Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site

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Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site, located in Hyde Park, New York, is one of America's premier examples of the country palaces built by wealthy industrialists during the Gilded Age. The earliest development of the estate began in 1764 when Dr. John Bard purchased land on the east side of the Albany Post Road, where he built Red House and developed the agricultural aspects of the eastern section of the property that continued through Frederick Vanderbilt's occupancy. Bard family ownership continued through 1821 with his son, Dr. Samuel Bard (1742-1821), owning the property from 1799 to 1821. In 1828, Dr. David Hosack, president of the New York Horticultural Society, purchased the property from Samuel Bard's heirs, with André Parmentier helping to lay out the grounds. In 1840, John Jacob Astor purchased the property from Hosack's heirs for his daughter Dorothea and her hu*****and Walter S. Langdon. Frederick W. and Louise Vanderbilt purchased Hyde Park in May 1895 from Langdon's heirs. Attracted to the beauty of the Hudson Valley and the east bank of the Hudson River, Frederick and his wife settled comfortably in their new 600-acre (2.4 km2) estate. The location was ideal, offering quick and easy access to New York City on the Vanderbilt’s own New York Central Railroad. The estate was primarily used as a vacation home for the Vanderbilt family. The previous owners of the estate had made it famous for its grand landscape and array of different plants and trees throughout the property. The New York Times described the Vanderbilt’s estate as "the finest place on the Hudson between New York and Albany." A niece, Margaret "Daisy" Van Alen, inherited the property when Vanderbilt died in 1938. Encouraged by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Van Alen donated a portion of the estate, including the residence with most of its original furnishings, to the National Park Service. The property entered the National Park Service in 1940. From 1941 to 1943, President Roosevelt's Secret Service was housed in the basement and third-floor service areas, and some of the President's personal White House staff and friends occasionally stayed in the main bedrooms of the house, including those of Mr. and Mrs. Vanderbilt.

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• 对，想起来了，那个叫弗雷德瑞克.玩得不要他 -学下海的土鳖- ♂ (0 bytes) () 12/18/2010 postreply 08:02:23