Wednesday, June 29, 2011

'The Pebbles'

'The Pebbles', the Wyllis Rossiter Betts Jr. estate designed by Chester M. Patterson c. 1930 in Oyster Bay Cove. Betts was a member of the firm Harris Upham & Co. He was married to Constance W. McCann, daughter of Charles E.F. and Helena Woolworth McCann of 'Sunken Orchard'. Click HERE to see 'The Pebbles' on google earth and HERE on bing.

11 comments:

Doug Floor Plan said...

A good looking house & nice acreage & landscaping to make you feel you’re a lot more remote than you really are. I’m sure having a golf course across from your front door gives you a feeling of expanse but you also have to look at that high net fence put up to keep errant golf balls from smashing into your house & autos, so it’s a mixed bag from my perspective. Yes DED, I saw the fountain in the forecourt & also noted some subsequent owner created a grander front door by adding a tower to the front of the house & putting the front door in it … not that it’s bad looking, just grander.

I’m sure the dining room doesn’t look like the picture any more, which is probably an improvement (my opinion) – to me the house is a French Normandy style but I have no idea what style that dining room is.

The Devoted Classicist said...

As originally built, I would agree that the exterior is handsome in the French Norman style although there was clearly a departure for the interior. Being very tall, I fail to see the coziness in low ceiling spaces, but I am sure the once-renown decorating firm Thedlow provided an attractive interior for the time.

The Down East Dilettante said...

I'm also very tall, and the apparently unusually low ceiling gives me instant claustrophobia even looking at the photo. However, I must respectfully disagree about the disconnect of the interior. The paneling is a bit generic, but the furnishings are flawlessly French country, and the Louis XV chimney piece very handsome.

And the ceilings verrrrry low

Anonymous said...

I'd have to agree with DED, after all what could be more quintessential ancient Norman chateau than a hutch full of pewter?

T.D.C. said...

O.k., I will concede to the previous commenters, but I would have preferred plain walls to the not-good-enough applied moldings. And, although the chimneypiece is good, I would prefer limestone in this house. Wisely, a chandelier was not used, but the sconces, while typical of the period, could have been better. A display of pewter was a good choice, as was the folding screen. And I like the herringbone parquet floor.

lil' gay boy said...

Overall very well preserved; as far as a period piece goes, it remains authentic without being precious.

Having lived on a golf course during some summers in my childhood, there really are not too many errant balls (although I do recall one particular pair, but this is a family blog)...

;-)

Security word - spsysi: an agent provocateur of the Russian Velvet Underground.

Doug Floor Plan said...

Nah, you’re all wrong & I’m right – the dining room stinks (joke … yes, joke). Honestly, it's a nice dining room but my comment comes mostly from not being a fan of pewter anyway & the tankards in descending sizes is more cheesy than impressive (to me); plus & I’m thrown off by that mirror over the mantel – it doesn’t belong there.

I really commenting again to correct an earlier statement about the location of the front door. I realize now a hedge wraps around the tower so the front door isn’t there, it’s to the left of the tower. Now I wonder: why the tower? Was it to make the entrance exterior grander or to accommodate a need for additional inside space? I guess I’ll never know.

Turner Pack Rats said...

i love these little Norman village houses and this one is so well kept. to DFP - the tower fits right in with the whole feel of the place - it doesn't have to have a purpose. these people are rich - nothing has to have a purpose.
and i'm taller than all of you put together but wouldn't mind the low ceiling (good thing as i live in a 1830's house with realllyyy low ceilings.) the furniture and that pewter are pretty cheesy but if DED sez it's OK, it's OK.
to LGB - if we're a family on this blog, we give new meaning to the term dysfunctional.

security word def - "shoses" - what i put on after my sockses

Anonymous said...

Tough crowd. In person, the exterior of this house is wonderful. While the tower addition seems superfluous, it is well done and its certainly better than tearing down the house. As to the interiors, the originals were quite nice but were extensively modified by John Kean a few years back. Higher ceilings and more flowing spaces. Not as good as the originals, in my opinion, but again, if this is what it takes to avoid the wreckers ball....
On a sad note, the charming house of Christopher Morley, in Roslyn estates was knocked down this week. Unlike the reasons we usually here, the house was not too large, not too decrepit and the taxes on whatever replaces it will not be lower. Simply a case of bad taste. Ironic in that Morley was an avid preservationist who helped save the Roslyn Train Station (which was later degraded by being relocated so that the lovely and, yes, somewhat decrepit, Station Plaza area could be paved over.
NSP

Anonymous said...

Whoops -"hear". Late and tired. NSP

JakeRyan1974 said...

I almost bought this place in the 90’s- it was a divorce sale I think it was 1.7 mIL at the time. It has been highly renovated- and maybe has lost some of its old world quaint charm. It needed a lot of restoration or renovation at the time and the taxes as everywhere on LI were out of control. I remember buckets in a few upstairs rooms catching drips from the roof- and there didn’t seem to be any staff left. At the time it was called Beaupre. And it was pure bred French Normandy at the time.