VirtualGlobetrotting: Stately Homes

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Updown Court
DonMartini (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: DonMartini.
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Updown Court is a Californian style residence situated in the village of Windlesham in Surrey, England. The 103-room mansion has 58 acres (230,000 m2) of landscaped gardens and private woodland. It was, in 2005, the most expensive private home on the market anywhere in the world, having been listed for sale with estate agencies Savills and Hamptons International for in excess of £70 million (US$138 million).
The original Updown Court was built in 1924 in the Queen Anne style and featured eight bedrooms, four sitting rooms, four bathrooms, a single swimming pool,[citation needed] and sat in 12 acres of grounds. Between 1962 and 1976 the property was home to Major General Sir Philip Ward, his wife Pamela and their four children, and during their ownership the gardens were open to the public to enjoy the spectacular woodland and roses. In 1977 Updown Court was acquired from the Wards by His Highness Prince Sami Gayed of Egypt.
In October 1987, the estate agency Knight Frank and Rutley were instructed to market the property for sale. On the morning after The Great Storm of 1987 (16 October), Antony Wardell, the agent, drove to the property to measure it up. Upon arriving, he discovered that during the storm the property had been destroyed by fire. Trees felled by the storm had brought down power lines, causing an explosion in the house and starting a fire. When Surrey Fire and Rescue Service had tried to reach Updown Court, they found their way blocked by more fallen trees and were unable to reach the house, which as a result was totally destroyed.
In the 1990s the ruined property was sold to Heatherside Property Holdings Limited, a consortium registered in the British Virgin Islands by Martin Burrow of Hamptons International. A redevelopment of the site was masterminded by consultant engineer Anthony Pearce and designed by John B. Scholz, an Arizona-based architect.
Construction started in 1998 and in August 1999, rumours surfaced that the property (still under construction), was to be bought by Hollywood actor Bruce Willis. Other potential buyers who were rumoured to be connected with the property included Sheikh Mohammed al Maktoum, then Crown Prince of Dubai, and the Tengku Mahkota of Pahang; Tengku Abdullah.
On 19 July 2001, HM Customs and Excise launched a raid on the property in connection with money laundering. Customs officers were joined by Surrey Police and members of the National Crime Squad for the dawn raid. The raid came a day after HMCE had launched a High Court action and obtained an order allowing them to appoint a risk consultancy company to take over the running of the project as joint receivers and managers. Anthony Pearce was charged with using the proceeds of crime to buy and develop the property. He was also charged with a second offence relating to the purchase of a yacht and was remanded on conditional bail until 2 August 2001. Another man was released on bail and two others were freed without charge.
Heatherside was put into the hands of an administrative receiver, Vivian Bairstow of Begbies Traynor. In 2002 Bairstow instructed FPDSavills and Knight Frank, to sell Updown Court to recover the company's assets and pay back creditors, who included an overseas lender. The guide price for the sale was £15 million and bids closed on 10 July 2002. A developer, Leslie Allen-Vercoe completed the purchase of the unfinished shell for £13 million (the approximate 2009 equivalent of £20 million) in January 2003. A planned further £30 million was to be spent finishing and redeveloping the property and the project was mainly funded by loans from the Irish Nationwide Building Society.
The structure of the deal Allen-Vercoe struck with INBS was structured in a way which only came to light when the property was placed in receivership a few years later. The bank provided the money required for the project c.£50 million, and it was agreed with INBS that if the completed project was sold for a profit, this would be split with 33.3% going to INBS and the remaining two-thirds going to Allen-Vercoe himself. If the property was sold at a loss, Allen-Vercoe would not be personally liable for any part of that loss.
In 2005, the property was completed and placed on the market for sale with Savills and Hamptons International. A leather-bound brochure, which in an effort to discourage timewasters, cost interested parties £500 to purchase, was produced and it is said that Savills were happy to arrange for prospective buyers to be driven to Updown Court in a Rolls Royce or flown in by helicopter for a viewing. Viewings, due to the size of the property, are said to have taken in excess of two and a half hours. In light of the buoyant property market at the time and a huge amount of press coverage, Allen-Veroe boasted in a 2005 interview that "it will be gone in six months. We've already had interest from buyers from Russia and the Middle East. And three Chinese called to inquire just this morning".
By the end of 2009, as a result of further loans and accrued interest INBS was owed around £61 million and when, the following year, INBS was effectively nationalised, its share of the property came to be owned by the National Asset Management Agency.
With running costs when fully staffed of £1.026 million a year and even reduced costs imposed by NAMA running to £60,000 per month, the property needed to start to bring in some sort of income. The property began to be rented out as a filming location and starred as a Russian Embassy in Series 8, Episode 3 of the BBC series Spooks, doubled as a war-torn Baghdad palace in the film Green Zone, and was the home of Sean and Beverly Lincoln in the Showtime/BBC series Episodes.
By May 2011 the estate had still not been sold and was still on the market at the original price of £70 million. In a bizarre move the price was increased to £75 million in June 2011, before being cut by 30% to £50 million the next month. In August 2011, the property was placed into receivership by NAMA, with CB Richard Ellis acting as receivers. and the following month it was announced that the asking price had been slashed, with the property being priced "in excess of £30m".
Finally, after over six years on the market, in October 2011, it was announced that the property had been sold for £35m by joint agents Knight Frank and Hamptons International to a purchaser, believed to be Dubai based education entrepreneur Sunny Varkey.
Set in the centre of 58 acres (230,000 m2) of gardens and mature woodland,[23] Updown Court is entered by a £2 million (US$3 million) heated marble driveway. It has 103 rooms, 24 of which are bedrooms, each with its own marble en-suite bathroom. Among other features, it has a fully automated two-lane bowling alley, five swimming pools including an Infinity pool, a squash court, a floodlit tennis court, a wine cellar with a capacity for 3,000 bottles and a panic room. There are 5 acres (20,000 m2) of more than 30 different types of imported Italian marble, expansive terraces, and a customizable cinema with a 50-seat capacity. It also features an underground garage, with granite flooring, that has enough room for eight cars or limousines. The first floor is the main residential area, featuring eight generous bedroom suites, all en-suite. The penthouse floor contains two separate penthouse apartments, each with two bedrooms, reception area, bathroom, kitchen and occupies an entire wing of the property. There is also a sauna, and a "secret" passageway off of the property. Moreover, there is also a gymnasium, an indoor football pitch, and an outdoor equestrian yard with stables. Even further, there are 2 "plant rooms" (conservatories), a gallery, study, and library.
Neighbours include Elton John, Sarah, Duchess of York, and Queen guitarist Brian May.

Vernon Hill's Mega Mansion
kenny1 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: kenny1.
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This mansion, known as Villa Collina, is owned by Vernon Hill, the ceo and founder of Commerce Bank. The home measures in at a whopping 46,000 square feet and is the largest residence in New Jersey. The home has a two story atrium style formal living room, billiards room, and a library. A family kitchen, prep kitchen, green house, guest room, and maids rooms are all located on the first floor. The second floor contains 5 massive bedroom suites. The home's exercise room clocks in at a whopping 4,000 square feet. The home also has twin two story garages on either end of the home that can hold up to 30 cars each. The home has an orangery.
Hill is a businessman, the founder and former chairman of Metro Bank, a UK retail bank with 66 stores, and assets of £7.4b ($10.6b). He was also the founder, former chairman, president and CEO of Commerce Bancorp of Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and chairman of Fetch Inc. In 2016, Hill was named chairman of Philadelphia-based Republic Bank. Metro Bank UK was launched in London in July 2010, with Hill as co-founder and vice-chairman. Hill is also the author of Fans Not Customers: How to Create Growth Companies in a No Growth World, which was published by Profile Books in October 2012. It argues that it is better to have fans rather than customers and urges businesses to compete on service rather than price. His business approach emphasizes building a solid customer base and working from there. As a result of his efforts Vernon Hill has a net worth of $414 million from banking and currently resides in the largest mansion in Moorestown, New Jersey.
If you want to live the lavish lifestyle of Vernon W. Hill II, the flamboyant founder and former chairman of Commerce Bancorp you can buy his Loveladies vacation home which was recently put on the market for $6.5 million, according to the Zillow listing.

Palatial Pennsylvania Mega-Mansion
kenny1 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: kenny1.
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This 32,400 square foot mega-mansion is owned by real estate developer Joseph Nocito. It is the currently the largest home under construction in Western Pennsylvania.

'Scarface' Bolivian Estate
mlc1us (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: mlc1us.
This Addison Mizener estate was used as Drug Lord Alejandro Sosa's Bolivian Estate in the movie "Scarface". Tony Montana's Estate is also in Montecito.

Four Fairfield Pond Estate | Ira Rennert
mlc1us (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: mlc1us.
The opulent Four Fairfield Pond estate, located in Sagaponack, New York, is valued at over USD 248 million. Owned by Ira Rennert, the chairman and CEO of Renco Group, an investment company in the auto manufacturing and smelting sector, this property is renowned as one of the world's most expensive residences.
The estate encompasses approximately 5,800 square meters and showcases a magnificent Italian Renaissance-style mansion that was built in the late 1990s. With an expansive area of nearly 250,000 square meters, the mansion boasts 21 bedrooms, 18 bathrooms, and additional structures such as a playhouse, two pool houses, and a 164-seat theater with a grand stage.
Among its extravagant features are a 27-meter-long dining room, a private power plant, a sizable water tank holding around 19,000 liters, a bowling alley, basketball and tennis courts, and three swimming pools. The Four Fairfield Pond estate also includes an extensive garage capable of accommodating approximately 100 cars. Additionally, the mansion offers a private hot tub, a helipad with a helicopter, and an impressive art collection.

Marc Ecko's Palatial Mansion
kenny1 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: kenny1.
Marc Ecko is an entrepreneur and founder of Marc Ecko Enterprises. His 2-story Italian inspired villa used to be a school for girls.

Jeff Greene's House
Jeff Greene is a real estate and hedge-fund mogul who shorted subprime mortgage.
He purchased this property for $32,500,000 and spent several years renovating it with the help of real-estate developer Mohamed Hadid, architect Bob Ray Offenhauser, and designer Alberto Pinto.
Greene tried to sell the estate, named Palazzo di Amore (Italian for "palace of love") several times, and most recently, in March 2017, slashed the price to $129 million. Two years before that, the house cost $20 million more, and $66 million more than the original price, of $195 million, from 2014.

Craigowan Lodge
kjfitz (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: kjfitz.
Craigowan Lodge is a seven-bedroom stone house about a mile from the main castle in Balmoral.
It is more rustic than the castle, and was often the home of Charles and Diana when they visited. Now it is usually a home for VIP guests.
In the obituary of Michael Andreevich Romanoff: the highest ranking member of the Russian imperial family who died in 2008, it was noted that his family spent most of WWII at Craigowan Lodge.

Mega Mansion
shale69 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: shale69.
Large mansion with pristine and extensive landscaping.

Schloss Georgium
kaiken (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: kaiken.
The Anhalt Art Gallery is located inside this palace.

John Breyo's Mega-Mansion
John Breyo was chairman, president and chief executive officer of Ayco Company LP. The home measures in at a mind boggling 61,000 square feet!

'Harmony' by Wallace Cunningham
jbottero (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: jbottero.

Corleone Mansion From The Godfather
skyeye (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: skyeye.
This 4 acre estate in Staten Island’s affluent Todt Hill neighborhood was used as a filming for Francis Ford Coppola's mafia movie "The Godfather" in 1972. The estate consists of a 8 bedroom, 5 bathroom, English Tudor mansion which features a 4 car garage, two fireplaces, an English pub and a swimming pool. The estate was listed on the market in 2010 for $3 Million, then it was relisted twice - in 2014 for $3 Million and in 2019 for $1.37 Million. It was also listed for rent on AirBnb in 2022 for $50 a night.

Breakers, The
smitgx1 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: smitgx1.
The Vanderbilt Summer Home

Winfield Hall - The FW Woolworth Estate
cproducer (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: cproducer.
Winfield Hall - The FW Woolworth Estate. Built for dime store magnate Frank Winfield Woolworth{Wooloworth Building NYC} c. 1916 at a cost of $10 million. One of the last great estates built in the manner of the Newport palaces. Located in Long Island's "Gold Coast". 62 room Neo Italian Renaissance stucture on 16 acres. Search on YouTube.com under "winfield Hall" for 3 videos on this wonderful estate.

Rosecliff mansion
milwhcky (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: milwhcky.
Built in 1902.
The Great Gatsby, True Lies, and Amistad have been filmed here.

Lasata - Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis' Childhood Home (Tom Ford's House)
tlp333 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: tlp333.
Lasata is an estate in East Hampton, New York that was the childhood summer home of the then future First Lady of the United States Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis until she was about 12.
The two-story, gray-stucco mansion (also known as the George Schurman house) at 121 Further Lane was built in 1917 on 12 acres (4.9 ha) two blocks from the Atlantic Ocean and three blocks from the Maidstone Club.
Included on the grounds was a stable for 8 acres (3.2 ha), tack room, jumping ring and paddock, extensive vegetable gardens, a grape arbor and Maude Bouvier's "Italian garden," edged with boxwood and dotted with classical statues.
The house belonged to Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis's paternal grandparents John Vernou Bouvier Jr. (referred to as "the Major") and Maude Sergeant Bouvier. The Bouviers' first summer residence in East Hampton was a simple house called Wildmoor, on Apaquogue Road in Georgica, which the Major bought about 1910. In 1925 the Major's wife, Maude Sergeant (whose family line traces back to the Kent, England origins of East Hampton) bought the house. In 1926 the Bouviers joined the Maidstone Club. The Major was to[clarification needed] formally buy the house from his wife in 1935 after inheriting money from his uncle Michel Charles "M. C." Bouvier.
The Bouviers said "Lasata" was a Native American name for "place of peace."
Jackie's father John Vernou Bouvier III married Janet Norton Lee at St. Philomena's Catholic Church (later called Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church) in East Hampton on July 7, 1928. They stayed at the Major's family compound and also rented nearby. Jackie was born on July 28, 1929 at Southampton Hospital in Southampton, New York.
Her name was a cross between the paternal side (taken from the three generations of "Jacks") and the Lee side of her mother. The Lees had a house on Lily Pond Lane also in East Hampton village. Jackie's sister Caroline Lee Bouvier was also born at the Southampton Hospital on March 3, 1933 while the family was staying at Lasata. Lee Radziwill later owned a home nearby on East Dune Lane from about 1988 until 2002 with her late husband, film director Herb Ross.
As the marriage of Jackie's parents broke apart in the 1930s (before a divorce became final in 1940), Jackie and Lee continued to spend their summers at the house. At the same time, the marriage of her maternal grandparents James Thomas Lee and Margaret A. Merritt also broke apart although they were not to formally separate.
Jackie was to be an accomplished horse rider during her stays at Lasata and her favorite horse was Danceuse, many photographs of which appear in the book Young Jackie by Olivia Harrison, Bert Morgan ISBN 0-670-03082-1 The New York Times wrote in 1940 following a competition at Madison Square Garden:
Jacqueline Bouvier, an eleven-year-old equestrienne from East Hampton, Long Island, scored a double victory in the horsemanship competition. Miss Bouvier achieved a rare distinction. The occasions are few when a young rider wins both contests in the same show.
At age 10, Jackie was to write:
When I go down to the sandy shore
I can think of nothing I want more
Than to live by the booming blue sea
As the seagulls flutter around about me
I can run about when the tide is out
With the wind and the sea all about
And the seagulls are swirling and diving for fish
Oh-to live by the sea is my only wish
When her father died, she asked that daisies and bachelor's buttons in white wicker baskets be placed at St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York to make it look "like Lasata in August."
In the 1970s, the First Lady's sister Lee Radziwill discussed creating a documentary with Albert and David Maysles about Jacqueline's childhood in East Hampton. At about the same time their aunt, Edith Ewing Bouvier Beale and first cousin Edith Bouvier Beale made national attention when the National Enquirer ran an exposé on the deplorable conditions of their nearby home on West End Road. The Suffolk County, New York Board of Health made a raid ordering them to clean up the property which was falling into disrepair and was being overrun with feral cats.
The Maysles shot footage of the Beales and decided they would make better subjects for a documentary. They scrapped the Bouvier family documentary and Lee Radziwill confiscated the initial footage of the Beales. However, the Maysles returned and refocused their documentary on the Beales. This footage became the 1975 documentary Grey Gardens.
The documentary was filmed after Jackie convinced Aristotle Onassis to donate $32,000 to fix the Beale house removing 10,000 bags of garbage.
Jackie's father, grandfather, grandmother, great-grandfather, and great-grandmother are buried at Most Holy Trinity Catholic Cemetery in East Hampton as is her maternal grandmother (and various other relatives including her aunt Edith Beale).
Jackie's mother Janet, following the death of her second husband Hugh D. Auchincloss, was to marry childhood friend Bingham Morris on October 29, 1979 and move to Southampton. Morris's first wife had been a bridesmaid at the East Hampton wedding of Jackie's parents. They separated in 1981. Jackie's daughter Caroline Kennedy bought a house in Sagaponack, New York in Southampton. Caroline and her husband, Edwin Schlossberg, sold the house in the summer of 2006.
The house is still privately owned and in 2006 it was offered for sale for $25 million. It is currently owned by former Coach design executive, Reed Krakoff, and his wife, Delphine.. The property was subdivided into one empty 4-acre plot and another with 7 acres and the house. Both plots sold in January 2018.

Leydene House / HMS Mercury
kjfitz (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: kjfitz.
HMS Mercury was a shore establishment of the Royal Navy, and the site of the Royal Navy Signals School and Combined Signals School. There was also a subsidiary branch, HMS Mercury II.
The school was established at Leydene House, East Meon, near Petersfield, Hampshire, England and was commissioned as HMS Mercury on 16 August 1941 under the command of Captain Gerald Warner. A signalling school had been established at HM Barracks, Portsmouth in 1904 and was transferred to Petersfield during the Second World War.

Llwynywermod
kjfitz (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: kjfitz.
Llwynywermod is an estate owned by the Duchy of Cornwall, in the Brecon Beacons National Park in Wales.
The 192-acre (0.78 km2) estate is near the village of Myddfai, Llandovery, Carmarthenshire; the Duchy completed its purchase of the property in March 2007. The three-bedroom farmhouse was converted into a residence for Charles, Prince of Wales, who is also the Duke of Cornwall, by Craig Hamilton Architects using traditional building techniques. It was once the coach house to the now ruined 13-bedroom country house of the Griffies-Williams family that stood nearby.
Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, took up residence at the property in June 2008.

Doughoregan Manor
boothy443 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: boothy443.
From 1766 to 1832, Doughoregan Manor was the country home of Charles Carroll of Carrollton, last surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence. He lies buried in the chapel attached to the north end of the mansion. "Doughoregan" was a family estate in Ireland.
Members of the Carroll family still own and live in the manor, which sits at the center of a thousand acre (4 km²) estate. Recently a family member observed, "Only God, the Indians and the Carrolls have owned this land." The estate and Manor Lane are closed to the public.

Great Barr Hall (St. Margaret's Hospital)
Ozzy (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Ozzy.
The hospital was used as part of the "Great Barr Idiot Colony" from 1918 until 1978.

Elm Tree House
skyeye (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: skyeye.
Elm Tree House was completed in 1928 for E. Parmelee Prentice and his wife Alta, the daughter of John D. Rockefeller. It is a 72-room brick and marble Georgian mansion, surrounded by formal gardens, that was designed by James Gamble Rogers. It is now owned by Williams College.
http://www.williams.edu/go/elmtreehouse/history.htm

Boughton House
mlc1us (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: mlc1us.
Northamptonshire home of the Dukes of Buccleuch and Queensberry

Leyendecker Mansion (former)
skyeye (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: skyeye.
The 19-room home of J. C. Leyendecker, well-known illustrator, is now a school.
http://www.mounttomdayschool.com/facilities-0

Palatial Waterfront Home
shale69 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: shale69.
This beautiful home sits on the tip of a peninsula.

Birkhall
Birkhall is a 53,000 acre (210 km²) estate on Royal Deeside, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is alongside the River Muick to the southwest of Ballater.
The property was acquired from the Gordon family (owners of the Abergeldie estate) by Prince Albert, consort to Queen Victoria. It became the Deeside home of Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, and later of Prince Charles, the Duke of Rothesay, who uses the estate as a private retreat and spent his second honeymoon here in 2005. A fine wire suspension bridge erected in 1880 by John Harper crosses the River Muick here.

2 Mega Mansions
shale69 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: shale69.
These two mega-mansions probably look like normal homes when you take a look at the front of them while driving, but when you take a look at the aerial views of them, it is a whole different story. Look at the houses around them to get an idea of the true size.
The first home measures in at a whopping 31,696 square feet and has 13 bedrooms and 13.6 bathrooms. It is owned by Dr. Ulysses Watkins, the founder of Family Care Medical Clinic. The second home measures in a mind numbing 60,000 square feet. It is also said to be owned by Dr. Ulysses Watkins as well. The home has a reported 20 bedrooms and a 13-car garage.

Drumthwacket
nic (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: nic.
The official residence of the Governor of New Jersey.

Bletchley Park
Parabellum (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Parabellum.

Terrace Hill
bbrock81 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: bbrock81.
The Iowa Governor's Mansion

Winterthur
rayearth (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: rayearth.
Winterthur, an American country estate, is the former home of Henry Francis du Pont (1880-1969), an avid antiques collector and horticulturist. In the early 20th century, H. F. du Pont and his father, Henry Algernon du Pont, designed Winterthur in the spirit of 18th- and19th-century European country houses.

Delnadamph Lodge
Delnadamph Lodge is on the Balmoral Estate about 8 miles north of the castle. It was gifted by The Queen to Charles and Diana on their marriage, but Diana found the home uninviting and was not interested in repairing it. The lodge was gutted in 1987, but twenty years later is being rebuilt as a 12 bedroom retreat for Charles and Camilla.
The Lodge will compliment Birkhall which Charles inherited from the Queen Mother. Delnadamph is about 12 miles away from Birkhall.

Chatsworth House
Chatsworth House is a large country house approx 3½ miles north east of Bakewell in Derbyshire, England, originally built by Bess of Hardwick.
Chatsworth is the seat of the Dukes of Devonshire, whose family name is Cavendish, from Cavendish, Suffolk. William Cavendish was Bess of Hardwick's second husband, the only one by whom she had issue.
Chatsworth stands on the left bank of the River Derwent and looks across the river to the low hills that divide the valleys of the Derwent and the Wye. The Park is expansive, and behind the house, hills fall backwards. Up and above and beyond are rocks and bracken and heather.
The house contains a unique collection of priceless paintings, furniture, European Old Master drawings, neoclassical sculpture and other artefacts. Chatsworth's garden is one of the most famous in England. Chatsworth has been selected as the United Kingdom's favourite country house several times.

Peggy Cooper Cafritz's Home (destroyed 8-12-09)
Parabellum (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Parabellum.
District firefighters battling the blaze that gutted an upper Northwest mansion Wednesday night had grave difficulties finding enough water to douse the flames, despite promises from city officials two years ago that the water problems that had plagued them at previous fires would be fixed.

Vizcaya Museum and Gardens
robsv (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: robsv.
Former winter residence (1916-1925) of American industrialist James Deering. It is a reproduction of an Italian Renaissance estate, and includes a large house and extensive gardens.

Estate of the family that inspired 'The Philadelphia Story'
The sprawling estate of the wealthy family that inspired "The Philadelphia Story" is up for sale.
Ardrossan, named after the Montgomery ancestral home in Ayrshire, Scotland, has been a retreat for the privileged for almost a century. Hope Montgomery Scott, the family head for most of that time, was the basis for Katharine Hepburn's character in the 1940 Oscar-winning movie, which also starred Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart.
Edgar "Eddie" Scott III, spokesman for the family, told The Philadelphia Inquirer for Sunday's editions that it was too early to talk about the price of the 360-acre estate, which he said would depend largely on what the buyer wanted to do with it.

Nemours
boothy443 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: boothy443.
The estate of Alfred I. duPont, names after Nemours, France, the ancestral home of Alfred's great-great-grandfather.

Waddesdon Manor
Hinkkanen (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Hinkkanen.
Country house of the Rothschild family

Pitts House
The 125 acres of Holwood Estate was owned during the 18th century by William Pit the younger. The new house seen here was built between 1823 and 1826 by Decimus Burton.

Villa Taj
This 45,000 square foot mansion is on the market for $25M.

Hall Barn
Site used in many movies and TV shows
"Jeeves and Wooster" (1990): Arrested in a Night Club Episode
"Sense and Sensibility" (2008)
Brief Encounter (1945)
...aka Noel Coward's Brief Encounter (1945)
Chariots of Fire (1981)
Gosford Park (2001)
...aka Gosford Park (2001)
Miss Austen Regrets (2008)
Penelope (2006)

Thatched House Lodge
Thatched House Lodge is a royal residence in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in London, England.
The main house has six reception rooms and six bedrooms, and it stands in four acres (16,000 m²) of grounds. The gardens include an eighteenth century two-room thatched summer house which gave the main house its name. Since 1963 Thatched House Lodge has been the residence of Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy. It was acquired by her late husband, Sir Angus Ogilvy, on a lease from Crown Estate Commissioners following their marriage.

Mansion in Sierra Leone
romulusnr (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: romulusnr.
This is a noticeably large mansion in Freetown, Sierra Leone, on Aberdeen Island. Could it be the presidential residence?

Cliveden
Hinkkanen (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Hinkkanen.
Victorian mansion and gardens overlooking river Thames with quite an interesting history (see the link below).

Ditchley
LancelotLink (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: LancelotLink.
Ditchley (Ditchley Park or Ditchley House) is a stately home situated about a mile north of the town of Charlbury in Oxfordshire. Winston Churchill used this house as a retreat during WWII due to the fact the estate's access road was not visible from the sky.

Pittock Mansion
scalpod (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: scalpod.

Designer Showhouse of NJ
This is the 2008 designer showhouse of New Jersey. It is located in Saddle River, NJ. It is being offered at $7,995,000 and contains 15,800 square feet of living space which includes a home theater and a two story closet.

Gosford House
The home of the Earls of Wemyss and March, this extensive mansion, designed by Robert Adam (1728-92), lies on Gosford Bay, 2 miles (3 km) north northeast of Longniddry.
Gosford House was begun in 1790 and completed in 1800, but has been much altered subsequently. The 8th Earl of Wemyss did not like the style of Adam's wings and had them demolished, leaving the house as the solitary main block until 1890 when new wings were built by architect William Young, considerably extending the house. Young also created the stunning Italianate marble hall in pink alabaster, employing Sir William Arrol (1839 - 1913) to create the steel-work to support the enormous central dome.
Sadly the house was struck by fire in 1940, while requisitioned by the military, which destroyed one of the large rooms in the central block and subsequent dry-rot resulted in a large part of the roof being removed. This was not replaced until the 1980s but the fire-damaged room remains abandoned and in need of restoration. Despite this, the 12th Earl of Wemyss made Gosford his primary residence in the early 1950s. The house contains a remarkable art collection, primarily due to the 10th Earl, who was a passionate and genuine collector who ignored the current fashion and bought what he actually liked. The collection includes works by Botticelli, Murillo and Rubens.
The surrounding estate includes classical stables, also by Adam, a mausoleum, ice house and on the north side two octagonal lodges lying either side of impressive gates.

Villa Genero
Effi (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Effi.

Childwickbury Kubrick Estate
diracsea (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: diracsea.
The estate of the late great American Film Director Stanley Kubrick.

Vincent Camuto's house (deceased)
Champion3 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Champion3.
Vincent Camuto was a footwear designer known for co-founding leading women's fashion brand, Nine West.
This home, the Villa Maria Estate, was built as a private residence in 1887. It later became a convent and spirituality center, before recently becoming a private residence once again. The building is considered a Long Island landmark.

Rideau Hall
rexlong (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: rexlong.
Official residence of the Governor General of Canada

Constitution Hill
Constitution Hill was built in 1897 for the financier J. P. Morgan. In recent years it has been subdivided into five condominium units.

Fondaco dei Turchi
The Fondaco dei Turchi, or (Venetian: Fontega dei Turchi), is a 13th century palazzo on the Grand Canal of Venice.
The palace was constructed in the first half of the 13th century by Giacomo Palmier, an exile from Pesaro. The Venetian Republic purchased it in 1381 for Niccolò II d'Este, the Marquess of Ferrara. During it's early history, the palazzo also served as a home to many visiting dignitaries.
From the seventeenth century until 1838, served as a one-building-ghetto for Venice's Ottoman Turkish population. The palace then served as a combination home, warehouse, and market for the Turkish traders.
A number of restrictions were placed on the palazzo and its residents, including restrictions on the times one was able to enter and leave the ghetto, as well as on trading. Among other things, Venetian Turks imported wax, oil, crude wool to the city.
When the Venetian Republic was abolished by Napoleon Boneparte in 1797, the Turkish traders continued to live in the palazzo until 1838.
From 1890 to 1923, the area was home the Museo Correr collection, which was moved to the Procuratie Nuove and Ala Napoleonica musems, at the Piazza San Marco, after 1923. Today, the area houses the Venetian Museum of Natural History, with historical collections of flora and fauna, fossils, and an aquarium.

Brooks Mansion
AlbinoFlea (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: AlbinoFlea.
Inscribed on the DC preservation League's List of Most Endangered Places for 1999.
From http://www.dcpreservation.org/endangered/1999/brooks.html:
The Brooks Mansion is a singular example of brick Greek Revival residential architecture in Washington, dating from the late 1830s. Built by Colonel Jehiel Brooks and his wife, Ann Margaret Queen, the mansion was the center of their 246-acre estate known as Bellair. In 1887, the property was sold and subdivided, creating the early railroad commuter suburb of Brookland. In 1891, the Marist Society purchased the property, by then reduced to two and a half acres, to house the Marist College. The Marist Society added a large east wing in 1894. The mansion was owned by various Catholic Orders and used for educational purposes until 1970, when it was sold to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which threatened to demolish the building for a Metro parking lot. The District of Columbia has owned Brooks Mansion since 1979, and the property has been unoccupied since 1997. The place was included on this year's list because it is currently unoccupied, and insensitive alterations and lack of maintenance threaten the original mansion's condition. The Landmarks Committee hopes that the D.C. government will find an appropriate tenant. It was listed on the D.C. Inventory and the National Register in 1975.

Alder Manor
Built as a country estate, this manor later served as a college for women. It now is used as a filming location and a wedding site.

Elvaston Castle Country Park
kaiken (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: kaiken.
Home of the Stanhope family (Earls of Harrington) until 1968

Lincoln's Cottage (formerly Anderson Cottage)
AlbinoFlea (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: AlbinoFlea.
From
Lincoln lived at the Soldiers' Home, in what is now called Lincoln Cottage, during our nation's most turbulent history, the Civil War. Not only was it a break from the hot, humid city, but also from the intense political pressures of being president. In fact, Lincoln spent one-fourth of his presidency at Soldiers' Home, and it is believed that Lincoln wrote the last draft of the Emancipation Proclamation. In 1865, Lincoln's wife, Mary, wrote to her friend Elizabeth Blair Lee, "How dearly I loved the Soldiers' Home." The historic Lincoln Cottage was constructed in 1842-43 as the home of George W. Riggs, who went on to establish the famous Riggs National Bank in Washington, D.C. In 1851, the Riggs home and farm land surrounding it was purchased by the government to form the core of what is today the AFRH-Washington.

Tamarisk
Tamarisk is the home of Charles, Prince of Wales on St Mary's, Isles of Scilly. Most of the rural portions of the Isles of Scilly are owned by the Duchy of Cornwall, although the main town was sold to its inhabitants by the royal family in 1949.

Myrtles Plantation
WacoKidd110 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: WacoKidd110.
Touted as "one of America's most haunted homes", the plantation is supposedly home of at least 12 ghosts. It is often reported that 10 murders occurred in the house, but historical records only indicate the murder of William Winter.[3] In 2001 or 2002, Unsolved Mysteries filmed one of the segments for the show. According to Robert Stack, the production crew experienced technical difficulties during the production of the segment.

Winthrop Estate
The Winthrop Estate was initially created as the summer retreat for Henri Braem, US Ambassador to Denmark for Abraham Lincoln.It is now available for private social functions.

Thorpe Hall Gardens

"Trayaddo"
"Trayaddo" was the home and laboratory of financier Alfred Lee Loomis, who covertly conducted research in Loomis Laboratories, leading to the development of radar.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuxedo_Park,_New_York

Addington Palace
DonMartini (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: DonMartini.
Addington Palace is a largely 18th-century Palace in Addington near Croydon, south London. It was a residence of six Archbishops of Canterbury.
The original Addington Palace was built in the 16th century away from the site of the earlier manor. Former Lord Mayor of London, Barlow Trecothick took the house over in the late 18th century and much redevelopment ensued, transforming it into a three-storey Palladian-style country mansion with single-storey wings and a splendid Great Hall, completed in 1778. The substantial grounds and gardens were landscaped by Lancelot "Capability" Brown.
An Act of Parliament in 1807 enabled the mansion to be purchased for the Archbishops of Canterbury, since nearby Croydon Palace had become inconvenient. It was renamed Addington Palace and further changes were made, much overseen by Richard Norman Shaw.

Ardgowan Estate
Ardgowan Estate is owned by the Shaw Stewart family and has been in the family for over 600 years. The house is set in the middle of 400 acres of beautiful parkland on the south shores of the Firth of Clyde and is home to Lady Shaw Stewart and her son Sir Ludovic, the 12th Baronet.
The lands of Ardgowan were given to John Stewart by his father King Robert 111 of Scotland on 5th may 1403. Robert 111 was Robert the Bruce’s great grandson and the estate has been passed down from father to son or uncle to nephew to the present day.
The first historical mention of the Castle of Ardgowan - the tower at the bottom of the garden - was in 1307. At that time the castle was an English garrison commanded by Sir Philip Mowbray. Following a battle with the Scots, Mowbray and his troops were defeated and fled into Ayrshire. There was a castle here in the days of Bruce but the present building is of a later date, probably the end of the 15th century.

Devizes Castle
Hinkkanen (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Hinkkanen.
A Norman castle was built in Devizes in 1080 by Osmund, Bishop of Salisbury. Because the castle was located on the boundaries of the manors of Rowde, Bishops Cannings and Potterne it became known as the castrum ad divisas or the castle at the boundaries, hence the name Devizes. The original castle was probably a wood and earth construction, but this burnt down in 1113 and was rebuilt in stone by Roger of Salisbury, Osmund’s successor. This castle changed hands several times during the civil war between Stephen of Blois and Matilda in the 12th century. The castle held several important prisoners at various times, including Robert of Normandy, eldest son of William the Conqueror in 1106. Robert was kept in Devizes for 20 years, before being moved to Cardiff. The castle was destroyed in 1648 on the orders of Parliament and today little remains of it. The current house on the site is from the 19th century.

Wightwick Manor
kaiken (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: kaiken.

Eltham Palace

Greystone Court
This 20-room mansion in the French-Provincial style staggers the mind.
http://greystonecourt.com/

Bretton Hall
Bretton Hall was designed and built around 1720 by its owner, Sir William Wentworth, assisted by James Moyser. In 1792 it passed into the Beaumont family, (latterly Barons and Viscounts Allendale), and the Library and Dining Room were remodelled by John Carr in 1793. A new wing by Sir Jeffry Wyattville was added in 1811-14, and monumental stables designed by George Basevi were built between 1842 and 1852. In 1949, the Hall became the site of Bretton Hall College, a teacher training college which merged with the University of Leeds in August 2001. In June 2006 it was announced that Bretton Hall was to be sold to Wakefield Council.

Tatton Park maze
Nasalhair (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Nasalhair.
Maze in the grounds of Tatton Park, Cheshire, UK.

Osborne House
Osborne House is a former royal residence in East Cowes, Isle of Wight, UK. The house was built between 1845 and 1851 for Queen Victoria and Prince Albert as a summer home and rural retreat.
Prince Albert designed the house himself in the style of an Italian Renaissance palazzo. The builder was Thomas Cubitt, the London architect and builder whose company built the main façade of Buckingham Palace for the royal couple in 1847. An earlier smaller house on the site was demolished to make way for a new and far larger house.
Following Queen Victoria's death, the house became surplus to royal requirements and was given to the state with a few rooms retained as a private royal museum dedicated to Queen Victoria. From 1903 until 1921 it was used as a junior officer training college for the Royal Navy known as the Royal Naval College, Osborne. Today it is fully open to the public.

Ballynahinch Castle
kuressaare (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: kuressaare.
Ballynahinch Castle, one of several castle manors established by the infamous "Ferocious O'Flaherty" clan, was home to "The Pirate Queen of Connemara", Grace O'Malley, who married Donal O'Flaherty in 1546. After Donal died in a feud with the neighboring clan, Grace returned to her childhood home at Clew Bay, leaving the Ballynahinch estate to be inherited by her son Owen. Queen Elizabeth's lackey, Sir Richard Bingham, was later appointed govenor of Connaught and began vicious attacks against Irish rebels. His onslaught included an attack on Ballynahinch in which Owen was murdered.
The castle as it stands today has been built and rebuilt and renovated many times over the centuries, but still retains its charm in a beautiful setting along a river that flows from Lough Ballynahinch to Galway Bay. Patrick O'Flaherty, a many-generation descendent of Grace and Donal, still manages the castle and surrounding estate.
Within the castle is a hotel, fine restaurant, and pub that are open to the public. Numerous hiking trails abound on the grounds.
In order to log this site, please send answers to the following question: in the castle is a portrait of Grace O'Malley shown at the height of her pirating years. In what room is this portrait located?

Charlton House

Dorsey Mansion
focusfree (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: focusfree.
Victorian mansion built by Senator Stephen W. Dorsey on the high plains of New Mexico.

Dungeness
smitgx1 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: smitgx1.
Dungeness, the ruins of Andrew Carnegie's winter home on Cumberland Island, Georgia. The mansion, built in 1885, was destroyed by fire in 1959.

Holkham Hall and Estate
HOLKHAM HALL, home of the Coke family and the Earls of Leicester, was built between 1734 and 1764 by Thomas Coke, the first Earl of Leicester.
This Palladian style mansion reflects Thomas Coke's appreciation of classical art developed during his six-year-long Grand Tour of Europe. By the time he returned to Norfolk in 1718, Thomas had bought many valuable and unique manuscripts and printed books, along with many great works of art and statuary.
During his time in Rome, Thomas had met briefly with Lord Burlington and his protégé, William Kent; and their enthusiasm and imagination led to the conception of Holkham Hall as you see it today.
The Coke family has lived at Holkham since 1609, when the founder of the family fortune, Sir Edward Coke, purchased the manor of Neals. Thomas lived here with his parents, until their death in 1707, in the Elizabethan manor house known as Hill Hall. However, after returning from his Grand Tour, Thomas employed the architect Matthew Brettingham to oversee the work of interpreting and implementing the designs for the new house drawn up by Kent and himself.
In 1734, the first foundations were dug, and 30 years later the house was completed. Unfortunately, Thomas died in 1759 and never saw his great dream fulfilled. The task of finishing and furnishing the house fell to his widow Lady Margaret Tufton, a formidable woman, who ruled Holkham with firmness and great attention to detail for the next 17 years.
As Lady Margaret and Thomas's only child, Edward, died in 1753, the house on which the couple had spent so much time, effort and money,, eventually passed to the next male in line, Wenman Roberts. Wenman - who changed his name to Coke - lived for only 12 months after he inherited Holkham, and so his son, Thomas William Coke, soon became the master of the estate. A politician and avid agriculturist, he became known as 'Coke of Norfolk'. A great self-publicist, with an enormous energy and charm, Coke was a Member of Parliament for 53 years.
The house today is little altered from the first Earl's original ideal. During the 1850s, the second Earl added the vestibule on the north side of the house, the stables, offices, orangery and buildings to the east, and the terraced gardens to the south.
Holkham is not a museum. As well as the seventh Earl and his family, three other families live here throughout the year. Although the house is closed to the public in the winter, it is never empty or idle. Its library, statues, paintings and furniture are a major source for academic research. Holkham has loaned paintings, furniture and manuscripts to galleries and museums in Italy, Germany, England, Japan and America. In 1999, Holkham artefacts were featured in 14 major exhibitions.
Holkham Hall is a member of the Historic Houses Association. Formed in 1973, the HHA exists to provide practical advice and professional services to private owners, and to represent them in their effort to preserve this vital part of our heritage in the interest of the nation. The present Earl of Leicester is the vice patron of the HHA.

Christchurch Mansion

Farnborough Hill
The house was originally built by publisher Thomas Longman but its most famous resident was the exiled Empress Eugénie, widow of Emperor Napoleon III of France. She lived here from 1880 to 1920. The house has been girls school since 1927 with additional buildings designed by Adrian Gilbert Scott.

Wotton House
Home of Grenvilles and the Dukes of Buckingham

Joye Cottage
forthefallendrms (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: forthefallendrms.
Joye Cottage, the greater portion of which dates from 1897, is a rambling weatherboard Georgian Revival residence, consisting of a central block with four radiating wings. Joye Cottage is one of the oldest and largest of Aiken’s winter retreats for the wealthy. It is also important as a relatively intact example of the architecture expressive of the lavish scale of living practiced in Aiken’s Winter Colony. The cottage building represents the extensive remodeling of an existing building done ca. 1897 by New York architect George A. Freeman for William C. Whitney. The property includes Joye Cottage, the centrally located home on the map, Whitney stable in the upper left hand corner, and the 2-story Whitney Squash Court House in the lower right hand corner of the map.

Lambeth Palace
DonMartini (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: DonMartini.
Lambeth Palace is the official London residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury, located in Lambeth, on the south bank of the River Thames a short distance upstream of the Palace of Westminster. It was acquired by the archbishop around 1200. It is perhaps best known today as the site of the decennial Lambeth Conferences of top Anglican bishops.

Rowan Oak
big_daddy_beaux (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: big_daddy_beaux.
Home of William Faulkner

Cranbury Park
LancelotLink (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: LancelotLink.
Cranbury Park is a stately home and country estate situated in the parish of Hursley, near Winchester, England. It was formerly the home to Sir Isaac Newton.

Jesup Blair House
AlbinoFlea (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: AlbinoFlea.
From
Jesup-Blair Local Park, located on 14.46 acres, serves as a green gateway into Silver Spring at the Washington, DC line. It is the environmental setting for the historic Jesup Blair House, which was built circa 1850. Jesup Blair house, originally known as “The Moorings,�? was constructed as a summer residence for the Blair family. Violet Blair Janin willed the property to the people of Maryland in 1933 for use as a public park. Due to the historic setting and the many mature trees, notably majestic oaks, members of the community have had a keen interest in this park.

Heart shaped Palace
muntasir0 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: muntasir0.

Blake Hall
Blake Hall is a country house and gardens near Chipping Ongar in Essex.
The house is based around an original fabric dating from the 17th century or older, but was largely rebuilt in the 18th century and later remodelled by George Basevi in 1822. It was home of the Capel Cure family for over 200 years.
After the operations centre at nearby RAF North Weald for Sector E, No. 11 Group RAF was bombed by the Luftwaffe in September 1940 during the Battle of Britain, a new ops room was built in the house.
The Grade II* listed building is now set at the heart of its own conservation area. It is available to hire for weddings and civil ceremonies.
Blake Hall station, now closed, was named after the hall though it was about a mile to the south-west.

Creech Grange Arch Folly
k9ine (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: k9ine.
Built around 1745 by Mr Denis Bond at Creech Grange Dorset.
This 'eyecatcher' was built to be viewed from Creech Grange House further down the hill.

Barnwell Manor
Barnwell Manor is the historic former home of the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester. It is located by the village of Barnwell, near Oundle, Northamptonshire in England.

Sheffield Town Hall
Sheffield Town Hall is a building in the City of Sheffield, England. The building is used by the City Council, and also contains a publicly displayed collection of silverware. The current building, Sheffield's fourth town hall, is located on Pinstone Street. It was designed by the London-based architect E. W. Mountford and constructed over a seven year period from 1890 to 1897, opening on 21 May 1897. An extension designed by F. E. P. Edwards was completed in 1923.
The design echoed to a certain extent the architecture of the adjacent St. Paul's Church of 1720 (now demolished). The exterior is built of "Stoke" stone from the Stoke Hall Quarry in Grindleford, Derbyshire and is decorated with carvings by F. W. Pomeroy. The friezes depict the industries of Sheffield, and the 64 metre high clock-tower is surmounted by a statue of Vulcan. During construction, the building was criticised for its expensive embellishments.
The building was opened by Queen Victoria, using a remote control lock from her carriage. The turning of the key in the lock triggered a light in the building which was the signal for three concealed men to open the gates.

Château du Fay

Burley-on-the-Hill

Tudor Place
From http://www.tudorplace.org/:
Tudor Place Historic House and Garden, completed in 1816 by Thomas Peter and his wife Martha Custis Peter, granddaughter of Martha Washington, was designed by Dr. William Thornton, the first architect of the U.S. Capitol. The elegant neoclassical house was the home of six generations of the Peter family and is now a National Historic Landmark located in the heart of Georgetown's Historic District. The house museum and historic garden are open to the public under the stewardship of the Tudor Place Foundation.

On The Circuit at Goodwood
Parabellum (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Parabellum.
Lots to see here. Goodwood has a historic race track, an airport, and a manor house.

Lyme Hall
Lyme Park is an estate and park near Disley, in the county of Cheshire, England. The principal feature of the park is Lyme Hall, an Elizabethan manor house resembling an Italianate palazzo.
Lyme Hall was used as the location for "Pemberley", the home of Mr. Darcy, in the 1995 BBC adaptation of Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice.

Fonthill (house)
Fonthill was the home of the American archeologist and tile maker Henry Chapman Mercer, in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. Built between 1908 and 1912, it is an early example of poured-in-place concrete and features 44 rooms, over 200 windows, 18 fireplaces and 10 bathrooms. The interior was originally painted in various pastel colors, but age and sunlight have all but eradicated any hint of the former hues. It contains much built-in furniture and is embellished with decorative tiles that Mercer made at the height of the Arts and Crafts movement. It is filled with an extensive collection of ceramics embedded in the concrete of the house, as well as other artifacts from his world travels, including cuneiform tablets discovered in Mesopotamia dating back to over 2,300 B.C.E. The home also contains around 1,000 prints from Mercer's extensive collection, as well as over six thousand books, almost all of which were annotated by Mercer himself.

Ashridge Estate
LancelotLink (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: LancelotLink.
In mediæval times it was the location of an Ashridge Priory founded in 1283 by Edmund, 2nd Earl of Cornwall, who had a palace here. In 1604 the estate became the property of the Thomas Egerton.

Holt House
Inscribed on the DC Preservation League's List of Endangered Places 2005.
From www.dcpreservation.org:
Built about 1810 by owner George Johnson, the property known today as Holt House was one of more than a dozen large country estates built on the high grounds of Rock Creek, within the boundaries of an old land grant known as “Pretty Prospects.” Today, Holt House is one of the few that remain, and the last east of Rock Creek.
The residents of this rare surviving example of a five-part federal-era residence comprise a “who’s who” of Washington, DC’s diverse populace, including early entrepreneurs, presidential advisors, enslaved African Americans, farmers and scientists.
Dr. Henry C. Holt, a former US Army assistant surgeon, purchased the house in 1844 and sold it to the newly created National Zoo in 1889.
The Zoo renovated it for use as administrative offices. In helping plan the zoological park, Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. advised the park’s planners to look to the graceful architecture of Holt House as a source of inspiration.