Step Back in Time with the 37th Annual Historic Holiday House Tour of Queens
Queens Historical Society & ConEdison Hosts The 37th Annual Holiday House Tour
Queens, NY 2024 — The annual Historic Holiday House Tour is back! On Sunday, December 8th, five Queens historic landmarks will open their doors to the public for the 37th Annual Holiday Historic House Tour. Hosted by the Queens Historical Society and sponsored by Con Edison, guests will be able to visit these five historic Flushing locations all in one day!
The program, which will run from 12pm until 4pm, invites guests for a full tour of the following participating sites including, The Bowne House; Friends Quaker Meeting House; Kingsland Homestead; Lewis Latimer House and the Voelker-Orth Museum Bird Sanctuary & Victorian Garden. Each house will be beautifully decorated for the holidays and also offer special holiday refreshments.
“In addition to finding out about the past, the Holly House Tour provides a look to the future through its workshops that open doors for students to explore careers in renewable energy, engineering and other sciences,” said Con Edison’s Senior Vice President Jen Hensley. “As the clean energy future takes shape, it is more important than ever to ensure that everyone has a seat at the table.”
The five historic house sites include:
The Kingsland Homestead
1) The Kingsland Homestead, (the headquarters of the Queens Historical Society located at 143-35 37th Avenue), was built by Charles Doughty, the son of a wealthy Quaker, in 1785. The post colonial-era estate, was named so after Doughty’s son-in-law, a British sea captain named Joseph King, who bought the property and expanded it in 1801. The King/Murray family lived there until the 1940s.
“The Queens Historical Society is excited to see the return of the annual Holiday House Tour now celebrating its 37th year,” said Jason D. Antos, Executive Director of the Queens Historical Society. “This much anticipated event will allow guests to tour five historic locations in downtown Flushing including Kingsland Homestead, one of the last remaining examples of a post-Revolutionary era farm house in Queens and also visit the historic Weeping Beech Tree located right behind the homestead. The tree is 177 years old and its seeds were brought to Flushing from Belgium by Samuel Bowne Parsons, Jr.”
The Voelker-Orth Museum
2) The Voelker-Orth Museum, Bird Sanctuary and Victorian Garden (149-19 38thAvenue), was built in 1891 and was the home of a German immigrant family. Its distinguished historic garden contains many of the popular plants and berry bushes of the late 19th century. They are maintained with time-honored gardening techniques, such as hand-pruning, with no pesticide use. They also produce their own honey via the museum’s on-site bee hive.
“The Voelker-Orth Museum looks forward to welcoming visitors on the Holly Tour. It’s a wonderful Flushing tradition that brings together the old, the very old, and the new! The house is dressed for the holidays with live music, sweet treats, and a garden full of holly. We rekindle the joy and warmth of the holiday season over the century the Voelker-Orth family celebrated with friends, drawing upon their German heritage,” said Deborah Silverfine, Museum Director of the Voelker-Orth Museum Bird Sanctuary. “The Holly Tour is a great way for our historic homes to share our hospitality traditions.”
The John Bowne House
3) The John Bowne House, (37-01 Bowne Street), was built by English-born religious freedom advocate John Bowne in 1661. It is the oldest standing house in Queens. Nine generations of the Bowne and Parsons family lived there until 1945, when the house became a museum. The Bowne House features a unique blend of Dutch and English construction. Last year, the John Bowne House was honored as an official Underground RailRoad site. “Bowne House visitors will enjoy a holiday themed tour of the home’s historic rooms and learn about early-American holiday traditions. Refreshments will be served,” said Elise Helmers, Executive Director of the John Bowne House.
The Lewis Latimer House Museum
4) The Lewis Latimer House Museum (31-41 137th Street) was the home of inventor Lewis Latimer who worked on many important inventions, including the development of the telephone alongside Alexander Graham Bell. Latimer helped to develop a more efficient transmitter that improved the quality of the sound, and his drawings were crucial for securing the telephone patent. Latimer also worked with Thomas Alva Edison on the development and commercialization of the incandescent light bulb. Furthermore, Latimer worked with Hiram S. Maxim, significantly improving the production of carbon filament. His invention of a method to manufacture carbon filament to make lightbulbs mass-producible was patented in 1882. In addition to helping others, Latimer designed his own inventions including an early air conditioning unit and an improved railroad car bathroom.
In total, the United States government awarded him patents for seven of his own inventions. Lewis Latimer died on December 11, 1928 at the age of 80 in Flushing and was a pioneer in the field of technology, who made important contributions such as the lightbulb and the telephone, which continue to shape modern life. Latimer is a symbol of perseverance and his contributions and advocacy for education and equal rights have had a meaningful and long-lasting impact. “The Lewis Latimer House Museum is delighted to open its doors to our community this Holiday season,” said Ran Yan, Executive Director of the Lewis Latimer House and Museum.
Visitors will have a chance to view the brand new permanent exhibition with interactives featuring the life and works of inventor and artist Lewis Latimer. The House serves not only as Latimer’s historic home, but also as a hub for imagination, creativity, and community gatherings. We’re honored to be continuing this legacy by offering tours and creative programs to residents of Flushing and beyond!”
Quaker Meeting House
5) Lastly, is the Quaker Meeting House, (137-16 Northern Boulevard), constructed in 1694 with funds from John Bowne and his family. It is the second oldest house of worship in the United States and was the first house of worship in Flushing. It is New York City’s oldest structure in continuous use for religious purposes. Visitors will be able to walk around the property, view the interior and also explore the historic cemetery.
Take a trip through the Colonial and Victorian era Queens
with the 37th Annual Holiday Historic House Tour!
Tickets for the 37th Annual Holiday Historic House Tour’s can be purchased HERE
Tickets will cost $25 per person, $20 for members and $15 for children under 12 years of age and provide admission to all five sites.
For more information, contact QHS Executive Director, Jason D. Antos, at 718.939.0647 ext. 18 or at [email protected].
Come take a trip through the Colonial and Victorian era Queens with the 37th Annual Holiday
Suggested Walking & Bus Routes for Holly Tour 2024.
The five Holly Tour locations are within 3⁄4 of a mile of each other in Flushing. Bowne & Kingsland is approximately 1⁄4 mile from downtown Flushing mass transit. Walk East on Roosevelt to Bowne Street and head a block north to 37th Ave.
The Q13 and Q28 routes start in downtown Flushing and travel along Northern Boulevard.
Each of the tour locations are within 1-2 blocks of these bus routes.
The closest stops to each of the sites:
Union & Northern for the Friends Meeting House.
Northern Boulevard walk north to Leavitt Street to Latimer House.
Northern & Bowne: Kingsland & Bowne Houses.
Northern & 149th for the Voelker-Orth Museum.
Suggested Route from West: Bowne to Kingsland to Friends to Voelker-Orth.
Suggested Route from East: Voelker-Orth to Friends to Kingsland to Bowne.
Participating historic houses include.
Bowne House- https://www.bownehouse.org/
Friends Meeting House- https://flushingfriends.org/
Kingsland Homestead- http://queenshistoricalsociety.org/
Voelker Orth Museum- http://www.vomuseum.org/
Lewis Latimer House – https://www.lewislatimerhouse.org/
Please Contact [email protected] for more information.
