ClipArt ETC
Originally, it was an 86,000-acre (350 km²) tract granted as a Patent to Stephanus Van Cortlandt in 1697 by King William III. The manor house was built sometime before 1732 but was not any owner's principal residence until a grandson, Pierre Van Cortlandt, moved there in 1749. At that time the manor house was on a thousand-acre portion of the original tract. The house remained in Van Cortlandt family ownership until 1945. In 1953, John D. Rockefeller purchased it and began a restoration. The restored manor house was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1961.

Van Cortlandt Manor House

Originally, it was an 86,000-acre (350 km²) tract granted as a Patent to Stephanus Van Cortlandt in…