Between Two Brooks – The Wortendyke Barn

Frederick Wortendyke built this barn and the house across the road about 1770 at the center of his farm on the eve of the American Revolution. A “Dutchman” who raised a large family there, he passed the farm to his children and they passed it to theirs. Though none of the Wortendykes were famous, they were like thousands of other New Jersey farmers who came and went, raised families, earned a living by feeding their neighbors and others, and in a small way contributed to the strength and prosperity of the nation. The barn is a Dutch style barn like those found in the Netherlands, a type favored by Dutch farmers beginning in the Middle Ages that came to the New World with Dutch settlers in the 17th century. Its appearance and construction make it very different from barns built by colonists from countries such as England and Germany, and architectural historians call this style the “New World Dutch Barn.” Such barns were built only in areas where Dutch-American farmers settled, and this one is a rare survivor from colonial America. Sometime after it was built and before suburbs surrounded it after World War II, the barn became a landmark along Pascack Road. In 1973, when it was threatened with demolition to make way for another building, many local people opposed its loss. Bergen County purchased the barn, and craftsmen restored it in 1976. It later ceased functioning as a barn and became a storage space for cars and boats.

Park Ridge, New Jersey · United States