Brooklyn · NYC landmark
James and Lucy Elwell House
70 Lefferts Place · Brooklyn, New York City
A surviving wooden villa also records the residence and worship community of Father Divine’s Peace Mission.
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NYFE Summary
Merchant James Elwell lived here while running a shipping commission business in Manhattan. His family kept the house until 1939, when followers of Father Divine bought it. They used it for residence and worship as part of the Peace Mission Movement for more than forty years.
A projecting bay, paired round-headed windows and deep roof brackets distinguish the wooden house from nearby rows of brick homes. Its front porch was enclosed around the time the Peace Mission acquired it. The villa recalls an earlier period when detached suburban houses stood in this area.
NYFE summary from the official history and visitor sources linked below.
Plan a visit
Check the operator’s current opening, admission and access information before travelling. Historic status does not guarantee public access to every interior.
Official visitor information ↗