Hawkins Homestead
Why it's listed
Overlooking a salt marsh inlet, West Meadow Creek and Long Island Sound near Stony Brook, this house began as a small one-and-one-half story saltbox built around 1660 by Zachariah Hawkins, an early settler and town trustee. His son Eleazer, a carpenter, sea captain and farmer, moved the house about a hundred yards around 1720 and enlarged it. Further additions followed around 1750, and Nehemiah Hawkins added the second floor around 1812. The shingled frame, brownstone foundations, hand-hewn beams, wide-board floors and hand-gouged mantels and chair rails survive, along with a brownstone retaining wall. Seven generations of the Hawkins family farmed the land and owned the house until 1940, when Earl Hawkins sold it. The growth from a one-room cottage to a two-story residence with wings mirrors the family's rising prosperity. As a rare seventeenth-century dwelling in Stony Brook, it is valued as a local landmark of early settlement and agriculture.
Significance in brief: The house is a rare surviving seventeenth-century dwelling in Stony Brook and a well-recognized local landmark. Its additions from 1720 to circa 1812 show the colonial practice of adding wings as a family prospered. It stayed in Hawkins family ownership for more than 270 years, until 1940, and reflects the area's early settlement and farming growth.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 88000727, listed June 9, 1988. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 165 Christian Ave., Stony Brook |
|---|---|
| County | Suffolk County |
| Listed | June 9, 1988 |
| Reference number | 88000727 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1660-1825 |
| Architect / builder | Zachariah Hawkins (original portion); later expanded by Eleazer Hawkins and Nehemiah Hawkins |
| Architectural style | Colonial vernacular saltbox house with later additions |
| Areas of significance | Agriculture, Exploration/Settlement, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Private residence being restored by its owners; occupied. |
| Acreage | 0.8 |
| Coordinates | 40.92917, -73.13806 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).
Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 88000727.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5685152
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.