The Sloat and Fassett Connection
As with restoration reveals at Harmony Hall over many years, genealogy discoveries come from unexpected places, adding exciting context...
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Welcome to Harmony Hall
Home of Inventor & Entrepreneur, Jacob Sloat
The year was 1848...and what an extraordinary year it was! That year James K. Polk became the first American president
to be photographed in office and gaslight was installed in the White House for the first time. In 1848, Wisconsin became the nation’s 30th state and the Texas territory was ceded to the United States by Mexico, ending war with our southern neighbors. Out west, gold was discovered in California at Sutter’s Mill and legendary lawman, Wyatt Earp was born. Back east, the first convention to focus on women’s rights was organized in Seneca Falls, New York just one month after New York and Chicago were joined by telegraph lines for the very first time.
In 1848 in tiny Sloatsburg, New York, the community was abuzz with news that local entrepreneur and inventor, Jacob Sloat, was moving into the new mansion that he had built on the knoll overlooking his highly-prosperous cotton twine mills along the Erie Railroad tracks and just steps away from the meandering Ramapo River. At the time, Sloat could not have imagined that the avant-garde, Greek Revival gem would someday promise to become one of the Hudson Valley’s most exciting restoration projects!
Today, the magnificent home built in the heart of New York State's historic Ramapo Pass is raising nearly the same level of excitement in the tiny village that it prompted more than 160 years ago when the Jacob Sloat family crossed the newly-painted threshold for the first time.
As unique as its original owner, the estate was added to the New York State and National Registers of Historic Places on December 22, 2006. Although it is considered to be a 'restoration in progress,' this stately home once again welcomes visitors on a limited basis, offering a wide range of arts and educational programming. When restoration work is complete, Harmony Hall is expected to serve as the cultural center of western Rockland County - welcoming visitors to a region renown for its natural beauty, magnificent parks and significant contribution to American history.
A Brief History of Harmony Hall & Jacob Sloat: Click Here
- History Blog -
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