<body><div>A Hillsdale home built by a pre-Revolution British militia captain with Tory ties has taken center stage in North Jersey's home listings.The John Banta House at 2 Wierimus Lane is an expanded and renovated Dutch Colonial first built in 1796 by Capt. John (Jan) H. Banta. Listed for nearly $1.2 million by Genna Battaglino of Keller Williams Valley Realty, the five-bedroom, four-bathroom home sits on three-quarters of an acre at the intersection with Pascack Road."The current owners have kept the charm," said Maggie Diaz, who is co-listing the home. "They've done some renovations and modernized it, but is has kept the character throughout."<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=14YWzg_0w8lj3hc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=14YWzg_0w8lj3hc00" width="960" height="647" ><figcaption>The Capt. John (Jan) H. Banta House in Hillsdale was built in 1796 by a former member of the British militia who was arrested in 1777 due to his ties to the empire.</figcaption></figure>Banta was born in 1723 in the Bergenfield-Dumont area then called Schraalenburgh and arrived to his new homestead in the Pashack or Pascack Valley in 1755, amid the French and Indian War. Banta, who eventually amassed a 395-acre farm in Hillside, was a captain in the Bergen Militia. Tangentially, he was part of the British colonial forces who were fighting to expand their influence, particularly in the disputed Ohio River Valley. The British, led by Lt. Col. George Washington, initially failed to expel the French. That led to a full-scale war.The war ended with the Treaty of Paris in 1763, which gave Britain control of French lands east of the Mississippi and Spanish Florida. However, the war's immense cost led Britain to impose taxes on its American colonies. Those taxes fueled resentment and set the stage for the American Revolution.Amid the American Revolution, another John Banta moved with many others in the extensive Banta family of Bergen County to Kentucky. Another John Banta, a farmer from Closter, had his home burned by 100 raiding British soldiers in May 1779. according to James M. Van Valen's "History of Bergen County." Hillsdale's Banta, however, remained in the area and was seen as a Royalist, for better or worse.<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1mawvH_0w8lj3hc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1mawvH_0w8lj3hc00" width="960" height="647" ><figcaption>The Capt. John (Jan) H. Banta House in Hillsdale was built in 1796 by a former member of the British militia who was arrested in 1777 due to his ties to the empire.</figcaption></figure>On July 14, 1777, Banta was one of four dozen men arrested by a small force of American troops that marched north from Secaucus. His crime was alleged loyalty to the British cause. Three days earlier, the New Jersey Council of Safety called for the arrests based on a series of complaints, council records show.Many of the names were prominent ones: Arent P. Schuyler, John Demarest and John Zabriskie, to name a few. There were also other Bantas: Cornelius of Sluckup (Paramus), Cornelius of Winkelman (Bogota), and Derick, also from Winkelman, according to Adrian Coulter Leiby's book "The Revolutionary War in the Hackensack Valley." Some were jailed in Morristown. Banta was let out on bail and, according to a family history compiled by David Conover, later agreed to take the necessary oaths and post a 300-pound bond.<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2qYo8n_0w8lj3hc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2qYo8n_0w8lj3hc00" width="960" height="647" ><figcaption>The Capt. John (Jan) H. Banta House in Hillsdale was built in 1796 by a former member of the British militia who was arrested in 1777 due to his ties to the empire.</figcaption></figure>His Hillsdale home, built a decade prior to his 1806 death, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the thematic architectural nomination that added dozens of stone houses in Bergen County to the register in 1983. In typical Bergen County stone home fashion, the sandstone on the front of the home is squared but rough hewn. Broken stone and rubble was used to build up the rear.The home remained in the Banta family until 1861 when it was sold to farmer John L. Mabie. By 1910, Mary and Charles Warren from the Woodcliff Lake Realty Company took ownership, adding a kitchen and family room to the home by 1915.Despite the updates, much of the original character has been preserved.The home still features a gambrel roof, Dutch doors, original claw foot tubs and a stone wall in the kitchen that once formed part of the exterior.<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=28sLPF_0w8lj3hc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=28sLPF_0w8lj3hc00" width="960" height="647" ><figcaption>The Capt. John (Jan) H. Banta House in Hillsdale was built in 1796 by a former member of the British militia who was arrested in 1777 due to his ties to the empire.</figcaption></figure>The old barn, now a two-car garage, retains the original animal stalls. They have been repurposed as storage closets. Inside, the dining room’s fireplace has a wrought iron arm used for hanging kettles. There are nonetheless modern amenities, including central air conditioning and dual wall ovens. A unique detail in the powder room showcases the original wood, straw and mud construction of the house, visible through a plexiglass-covered cutout in the floor.This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: British militia captain built North Jersey home listed for $1.2M</div></body>

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A pre-Revolution British militia captain built this North Jersey home listed for $1.2M

A Hillsdale home built by a pre-Revolution British militia captain with Tory ties has taken center stage in North Jersey's home listings. The John Banta House at 2 Wierimus Lane is an expanded and renovated Dutch Colonial first built in 1796 by Capt. John (Jan) H. Banta. Listed for nearly $1.2 million by Genna Battaglino of Keller Williams Valley Realty, the five-bedroom, four-bathroom home sits on three-quarters of an acre at the intersection with Pascack Road.