and lived in what is now his namesake museum. The woodframed,
two-story residence, which features Queen Anne style
architecture, remained in Latimer’s family until 1963. Under
threat of demolition in 1988, it was moved to its current location,
converted into a museum, and designated an NYC Landmark.
Today, the nonprofit’s public programs call attention to the many
contributions to the American life that Latimer and other African-
Americans and People of Color have made over the centuries.
Inside scoop: The nearby Latimer Gardens complex is named
after the inventor. These four, 10-story, city-run apartment
buildings are bordered by 34th and 35th avenues, Linden Place
and Leavitt Street.
Address: 34-41 137th St., Flushing, and www.latimernow.org.
VANDER ENDE-ONDERDONK HOUSE
Located in Ridgewood on the border of Queens and Brooklyn,
the Vander-Ende Onderdonk House is the oldest Dutch Colonial
stone house in New York City. Peter Stuyvesant granted the land
it sits on in the mid-17th century, and by 1660, Hendrick Barents
Smidt occupied a small house on the site. In 1709, Paulus Vander
Ende of Flatbush purchased the farm and began construction
of the current house. During the 1820s, Adrian Onderdonk
purchased the farm and erected a small frame addition to the
stone house immediately above the remnants of the foundation of
the 1660 building.
With federal, state and city landmark status, Onderdonk House’s
features include heavy fieldstone walls, a wooden-shingle
gambrel roof and large brick chimneys. The interior is mainly
exposed post-and-beam construction with wooden floors. There
are double Dutch doors and shuttered windows. In the cellar
stands the original fireplace and kitchen that was restored by
the Greater Ridgewood Historical Society. On display inside
the house are objects found during excavations conducted in the
1970s and 1980s as well as architectural and historical exhibits.
Inside scoop: Arbitration Rock is in the backyard. This boulder
and the Onderdonk House were the prominent markers in the
1769 settlement of the boundary dispute between Bushwick in
Kings County and Newtown in Queens County.
Address: 1820 Flushing Ave., Ridgewood, and
www.onderdonkhouse.org.
82 QUEENS IN YOUR POCKET • www.its inqueens .com
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