This cache is hidden on the grounds of one of Sloatsburg's historic sites, the Harmony Hall-Jacob Sloat House. Listed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places, the house and grounds are owned by the Town of Ramapo and managed by the not-for-profit group Friends of Harmony Hall-Jacob Sloat House.
*** PLEASE NOTE: A FEW PARKING SPOTS ARE AVAILABLE BEHIND THE HOUSE BY THE GARAGE, OR YOU MAY PARK IN FRONT OF THE HOUSE NEAR THE HISTORIC MARKER. HOWEVER, THE CACHE IS NOT HIDDEN ON THE HOUSE ITSELF! THE HOUSE IS CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC UNLESS THERE'S AN EVENT. ***
Brief history ~
Harmony Hall was built in 1848 by Jacob Sloat, grandson of Orange militia captain Stephen Sloat, who built and ran a local tavern along Orange Turnpike (Route 17) just south of Harmony Hall. Stephen's tavern hosted many early patriots including George Washington. The stately Harmony Hall mansion, which sits prominently on a hill reflects late Greek Revival and emerging Italianate styles. Jacob was an inventor, industrialist and entrepreneur. He built a mill on the east side of today's Orange Tnpk. (Rt. 17). The mill was powered by the Sloat Dam built on the Ramapo River by his father Isaac around 1792. By 1852 the Sloat Mill produced up to 8,000 pounds of cotton twine per week which was sent by Erie Railroad to the New York market. The mill supported a thriving village economy. Famed Husdon River School artist Jasper Cropsey was a friend of Jacob Sloat and was trained in architecture. Cropsey may have offered design ideas to the house.