{"nrhp_refnum":"08000109","name":"Brewster House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Jct. of NY 25A & Runs Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"East Setauket","county":"Suffolk County","state":"NY","lat":40.94526482800006,"lon":-73.10250735199998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2008-02-28","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Exploration/Settlement","Transportation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A one-and-one-half story timber frame saltbox house at Route 25A and Runs Road in East Setauket, Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York. Its oldest section dates from about 1665, and later additions were built in five stages; the architect or builder is unknown.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is the oldest extant house in the Town of Brookhaven. Under Criterion A it reflects the seventeenth-century New England settlement of eastern Long Island and the continuous ownership of the Brewster family through seven generations, including a Revolutionary War tavern. Under Criterion C it is an early vernacular Long Island house that grew from a one-room structure through successive additions.","narrative":"Brewster House in East Setauket, Suffolk County, is believed to be the oldest surviving house in the Town of Brookhaven. Its earliest section dates to about 1665, when the Reverend Nathaniel Brewster, Setauket's first ordained minister, acquired the property. Seven generations of the Brewster family lived there until 1947. The one-and-one-half story timber frame house, with wood shingles, a stone foundation and a sloping saltbox roof, grew in five stages from two small half-houses joined by a central chimney, followed by a rear lean-to and an early nineteenth-century south extension. Joseph Brewster operated a tavern in the house during the American Revolution, and it is thought to have played a part in the local Patriot spy ring. Ward Melville bought the property in 1948, and a restoration designed by Daniel Perry was carried out in 1967/68. Today the Ward Melville Heritage Organization runs it as a museum focused on the Brewster family and colonial Setauket.","period_of_significance":"ca. 1665-1948","architect_builder":"unknown","architectural_style":"New England Colonial","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Owned and operated by a heritage organization as a historic site and museum; restored in 1967/68.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:53.455642-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/08000109.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/08000109/7f6a62f637-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/08000109/7f6a62f637-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"DanTD","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Brewster_House;_East_Setauket,_NY.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">DanTD</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Brewster_House;_East_Setauket,_NY.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75322051","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brewster_House_(East_Setauket,_New_York)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4962762"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/suffolk-county/brewster-house-08000109/"}