GREAT AMERICAN MANSIONS...and their stories
- Over 100,000 copies sold
- The first full-scale source to great American homes ever published
Hastings House has been publishing Great American Mansions since 1963. Thousands of people have since been fascinated with this lavishly illustrated book of how and why some of America's greatest mansions happened to be built, and who has lived in them. Its pages are filled with stories of dramatic, amusing and tragic events that have taken place within the walls of the most elegant of American homes — from Biltmore in North Carolina, to Turnblad's Chateau in Minnesota, to Florida's famed Vizcaya. In them are presented the domestic aspirations and the architectural ideals of such diverse personalities as Frank Lloyd Wright, William Randolph Hearst, Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Lees, the Vanderbilts, and many more.
_________________________________
FOREWORD
The late Merrill Folsom once wrote of the "special mansion in the heart of every man" — the privilege to build imaginatively for oneself as the completion of the American dream. With the advance of the new millennium this special dream is still cherished by most Americans; and for many — both men and women alike — it is becoming a reality. A booming economy and growing computer age are largely responsible; it is now even possible to search for homes and obtain a mortgage online. As newspapers indicate, today's creative householders may also purchase thousands of dollars worth of valuable furnishings with the click of a mouse. These new trends mark a major contrast to former years, when the nation's elite made frequent trips abroad to buy furniture, doors, ceiling, artwork, collectibles and, on rare occasions, the entire home itself. Yet despite the changes that are rapidly occurring in America's style of living, the mansions and plantations of yesterday remain an integral part of our diverse cultural heritage and an everlasting reminder that the best things in the world often begin with years of planning.
The builders of yesterday were of all types and backgrounds. Some were educated and genteel, some were illiterate and uncouth, many were self-made and more than a few were women. A goal that many shared was a desire to impress friends and business rivals with elegance and size, and of course the finest architect money could buy. For the most ambitious, the intention was to leave a legacy for future generations. Marjorie Post spent a lifetime turning her home into a public repository of Russian art, while collector of Americana, Electra Havemeyer Webb. recreated an entire village. Transportation magnate Henry E. Huntington, owner of the largest private library in America, summed up a common attitude when he stated: "The ownership of a fine home, a fine collection and a fine library is the swiftest and surest way to immortality." Today, over 2,000 scholars per year use the Huntington Library's research material — testimony to the late travel magnate's statement.
Not to be forgotten are the architects who brought to fruition the magnificent and original designs of these homes, using the singular opportunities provided them by America's elite to create legends of their own. Richard Morris Hunt (1828-95), considered the nation's most respected architect of the Gilded Age, designed and executed some of the most fabulous mansions in this volume, including the Breakers, Marble House and George Vanderbilt's Biltmore. Most persons of wealth considered a home designed by him to be a badge of social position. Hunt's predecessors were equally creative, particularly Benjamin Latrobe (1766-1820) and Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), who also happened to be this nation's third President. Long before he drafted the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson, whose lifelong passion was architecture, helped draw up detailed plans to remodel the governor's palace at Williamsburg. His beloved home, Monticello, was a singular achievement sixty years in the making. Women also played a major role in the planning of the nation's great homes. Julia Morgan, who designed the Hearst Castle (photo above) between 1919-1939, worked eighteen-hour days and left a legacy of over 700 buildings. Isabella Stewart Gardner was the principal in overseeing the design of the Gardner Museum in Boston's Fenway Court, and Alva Vanderbilt, wife of George Vanderbilt, worked directly with architects in overseeing the design of Newport's Marble Palace — which under her jurisdiction later became a center for suffragettes.
Amidst a variety of theories, Merrill Folsom once expressed the belief that a true mansion must be "the brick-mortar-and-timber image of a fascinating person or family." In keeping with the original author's viewpoint, Hastings House has been careful to select former homes that are not only large and luxurious, but also contain a unique historical and inspirational element behind them. The choices were difficult, owing to the incorporation of choice pieces from the author's late More Great American Mansions (1967) with the finest stories from his first edition. Five new stories have been added: The White House of the Confederacy, Vermont's Shelburne Farms and Shelburne Museum, Tennessee's Belle Meade Plantation (formerly the nation's largest Thoroughbred Stud), and the Lockwood-Matthews Mansion, considered one of Connecticut's most treasured historic sites. Each story is filled with historical drama, with special emphasis on the biographical element that Folsom considered to be of unique importance. All mansions represented in this volume are open to the public, with websites and travel directions provided to the reader.
Le Corbusier, the famous French architect, said "I am like a lightning conductor — I attract storms." So it is with interesting persons in public life, and so it is with pacesetting homes. Thanks to a widely assorted group of benefactors and the ongoing efforts by preservationists, many of the nation's most outstanding mansions have been saved from certain destruction. It is to those spirited individuals whom this volume is finally dedicated, as well as the public who continues to care about its past.
Rachel Borst
Editor
BROWSE through the pages of this book online at Google Books, just as you would in a bookstore. Enter Great American Mansions in the search field.
CHECK OUT Great American Mansions at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, or Hastings House.
COMMENTS are welcome and should be sent by e-mail to Editor, Hastings House. All appropriate ones will be posted here. Please tell us if we can use your name and/or e-mail on the posting.
Recent Comments