HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT: QUOGUE HISTORIC TREASURES

Robert Strada, Executive Director of Peconic Historic Preservation, Inc., and Zach Studenroth, architectural historian and Southampton Town Historian, will present the key highlights of their architectural investigation of two historically important Quogue houses – The Weathervane (Jessup Homestead) and Antiquity, both originally built in the early 18th century. This investigation was commissioned by the Quogue Historical Society to fully document the history of these two structures – to understand, in depth, their complex evolution over the centuries, and to raise awareness about the importance of historic preservation in Quogue and Long Island. The Weathervane, the homestead of the Jessups, one of the founding families of Quogue, is a rare surviving connection between the early settlement of “Quaquanantuck” and the Village of Quogue of today. In preparation for its renovation as a family residence, it has become apparent that the core of the building is an early 18th century structure – the original Jessup homestead – which was suspected but has now been proven. Two wings were added in the 19th century. Antiquity is one of Quogue’s oldest houses, built in 1734 by Deacon Thomas Cooper during the region’s first settlement, and its east wing is, in fact, a small 18th century house that had at some point been attached to the central core. Antiquity remains a rare example of the period, and retains a wealth of interior architectural detailing.