The cobblestone barn, carriage house, and huge dairy barn formed the centerpiece of the 200-acre country estate of Henry von L. Meyer Sr., founder and vice president of White Laboratories, which manufactured nationally known drugs such as Feenamint and Aspergum. The working farm supported a dairy herd, and its produce was donated to charity. Meyer and his wife, Laura, were well-known philanthropists whose beneficiaries included the State Charities Aid Association, the Nyack YMCA, the Boy Scouts, the Rockland County Conservation Association, and the Suffern Free Library. As ardent supporters of the Rockland County SPCA, they also established a branch shelter for homeless animals on their farm.