"This is an outdoor event, please dress accordingly."
That line is on the St. Nicholas Day page for December 6 at the Vander Ende-Onderdonk House, 1820 Flushing Avenue. Versions of it also appear on the November listings. The candle workshop "will be outdoors," and the Stockholm Street tour runs "rain or shine." In other years this was a museum with a cellar kitchen, restored rooms and an attic bedroom. This season its calendar takes place outdoors, on the grounds and on the street nearby. The museum itself is closed for exterior restoration.
The doors are closed until an estimated summer 2027
In June, QNS reported that the Greater Ridgewood Historical Society had announced an exterior restoration of the house. Work was set to begin over the summer, with completion estimated for summer 2027. The project has been building for years. The gambrel roof was finished in 2014. In 2017 the society began planning the rest of the exterior. That work covers the clapboards on the frame addition, the windows and wood trim, pointing and structural repair of the stone walls, the first-floor plank floor of the main house, and the cistern.
The museum closes to the public during construction. QNS reported that the society "will continue to offer our annual programming in our gardens and tent." NYC Tourism's listing for the house now says it is closed until summer 2027 due to construction. According to QNS, the funding comes through the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs from Queens Borough President Donovan J. Richards, Jr. and NYC Council Districts 34 and 30. The NYC Department of Design and Construction is managing construction.
So for this stretch of the year, a ticket gets you onto the grounds, and that is where the border history of the site is kept.
What the grounds hold when the house is off-limits
The society describes the building as "the oldest Dutch Colonial stone house in New York City." Its history page says Paulus Vander Ende bought the farm and began the present house in 1709. That was on a site where a smaller house was occupied by 1660. That stone is what the restoration is protecting, and from outside you can see the walls up close.
The location matters as much as the building. The same history page says the house sits on the Queens–Brooklyn border. It was central to the 1769 boundary settlement between Bushwick in Kings County and Newtown in Queens County, and the house itself served as a marker. Arbitration Rock, "the boulder that once marked the border between Brooklyn and Queens," now stands on the property, per QNS.
The grounds cover 1.5 acres. Besides the rock, they include:
- The John R. and Helen Ries Memorial Picnic Grove
- A kitchen garden
- A Peace Garden commemorating 9/11
- The restored historic cistern
The picnic grove was first dedicated in 1992 in honor of John Ries. In spring 2025 the society scheduled an April 5 dedication renaming it for both John and Helen Ries, QNS reported. The article describes Helen Ries's long involvement with the society's programs, St. Nicholas Day among them.
The house has been saved before. QNS reported that a group of community leaders formed the Greater Ridgewood Historical Society in 1975 to keep the house from being demolished, and the house suffered a fire during the fundraising years that followed. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977 and the New York State Register in 1978. It became a New York City landmark in June 1995. The National Park Service record lists the property as the "Vander Ende--Onderdonk House Site."
The late-fall calendar, all of it outdoors
| Date | Program | Time | Admission | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun., Nov. 8 | Candle Making Workshop | 11:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. | $20 per participant | Hand-dipped tapers and the history of lighting; recommended for ages 8 and up |
| Sat., Nov. 14 | Stockholm Street Walking Tour | 1:30–3:00 p.m. | $15 | Meet at the Onderdonk Avenue gate; rain or shine |
| Sun., Dec. 6 | St. Nicholas Day | 12:00–4:00 p.m. | $5 general, free under 12 | Every attendee needs a ticket; last entry 3:45 p.m. |
The candle workshop suits a house with no indoor program this year. Participants make hand-dipped taper candles "the old fashioned way" while learning about the history of lighting outside on the grounds. The other two dates take that outdoor format past the property line and into December.
Stockholm Street is one block from a different century
The Stockholm Street Walking Tour starts at the Onderdonk Avenue gate at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, November 14. The society calls the street "NYC's smallest Historic District."
The Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the district on November 28, 2000. The LPC designation report describes a single block of 36 houses, a former stable and two garages along a brick-paved street. Thirty-five of the houses went up between 1907 and 1910, designed by Louis Berger & Company and built by Joseph Weiss & Company. The commission identifies the pavement as Ridgewood's only surviving brick street.
The tour makes a natural pair with the house. The tour meets at a stone farmhouse the society dates to 1709 and spends the afternoon on a row built some two centuries later, on Ridgewood's last brick street. Tickets are $15 through the society's Eventbrite page, and the tour goes ahead in any weather.
St. Nicholas Day moves into the tent
The house's longest-running holiday tradition keeps going through the construction. In December 2020, QNS called that year's event the house's 40th St. Nicholas Day. That year it ran with timed-entry visits, carols, a reading, cider and cookies.
This year's St. Nicholas Day runs from noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday, December 6. Plans include seasonal decorations on the grounds, photos with St. Nicholas in the society's tent, goody bags with a take-home craft for children, and refreshments for sale. Enter at the Onderdonk Avenue gate. The society's page notes that St. Nicholas Day "is still widely celebrated in Europe and by many Dutch and European families here in America." That connects the event to the Dutch Colonial house behind the tent.
The ticket rules are strict. General admission is $5, and children under 12 are free. Every adult and child in your group still needs a reserved ticket. Last entry is 3:45 p.m. Tickets are on the society's Eventbrite page.
The day also includes a toy collection. The society is partnering with the 104th Police Precinct, and visitors are encouraged to bring new, unwrapped toys and gifts for children ages 1 through 18. The precinct's Community Affairs team will collect them for families at Summerfield Family Residence. The society says the program is supported by public funding from the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the NYC Council, and by its members.
Before you go
- Use the Onderdonk Avenue gate. It is the entrance for St. Nicholas Day and the meeting point for the Stockholm Street tour.
- Buy a ticket for every person. For St. Nicholas Day this includes children under 12, whose tickets are free but still required.
- Dress for the weather. The museum is closed, so there is no indoor space to warm up in.
- Bring a new, unwrapped toy on December 6 if you want to contribute to the 104th Precinct collection.
- Look at the stonework on your way in. The restoration covers pointing and structural repair of the walls you'll pass, along with the windows and trim.
The society also plans more events in its tent through 2026 and into spring 2027, and its Instagram is where it shares updates. Donations to the restoration fund can be made out to "Greater Ridgewood Historical Society, 1820 Flushing Avenue, Ridgewood, NY 11385," or given online through onderdonkhouse.org.
Historic houses, landmark blocks and the details that make one Queens street feel different from the next are what Rachel Borut pays attention to, in Forest Hills and the neighborhoods around it. If you'd like a local's view of how places like Stockholm Street fit into your plans, schedule a consultation.
