THE EASTMENT HOUSE

THE original house is located on an 80’ x 80’ lot at the corner of Franklin Avenue and Kingsland Road, and has three rooms on the first floor with a downstairs kitchen and two attic bedrooms. According to certain features and records it was built between 1790 and 1800.

There are wooden beams, hand hewn with wooden pegs, hand wrought nails, windows with only the lower part opening, and some small panes of original glass, with iridescent patches, streaks and bubbles. The bedroom windows are of casement type and the bedroom door is batten style with the original thumb latch.

The fireplace in the old kitchen downstairs has a brick baking oven. The horizontal boards form a low wainscoting-a characteristic of that period. The original crane is still in the living room fireplace.

In the yard is the well still operating with the original wheel or pulley for the water bucket.

Most of the data as to the possible origin of this house was derived from research in the Hall of Records, Newark, New Jersey. In an effort to identify the date of its construction a will dated 1815 of John Vreeland and wife, Anna, mentions what would seem to be this property in a bequest to his son Ralph for $30.00 and one acre of land.

The house has been owned and occupied since 1920 by the well known voice teacher, Mrs. Katherine R. Eastment.