The Eugene A. Riotte Estate

The Eugene A. Riotte estate designed by Slee & Bryson c. 1920 in Manhasset.  Riotte was president of the Standard Motor Construction Company.  The residence has since been enlarged, click HERE to see it on bing.

Photos from American Architect, 1922.

Another 'Greentree' Entrance

Another entrance to 'Greentree', the Payne Whitney estate designed by d'Hauteville & Cooper c. 1903 in Manhasset.  Click HERE and HERE for more on 'Greentree' and HERE to see the other entrance.  Click HERE to see 'Greentree' on bing.

'Sherryland'

'Sherryland', originally the Louis Sherry estate with alterations by McKim, Mead & White c. 1915 in Manhasset and later owned by Virginia Graham Fair Vanderbilt.  She renamed the estate 'Fairmont' and resided there until her death in 1935 (click HERE to see her previous residence).  In 1938 the estate was sold to William Levitt who developed the property and main house into the Strathmore Vanderbilt Country Club.  Click HERE to see 'Sherryland' on google earth and HERE on bing.

'Greentree' Entrance

The entrance to 'Greentree', the Payne Whitney estate designed by d'Hauteville & Cooper c. 1903 in Manhasset.  Click HERE and HERE for more on 'Greentree'.

The Playhouse at 'Greentree'

 The T. Markoe Robertson designed playhouse to 'Greentree', the Payne Whitney estate designed by d'Hauteville & Cooper c. 1903 in Manhasset.  It was on this indoor court in 1927 that Whitney was stricken ill and soon died from "acute indigestion" leaving behind the largest ever estate recorded up to that time at $180,000,000.  Click HERE and HERE for more on 'Greentree'.  Click HERE to see the estate on google earth and HERE on bing.  Click HERE to see video of people playing on the Greentree court in 1997 via youtube.

Photos from Architecture, 1914.

On the Grounds of 'Greentree'

A view on the grounds of 'Greentree', the Payne Whitney estate in Manhasset.  Click HERE for more on 'Greentree'.

'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.

'Cromwell House'

A bird garden and rest house (Cromwell House) for Mrs. Payne Whitney designed by J.H. Phillips c. 1917 on 'Greentree' in Manhasset. The paneling and fixtures of the small house were removed from a Tudor house in Stroud, England that were said to have been occupied by Oliver Cromwell as a sleeping chamber. For more on the bird garden and Cromwell House click HERE. Click HERE to see Cromwell House on Bing (it appears to no longer be in use) and here to see 'Greentree' on google earth.

Pictures from Architectural Review, 1918.

When 'Plandome Mills' Was For Sale

A brochure advertising 'Plandome Mills', the Warner Mifflin Leeds II estate in Plandome Manor. Leeds was a founder of the American Tin Plate Company and president of the Americn Sheet and Tin Plate Company. His adopted daughter, Louise Leeds Kennedy, inherited the estate and gave it the name 'Plandome Mills'. Kennedy's husband, William Walker Kennedy, was a partner in the stock brokerage firm of W.E. Burnet & Co. According to Spinzia, developers purchased the estate in 1950 and broke the house into two residences while subdividing the rest of the grounds. It seems that since then the main house has been demolished. Click HERE to see roughly where 'Plandome Mills' stood on google earth.

Click below to see 'Plandome Mills' still intact with the surrounding property subdivided in a 1966 aerial shot. Brochure courtesy of SPLIA.

'Nonesuch House'

'Nonesuch House', the Cortland D. Barnes estate designed by Peabody, Wilson & Brown c. 1918 in Manhasset. Barnes' family was involved in publishing, running A.S. Barnes & Co.. This house is definitely far removed from PWB's Long Island Farmhouse style commissions but not far fetched for the firm. The interior wood was salvaged from local barns. The house has since been demolished.

Pictures from Architectural Record, 1921.

No. 10 Pickwick Road

No. 10 Pickwick Road in the South Strathmore development by Levitt & Sons, built in 1937 in Manhasset. The Levitt's used No. 10 as a model home and to promote their development they had this house wrapped in "cellophane zipped up the center, and tied with a big red bow. On April 23, 1937, Miss Mitzi Green star of Babes in Arms undid the zipper and by day's end some 5800 people had trooped through the new house" (Manhasset: The First 300 Years). Click HERE to see No. 10 Pickwick Road on google earth.

Levitt's 'American Home' at Strathmore at Manhasset

The 'American Home', built by Levitt & Sons at their Strathmore at Manhasset development in Manhasset. Opened in 1934, the Strathmore was the Levitt's second residential development on Long Island (the first being Strathmore at Rockville Centre). The development was built on the former Horatio Gates Onderdonk estate and consisted of a variety of home styles. This particular home, which was given the name of the 'American Home', includes a dance floor on the lower level with lighting "in the nightclub fashion" along with one wall that is an aquarium. Below is the NY Times article published on the completion of the house in 1935.

The Onderdonk Mansion

The residence of Horatio Gates Onderdonk and his wife Elizabeth, built c. 1836 in Manhasset. Onderdonk was a county judge for Kings County. When Levitt & Sons purchased a piece of the property to develop in 1933 into 'Strathmore at Manhasset' the house was used as their office. Upon completion of the development and the formation of a resident's association, they handed over the home to the Strathmore Association to be used as a community facility. Click HERE for a complete history on the Onderdonks. Click HERE to see the Onderdonk mansion on google earth.