The mansions of the Northeast are sprawling estates that combined high design with higher budgets.
Over in Stockbridge, Naumkeag adds a lighter touch.
Its terraced gardens and Fletcher Steeles Blue Steps take landscaping to architectural levels.
Carol M. Highsmith, Library of Congress
Ventfort Hall featured 28 rooms, 15 bedrooms, 13 bathrooms, and a whopping 17 fireplaces.
The back veranda once framed a view of the Stockbridge Bowl and Monument Mountain.
Inside fine woodwork, family heirlooms, and a collection of Chinese porcelain mingle with European and American art.
But the house is only half the story.
Landscape designer Fletcher Steele, alongside Mabel Choate, Josephs daughter, reimagined the grounds between 1926 and 1956.
Steele also crafted the Afternoon Garden and expanded the Chinese Garden.
Wooden shingles wrap the house like an elegant skin, punctuated by porches, overhangs, and bamboo-inspired columns.
Its Victorian design with a modernist mindset.
Mahogany paneling, stained glass, and embossed leather wall coverings saturate the ground floor with texture and richness.
Daisys preservation efforts saved Wilderstein from obscurity, securing its place as a shimmering relic along the Hudson River.
By the time Doris took charge, Rough Point was both a historic monument and a personal playground.
Edison, newly remarried to Mina Miller, moved in with his three children.
The house was built with over 157,000 bricks and reinforced with 10,000 pounds of steel.
The mansions limestone facade is understated, its symmetry framed by dark shutters and large, mullioned windows.
The semicircular bays and steeply pitched rooflines evoke a sense of permanence.
Rooms are designed for flow and light, with understated wood paneling and decorative plasterwork.
A conservatory, rebuilt after the fire, connects the house to its gardens.
The estates architectural harmony extends outdoors.
The Mount is Whartons architectural signature.
Built with fireproof materials, The Elms is an engineering marvel.
By 1864, new owner George Merritt decided the house wasnt quite bold enough.
Davis returned to oversee these upgrades, which preserved the houses Gothic quirks while injecting a heavy Victorian vibe.
Lyndhurst is a Gothic playground quirky, captivating, and unapologetically over the top.
Built between 1906 and 1913, its a masterclass in calculated elegance.
Inside, Ogden Codman Jr. kept the drama low-key by Rockefeller standards.
Expect gilded age essentials like imported Chinese ceramics, European furnishings, and marble accents.
Outdoors, architect William Welles Bosworths Beaux-Arts gardens steal the show.
Symmetrical terraces, fountains, and clipped hedges frame views of the Hudson.
The castle is set a man-made hill with sweeping views of Cold Spring Harbor.
The limestone facade, inspired by Italian Renaissance palazzos, wraps around a footprint that devours an acre.
Inside, the great hall is a 50-foot cube of Indiana limestone that somehow feels bigger.
Its U-shaped structure, faced with Westchester marble, blends French Neo-Classical precision with American flair.
The western facade commands Bellevue Avenue with its monumental Corinthian portico, rivaling the White House in grandeur.
Grotesque masks spout water into a semicircular fountain, while a curved marble carriage ramp frames the entrance.
The Dining Room features pink Numidian marble and a Versailles-inspired fireplace.
