FROM the new Facebook page Old NYC Photo Dump comes this image of the Samuel Renne house, also known as the Big House and the Bretonniere house, which had been located on the south side of Queens Boulevard east of 56th Avenue. (Don’t look for it today; the site is now occupied by a nondescript string of businesses in a one-story brick building.)
According to Historical Guide to the City of New York (Frederick Stokes, publisher, 1909), in August 1776, the house served as British General William Howe‘s headquarters; British military leaders often commandeered private homes during the Revolutionary War. In the 19th century, remnants of the encampment of the 23rd Regiment/Royal Welsh Fusilliers were found in the hill behind the house, which was torn down soon after its appearance in the WPA Guide to NYC originally published in the 1930s. (In 2019, FNY did a piece on some of the more obscure citations in the book.)
The Renne house was also called the Brettoniere House after a subsequent owner. 56th Avenue, before the 1920s Queens street and house numbering, was called Brettoniere Avenue and later, Laconia Avenue (see this 1915 atlas page).
Check out the ForgottenBook, take a look at the gift shop. As always, “comment…as you see fit.” I earn a small payment when you click on any ad on the site.
2/17/26