51 Old S Washington St

Black Rock Farm (c 1820) and Black Rock Site

This private residence is not open for interior tour.

Originally a tenant farmhouse, built circa 1820 with unusual barns, this house was part of the properties owned by General Samuel Haight. In 1812 Haight built a Federal-style mansion (see Haight/Gantley/ Van Loan House, page 21). At a later date, a carriage house, Black Rock Farm, and barns were constructed.

After the ownership had passed to Daniel W. Gantley, in 1913 Thomas Van Loan, the grandfather of the present owner, bought the property for his retirement from a thriving coffee, tea, and spice import business in New York City.

Upon Van Loan’s death in 1930, the property was divided between his sons: Eugene, who inherited the mansion and carriage house; and Schuyler, who inherited Black Rock, Black Rock Farm, and the barns. When Schuyler died in 1981 his niece, Jane Van Loan Erickson, the present owner, inherited his property.

Black Rock Site (1688)

Black Rock was a part of the Loonenburg Patent of May 25, 1667, and deeded in part to Jan Van Loon in 1688. The landmark mentioned in the Indian deed as Machawamick was called by the Dutch settlers “Vlught Hock,” or “Flying Corner”. It is now known as Black Rock; it projects into the river at the southern end of the Village of Athens. When Route 385 was straightened, the “new” – prior to I948 – road separated Black Rock from the rest of the properties owned by Schuyler Van Loan, the uncle of the present owner.

This was the site of a large Indian encampment in prehistoric times. The soil around this camp is black for 10 to 12 acres, caused by campfires burned there for a number of years. The site is believed to have been occupied first by Delaware Indians, and in later years by the Mohicans. Nearly all the relics, broken pottery, arrow heads, and other stone implements that have been found are of Mohican manufacture.

An original Indian deed shows five Indian names: Keesie Wey, Sachemoes, Papeuna, Masseha, and Mawinata – alias Schermerhorn – granting area lands.