The Reginald Fincke Sr. Estate

The Reginald Fincke Sr. estate designed by Peabody, Wilson & Brown c. 1924 in Southampton. Fincke was a partner with Clark, Dodge & Co., stock brokerage firm. Click HERE to see the Fincke estate on google earth and HERE on bing.

'The Monastery'

'The Monastery', the Mrs. Farquhar Ferguson estate designed by Allen W. Jackson c. 1908 in Huntington Bay. Click HERE for more on 'The Monastery'.

Photos from The Touchstone by Mary Fanton Roberts, 1917.

'Ivy Hall'

A 1931 advertisement for 'Ivy Hall', originally the Ralph Julius Preston estate designed by Warren & Wetmore c. 1904 in Jericho. Preston, an attorney, was deputy Red Cross Commissioner for Europe during WWI. Preston's wife Elizabeth was the daughter of William Payne Thompson of 'Longfields' in Old Westbury. In 1906 the estate was sold to James Blackstone Taylor, brother of Talbot J. Taylor of 'Talbot House' in Cedarhurst. Taylor was a partner with his brother in Talbot J. Taylor & Co., partner with Taylor, Bates & Co., and president of Cove Neck Realty Corp. He was also president of Upressit Metal Cap Corp. and founder and president of Upressit Products Corp. In 1920 the estate was sold to Elbert H. Gary, a founder and chairman of the board of U.S. Steel Corp. 'Ivy Hall' was demolished c. 1950 but click HERE to see where it stood on google earth.

'The Monastery'

'The Monastery', the Mrs. Farquhar Ferguson (née Juliana Armour) estate designed by Allen W. Jackson c. 1908 in Huntington Bay under the supervision of Louis Comfort Tiffany. Armour was heir to the Armour & Company meatpacking business founded by her family. She died in 1921 and the following owner, widow of publisher W.J. Connors, eventually attempted to donate the house to science in 1930. Her offer was taken up by a cancer hospital run by doctors from California but they were unable to secure tax-exempt status on the property after push back from the community and it appears the deal fell through. The house was sold again in 1936 and continued to be privately owned until 1964 when Suffolk County took possession of the estate in lieu of $100,000 in back taxes owed on the property. There seems to have been a plan for the Huntington Arts Council to acquire the property but that never materialized. Six years later in early 1970 demolition on the house began to mixed reaction from the community. The NYTimes quoted the village police as reporting "150 youths a night on the 12.5 acre castle site" where the walls had "long since been stripped of their ornamental tiles and sculpture by vandals in recent years and were now full of graffiti." The Times also quoted a workman doing demolition as saying the house was "built better than the Empire State Building" and that the walls, some few feet thick in places, "succumbed reluctantly to battering" from the wrecker's ball. The estate is also known as 'Ferguson's Castle' and 'Ferguson's Folly'. The property was eventually subdivided. Click HERE to see where 'The Monastery' stood on google earth. Click below to see 'The Monastery' intact in a 1953 aerial. Advertisement from Architecture, 1923.

'Pembroke' Advertisement

An advertisement for the mosaic tile work on the indoor pool at 'Pembroke', the Joseph R. De Lamar estate designed by C.P.H. Gilbert c. 1916 in Glen Cove. Click HERE for more on 'Pembroke'.

'Northwood'

'Northwood', the Mortimer L. Schiff estate designed by C.P.H. Gilbert c. 1905 in Oyster Bay. Click HERE and HERE for more on 'Northwood'. The residence is no longer standing.

'Villa Marina'

An advertisement for 'Villa Marina', the Frank C. Henderson estate designed by Warren & Clark c. 1920 in Roslyn. Click HERE for more on 'Villa Marina'. Click HERE to see the house on google earth and HERE on bing. Advertisement from Country Life, 1924.

'Barberrys'

'Barberrys', the Nelson Doubleday estate designed by Harrie Lindeberg c. 1916 in Mill Neck, with landscaping by the Olmsted Brothers. Doubleday, son of Frank N. Doubleday, was a publisher and head of Doubleday & Co. The estate and 13 acres is currently for sale for $14,000,000, click HERE to see the listing on Daniel Gale Sotheby's. Click HERE to see the brochure from when 'Barberrys' was for sale decades ago. Click HERE to see 'Barberrys' on google earth and HERE on bing.

MLS listing photos from Daniel Gale Sotheby's.

Otto Kahn...Again

Otto Kahn, owner of 'Oheka' designed by Delano & Aldrich c. 1915 in Cold Spring Harbor, seen later in life (unlike yesterday's photo). Click HERE for more on 'Oheka' and HERE to see the brochure from when 'Oheka' was for sale. Click HERE to see Kahn's New York City residence. Photo from the Library of Congress.

Otto Kahn

Otto Kahn, owner of 'Oheka' designed by Delano & Aldrich c. 1915 in Cold Spring Harbor, seen somewhere on horseback. Click HERE for more on 'Oheka'. Photo courtesy of SPLIA.

The Dunbar Bostwick Estate

The Dunbar Bostwick estate built in the early 1930s in Old Westbury, likely by James O'Connor. The home was demolished a few years ago and the property subdivided, click HERE to see what replaced it. Click HERE for more on the Dunbar Bostwick estate, HERE to see where the home stood on google earth and HERE on bing. Photo from Nassau County Tax Photos.

'Red Maples'

'Red Maples', the Alfred William Hoyt estate designed by Hiss & Weekes c. 1908 in Southampton with landscaping by Ferruccio Vitale. Alfred Hoyt was a founder along with his father of A.M. Hoyt & Co., investment bankers. He died of typhoid in the middle of construction of 'Red Maples' and the house was completed by his mother and sister, both Rosina Hoyt. The estate was demolished in the 1940s. Click HERE and HERE for more on 'Red Maples'.

Photos from Architecture, 1918.

'Coxwould'

'Coxwould', the Dr. John F. Erdmann estate designed by Albro & Lindeberg c. 1912 in East Hampton. Erdmann, a surgeon, was known as "the grand old man" of New York surgery and according to his obituary had performed over 20,000 operations since he opened his practice on Lexington Avenue in 1887. He was Professor of Surgery and Director of Surgery at the New York Post-Graduate Medical College and Hospital from 1908-1934. The home is currently for sale for $24,950,000, click HERE to see the listing via William B. May. Click HERE to see 'Coxwould' on google earth and HERE on bing.

Photos from Architecture, 1915.

'Wheatly'

A crooked shot of the forecourt to 'Wheatly', the E.D. Morgan III estate designed by McKim, Mead & White between 1890-1900 in Old Westbury. Pictured to the left is the swimming pool (and wind mill). Click HERE for more on 'Wheatly' (be sure to scroll past today's post). Photo from the Elizabeth Morgan Jay Etnier Hollins archives.

'Woodley'

'Woodley', the Cornelius W. Provost estate designed by Henry Otis Chapman c. 1912 in Muttontown. Provost was a partner in the brokerage firm of Provost Brothers. Click HERE to see 'Woodley' on google earth and HERE on bing. Photo from Examples of Work by Lewis & Valentine, 1916.

'Shoremond'

'Shoremond', the Ormond G. Smith estate designed by Hoppin & Koen c. 1910 on Centre Island. Click HERE and HERE for more on 'Shoremond'. Photo from Examples of Work by Lewis & Valentine, 1916.

'Wheatly'

'Wheatly', the E.D. Morgan III estate designed by McKim, Mead & White between 1890-1900 in Old Westbury. Click HERE for more on 'Wheatly' (be sure to scroll past today's post).

'Greentree'

'Greentree', the Payne Whitney estate designed by d'Hauteville & Cooper c. 1903 in Manhasset with landscaping by Guy Lowell. Whitney, born William Payne Whitney, was the second son of William Collins Whitney (and younger brother to Harry Payne Whitney) but dropped William from his name after a falling out with his father after the elder's decision to remarry after his mother's death (Payne being his mother's maiden name). Following William C. Whitney's death in 1904 the bulk of his estate was given to eldest son Harry and only a small fraction (everything is relative) going to younger brother Payne. Payne was very close with his uncle Oliver Hazard Payne who upon his death bequeathed him a large portion of his estate while leaving nothing to brother Harry. Payne Whitney was a very successful businessman associated with the Great Northern Paper Co., the First National Bank of New York, the Whitney Realty Co., and the Northern Finance Company. Along with his wife Helen Hay Whitney he ran Greentree Stable, an interest also taken up by their son John (Jock) Hay Whitney and daughter Joan Whitney Payson.

In May 1927 Whitney was playing tennis with a friend in the indoor court at 'Greentree' when he fell ill. Twenty-five minutes later he was dead of acute indigestion. The estate that was left by Payne Whitney was the largest ever recorded up to that time, roughly $180,000,000, which also produced the largest death tax ever recorded, $20,000,000. In 1924 Whitney had paid the third highest income tax in the country behind John D. Rockefeller Jr. and Henry Ford. He left $60,000,000 to charities, institutions and organizations. 'Greentree' continued to be owned by the Whitney family throughout the 20th century and now functions as the Greentree Foundation, a conference center dedicated to international justice and human rights. Click HERE to see 'Greentree' on google earth and HERE on bing. Photos from Town & Country, 1917.

'Model Home' - By Vince Kish

'Model Home' by Vince Kish, Director of Public Relations and Communication at Old Westbury Gardens, the John S. Phipps estate in Old Westbury.

'Farnsworth'

'Farnsworth', the C.K.G. Billings estate designed by Guy Lowell c. 1914 in Matinecock. Click HERE for more on 'Farnsworth'.

Photos from Examples of Work by Lewis & Valentine, 1916.

'Spring Hill'

The upper portion of 'Spring Hill', the Henry Carnegie Phipps estate designed by John Russell Pope c. 1903 (for William L. Stow) in Old Westbury. Pictured above is where the house stood overlooking the terraced gardens below. These pictures were taken in 2008 and since then the tree pictured in front of the wall was hit by lighting and destroyed and the garage in the fourth photo was demolished in 2009. Click HERE to see the lower portion of 'Spring Hill'.

'Oliver's Point' Advertisement

A 1936 advertisement for 'Oliver's Point', the Herbert L. Smith estate designed by Herbert R. Brewster c. 1912 on Centre Island. Click HERE to see the brochure from when 'Oliver's Point' was for sale.

The Piping Rock Club

The Piping Rock Club designed by Guy Lowell c. 1911 in Matinecock. Click HERE and HERE for more on the Piping Rock Club. Click HERE to see the club on google earth and HERE on bing.

Photos from American Architect & Architecture, 1912.

When 'Oliver's Point' Was For Sale

A brochure advertising 'Oliver's Point' the Herbert Ludlam Smith estate designed by Herbert R. Brewster c. 1912 on Centre Island. Smith was a partner in the brokerage firm of Smith & Lewis. The estate was later owned by George Fisher Baker III who renamed it 'Ventura Point' and hired Walker & Gillette to design alterations in the 1930s (as it is pictured here). Baker was the grandson of George Fisher Baker and chairman of the board of First National Bank of New York. The house has since been demolished. Click HERE to see where 'Oliver's Point' stood on google earth.

Brochure courtesy of SPLIA.