Historic Richmond Town

Historic Richmond Town was founded in 1856 and is alternatively known as the Staten Island Historical Society. The town of Richmond, located in central Staten Island, has been around since the 17th century. The historical society has preserved a number of buildings on the 100-acre site as a living history and museum complex. You can walk through the town for free, or pay to take a guided tour. We went on a recent Sunday and only saw a few people wandering about, but I imagine it's a popular school field trip destination during the weekdays.

I really didn't know what to expect from the town, but Staten Island is full of strange and wonderful things (including Snug Harbor, cemeteries and my first abandoned hospital) and I'm always excited to explore more of the oft-forgotten borough. Richmond Town is full of adorable, historical structures including homes of varying styles, a print shop, wood-working shop (complete with wood-worker), tin shop, service station and a Sanitary Luncheon dining car with the most wonderful hand-painted lettering. Unfortunately the diner was not operational, but I did suffer a minor heart attack when I peeked inside the windows and found a terrifying (even to me) mannequin staring back at me with huge, drawn-on eyes.

 We saw some cats roaming the property—including a black cat, which I have a knack for seeing in spooky places—and a few trees felled by beavers. The town feels a bit like Colonial Williamsburg, but without all of the annoying tourists and bizarre re-enactors. It's rustic and overgrown, but well-maintained, and was the perfect lazy Sunday anecdote to crowded, hectic city life. This is the farthest I've been into Staten Island (without a car), and it's definitely a trek—we took the S74 bus from the St. George ferry terminal, a journey that Google informed me could include up to 52 stops.

Historic Richmond Town even has a cemetery, a rare 18th-century private graveyard used by the Rezeau, Van Pelt and Wheatley families. The earliest grave in the cemetery dates from 1789, and the wrought iron fence was added in 1850. The winged hourglass is one of my favorite cemetery symbols, and I've seen it on tombstones and mausoleums but the detail on the fence really is extraordinary.

It was The Parsonage, however that really stole my heart—a gothic-revival style house, built in 1855 for the pastor of the Dutch Reformed Church. It was sold to the city in 1953 to become part of the town, and has alternatively served as a residence, administrative offices and even a restaurant. I can't stop thinking about its perfect color-palette, wonderful porch and bat-like gingerbread—I'd even consider moving to Staten Island if I could somehow take up residence in this definitely-haunted house of my dreams.