The wood-shingled Queen Anne style house was built in 1893 as the summer residence of Adolph Strauss. It was designed by Solomon Cohen and built by Adolph Hutera.  The Adolph Strauss family was part of the Jewish summer community at Atlantic Highlands. The house was sold in the 1960s, divided into apartments and ultimately condemned in 1981 for code violations. The Atlantic Highlands Historical Society bought the house 1981, made repairs and opened the first floor to the public in 1986 as a house museum.

The grant will help fund the preparation of a nomination to the National Register, and a preservation plan that will guide future work to repair, restore and reuse the house for heritage education.