It was rough finding an RV park open in Rhode Island in early November. Most close for the season in mid-to-late-October. We found one, and that was pretty much it. So, we stayed at a really over-priced parking lot for a few days. It did have full hook-ups and was in a pretty good location, so it wasn’t so bad.
We were just outside of Newport, a seaside town on Aquidneck Island. It is known for having some of the most opulent mansions built during the Gilded Age, and being a lover of old houses, this was something I needed to check out. I apologized to Ray and the girls in advance, because there were several mansions that I wanted to see. In all, we toured four, and it wasn’t so bad for the girls, because these were self-guided audio tours. So, we all had what looked like smart phones with headsets attached. They were very pleased with this.
About the mansions: Around the mid-nineteenth century, wealthy Americans began building lavish summer homes that they called cottages, but that were far from simple, in Newport. These homes were used for 8-12 weeks out of the year, when these rich families would go to Newport to vacation and entertain. The homes were built to impress. The families that owned them were people like the Vanderbilts, one of the wealthiest families in the country at the time. They were American royalty. The homes were displays of great wealth.
It is mind-boggling to me that these people spent millions to build mansions that they would use for a couple of months out of the year. Having visited the Biltmore, the Vanderbilt mansion in North Carolina (250 rooms, including a pool and bowling alley in the basement), I was not surprised to learn that The Breakers was a Vanderbilt mansion. This Italian Renaissance construction boasts 70 rooms and sits on 14 acres overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. Built for Cornelius Vanderbilt II and his family, the home was completed in 1895. Now owned by the Preservation Society of Newport County, it is one of the most visited homes in the United States.
The second “cottage” we visited was Marble House. Also owned by Vanderbilts (Alva and William Kissam Vanderbilt – younger brother to Cornelius Vanderbilt II), the home was completed in 1892. This 50-room mansion includes 500,000 cubic feet of marble, hence the name, and is in the Beaux Arts style. A Chinese Teahouse also sits on the edge of this property, right near the cliff that overlooks the ocean. Alva divorced William, moved down the road to another mansion with her new husband, but kept Marble House (it was a gift to her). She later returned to host meetings for the Women’s Suffrage Movement at the teahouse. It is also owned and operated by the Preservation Society.
On to Mansion 3! Rosecliff, completed in 1902, was built for silver heiress Theresa Fair Oelrichs. She and her husband bought the land and built the home as a party house. Her goal was to entertain and be a great hostess to the social elite in Newport. The ballroom was the largest of any of the Newport cottages, and huge glass doors open up to a terrace, where revelers could spill out onto the back lawn and party into the night, with the view of the Atlantic just below. Now owned by the Preservation Society, as well, this home is in the French Baroque Revival style.
Finally, we visited The Elms, which was completed in 1901 for Edward Julius Berwind, a coal baron, and his wife. Constructed in the Classical Revival style, this cottage was nearly demolished in 1962. After being passed down to family over the years, it was eventually sold to a developer who planned to tear it down. The Preservation Society purchased it just before its date with a wrecking ball. They restored it, and like the others, it is now open to the public.
Anyone who knows me, would know that I was in Heaven touring these homes. The architecture, the art (whole collections in one home), the grounds: all of it was breathtaking. At the same time, it really is hard to wrap my brain around that kind of wealth. Again, these homes were used for a mere season each year. Insanity. But, beautiful insanity.
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