Until a cold February night in 2007, the Tamm Farmhouse stood abandoned in Highland Lakes State Park. Like many of the old homes that were taken by the state to create the park many years ago, this old farmhouse was once a majestic home. The view from the parlor, which was actually on the second floor, was said to have been spectacular.

An 1875 map of the Town of Wallkill from F.W. Beers’ County Atlas of Orange, New York, shows the name Rockafellow associated with the house. Michael Hughes, Farm Map of the Town of Wallkill, Orange Co. NY from 1862 indicates the Rockafellow property was 216 acres. According to federal census records, Walter Rockafellow and his wife, Elisabeth, lived on the property about 1840. The place apparently passed to their son William. The 1880 census lists William, a farmer, age 43, his wife Mary E., age 34, Lillie, daughter, age 10, L. William, son, age 8, Sarah H., daughter age 3, Wickim (brother of William), age 35, Elisabeth (mother of William), age 78, Sarah E., (sister of William), age 37, and E. L. Linsabaugh, female servant, age 45. The property became known as the old Wickham Rockefellow estate by the 1930s, when a portion of the 500-acre farm was used by a nudist colony called Camp Olympia.

More recently, the house was known to residents in the area as part of the old Tamm’s Farm. Mr. Tamm, whose name was given to the old farm and the road, apparently killed himself and Mrs. Tamm later sold the property to a couple who moved from New York City to retire. The suicide may have been the reason why some have reported rumors that the abandoned house was haunted. There were once many buildings on the opposite side of the road, including a tenet house and barns, which were taken down by the park commission when they took possession of the property. Unfortunately, late one Saturday night the abandoned home caught fire and was destroyed [read the Times Herald-Record article].

Sharon Martin Zankel, a historian and former resident of the area, remembers the house fondly. “As you might imagine, it was quite an attractive home in its good days and the yard was always beautifully kept. The home offered quite a commanding view of the area along the Scotchtown Collabar Road. This is just one example of some of the lovely historic homes lost because of the park.”