New Proposal Sparks Hope to Save North Castle’s Miller House
Renewed efforts are underway to restore and move the historic Elijah Miller House in North White Plains to a new site that could permanently secure the deteriorating structure.
Westchester and North Castle officials are exploring whether the historic 275-year-old house on Virginia Road, which also served as George Washington’s headquarters during the Battle of White Plains, can be moved to a portion of the 6.7-acre town-owned Fountain Park near the ball fields behind the North White Plains Community Center.
Last week the town board approved spending up to $850 for Fidelity Title, Ltd. to conduct a title search to determine if the park was once part of the original Miller property.
“This is very encouraging for the protection of the Miller House and to showcase it not only within the Town of North Castle but within the state, as well as an historic site,” said Ed Woodyard, president of the Friends of the Miller House/Washington’s Headquarters, which has been helping to raise funds toward the project.
The latest effort comes about two and a half years after the County Board of Legislators approved bonding $1.2 million to help restore and move the building. At the time the house was slated to be shifted to the North Castle side of Kensico Dam Plaza. County Executive Rob Astorino vetoed the funding because he felt private entities should fund the project during a time of projected county deficits.
The Board of Legislators overrode the veto; however, the estimated $700,000 to complete the refurbishment and move wasn’t raised.
Councilman John Cronin, the town board’s liaison to the municipality’s Elijah Miller House Committee, said if the site proves to be viable it would save an important piece of local history and help the town clean up an area that’s been used as a dumping ground for leaves and wood chips. Cronin expects the site would be landscaped and could prove to be an attractive destination.
He said while there are no firm cost estimates associated with a move to Fountain Park, it is anticipated that it should be significantly cheaper than going to Kensico Dam Plaza.
The house has managed to survive several severe weather events the past couple of years, including Hurricane Sandy, Cronin added. In the past two years, a blue tarp was placed over the roof to protect the structure as much as possible, he said.
All of the items that had been inside the house have been moved to storage under the county’s management, Woodyard said.
In addition to serving as Washington’s headquarters during the Battle of White Plains in 1777, Washington returned to the site later in the Revolutionary War to preside over a court martial, Woodyard said.
“This is something where we’d like to see kids and schools come here and appreciate a piece of American history and have a direction connection to this,” he said.
Woodyard said the Friends of Miller House/Washington’s Headquarters would continue to fundraise to support the operation and maintenance of the house and fund any extra expenses related to programs.
Supervisor Howard Arden said if the title search proves that the town’s park was part of the original 600-acre Miller estate then it would retain its landmark status. He said county officials were very receptive to the new proposal during a recent meeting.
“We felt it was important to find out whether the Fountain Park property was part of the original Miller farmstead,” Arden said. “We think it is but we’ll have a title search done on it.”
The county started maintaining the house in 1917 and has been solely responsible for its upkeep since 1993.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
