Henry Tunis Smith Farm

Henry Tunis Smith Farm
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Show map of New York Show map of the US
Nearest city	Nassau, New York
Coordinates	42°29′37″N 73°37′10″W / 42.49361°N 73.61944°W / 42.49361; -73.61944Coordinates: 42°29′37″N 73°37′10″W / 42.49361°N 73.61944°W / 42.49361; -73.61944
Area	162.5 acres (65.8 ha)
Built	1800
Architectural style	Federal, Adamesque
NRHP Reference #	75001222[1]
Added to NRHP	September 18, 1975

Henry Tunis Smith Farm, also known as the Middlebrook Farm, is a historic farmhouse located at Nassau in Rensselaer County, New York. The house was built in 1789 in the Federal style. It consists of a  1 ¹⁄₂-story main block, five bays wide, with a 1-story, three-bay wing. The front facade features a finely detailed frieze.^[2]

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.^[1]

The house sits on a historic property that traces back to the 17th century Dutch estate "Rensselaerswyck".

Rensselaerswyck was a Dutch estate of approximately 1,200 sq. miles comprising the present Albany, Columbia and Rensselaer counties. The Dutch Patroon Stephen Van Rensselaer devised a solution to sustain the financial viability of the land without selling it. He divided the estate into parcels and granted tenants perpetual leases at moderate rates of about one percent of the land's output. Eventually, about 900 farms of 150 acres were established. The solution greatly increased the productivity for the land and generated large economic benefit for the entire Albany area.

The current farm property includes the original parcel leased from Van Rensselaer.

References

U.S. National Register of Historic Places in New York
Topics	Contributing property Keeper of the Register Historic district History of the National Register of Historic Places National Park Service Property types
Lists by county	Albany Allegany Bronx Broome Cattaraugus Cayuga Chautauqua Chemung Chenango Clinton Columbia Cortland Delaware Dutchess Erie Essex Franklin Fulton Genesee Greene Hamilton Herkimer Jefferson Kings (Brooklyn) Lewis Livingston Madison Monroe Montgomery Nassau New York (Manhattan) Niagara Oneida Onondaga Ontario Orange Orleans Oswego Otsego Putnam Queens Rensselaer Richmond (Staten Island) Rockland Saratoga Schenectady Schoharie Schuyler Seneca St. Lawrence Steuben Suffolk Sullivan Tioga Tompkins Ulster Warren Washington Wayne Westchester Northern Southern Wyoming Yates
Lists by city	Albany Buffalo New Rochelle New York City Bronx Brooklyn Queens Staten Island Manhattan Below 14th St. 14th–59th St. 59th–110th St. Above 110th St. Minor islands Niagara Falls Peekskill Poughkeepsie Rhinebeck Rochester Syracuse Yonkers
Other lists	Bridges and tunnels National Historic Landmarks
Category:National Register of Historic Places in New York Portal:National Register of Historic Places