The Ketcham Inn
The Ketcham Inn Foundation is busy reestablishing an authentic look at 18th Century life on Long Island (New York). The Inn represents five building periods. The original building appears to have been a settlement cottage dating possibly to before the area was “officially” settled, in the 1600s. The Foundation has had an architectural drawing done of such a cottage dated to 1693.
The first addition appears to be circa 1700 doubling the buildings original size. In 1710 a separate structure was built to the front and west of the original building. In 1754 another addition was made to the east of the 1710 work and south of the original settlement cottage thus joining them together. The last addition was built around circa 1790. In the 1950’s a modern kitchen was added to the east of the 1790 section.
The inn saw a lot of activity during the last quarter of the 18th Century. Benjamin Havens was known to have run the Inn during the Revolution. He was too old for service but he did his part spying on the British Fort St. George at nearby Mastic. The whole area was known as the Manor of St. George as it was the Manorial estate of William Tangier Smith.
In 1775, Captain (later Colonel) Hulburt stayed at the Inn with his troops on their way back to Bridgehampton after finishing a campaign at Ft. Ticonderoga. Later, William Terry, and his wife Mary Carman, bought the Inn. One of his sons, Samuel and grandson Nelson, ran the farm and Inn. The Inn housed Thomas Jefferson and his friend James Madison while they visited William Floyd in nearby Mastic around 1790. The seat of the Federal Government was New York City at that time.
The next owner was Andrew Ketcham from Huntington, who bought the farm and Inn in 1852. During their time Civil War volunteers used to meet and drill at the site. The Inn was in continuous use until 1989. That year saw this historic site being prepared for sale and new uses that probably would not have required the old building. Before 1989 came to a close a small group of local citizens was granted permission from the then owner of the Havens-Terry-Ketcham Inn to clean up and check out the building. The history just related was not known at the time; no one really knew how old it was, just the stories surrounding it.
The group incorporated and took on the task of
raising the $175,000 price tag that was on the building and grounds. It
took several years of fund raising events and the help of several experts to
raise the required match for state funding. In 1993 the land was purchased
and the struggle continues to obtain additional funding to restore the old
building to its original condition. The 1955 kitchen has been remodeled to
complement the building and it has been made into an office and keeper’s
quarters. Work on the foundations and chimneys continue as funds become
available.
A post and beam barn similar to the one that was on the site was donated by the
Raynor family of Eastport, New York. It has been carefully taken apart and
restored on the site. The Foundation's mission includes bringing the site
into a living history format that can be enjoyed by school children and visitors
alike.
At the present time the Foundation is working with Cornell University in a
partnership that will enhance the visits of school children. Introducing
them to an 18th century. farm complete with animals and sharing such skills with
them as candling making and stenciling.
Special events are planned for each year; they not only share the rich history of the area but help support the work of the Foundation. Each Spring a Revolutionary War program is held at the site. Touring the Havens-Terry-Ketcham Inn can be arranged by appointment from April to October. Admission is not charged; donations, in lieu of an admission fee, are requested for their special events.
The Inn is located on the eastern end of Center Moriches, on what used to be called the Kings Highway. To seek out the Inn one needs to take Sunrise Highway and take Exit 68 off from there. That puts one on Wading River Road and from there to County Road 80. Montauk Highway is the Main Street of Center Moriches and goes right by the Inn.