Holland Land Office Museum

During the first half of the 19th Century, the Holland Land Office Company used this historic landmark building.  The Big Tree Treaty of 1797 between representatives of Declaration of Independence signer, Robert Morris and the Seneca Indians opened Western New York for settlement.  Shortly after, the Holland Land Company purchased the land from Mr. Morris.  The 3 1/2 million-acre purchase then became known as the Holland Purchase.     Settlers came to Western New York in 1800 to begin their new  lives.  The village of Batavia, settled in 1801, became the capital of this new frontier.  Batavia's founder, Joseph Ellicott, built a small log cabin to serve as a land office to sell the land directly to the settlers.  The Holland Land Office Museum, the fourth land office built in 1815, still stands as a symbol of the pioneer spirit of our forefathers.