Van Cortlandt Manor, is a 175-acre National Historic Landmark site, owned by the not-for-profit education organization.

The first Van Cortlandt in America, Oloff, came to New Amsterdam in 1638 as an employee of the Dutch West India Company. When the Company permitted independent businesses, he left the Company and began a career as a merchant, achieving both wealth and prominence as a merchant and politician. After the English took control of New York, he became an alderman and deputy Mayor. In 1642, he married Annette Lookermanns, the daughter of a well-to-do Dutch merchant. Their children married into other large Hudson Valley landholders' families and soon the Van Cortlandt family was connected by marriage with most of the eminent New York families of the time.  Oloff's oldest son, Stephanus, pursued careers in business and politics concurrently. He, too, married well. His wife was Gertruyd Schuyler. Among his political accomplishments, he held the position of Mayor of New York and Chief Justice of the New York Provincial Supreme Court, the latter being one of the highest honors being accorded to a colonial.

The Van Cortlandt Manor House, located at 525 South Riverside Avenue Croton-on-Hudson, NY, sits on a portion of the original Van Cortlandt Manor, which was originally an 86,000-acre tract granted by King William III to Stephanus Van Cortlandt (Dutch decent) who would become the first native-born mayor of New York City) in 1697. The massive property was acquired by direct purchase from the Kitchawank people, a Lenape tribe of the Wappinger confederacy.

Interestingly,  Stephanus did not will the estate to his eldest son but to all his children equally, causing the breakup of the massive property. Therefore, following the death of Stephanus in1700, the manor was divided among his 10 heirs. The Manor House, was later built around 1732 by Philip Van Cortlandt (1683–1746), along with 1,000 acres of surrounding lands. The house was not a permanent residence until Philip's son, Pierre Van Cortlandt, moved there in 1749. He enlarged the property to a 4,000-acre estate, and later became the  first Supervisor of the Town of Cortlandt (1788).

In the years that followed the Revolutionary War, Van Cortlandt Manor became a crucial stop on the route from New York to Albany. The Albany Post Road ran through the property, past the manor house. The mills were once again thriving and provided the community and travelers with food, supplies, and lodging. Pierre and his wife did not return until 1803, once the manor was in full working order again. The manor was passed down in the family until it was sold to a non-relative, Otis Taylor, in 1945. By this time, the property had evolved into a commercial property, including a drive-in theater. In 1953, John D. Rockefeller Jr. purchased the property and began restoring the manor to its previous prominence. It officially opened to the public as a museum in 1959. Today, the museum holds many original furnishings, which the Van Cortlandt family members preserved through generations. In 1961, Van Cortlandt Manor was registered as a National Historic Landmark. It is one of the historic sites owned and operated by Historic Hudson Valley.

Van Cortlandt Manor is home to The Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze.

Richard H. Becker, M.D.

Read More: Pierre Van Cortlandt established an apple orchard, dairy farm, carpenter and blacksmith shops, bee house, mill, and kiln, as well as a tavern. While the Van Cortlandt’s would later oppose slavery for the new nation, their estate relied on the labor of enslaved Africans. The manor house is essentially a Dutch colonial country house.  Pierre Van Cortlandt, who was a prominent political figure, was one of the most outspoken supporters of independence. Famous American Revolution heroes, including Washington, Rochambeau, and Lafayette stayed there.

The Manor was used by the Continental Army, providing food and supplies to Washington's troops. Eventually, Pierre and his family had to vacate the manor during the war when  it was ransacked by the British Army. After the war, Philip and his sister restored the house. The work of repairing and rebuilding the estate was done by slaves. It remained in the family until 1945. Most of the Van Cortlandt family are interred nearby in the Van Cort Plot at Hillside Cemetery on Oregon Road.

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