Van Cortlandt Manor

There, you'll experience the domestic life of a patriot family living in the years just after the American Revolution - the New Nation period.

Enter the manor house and see an extraordinary collection of furnishings from the colonial and federal periods in their original setting. Downstairs hear about one of the largest and best-equipped colonial kitchens in America and see samples of 18th-century medicines and foodways.

At the Ferry House, built before 1750, find a rural tavern that offered food, drink, and lodging to travelers along the Albany Post Road. Pause if you wish to see an extensive collection of Hudson Valley vernacular furnishings.

As you walk through the gardens, you'll find a a sampling of medicinal, ornamental and culinary plants.

The Van Cortlandts were one of New York's most prominent families, who faced and influenced pressing political issues of the time, including Federalist and Anti-Federalist debates over the drafting of the constitution. The family also grappled with religious change following the rise of evangelical religions and had to confront the controversy over emancipation, since they were slaveholders. Your tour addresses these issues and everyday life and social activities of the period.