More like a palace than a mansion. Just stunning. Thanks Ken for an amazing look into W Whitney's home. Just stunning. Even in this day and age, the rich and extremely wealthy build their homes to their imaginational images of their childhood dreams of how their homes should look. I'm glad they could afford it. Just such a shame their building, where dreams were made are now gone, and are probably now a parking lot. So glad in the United Kingdom buildings of a certain age are safeguarded. I wish you could do a British version of your show, but I'm glad that most of our buildings have been 'listed or protected. Ken, you're awesome. Thanks Matt xx
Some very intriguing details about Whitney's life that you glossed over. You've definitely piqued my interest...seems like I'm going to have to go do some research. I have a feeling I'm going to find more than a few salacious skeletons in his closet.
Such a sad history of this very beautiful home . You don't see home this grand built today. If they are lucky enough to survive people have taken the time to restore them thankfully.
The bulk of Whitney's fortune came from the street railways of NYC in partnership with Thomas Fortune Ryan and Peter A.B. Widener (builder of Lynnewood Hall in PA). His original house was on the corner of 5th Ave and w 57th St., and was given to Harry and Gertrude Vanderbilt. Oliver Payne made Whitney's children choose between their father or their mother's brother (himself). The oldest and youngest (Harry and Dorothy) chose their father and inherited his $40 million fortune. The middle 2 (Payne and Pauline) chose their uncle and inherited his $190 million (minus bequests to other relatives. Whitney was the grandfather of actress Beatrice Straight (Dorothy's daughter). Excellent video.
I believe the Whitney's were also neighbors with Charles Contoit at 728 5th Ave. We have his bedroom suite by Pottier & Stymus on display in the primary bedroom of Heidelberg Hall mansion here in Schaefferstown PA. If you're interested in more prominent Gilded Age family collections, we have one of the largest private collection of American 19th century furniture on display open to the public on Saturdays and by appointment.
I’m not exactly sure which is more interesting… the houses themselves or the intriguing individuals who built them (commissioned their construction). Both… I suppose. Thanks for the video.
"...bulldozed, without removing the remaining architectural salvage." You say things like this and it just kills me loI. I always wonder about demolition crews, like, do they maybe at least pick through stuff before they fire up their bulldozers? Even in this case, there had to be some treasures left.
I have done demolition labor in the past. (Some total, some just interior gutting). No grand mansions, But ordinary but old houses. I was able to keep plenty of 1910's-30's light fixtures, door hardware as few stained/leaded windows... No one cared about the "junk" that ended up in my pick-up. Some of it I restored and sold to people who wanted the "real" deal. A few of the light fixtures are STILL in use in my own house today. It's not just the mansions that have charm and character. Some of the stuff that likely came from Sears 100 years ago has its place in history. I at least was able to save some of it. (Too old to do that kind of labor today.)
Not only do they all look the same, especially when a developer creates a neighbourhood of hundreds, or even thousands, of houses that are practically identical, and completely without personality. Newer houses are so depressing...the rooms are just a series of bland white boxes, with no architectural features to give them any character.
Interesting, particularly to me was the obtaining all the architectural items from other countries. I assume a certain part of that was for the bragging rights, but it's still interesting on the Roman columns and palace entry doors. Woodwork, stone work, metal, brick can be intricate to basic and still be beautiful and maybe even more so when people appreciate that work enough to import it, use it and save it. I would have loved to have seen more of the house.
At least they had the foresight to remove architectural elements in advance. In so many of these palaces, the antique panelling, ancient columns, and rare wood mouldings were destroyed with the rest of the house.
William Whitney, his friends, and his mistresses were very shady! They didn't deserve the money they had! Most of these wealthy people from the Gilded Age were shady!
It really is amazing how many people get so-called antiques from old European castles where the people that on the castles no longer have any money I need to sell off all their possessions.When you think about it many of these homes are haunted because of the terrible circumstances in which they acquired a lot of their antiques
A lot of these castles and homes that were gutted in Europe, underwent the same renovations and rebuilding like the subject in the video. Nobles in Europe were also as liable to expand and renovate their properties; in fact, when you visit a lot of pre-unification buildings in Italy, though the bones and the structure may be from the Middle Ages, you’ll find progressive waves of art styles that usually match-up with renovations, additions, repairs, or changes in ownership. Fixtures, frescos, statues, porticos, fireplaces, fountains; everything that was replaced or removed could be sold, and the new-rich of both Britain and America absolutely fueled that market. It’s still quite a market today; one can still purchase architectural salvage from really old buildings in cities like Rome, Naples, or Genoa. Some stuff even ends up at Christie’s after they do those kinds of renovations 😮
@@roostercogburn7243 , Like F.W. Woolworth, grandfather to Barbara Hutton, who had many husbands, including Cary Grant. When Cary was married to Barbara, the term, 'Cash and Cary' were coined', no pun intended....... Mr Woolworth had occult symbols all over the mansion that he had built, once his Woolworth stores became successful. Many deaths associated with that house, supposedly. I believe a huge portion of these super wealthy, today and in the bygone days, sold their souls to the devil to amass their fortunes......Creepy. .....The material gain is never worth it......
I enjoy your series - much. But I think it is inaccurate to say this house “was lost to progress.” Change yes, but not progress. All change is not progress.
Takes priceless roman artifacts and a wrought iron gate of the Doria family, of such magnificence that no one in boring America could even begin to create and some oaf just trashes the entire thing, all the while probably chomping on a cheap cigar and with $$$signs for brains.
Also, touching on NYC high society, how familiar where all the wealthy people of the day were well know to one another. The Vanderbilt's and Whitney's for example, were they 'new or old money' and much of an influence would either have on the running of NYC?
The ballroom ❤❤❤❤❤❤ and entrance……….We come this world not the stay so we never forgot that , everything we do ,we are responsible to God ….no one answer for anybody ………
Ahhh by-gone era! Love to see these jewels, those that still stand, and close my eyes to savor a bit of their enchanting time. What intrigues me the most, is the people that lived in those mansions, they had goals and dreams: in the case of the Navy Mansion it seems to me tragedy followed. Would I like to live in a mansion like that? no. I like Manse Mansion better, so I agree with Gertrude. Sad ending to this mansion, sign of the times.
If only our modern day robber barons had the good taste to build homes of this beauty, instead of different sized boxes just piled on top of each other and calling them mansions. Then again finding master craftsman stone masons, wood carpenters & iron workers are almost impossible to find nowadays. Hand skills lost to the ages, replaced by cookie cutter machines to churn out bland crap, faux plastic in some instances. Look no further than those foul apartments built on the site of the previous mansion.
I WILL NEVER UNDERSTAND HOW THE CITY GOV. COULDN'T PURCHASE THE GORGEOUS BUILDING AND MADE IT INTO A MUSEUM. BUILDINGS LIKE THIS SHOULD BE SAVED. THEY ARE GORGEOUS AND FULL OF HISTORY. IT IS SAD.
More like a palace than a mansion. Just stunning.
Thanks Ken for an amazing look into W Whitney's home. Just stunning.
Even in this day and age, the rich and extremely wealthy build their homes to their imaginational images of their childhood dreams of how their homes should look. I'm glad they could afford it.
Just such a shame their building, where dreams were made are now gone, and are probably now a parking lot.
So glad in the United Kingdom buildings of a certain age are safeguarded. I wish you could do a British version of your show, but I'm glad that most of our buildings have been 'listed or protected.
Ken, you're awesome.
Thanks Matt xx
Some very intriguing details about Whitney's life that you glossed over. You've definitely piqued my interest...seems like I'm going to have to go do some research. I have a feeling I'm going to find more than a few salacious skeletons in his closet.
I believe the MET has a fireplace mantle from this home on display. It was magnificent.
The ballroom is stunning & my favorite room. At least some of the architectural elements were saved!!! 👍👍
Such a sad history of this very beautiful home . You don't see home this grand built today. If they are lucky enough to survive people have taken the time to restore them thankfully.
I love all of the gilded antique furnishings and rooms
The bulk of Whitney's fortune came from the street railways of NYC in partnership with Thomas Fortune Ryan and Peter A.B. Widener (builder of Lynnewood Hall in PA). His original house was on the corner of 5th Ave and w 57th St., and was given to Harry and Gertrude Vanderbilt. Oliver Payne made Whitney's children choose between their father or their mother's brother (himself). The oldest and youngest (Harry and Dorothy) chose their father and inherited his $40 million fortune. The middle 2 (Payne and Pauline) chose their uncle and inherited his $190 million (minus bequests to other relatives. Whitney was the grandfather of actress Beatrice Straight (Dorothy's daughter). Excellent video.
I believe the Whitney's were also neighbors with Charles Contoit at 728 5th Ave. We have his bedroom suite by Pottier & Stymus on display in the primary bedroom of Heidelberg Hall mansion here in Schaefferstown PA. If you're interested in more prominent Gilded Age family collections, we have one of the largest private collection of American 19th century furniture on display open to the public on Saturdays and by appointment.
@@bellthandian Heidelberg Hall looks like it would make an excellent video for this series.
The ballroom was ONE of my favorites. Sad that it was torn down. Progress isn't always progress.
I’m not exactly sure which is more interesting… the houses themselves or the intriguing individuals who built them (commissioned their construction). Both… I suppose. Thanks for the video.
"...bulldozed, without removing the remaining architectural salvage." You say things like this and it just kills me loI. I always wonder about demolition crews, like, do they maybe at least pick through stuff before they fire up their bulldozers? Even in this case, there had to be some treasures left.
I have done demolition labor in the past. (Some total, some just interior gutting). No grand mansions, But ordinary but old houses. I was able to keep plenty of 1910's-30's light fixtures, door hardware as few stained/leaded windows... No one cared about the "junk" that ended up in my pick-up. Some of it I restored and sold to people who wanted the "real" deal. A few of the light fixtures are STILL in use in my own house today. It's not just the mansions that have charm and character. Some of the stuff that likely came from Sears 100 years ago has its place in history. I at least was able to save some of it. (Too old to do that kind of labor today.)
Great story! Thx
I love all of these videos of the guilded Age Mansions, Thanks
I really wish we still built homes like this, the architecture was amazing! Now every house looks the same, it’s sad.
Not only do they all look the same, especially when a developer creates a neighbourhood of hundreds, or even thousands, of houses that are practically identical, and completely without personality. Newer houses are so depressing...the rooms are just a series of bland white boxes, with no architectural features to give them any character.
@@Terri_MacKay all that and the ones of today will be long gone in under 75 years they are so poorly made
& fall apart in no time ❤️🩹
Interesting...every single mansion you have highlighted seem to all have the same interiors. Can anyone tell one home from another?
Interesting, particularly to me was the obtaining all the architectural items from other countries. I assume a certain part of that was for the bragging rights, but it's still interesting on the Roman columns and palace entry doors. Woodwork, stone work, metal, brick can be intricate to basic and still be beautiful and maybe even more so when people appreciate that work enough to import it, use it and save it. I would have loved to have seen more of the house.
At least they had the foresight to remove architectural elements in advance. In so many of these palaces, the antique panelling, ancient columns, and rare wood mouldings were destroyed with the rest of the house.
His first wife died “mysteriously.”😮
she didn't die mysteriously 😂, her children was all there, none said nothing
William Whitney, his friends, and his mistresses were very shady! They didn't deserve the money they had! Most of these wealthy people from the Gilded Age were shady!
Pls do more new videos on historical mansions from the United States and Europe
Should do a video about the singer tower that was torn down
Probably cost as much or less to build the apartment building(inflation adjusted) as it did to build the house.
54,000 SF is the size of a small department store, like Nordstrom.
It really is amazing how many people get so-called antiques from old European castles where the people that on the castles no longer have any money I need to sell off all their possessions.When you think about it many of these homes are haunted because of the terrible circumstances in which they acquired a lot of their antiques
A lot of these castles and homes that were gutted in Europe, underwent the same renovations and rebuilding like the subject in the video.
Nobles in Europe were also as liable to expand and renovate their properties; in fact, when you visit a lot of pre-unification buildings in Italy, though the bones and the structure may be from the Middle Ages, you’ll find progressive waves of art styles that usually match-up with renovations, additions, repairs, or changes in ownership. Fixtures, frescos, statues, porticos, fireplaces, fountains; everything that was replaced or removed could be sold, and the new-rich of both Britain and America absolutely fueled that market. It’s still quite a market today; one can still purchase architectural salvage from really old buildings in cities like Rome, Naples, or Genoa. Some stuff even ends up at Christie’s after they do those kinds of renovations 😮
The very beginning tells you the truth of this 322.
@@roostercogburn7243 Like it was some fun fraternity or something .
Please
@@roostercogburn7243 ,
Like F.W. Woolworth, grandfather to Barbara Hutton, who had many husbands, including Cary Grant. When Cary was married to Barbara, the term, 'Cash and Cary' were coined', no pun intended.......
Mr Woolworth had occult symbols all over the mansion that he had built, once his Woolworth stores became successful. Many deaths associated with that house, supposedly.
I believe a huge portion of these super wealthy, today and in the bygone days, sold their souls to the devil to amass their fortunes......Creepy. .....The material gain is never worth it......
@@bethelle9099 Yeah, you may be right.
At least not all of the interiors were lost. A real shame that the beautiful house was lost instead of being repurposed. Again, New York`s loss.
The last buyer bulldozed the house with all the contents still inside !! Incredible.
make billions from government kickbacks. now that is a real robber baron.
Well, he was a skull and bone loser.
Several suspicious deaths associated with this one.
I wonder if it was haunted?
In this world it's not what you know but who you know.
It’s videos like this that redeems youtube for all the junk and the bad taste stuff…. Thanks for sharing.
From what I see, the "ballroom" here doesn't even compare to the ballroom that is at 55 Wall Street, which is now part of Cipriani.
I enjoy your series - much. But I think it is inaccurate to say this house “was lost to progress.” Change yes, but not progress. All change is not progress.
Takes priceless roman artifacts and a wrought iron gate of the Doria family, of such magnificence that no one in boring America could even begin to create and some oaf just trashes the entire thing, all the while probably chomping on a cheap cigar and with $$$signs for brains.
America at that this time had incredible artists that created amazing interiors. So much sculpture is purely American sculptors
Also, touching on NYC high society, how familiar where all the wealthy people of the day were well know to one another. The Vanderbilt's and Whitney's for example, were they 'new or old money' and much of an influence would either have on the running of NYC?
what i got " your heirs will sell off everything, just to get the money"
What were they thinking...not to salvage all the expensive architectural designs of the day for historical purposes.
Not lost to progress, rather to stupidity
Hate whats there now...but the mansion wasn't my style with the huge fireplaces and marble stairs
The ballroom ❤❤❤❤❤❤ and entrance……….We come this world not the stay so we never forgot that , everything we do ,we are responsible to God ….no one answer for anybody ………
Interesting: The father of the modern Navy but no mention of Bancroft Hall at Annapolis? Hmmmmmmm. Oh well.
Ahhh by-gone era! Love to see these jewels, those that still stand, and close my eyes to savor a bit of their enchanting time. What intrigues me the most, is the people that lived in those mansions, they had goals and dreams: in the case of the Navy Mansion it seems to me tragedy followed. Would I like to live in a mansion like that? no. I like Manse Mansion better, so I agree with Gertrude. Sad ending to this mansion, sign of the times.
322 Skull and Bones, says it all…
If only our modern day robber barons had the good taste to build homes of this beauty, instead of different sized boxes just piled on top of each other and calling them mansions. Then again finding master craftsman stone masons, wood carpenters & iron workers are almost impossible to find nowadays. Hand skills lost to the ages, replaced by cookie cutter machines to churn out bland crap, faux plastic in some instances. Look no further than those foul apartments built on the site of the previous mansion.
I WILL NEVER UNDERSTAND HOW THE CITY GOV. COULDN'T PURCHASE THE GORGEOUS BUILDING AND MADE IT INTO A MUSEUM. BUILDINGS LIKE THIS SHOULD BE SAVED. THEY ARE GORGEOUS AND FULL OF HISTORY. IT IS SAD.
Please, don’t talk so loud.
👍👍👍😎
Those mansions of the golden age, were mainly “eyesores” and glad that they were torn down
🙄👎👎🏿🤡💩🤓
Your title is misleading
😊