btThe history of the Barrow Mansion begins with two families: the Barrows and the Van Vorsts. Dr. William Barrow, a Manhattan physician and his wife, Eliza Brower Barrow, purchased a lot of undeveloped land from Eliza’s brother-in-law, Cornelius Van Vorst, who owned much of what is now downtown Jersey City. The two families decided to build twin mansions on the higher ground in 1837. Van Vorst wanted to develop a fashionable suburb of Manhattan, and reserved one lot to build the beautiful Van Vorst Park, which retains its splendor to this day. 

The two Greek revival mansions shared a garden, and the families remained close even after the death of William Barrow in 1846. Eliza Brewer Barrow continued close relations with her Van Vorst nieces and nephews until her own death in 1865. 

In 1868, the Van Vorst family sold the Barrow House to the Paulmiers, a family of wealthy merchants. The Palmier’s made a number of modern changes to the mansion's interior. Like Cornelius Van Vorst, Jesse Paulmier was also engaged in real estate development, but on a smaller scale. In 1879, while Paulmier was building Hampton Court Terrace, next door to the Barrow Mansion, he died suddenly, and his widow and daughters soon moved.

The Barrow Mansion then became the home of a YMCA from 1890-1897; the organization provided housing and recreation for migrant railroad workers, adding a bowling alley and a gymnasium. St. Matthew’s Church was built on the large garden between the twin houses. In 1897, the YMCA sold the mansion to St. Matthew’s, who own it to this day. The Van Vorst house, the twin of the Barrow Mansion, was torn down in the 1920s and replaced with an apartment building.

From 1897 until the 1980s, Barrow Mansion served as a rectory and meeting space for the church. Little money was invested in the maintenance of the building, which began to fall into disrepair. In 1987, the Barrow Mansion Development Corporation. (BMDC) was established to restore the building. The BMDC now leases the Mansion from the church. It has done major renovations of the mansion, installing modern plumbing, heating, and air conditioning, as well as a wheelchair lift to make the building accessible to people with mobility issues. It also repaired many internal structural issues. The majority of funding for these restoration efforts came from the New Jersey Historic Trust and the City of the Jersey City Community Development Block Grant.

Today, the Barrow Mansion serves as a community center, meeting space, and event space. It is the home of many concerts, art shows, performances, and other artistic endeavors, as well as community meetings, neighborhood celebrations, and 12-step meetings. The Barrow Mansion can be rented for weddings, parties, meetings, and other private events.

The Barrow Mansion is listed on the National and New Jersey Register of Historic Places