37-01 Browne Street Flushing, NY 11354 Built by John Bowne in
1661, this is one of New York City's oldest houses and a fine
example of Dutch-English architecture in the U.S. Owned by the
Bowne family until 1945, the house has an extensive and notable
collection of 17th and 18th century furniture, pewter,
artifacts, paintings, and Bowne family documents. The house has
additional historic significance because it was here that John
Bowne voiced his opposition to the outlawing of the Quaker sect
by New Amsterdam governor Peter Stuyvesant. Bowne's protest not
only secured freedom of religion for the colony, but also
established the precedent that more than a century later led to
the adoption of the First Amendment of the Constitution.