Community Corner

Piece of Local Ag History Hits Real Estate Market

The Hallock-Bilunas Farmstead, listed on the National Register of Historic Places and most recently converted into a bed-and-breakfast, is up for sale.

History buffs, get your checkbooks out: a Jamesport home on the National Register of Historic Places is up for sale.

The owners of the Hallock-Bilunas Farmstead, comprised of seven structures on two acres on Herricks Lane, are asking $779,000 for their piece of history.

According to records filed with the National Park Service, construction of the main home - which hosts five bedrooms and four bathrooms - dates back to about 1880. Located just south of the , the property belonged to the family that settled on the north side of Sound Avenue

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The Herricks Lane land belonged to Lemuel B. Hallock, and was later sold in 1940 to John Bilunas, a potato farmer.

Linda and Jim Slezak purchased the property in 1998, and after a couple years of restoration, put the large farm home to use as the Red Barn Bed and Breakfast. The two have operated the B-and-B together for the past 14 years, but simply feel it's time for something new.

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"What appealed to us about it was that it's such a historic property," Linda Slezak said. "We felt we wanted to keep it that way ... This past winter, we just felt that it's time for a change."

The property, also cited as a landmark in Riverhead Town, was added to the National Register in 2003.

According to its application, "The Hallock-Bilunas farmstead reflects the continuous settlement of the region by the Hallock family 1661 to the present ... Although the smaller structures on the property are not functionally specific to a single crop, the entire and highly intact grouping, together with the farm house, represents small-scale agricultural production in Riverhead in the late 19th and 20th centuries in Riverhead."

The Hallock-Bilunas Farmstead is one of nine  locations in Riverhead on the National Historic Register. Southold has two dozen structures on the list.


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