Newport, RI

Posted by Admin Monday, 4 February 2008
The Elms
In my last post about Newport, RI, I want to talk a little bit about my favorite house there which was not even designed by R.M.H.!! I'm talking about 'the ELMS' - a truly elegant estate. Built from 1899-1901 by the coal baron, Edwin Berwind, the mansion cost ONLY 1.5 Million ( compared to marble house and the breakers, it was a steal! ) and was designed by the prominent architect Horace Trumbauer ( what an unfortunate name ).the rear facade of the Elms

Now, it's not facing the ocean nor is it on a very private lot in a quiet part of town like many of the mansions. The elms is right off the secondary main street in the middle of town! However, it has the most open feeling of any of the mansions due to it's siting. Because of it's more-urban-than-most location, the 'cottage' is built nearly right on the street.
front facade and detail of statue

This leaves the yard in the back to be totally free and open creating a huge open lawn.
the fountain in the middle of the huge back lawn

At the rear of the lawn is a beautiful architectural garden with fountains, beautiful tea pavilions and a caretaker's cottage / carriage house seen below( when I was there a party was getting started! I was so jealous I wasn't invited! ).

The funny thing is, I actually took clippings from an architectural magazine of these same gardens when I was probably about 10 years old ( yes I started my clipping file at age 10 -I was a freakish boy ) not knowing what it was and I still have these same clippings!
here I am in front of one of the beautiful tea pavilions

Adding to the scenic estate was the fog that was drifting in at the end of the day -very romantic :-)
a bizarre lactating fountain - ew!

To end my Newport Posts, I thought I'd include this photo of this unusual house built on a rock in the middle of the bay about 100 years ago. Talk about a postage stamp lot! This house was recently restored and is owned by a local Newport Architect - the only way to his house is by boat! Forget pizza delivery!!

I hope you enjoyed your virtual trip to Newport, RI as much as I enjoyed sharing it with you!