Irvington Historical Society

131 Main Street

Irvington, NY 10533

(914) 591-1020

https://www.instagram.com/irvingtonhistoricalsociety/

https://www.facebook.com/IrvingtonHistoricalSociety/

Open: Sunday-Wednesday Closed/Thursday 1:00pm-4:00pm/Friday Closed/Saturday 1:00pm-4:00pm

Admission: Free but donations are accepted

My review on TripAdvisor:

The Irvington Historical Society at 131 Main Street

The Society building in the Fall

The Mission Statement of the Irvington Historical Society:

(From the Society website)

The Irvington Historical Society was founded in 1972 as a direct result of renewed interest in the history of our village during the Irvington Centennial Celebration. The mission of the society is to discover, collect, organize, preserve and make accessible all variety of material which serves to illustrate and explain the history of the village and its people. Through lectures, programs, publications, and exhibits, we attempt to share that history with residents and friends. The Society is also dedicated to the preservation of the historical, architectural, and cultural heritage of the Village.

The ‘Collections’ exhibition on residents of Irvington, NY personal collections shown at the museum

The museum decorated for the holidays

The History of the Museum’s McVickar House headquarters:

(from the Society website)

The McVickar House, a Greek Revival frame house, stands on land that was originally part of the farm of William Dutcher.  In 1812, Justus Dearman, a New York City merchant, purchased the southern half of the Dutcher farm, 144 acres extending eastward from the Hudson River.  In 1849, Dearman sold his property to Gustavis Sacchi for $26,000.  Sacchi immediately resold the property to Franklin C. Field, a partner in the firm Jay and Field in New York City. Field had the property sub-divided into individual building lots establishing the village of Dearman.  On April 25, 1850, these lots were publicly auctioned at the Merchant’s Exchange in New York City. 

The museum decorated for the holidays

(From the Society website)

Building Lot #246, along with several others, was ultimately sold to the Rev. John McVickar.  McVickar was born in New York City on August 10, 1787, into a wealthy merchant family.  He was considered a brilliant student, graduating from King’s College (now Columbia) at the age of 17 in 1804. 

In 1811, he took orders in the Protestant Episcopal Church and became a dynamic leader in the Episcopal Diocese of New York for over fifty years.  He married Eliza Bard in 1809, and they had nine children, only three of whom survived McVickar’s death in 1868.

In 1817, McVickar was appointed professor of moral philosophy, rhetoric and belles-lettres at Columbia.  He was superintendent of the Society for Promoting Religion and Learning in New York, served twice as acting president of Columbia, authored several books, and served as chaplain to the United States forces at Fort Columbus, Governor’s Island from 1844 to 1862.  McVickar moved to Irvington in 1852 becoming a neighbor to his good friend Washington Irving.

Two of the lots McVickar purchased, along with several lots donated by McVickar’s cousin, John Jay, were to serve as the site of a chapel school, later to become St. Barnabas Episcopal Church.  McVickar’s son, William Augustus McVickar, was appointed Missionary to Dearman in August of 1852, and on the August 17, 1852, the cornerstone was laid for the chapel school. 

The Church of St. Barnabas was incorporated in 1858, and Reverend William A. McVickar served as the Rector of the Church until 1867.  In 1870, William A. McVickar, who had inherited Building Lot #246 after the death of his father, sold the property to John Dinkel, a local merchant.

Dinkel was a grocer who in the 1870’s had a store on the corner of Main Street and Broadway.  Dinkel sold the McVickar property in 1872 to Patrick Cannon whose daughter Mary later owned the property.  Mary married Chester R. Doremus who owned Doremus Carriage Factory located next door to the McVickar house.  In 1935, Mary sold the McVickar House property to John Fallon who in turn sold the property to Con Edison in 1957 so that they could build a small substation behind the house.  The house was rented until 1992, but after the last tenant moved out, it fell into disrepair. 

In 2002, the Village of Irvington acquired the property for the home of the Irvington Historical Society.  A major fundraising effort was undertaken by the Society to support the renovation and restoration project.  The Irvington History Center at the McVickar House opened in November 2005, and the McVickar House is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The main gallery of the Irvington Historical Society . The ‘Collections ‘ exhibition is to the front and the small permanent collection is towards the back.

The “Collections” exhibition was very interesting exhibition. Each display is unique to each of the residents who donated their collections for the exhibition. There was sets of china, artwork from the Hudson River Valley, items like duck decoys, a collection of hats, a collection of minerals and a selection of books. There was even a collection of Star Wars items. It was a nice exhibition of unique items. The exhibition will be rotating with other collections.

The collection of Hudson River art by a local resident gives a glimpse of the romantic side of the Hudson River Valley before development

A collection of English Staffordshire China

A collection of Duck Decoys

The Duck Decoys are from all eras

One resident’s Hat Collection which represents many different eras of style and change of function

One resident’s collection of Minerals and Stones

One resident’s collection of Anchor paperback covers

An extensive collection of ‘StarWars’ memorabilia

A collection of area Maps

A collection of the works of Black Women Writers

The back part of the Gallery holds the Permanent collection of artifacts on display. This is a road map of the development and the colonialization of Irvington. It has from its place as home to the Lenape Indians to the Dutch trade settlements and then the prominent residents who have lived in the area. It is a fascinating look at the community and how it is evolving.

The Permanent Collection of the Irving Historical Society

The History of the Town of Irvington, NY:

(from the Society website)

I took these pictures of the Irvington when I visited around both Halloween and Christmas. People in the downtown area love to decorate for the holidays.

The Town of Irvington, NY during the Christmas holiday season

The beautiful decorations of the residents of the Downtown in Irvington, NY

Downtown Irvington NY during Christmas

The houses decorated for the Christmas holidays

The Village of Irvington, resting on the Eastern Shore of the Hudson River twenty-two miles north of New York City, has a rich history. Originally the home of the Wecquaesgeek, an Indigenous people of the Wappinger Tribes, it later became farmland during periods of Dutch and English control. Irvington and its local residents played a critical role in the Revolutionary War as part of the Neutral Grounds between English and Colonial forces.

The beauty of Downtown Irvington, NY during the Fall

The decorations for the Halloween holidays

The arrival of the Hudson River Rail Road in 1847 led to the founding of the Village, the breakup of the traditional tenant farms, and a growing population. Because of its physical beauty and proximity to New York City, Irvington became a favored place for country estates in the latter half of the 19th Century and the beginning of the 20th Century. As those estates began to be sold off for development before World War II, Irvington evolved into the scenic, beautiful, and vibrant residential community it remains today.

Downtown Irvington, NY in the Fall looking over the Hudson River

Downtown Irvington, NY during Halloween

Halloween decorations in Downtown Irvington, NY