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Historic Richmond Town, Staten Island, New York City, New York

Richmondtown, in which this building is located, is an unusual survival of an early town and county center. It represents a cross section of development, varying from the late seventeenth to the late nineteenth century. Historically and geographically the center of Staten Island, Richmondtown is about seven miles from St. George and is located in LaTourette Park.

The town is in process of restoration and reconstruction. Certain notable buildings on Staten Island, which would otherwise have been lost, have been moved to Richmondtown to insure their preservation.

Some reconstructions are planned to fill in historical gaps. Some modern buildings, in character with their surroundings, will also be added to provide necessary services. Streets within the area will be closed to vehicular traffic; peripheral highways will give access to parking fields and to the visitors' entrance.

The houses will eventually be completely furnished and shops equipped with tools to show how previous generations lived and worked. Quiet tree-lined streets, gardens and orchards will form an attractive part of the setting of the town.

The Richmondtown Restoration, which includes this building within its boundaries, is the only project of its kind in the metropolitan region. It is administered by the Staten Island Historical Society under a contract between the Society and the New York City Department of Parks.

The County Clerk's and Surrogate's Offices is a two-story brick office building located on its original site and built In a simplified Italianate style. The oldest section, built in 1848, was a one-story building. In 1858 a second story was added, in 1877 a wing and in 1917 an extension to the wing.

All these additions are in keeping with the original structure. Abandoned in 1920, when the County Clerk's and Surrogate's Offices were moved to St. George, it was renovated and turned over to the Staten Island Historical Society in 1933-35 for use as an Historical Museum.

History

The first European colonists settled in the area that is now known as Richmondtown in about 1680, the date of the first land grant. In 1695 a combined church, school and home for the lay reader and school teacher, known as the Voorlezer, was built by the congregation of the Dutch Reformed Church. In 1696 the Dutch received a lease of land in Cocclestown (Richmondtown) upon which stood the Voorlezor's house.

This hamlet was probably known as Cocclestown because of the heaps of oyster and clam shells or "coccles" left there by the departing Indians.

Many of the buildings we see in Richmondtown today were built in the early part of the eighteenth century Including a church, a county house, a jail and several houses. The Revolution had little effect on this quiet community, except for the fact that the building and church were destroyed because the Dutch were believed be sympathetic to the rebel cause.

In 1898 Staten Island became a borough of the City of New York, and the many county functions and offices which had been at Richmondtown were moved to St. George. By 1920 all the remaining offices had also been transferred.

- From the 1969 NYCLPC Landmark Designation Report

“The most important job of the county clerk is to make sure elections are honest and above board. Unfortunately, that has not always been the case here in Atlantic County. We need change and I will bring that change. This is my pledge to you: I will take politics out of the Clerk’s office. The rule of law will apply to all elections – no exceptions. Ballots will be counted as ‘one man, one vote.'"