there), and various singing societies. Nowadays, the site, which
obtained landmark status in 1970, houses a community cultural
center offering programs such as karate, piano lessons, lectures,
workshops, historical exhibits, a summer concert series, and a
resident theater company.
Inside scoop: Poppenhusen opened the first free kindergarten in
the United States on July 1, 1870.
Address: 114-04 14th Rd., College Point, and www.
poppenhuseninstitute.org.
STEINWAY MANSION
The 27-room, granite-and-bluestone house gets its name from
Steinway & Sons owner William Steinway, who purchased
the Italianate Villa in 1870. However, it was built in 1858 by
scientific device manufacturer Benjamin Pike Jr. as part of his
440-acre estate along the Long Island Sound.
The mansion has a slate gable roof, large bay windows, a fourstory
tower topped by a balustrade, and three porches with cast
iron Corinthian columns. The inside features a one-story library,
five marble fireplaces, carved walnut balustrades, and a two-story
domed, rotunda with a stained-glass skylight.
The residence was listed on the National Register of Historic
Places in 1983, but it was purchased by undisclosed buyers in
2014. As of this printing, there was still a community movement
to purchase the property and convert it into a tourist destination,
recital hall, learning center, and museum focusing on local and
Steinway history.
Inside scoop: The mansion appears in three scenes in the 1971
film “The Pursuit of Happiness.”
Address: 18-33 41st St., Astoria, www.astorialic.org.
VANDER-ENDE ONDERDONK HOUSE
This original house was built in 1661 by Hendrick Barents Smidt,
but it was finished by Paulus Vander Ende, a Dutch farmer, in
about 1709. The smaller wooden wing was erected much later;
in the early 1800s, when the property was purchased by the
Onderdonk family.
With federal, state and city landmark status, the house’s features
include heavy fieldstone walls, a wooden-shingle gambrel roof,
and large brick chimneys. The interior is mainly exposed post
85
/www.astorialic.org
/www.poppenhuseninstitute.org
/www.poppenhuseninstitute.org
/poppenhuseninstitute.org
/www.astorialic.org
