A major section of the house existed in 1769 when Richard Valentine gave the house and the land to his grandson Richard Valentine. On October 6, 1778, Valentine, a patriot, sold the farm for 325 pounds to his uncle Jeremiah Robbins, a Tory. Richard was concerned that his farm would be confiscated by the British. After the war, Richard Valentine wanted his farm returned but his uncle refused. Above image circa 1900.

Then & Now: A view looking east from the now Skillman Street (circa 1910). Note the Ellen Ward water trough on the right.

Francis Skillman (1817-1898) married Sarah Ann Schenck in 1842. Eight years later, Francis inherited the Roslyn farm from his grandfather.

He was elected Justice of the Peace at the Annual Town Meeting of North Hempstead held on April 1,1851 and continued to serve for the next 24 years until 1875.

From 1861 to 1863,Skillman was also Justice of Sessions and a member of the State Assembly in 1867 to 1868. At the age of 72 he was elected to the School Board in 1889 and remained until 1890. Skillman wrote a history of his New York family in 1892 was converted to an online version by his relative William A. Skillman in 2012.

Francis Skillman died at his Roslyn home at the age of 75 on September 7, 1898. His second wife Josephine Dorothy Skillman lived there with their only child Elizabeth until her death on December 15, 1906. In 1907, Elizabeth Onderdonk Skillman married Samuel H. Andrews of Brooklyn and they made the Skillman farm their home.

With the death of Elizabeth Skillman Andrews in the 1930s, the property was sold and the Skillman House became the Old Orchard Inn, providing lodging accommodations and dining. In the above 1933 photo, the sign reads "Old Orchard Inn Open All Year".

In 1936, it became the restaurant Blue Spruce Inn. The below last photo was taken in 1978.

The property is now the Harbourview Shoppes.

For additional Skillman information, William Skillman has compiled the Skillmans of America website.