Facilities

The Lawrence House appears today much as it did in 1830, a century and a half ago when George Lawrence and his wife, former slaves freed through Quaker intervention, purchased it. While slavery had not been abolished in New York State until 1841, slaves had been freed on Long Island more than a decade before. A community of Quakers who resided near Old Mill Road purchased slaves in order to give them their freedom. 

The newly-freed men were then given land to farm in "The Brush". This, so named because of its low-growing foliage, was the small independent community of freed slaves who lived in the Wantagh area. The Lawrence House was purchased by George Lawrence in 1832 and remained in the Lawrence family until 1934. The vernacular-style farmhouse still contains the original circular brick root cellar, and many of the window panes still contain the original blown glass.