The 19th century home that formerly occupied this plot of land was owned by a succession of prominent Staten Island citizens. It was supposedly owed, at one point, by William T. Davis, a naturalist, entomologist, and historian, who, along with fellow writers and scientists, established the Natural Science Association of Staten Island in 1881. That institution is the direct predecessor of the current Staten Island Museum. Though largely self-taught Davis wrote books on the natural history and people of Staten Island and was an internationally respected expert on cicadas.