Diagonally opposite, on the northeast corner of Fiftieth street and the road, was the house of Andrew Hopper, Mrs. Horn's brother, where is now located the Winter Garden. The Hopper house was built in 1758 and demolished in 1881. Its steep,

sloping roof and rounded gables, wide stoop, fan lights and dormer windows were essentially Dutch and even in its latter days it retained a dignity which became it well. The quaint carved mantels, the great yawning fireplaces and wide arched hall kept in possession the traditions of its better days. It was a landmark which, once seen, was not easily forgotten, and its removal gave a pang to lovers of the antique. So the sites of two of the ancient Dutch homes have been reclaimed for theatres.

Churchill's restaurant occupies the position of another homestead, that of Philip Webbers, a member of the family of which Washington Irving wrote so entertainingly in his well-known and appreciated narrative of the "Golden Dreams of Wolfert Webber," whose tavern at Fresh Water Hill (Chatham Square) was conspicuous in local history.

WASHINGTON'S HEADQUARTERS HISTORY

On page 167 following we have given an account of interesting archaeological discoveries in the old colonial mansion in 160th street, east of Amsterdam avenue, New York, known as the Jumel mansion, the Morris mansion, and Washington's headquarters. Another notable event of the past year in connection with this historical building has been the publication of the first full history of the house by Mr. William Henry Shelton, curator of the building. Portions of the history of this Jumel Mansion have appeared from time to time in the Annual Reports of this Society, and a small brochure about the building has been printed by the Washington Headquarters Association, but this volume for the first time presents a full and critical review of the history of the house and satisfactorily accounts of some of its more notable occupants.

It will be recalled that the house was built in 1765 by Roger Morris, a close friend of Washington and a Colonel in the British army, and was later occupied by Washington himself as his headquarters in the Revolution, and then by Stephen Jumel, a French merchant of New York. Intertwined with the history of the

house is the story of Madame Jumel, a woman whose career recalls in its romantic interest the most famous beauties who have figured in the secret memoirs of European courts. Born in Providence, R. I., she broke away at an early age from squalid surroundings, and, dowered only with wit, ambition, and beauty, made her way to New York, where she attracted Jumel's attention, became his wife, and later persuaded him to place his entire property in her hands. After his death, she was married to Aaron Burr, then an old man of 78, but was soon separated from him, and spent the rest of her days alone, maintaining the old traditions of stately splendor, and dying at the age of 90, one of the last of the famous beauties of the Revolutionary period.

The author has gone into the minutest documents and vividly tells the story of the happenings connected with the house, including the manoeuvring of the American and British forces in the neighborhood, the episode of Nathan Hale, the romantic early life of Madame Jumel and her rise to notoriety and not forgetting the famous litigation after her death, in which her natural son endeavored to obtain possession of the house. This substantial contribution to the printed history of New York is from the press of the Houghton Mifflin Co.

HIGH BRIDGE THREATENED WITH ALTERATION

The announcement in the public press November 13-20, 1916, that it was proposed to remove one of the piers of the High Bridge which crosses the Harlem River at 174th street, New York City, caused much distress to those who have admired this picturesque land-mark and evoked several editorial remonstrances. The Trustees of this Society, at their meeting on November 27, appointed a committee to look into the matter and report back to the Board some recommendation looking to the prevention of the proposed mutilation. (See plate 40.)

High Bridge is a structure of masonry, 1450 feet long, with an extreme height of 114 feet above tide water, sustained by piers connected by fourteen half-round arches, eight of which are of 80 feet span and six of 50 feet span. It cost $900,000 and was completed in 1848. It is a link in the old Croton Aqueduct and from 1848 to 1890, when a new connection was made by siphon under the Harlem river near Washington bridge, it was the sole

means by which the Croton water supply was brought from the mainland to the Island of Manhattan. It is a fine specimen of architecture, typical of that of the old Roman aqueducts and viaducts, and has justly been admired as one of the ornaments of the city. (For further particulars concerning the bridge see

Appendix C.)

The proposal is to remove one of the central piers in order to facilitate navigation of the river, which now forms part of the ship-canal connecting the Hudson river at Spuyten Duyvil with the East river through Bronx Kills. The removal of the pier would mutilate the symmetry of the structure and greatly impair its beauty.

Mr. Carleton Greene, in the New York Times of Nov. 19, 1916, explains the situation, and the possibility of remedying it without removing the pier, as follows:

The difficulties are caused partly by the excessive velocity of the current in the openings between the bridge piers, due to the reduction of the area of the cross section of the stream by the piers and by filling up the openings, to less than that of the portions of the stream immediately above and below, and partly by the inclination of the seventy-three feet wide openings between the piers at an angle about 13 degrees with the axis of the channel. "When the bridge was built the waterway consisted of seven openings between the piers, but these have been reduced by extending the shores to four. One opening is entirely filled by a landing for coal boats projecting from the west shore. If this were removed and the channels between the piers deepened by dredging the velocity of the currents would be reduced to less than that of the portions of the stream immediately above and below the bridge.

"The other difficulties could be reduced by placing, in two of the openings, spring fenders built of piles and timber similar to those at the sides of ferry slips.

"If these fenders were placed with their sides parallel to the axis of the channel they would give passageways about fifty-five feet wide. This is ten feet wider than the locks of the Barge Canal. The ends of the fenders could be made to flare so that it would be easy for boats to enter the openings. With the velocity of the currents reduced and fenders to guide the boats and protect them from contact with the piers the passage would be neither difficult nor dangerous."

This Society hopes that some such plan as that above outlined may be adopted, and this picturesque landmark preserved intact.

HUNT AND TIFFANY HOUSES DESTROYED

On the evening of April 9, 1916, an old house on Hunt's Point, in the Borough of the Bronx, known as the old Tiffany mansion, residence of the late Charles Lewis Tiffany, was destroyed by fire. There had been two attempts by boys to burn the house, which had been unoccupied for some time, and it is believed that the fire which finally removed this ancient landmark was of incendiary origin. The house stood on the tract bought by the Bronx Terminal Company for a freight yard.

On account of the proximity of the Tiffany house to the site of the old Hunt mansion, the newspaper accounts of the burning of the former confused it with the latter. As a matter of fact, the ancient Hunt residence was demolished some years ago. Mr. Walter W. Loercher who is familiar with the landmarks of that section says that it was torn down "several years ago; and Mr. Charles H. Patrick, President of the East Bay Land and Improvement Company, informs us more definitely under date of March 22, 1917, that the old mansion remained on its original site at the foot of Hunt's Point until it fell to pieces from age and decay. Ten years ago only the old kitchen was left and as that was uninhabitable it was torn down in 1907 or 1908. There is nothing left of it to mark the place where it stood.

The old Hunt mansion was built by Thomas Hunt about the year 1688. Historians differ as to the exact date, but generally give it as 1688. That it was in existence ten years later is indicated by the fact that in 1698, Thomas Hunt, in conveying what was then known as the "Planting Neck" property to his son, mentioned his new dwelling and an orchard of three acres. The same house and orchard are mentioned in another deed in 1718.

Many stories were told about the old mansion, its curious tower, and the old stone wall forming its west side. It was said that when Thomas Hunt and his wife Elizabeth decided to build a house, taxes on lumber and building materials had been made so high by the British Government that Thomas declared he would build the house of stone. It is said that after the west wall had been completed the onerous tax on lumber was removed, and Thomas decided to build the rest of the house of wood. Its girders and rafters were hewn from solid oak, and its laths were

cut from ash. In its chimney the masons used bricks said to have been brought over as ballast by Dutch sailing vessels. The open fire place began to crumble away many years ago, and its last occupant no longer used it, or the Dutch oven, and brought in stoves.

From the living room where the old fireplace was built a narrow winding staircase ascended to the tower and was so built that defenders of the house who were shooting at Indians from that vantage point could knock off invaders one by one if an entrance to the lower part of the house was forced. When this old house became an architectural and historical relic, visitors often ascended the spiral staircase and noted how prefectly it was constructed for easy defense.

The fourth Thomas Hunt helped to organize the Committee of Safety at the time of the Revolution, and it was said that several of the meetings were held in the living room of the old mansion. He became a friend of Washington, and it was a tradition that the latter had often been entertained in the old house.

During the last years of the Revolution the British frigate Asia was anchored near the house, and at one time the fire from her guns swept the estate. The Hunts were driven from their old home. A few years ago a cannon ball was dug from the west

wall.

MURRAY HILL LANDMARK HISTORY

Early Topography

Inquiry having been made of the American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society concerning the history of the southeast corner of Fifth avenue and 42d street upon which the new Astor Trust Company building has just been erected, the Society has gathered the following information.

The site in question is upon an eminence now and for many years known as Murray Hill but formerly known as Inclenburg (variously spelled). The extreme outer bounds of this hill were originally defined by two streams which almost completely surrounded it.

One stream began near Broadway and 44th street; flowed southerly on the east side of Broadway to 34th street at a point midway