

Bennett’s grandfather was the first European to settle in the Gowanus area, and his grandmother was the daughter of New Utrecht’s largest landowner. The family was quite wealthy, and the Bennett house was one of the finest villas on the Shore Road.

It was set back from the street, surrounded by a stand of trees and a generous lawn. Joseph Bennett lived there with his wife and four children, as well as three or four Irish servants. Around him were several other members of the extended Bennett family, all on their extensive family land.

brooklyn architecture bennett farrell feldman 119 95th street bay ridge

The yellow fever epidemics that plagued the area took a heavy toll in the late 1850s, leaving many of the Shore Road villas empty. Joseph Bennett and his family moved to Staten Island, and eventually sold the house.

A number of people lived in the house, including James Farrell. Born a dirt poor lad in Ireland, Farrell rose to success as a merchant and Tammany Hall appointee. His was a colorful family and included a son, Jack, who was a promoter for Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.

brooklyn architecture bennett farrell feldman 119 95th street bay ridge

The Farrells lived in the house from 1890 until 1912. Farrell died in 1910, and the sons divided the now very valuable Shore Road property.

Clara and Herman Feldmann and their adult daughter Mina bought the house. Around 1913 they moved the house to its present location at 119 95th Street, which they had also just purchased.

The estate of a member of the extended Feldmann family still owned the house when it was landmarked in 1999. The house was empty at the time of designation, and in danger of being destroyed for development.

brooklyn architecture bennett farrell feldman 119 95th street bay ridge

Greek Revival villas and farmhouses were once a staple of American architecture and the predominant style of freestanding homes built between 1820 and the late 1840s. Here in Brooklyn, older neighborhoods such as Brooklyn Heights, Fort Greene and Cobble Hill still have Greek Revival row houses and here and there a freestanding villa.

Further out, you will also find villas scattered from Clinton Hill to Crown and Stuyvesant Heights and beyond. They are rare and, fortunately, many are now landmarked. Southern Brooklyn has very few.

brooklyn architecture bennett farrell feldman 119 95th street bay ridge

In 2000, the new owners of the house hired the architectural firm of Anita Bartholin Brandt Architects and PRESERV Building Restoration Management Inc. as the contractor. With a grant from the Historic Properties Fund from the Landmarks Conservancy, they began an extensive restoration of the once grand villa, repairing and replacing the clapboard, shutters, windows, foundation, porch and roof — a total transformation. Today, this important house is once again one of the most beautiful homes in Bay Ridge.

brooklyn architecture bennett farrell feldman 119 95th street bay ridge

[Photos by Susan De Vries]

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