Among the earliest group of Dutch settlers in western Essex County, Simon Van Ness established his homestead in 1701. The first home on the property is likely to have been a one-room log cabin, which is believed to have been replaced in 1720 with a one-room brownstone cottage consisting of a kitchen with an overhead loft. The main portion of the house was added circa 1760 and remodeled in 1840 to reflect the popular Greek Revival style of the time. The house was purchased and restored by the Township in 1981 and has sat abandoned since 2005. The mission of the newly formed Friends of the Van Ness House, Inc. is to restore and return to the community the historic Van Ness House.

The 2023 Trust grant will help fund the preparation of a Historic Structure Report.