Built by James Van Horn, owner of the first grist mill along Eighteen Mile Creek, the Van Horn Mansion was one of the first brick houses in Niagara County. The estate once consisted of a fruit farm on 344 acres. The first town meeting where the Town of Newfane was formed was held in 1824 in the Van Horn living room.

In 1900 Burt Jr., James' grandson, took ownership of the house and remodeled extensively adding on, out and up. He opened the staircase and put in the stained glass skylight which he had imported from the France Exposition when he visited there.

The house was sold in 1910 and passed through various hands. It became Green Acres Restaurant in 1949, and was purchased by the Howard Fitzgerald family in 1954.

The mansion was sold and converted into apartments in 1959, then sat vacant from 1967 to 1970, when it was vandalized and had doors and windows broken. In 1972 it was purchased and used as a residence for several years.

Noury Chemical bought the house in 1977 and it sat vacant again. In 1987, Noury donated the mansion to the Newfane Historical Society. Much of its former grandeur has been restored to the 1900 period thanks to volunteer help from the Historical Society.

Open to the public on an irregular schedule. Admission.