HISTORY OF DUCHESS COUNTY.
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loo, and has stood therefore more than one and three-fourths centuries. It has port holes under the eaves, it having been used as a sort of fortress in early times, as a protection against the Indians. On a stone in the rear of the house the inscription—" J. & A. K., 17OO"—supposed to be the initials of the builders and the date of erection. As before stated, the Kips were living here, and had some sort of claim to the land, before Beekman obtained his patent. The settlers first built log houses, eventually putting up more substantial dwellings, as occasion offered. The Heermance house is composed of stone, and the brick for the chimneys came from Holland. In 17O3, Beekman acquired a title to the land bordering the river from Staatsburgh to Red Hook,'` which of course included the stone house just mentioned. In this house resided Col. Henry Beekman, and afterward his son Henry, and it is still occupied by descendants of the Beekman family. It is usually spoken of in history as the "Beekman House." The first sermon preached in this town was before a congregation assembled in this stone dwelling. Another house, interesting in its history, stands in the village of Rhinebeck. We refer to the Montgomery House distinguished as having been occupied by Gen'l. Richard Montgomery and his wife from the time Of their marriage until he left home to join the expedition against QueMontgomery House bec. The young couple were living in retirement in their plain but comfortable cottage attending to the labors of their farm. The house then stood on the "King's Highway" [the post road] a short distance north of the village; it has since been removed a short distance to the eastward of its original location. As the cottage and its !surroundings were hardly suited to their tastes and feelings, is
This patent is thus defined: The territory lying at a p: hit opposite Klein Sopus [site of Sta +tsburgh], thence north to the Schuyler I'atent [now lied Hook], th'°nce east to \1'arankamfck Pond, five miles from the riv, r, thence z outh parallel to the river, and west to the place of beginning.
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Dutchess County Historical Society
