A day after Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a state of emergency over the coronavirus spread, the Queens Historical Society announced it is closing The Kingsland Homestead House Museum in Flushing to the public for the month of March.
The society will also postpone all of its March public events in order to keep its audiences, volunteers, and staff safe.
This includes the postponement of the National Geographic film “Cave” screening scheduled for Saturday, March 14 and the March 29 Walking Tour of Astoria with Adrienne Onofri. In a letter to the friends of the Queens Historical Society, executive director Branka Duknic wrote of her concerns for the safety and general health of employees and volunteers.
“We’re closely monitoring the official guidance from New YorkCity health authorities and local government officials, in order to support the health and well-being of our communities,” Duknic wrote. “Stay safe and stay healthy.”
Built between 1774 and 1785, the Kingsland Homestead, located at 143-35 37th Ave., is one of the earliest surviving examples of residential-style construction common throughout Long Island, specifically Queens, in the late 18th and 19th centuries.
In 1971, the Kingsland Preservation Committee merged with the Queens Historical Society and by 1973, after extensive restoration work, the house was opened to the public as a museum owned and operated by the historical society.
For more than three decades Kingsland Homestead has served as the headquarters of the Queens Historical Society. Its rooms are used for exhibitions, a meeting place, and as an archive and library. As a historic house in a city park, it is a member of the Historic House Trust of New York City.
