Chastellux Once Upon a Time

This fabulous mansion in Tuxedo Park NY is called Chastellux. I actually lived there once upon a time, and the story of how this was my 'home' seems... more

by Joan Carroll

Title

Chastellux Once Upon a Time

Artist

Joan Carroll

Medium

Photograph - Digital Photograph

Description

This fabulous mansion in Tuxedo Park NY is called Chastellux. I actually lived there once upon a time, and the story of how this was my 'home' seems more impossible as I look back over the years. In 1885-86 Pierre Lorillard IV, along with land planner Ernest Bowditch, architect Bruce Price, and about 1,800 immigrant laborers, created a resort for the thick cream of American society. Located just 40 miles outside of New York City, Tuxedo Park became a playground for great social, financial, and political leaders of the day: Dorothy Draper, J.P. Morgan, Alferd Loomis, and William Waldorf Astor to name a few. Word spread quickly encouraging New York's 400, give or take a few, to establish themselves in this newly fashionable enclave. Soon, massive mansions began to spring up within the "naturally" planned landscape inside of the gilded walls.But shortly after the Great Depression many of the Tuxedo Park socialites began to move, leaving behind an architecturally significant piece of American history. Buildings were donated to the Sisters of Charity who moved their high school Academy of Mt St Vincent into these buildings in the 1940s. This was the first of those school buildings, and later became a dormitory. It became my 'home' from 1967-1969. Of course I didn't appreciate the splendor! Our main concern was to outwit the nuns. Due to funding issues, the school closed in 1972 and Chastellux has since reverted to a private home. Today, Tuxedo Park is considered a National Landmark, and the homes that were built by social giants remain filled with the most prominent members of modern society.

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Uploaded

October 23rd, 2013