Merchants did not want to live in the city, they preferred to live on the outskirts, far from the busy center. Thus, in 1835, New York merchant Sibury Treadwell bought a house on 4th Street in Manhattan, not realizing that in 20 years he would live on the border with Downtown.
The house was modern, built in 1832, quite usual for rich people of that time. 5 stories, including a basement and attic. Treadwell had a family, a wife and 8 children, in addition, the couple kept 4 maids at all times.
The back entrance was used by the servants to pass through to the kitchen, to carry water, firewood, and ice. From here they went out to the courtyard, which was used mainly for household needs, such as bleaching linen. There was no garden as there is now; the family’s aesthetic needs for flowers were met in the summer by going to another house in New Jersey.
This is the only house museum in Manhattan that was left as it was under the owners, changing almost nothing.
Mostly reflecting the atmosphere of how the house looked before 1850, when renovations were made and furniture was rearranged. The founder of the museum tried so hard that furniture bought after 1850 was taken and sold. However, in the aftermath, the furniture returned, similar to the furniture that was sold. In particular, the Rococo sofa and chairs, pictured below, returned to the living room.
The drawing room was divided into two halves, with the front receiving guests and the back hosting family gatherings. There were 2 Greek style columns in the center of the room, and there was also a sliding door that opened for large parties. If there was a dance, the furniture was moved around. Sometimes it was moved out into the hallway, such as during a ball.
On the second floor are the matrimonial bedrooms. Traditionally, the bedrooms were separate. They also served as rooms for changing clothes, including for guests when necessary. Dinners could be eaten here and close relatives could be received here. In addition, bedrooms were used for bathing, childbirth, and caring for newborns. It was bad form to go outside for the first month after childbirth. It was customary to keep cribs in the women’s bedrooms for sick children. In Eliza’s bedroom stands one such baby bed.
If a person died, they said goodbye in the bedroom. On a bed in his bedroom in 1865, Seabury Treadwell passed away. He lived 85 years and died of kidney failure.
There was no water faucet or toilet until 1850. The toilet was disguised as a chest.
The basement floor had an advantage during the winter. The low ceiling on the floor helped keep the heat in and there was a kitchen there, which provided warmth. On the floor was the “family” room where meals were eaten. After dinner, the table was cleaned up and the children played. It was also a tradition in the Treadwell family to gather in this room and read aloud, read by the father.
Although Treadwell could have bought a cast iron stove when they bought the house, the family preferred to use the old “fireplace” stove. It was believed that bread was much tastier in it than in a cast iron oven.
Also, the house has a collection of personal belongings and clothing, there are children’s bedrooms on the 4th floor, and a servant lived in the attic. Interestingly, the family favored maids from Ireland, the maids changed constantly, but were always Irish.
In 1933, the last resident of the house died. Her cousin decided to turn the house into a museum. The museum opened its doors in 1936.