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For many of us, stay-cations are this year’s vacations. With that in mind, we’re beginning a feature this summer exploring the house museums of New York City and State. You may not be exploring the castles and cottages of the Continent this summer (like Mr. B, who will be telecommuting from Berlin), but New York has some fascinating house museums right here, within easy reach of public transportation, or a day trip by car. Check them out, and explore the fascinating historic houses in our own backyard.

Name: The Alice Austen House
Location: Staten Island
Address: 2 Hylan Boulevard.
Hours: Thursday thru Sunday, 12-5, grounds open until dusk.
Admission: Suggested donation: $2.00
Website: aliceausten.org
Directions: Public transportation and driving directions on website.

Details: Alice Austen was a Victorian photographer, important for both her work, and her place in history. She lived in this 1690 cottage, called Clear Comfort, from her childhood in the 1860’s, until 1945. The early Dutch cottage was purchased by Alice’s grandfather in 1844, and was restored and transformed into a picturesque Carpenter Gothic cottage, high on a hill with a spectacular view of the harbor and Brooklyn. The house was originally to be a summer home for the Austens, but became the family home after Alice’s father abandoned his wife and family. Mother and daughter lived there with relatives, including an uncle Oswald, a seaman and world traveler who introduced a young Alice to photography. During her lifetime, Alice produced hundreds of images of a high quality, their range and level of expression forming a beautiful visual window on 19th century America, making her one of the very few Victorian women to achieve artistic recognition for her work.

The Alice Austen House museum allows the tour goer to see how life was lived by the Austen’s throughout the 100 years the house was in the family. Although it was originally a colonial-era Dutch cottage, it was added to, and modernized, again and again by Alice’s grandfather, John Haggerty Austen, and features over 10 rooms, containing original and period furniture, and Austen family photographs and memorabilia. The grounds are meticulously maintained, with landscaped gardens, and the view is spectacular. Alice Austen House is not well known, but is a wonderful escape to Victorian life in New York without leaving the city.


What's Your Take? Leave a Comment

  1. Cobble, I used to do a lot of costuming, way back when, and I’ve studied period clothing, although not as much as Bxgrl has. I think wearing the frigging corset and the skin tight bodices would be more uncomfortable and constricting than the skirts. There was a lot of fabric draped on the back, but it was usually draped over a lightweight flexible framework. Think “Gone with the Wind”/Civil War era hoopskirt frames, cut in half, all in the back, instead of all around. They always sat half off a chair when seated, and were probably never comfortable. But then, this was also upper class wear, and they weren’t expected to do too much in this other than gracefully meander around and look good.