Sylvester Manor is a historic manor on Shelter Island in Suffolk County,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, USA.

History

The land, spanning 8,000 acres on Shelter Island, was acquired by English-born colonist

Nathaniel Sylvester Nathaniel Sylvester (1610–1680) was an Anglo-Dutch sugar merchant, enslaver, and the first European settler of Shelter Island (town), New York, Shelter Island. Early life Nathaniel Sylvester was born in 1610 in England.Jennifer SchuesslerConfro ...

in the 17th century. Sylvester and his brother owned two plantations in

Barbados Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...

and over 200 enslaved Africans. When he died in 1680, the estate and 23 enslaved people were inherited by his descendants. The manor on the estate was built in 1737 for Nathaniel Sylvester's grandson, Brinley Sylvester. Enslaved Africans and European indentured servants built it. The last enslaved person was freed in 1820. The grounds include a cemetery of unmarked graves for enslaved people. Later, the manor was inherited by Mary Gardiner Horsford, the wife of renowned Harvard University professor

Eben Norton Horsford Eben Norton Horsford (July 27, 1818 – January 1, 1893) was an American scientist who taught agricultural chemistry in the Lawrence Scientific School at Harvard from 1847 to 1863. Later he was known for his reformulation of baking powder, his i ...

after her mother brought it back into the family. They entertained often, one of their guests being

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include the poems " Paul Revere's Ride", '' The Song of Hiawatha'', and '' Evangeline''. He was the first American to comp ...

. After her death, he married her sister, Phoebe Dayton Gardiner, with whom he had a fifth daughter, Cornelia Horsford. In recent years, it was the home of heiress Alice Fiske. More recently, it was inherited by an 11th generation descendant, Bennett Konesni. With his uncle,

Eben Fiske Ostby Eben Fiske Ostby (born February 24, 1955) is a pioneer computer graphics software developer, animator, and technical director for motion pictures. Ostby was born in Hampton, Connecticut, United States. He graduated from Pomfret School and Vassar ...

, he co-founded the Sylvester Manor Educational Farm with the help of the Peconic Land Trust. Shelter Island Windmill 20220820 170332666

Architectural significance

The manor has been listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

since April 28, 2015.Sylvester Manor: Sylvester Manor Placed on the National Register of Historic Places
/ref>

References

Bibliography

*Mac Griswold. ''The Manor: Three Centuries at a Slave Plantation on Long Island'' (New York City: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2013). *Katherine Howlett Hayes. ''Slavery before Race Europeans, Africans, and Indians at Long Island's Sylvester Manor Plantation, 1651-1884'' (New York City: NYU Press, 2013).

External links

*
NYU Fales Library and Special Collections Guide to the Sylvester Manor Archive 1649-1996
National Register of Historic Places in Shelter Island, New York Houses completed in 1737 Underground Railroad in New York (state) {{New York-stub

History

Architectural significance

See also

References

Bibliography

External links