Join us for a Behind-The-Scenes Tour
MERCHANT’S HOUSE MUSEUM
Friday, October 23, 2026
10:30 to 11:30 a.m.
35 E. 4th Street, New York, NY
$30 per person
including modest processing fee
Tickets On Sale September 1
Join us for a special private tour as we study the architectural history, decorative arts, and urgent preservation needs of this National Historic Landmark, celebrated for its original 1832 late-Federal brick exterior, fine plaster ornamentation, and Greek Revival style interiors. Guests will also experience a previously unknown, fully intact passage associated with the Underground Railroad, Manhattan’s only space from this chapter of American history that is open to the public.
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Our program begins at 10:30 a.m. as we enter the museum via Manuel Plaza, at 35 East 4th Street. Once inside, expert museum staff will guide us through four levels of the house, each fully furnished to reveal stories about the 19th-century Tredwell family and their Irish servants, young immigrant women who labored as cooks, parlor and chamber maids, and laundresses. Our tour will also showcase the recent discovery and architectural significance of an original secret passageway, dating from the house’s construction in 1832, when the hatter and abolitionist Joseph Brewster commissioned the home.
After decades as a successful hardware merchant, Seabury Tredwell (1785-1865), his wife Eliza Parker Tredwell (1797-1882), and their seven children moved into the townhouse at 29 East Fourth Street in 1835, a residential neighborhood attractive to wealthy and influential citizens since the 1820s. When the last resident and family descendant, Gertrude Ellsworth Tredwell (1840-1933), died in 1933, she left her family’s home and all their possessions. Recognizing the significance of the house and furnishings, a distant relative, George Chapman, purchased the home and established a non-profit to operate the historic house museum. In 1965, the Old Merchant’s House, as it was then called, was designated a New York City Landmark — the first in Manhattan — at the first meeting of the newly formed Landmarks Preservation Commission. The museum’s collection of fine and decorative arts and 19th-century material culture encapsulates over 100 years of continuous occupation by the same family and offers a rare glimpse into the experience of Irish immigrants laborers.
REGISTER
CAPACITY Our group is limited to 30 people, due to space restrictions within the museum and respect for the historic interiors. We expect this program to sell out, so please register sooner rather than later to secure your place.
REGISTRATION Registration via Eventbrite is preferred and prioritized above registration by phone or email. Registration will open September 1. If you are unable to complete your payment via Eventbrite, please purchase your ticket using the AFA website (click HERE). We fully expect this program to sell out, but will gladly add your name to a waitlist should a place become available.
ATTIRE & ACCESSIBILITY Please wear comfortable shoes, as the tour requires physical stamina and the ability to stand and walk for a prolonged period. Please note that the house is not wheel-chair accessible. Large bags (suitcases, backpacks, shopping bags, etc.) may not be carried inside the museum, and will be checked at admissions. Photography is encouraged!
If you have an accessibility considerations or concerns, please let us know when you register. Ultimately, AFA relies on your assessment of your own ability to participate as fully as possible.
TRANSPORTATION Transportation to the Merchant’s House Museum is on your own. The Museum is located between Lafayette Street and Bowery in historic NoHo, bordering Greenwich Village, the East Village, and SoHo.
There are a number of nearby subway stations. Guests may take the N or R trains to the 8th Street station; the 6 train to Astor Place station; or the B, D, F, M trains to Broadway/Lafayette station. Please consult the MTA Trip Planner for details and consult the museum’s website for additional directions (click here). For help with directions, please call the museum at 212-777-1089.
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Optional Extension to Join the Annual Meeting
After time at their leisure for lunch, alumni and their guests are invited to travel on their own to Brooklyn for the 2026 Annual Meeting, which starts with a walking tour of Prospect Park at 3:00 p.m. led by alumnus and preservation architect David Yum ’11.
From 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. we will gather inside the Picnic House, the headquarters of the Prospect Park Alliance, for our meeting and light reception.
To claim your place for this complimentary tour and attend the Annual Meeting and reception, please use the buttons below.
JOIN THE MEETING PREVIEW AGENDA
Images: The parlor of the Merchant’s House Museum, featuring a Greek Revival parlor suite purchased by the Tredwell family. Image courtesy The Merchant’s House Museum; photo by Denis Vlasov (top). The passage at the Merchant’s House Museum is the only intact site of the Underground Railroad in Manhattan, and the only one open to the public. Image courtesy the Merchant’s House Museum; photo by Max Touey. The iconic Prospect Park boathouse, as photographed in 2014 by Steven Severinhaus. Image courtesy Flickr.