The Knapp House: The Halsted Period

Ezekiel Halsted, a wealthy landowner originally from Long Island, purchased the property from Timothy Knapp's sons in 1746. Shortly after buying the house, he set about expanding it. The first addition contained the front hall, the parlor to the right of the hall and the bedroom above the parlor. A second addition a few years later raised the roof and added a lean-to structure on the back with a dining room and kitchen, giving the house its distinctive salt box shape. At this time, the "fish scale" rounded shingles were also added.

The Halsted family owned the house for the next 150 years until 1906, making few changes after their two additions to the house. Several descendants of Ezekiel Halsted built substantial mansions nearby on the family's land. The family owned several slaves in the 1700's. Manumission records show that the Halsteds freed two male slaves in 1810 around the time that New York abolished slavery.