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James Brown/Early 19th Century Life

When the James Brown House was built in 1817, the district was being transformed from swamp and sandy hills into a fancy residential neighborhood. Its first owner was James Brown, according to legend an ex-slave who fought in the Revolutionary Army.

Emanuel Leutze's "Washington Crossing the Delaware (1854) This romantic vision of the historical event was painted in Germany.  Photo courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Emanuel Leutze's "Washington Crossing the Delaware" (1854). This romantic vision of the historical event was painted in a studio in Germany. Photo courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

 

James Brown may have been similar to this soldier at Washington's knee. The real James Brown will never be known, as most records of free Afro-Americans have been lost.

A waterfront tavern in the 1800’s. Food was provided free, as long as one drank house brew as well. Then as now, a plethora of nationalities jostled ashore. The bully longshoreman with his hook harasses the Chinaman as the African mediates.

A waterfront tavern in the 1800’s. Food was provided free, as long as one drank house brew as well. Then as now, a plethora of nationalities jostled ashore. The bully longshoreman with his hook harasses the Chinaman as the African mediates.

A house bottle holds a doll's carved wooden arm

A House bottle holds a
doll’s carved wooden arm.

Whiskey jugs unearthed in the cellar.

James Brown House 
326 Spring Street  · NYC 10013  · 212-219-8026
earinnvirons@jamesbrownhouse.com

Last Modified: August 12, 2006
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