Here’s an excerpt:

The concert hall at the Syndey Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 24,000 times in 2011. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 9 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.

Rough Point Entrance

The house was built for Frederick William Vanderbilt.  It is an English Manor House in  style and it was designed by the architectural firm Peabody & Stearns. Construction began in 1887 and was completed 1892.   In 1894, the Vanderbilts began renting Rough Point to summer guests (having moved to “Hyde Park”- now known as the Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site.).  The Leeds family rented the home in 1904 and 1905 and purchased the estate in 1906.  In 1922 Mr. Leeds sold the mansion to the Duke family (of tobacco fame). It was home to Doris Duke until her death in 1993.  It is now a museum.

Rough Point 15

The treasures inside and outside of the house are astounding and well worth the trip. Here is an outside treasure:

Detail - Entrance light

The manor in which the house is situated as to take advantage of the Atlantic view is also breathtaking.

Cliff walk bridge

I would never grow tired of looking at this…..

The gardens were designed by Frederick Law Olmsted’s firm^.

Inside the Formal Garden 2

Tip:  If you get a chance to visit, be sure to pick up a copy of the self-guided walking tour of the grounds.

For more photos of Rough Point visit my Flickr site.

Front of Mark Twain House

The house was built for Mark Twain’s  (AKA: Samuel Clemens) Family in 1874.  It was designed by the architects Edward T. Potter and Alfred H. Thorp.  At the time it was built it was called one of the “oddest looking buildings in the State ever designed for dwelling.”  (Hartford Daily Times, March 23, 1874)

Balcony 2

I love all the details of the facade – the stickwork,

CHimney Detail

The brickwork

Porch Woodwork

The woodwork…

Conservatory

The Conservatory….

Most of all, I love the interiors by Louis C Tiffany and Candace Wheeler – I cant show them here, but they are not to be missed!

View from Visitor's Center

For more photos of the Mark Twain House visit my Flickr site.

Front Harriet Beecher Stowe House

This Gothic Revival style home was built in 1871 for Franklin Chamberlin in the Nook Farm neighborhood of Hartford CT.  The Stowe’s bought the 17 room residence in 1873 and Harriet lived there for 23 years – until her death.  I knew Harriet Beecher Stowe authored Uncle Tom’s Cabin – a powerful anti-slavery novel, but I did not know much else about her.  Harriet was an accomplished author of thirty books and numerous articles.  She was also the “Martha Stewart” of her day – having authored The American Woman’s Home in 1869 – a manual for women on all aspects of child rearing, house keeping, cooking and nutrition, and interior decoration.

The interior of the house shows her sense of style and showcases several of her paintings. Well worth a trip to Hartford, Ct.

North-East exposure

For more photos of the Harriet Beecher Stowe House, Visit my Flickr site.

West Side Day House 1

Built in 1884 for Franklin and Mary Porter Chamberlin in the Nook Farm neighborhood of Hartford CT.  Queen Anne in style, it was designed by the architect Francis Kimball.  It is a 20 room building that features nature inspired carvings both outside and inside.  Named after Harriet Beecher Stowe’s grand niece, today it is used as the administrative offices of the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center.  It is not open to the public, but the exterior architecture is enchanting.

Detail - Front Entrance

Nature Carving Detail

Exterior, Corner Nook

Rear View, Day House

For more photos, please see my Flickr site.

Thayer Smith House

I don’t know much about this beautiful house except it was built in the 1870′s for Charles and Eliza Thayer Smith. It stands across the street from the Harriet Beecher Stowe House in the Nook Farm neighborhood of Hartford CT.

Thayer Smith House

Brookwood Hall Entrance

When I visited the mansion in late February 2011, the building was undergoing extensive and much needed renovations.

Back of Building

The mansion was built by the Knapp Family, and was also subsequently owned by the Thorne Family.

Brookwood Hall Marker

From 1942-1965 the mansion served as an Orphanage.

Orphan Registry Sign

Today it is the home of the Islip Art Museum and the Islip Arts Council and it sits in Knapp Lake Park.

Allee of Trees

Original Entrance Gate

Main Stairs

Breakfast Room Fireplace

The Breakfast Room serves as an exhibit space for local history organizations.

Original Flooring outside Dining Room

Many of the original architectural details of the mansion are hidden behind modifications made to the estate through the years.  It was nice to see some of the original flooring.

Detail of Solarium Fireplace

Mansion lore has this fireplace originally coming from the Idle Hour Estate.  The French style of the fireplace makes the story plausible.  It is not in keeping with the Georgian decorative style of the rest of the house.

Carriage House

The carriage house now serves as a contemporary art space.  I hope to visit Brookwood Hall again, when the renovations are complete.

For more photos of Brookwood Hall see my Flickr site.

The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads This blog is on fire!.

Crunchy numbers

The average container ship can carry about 4,500 containers. This blog was viewed about 24,000 times in 2010. If each view were a shipping container, your blog would have filled about 5 fully loaded ships.

In 2010, there were 9 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 42 posts.

The busiest day of the year was October 30th with 207 views. The most popular post that day was Sefton (Mill Neck) Manor, Mill Neck NY.

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were en.wordpress.com, thedowneastdilettante.blogspot.com, search.aol.com, garylawrance.blogspot.com, and shvillagereview.blogspot.com.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for mill neck manor, millionaires row williamsport pa, coindre hall, nemours mansion, and coindre hall huntington ny.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

Sefton (Mill Neck) Manor, Mill Neck NY June 2008
4 comments

Millionaire’s Row – Williamsport, PA July 2008
2 comments

Orchard Hill, Old Westbury, NY June 2008
4 comments

Old Westbury Gardens, Old Westbury, NY June 2008
1 comment

Eagle’s Nest – Vanderbilt Museum Historic House and Planetarium, Centerport, NY July 2008
1 comment

Caumsett Front Fascade

The entire estate has been preserved and consists of the Mansion…

East Fascade

the Winter Cottage…

Winter Cottage

Side View of Winter Cottage

the Dairy complex….

Dairy Complex

Dairy Farm Silo

the Polo Stables…

Polo Stables

Interior Polo Stables

Horse at Polo Stables

and the Walled Garden….

Fountain in Walled Garden

Dairy Complex from Walled Garden

The estate was built for Marshall Field III in the early 1920′s by the architect John Russell Pope.  I was there to visit the beautiful Designer’s Show House (October 2010) in the Winter Cottage (to benefit the Caumsett Foundation) and to enjoy the grounds.

View of LI Sound From Mansion

To view more pictures of Caumsett, and other historic houses I’ve visited, please visit my Flickr site.

Main Entrance Higgins House

Higgins House is a Tudor Castle built between 1920-1923.  The architect is Grosvenor Atterbury, but the house itself is based on the Compton Wyngates Castle in Warwickshire, England which was built in 1525.

Exterior Higgins House

The house was built by WPI alumni Aldus Higgins (1893), and donated to WPI by his heirs in 1970. Today it serves the WPI campus in multiple capacities. On the day I visited, a large welcoming party was going on.

Higgins Coat of Arms

Great Hall from Balcony

The interiors are lovely. Here is a sample of what I saw.

Dining Room

The gardens are also beautiful and provide an oasis for the students on campus.

Garden View

Another Garden View

To view more photos of Higgins House, visit my Flickr site.