Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site
Hyde Park, N.Y.
Visited: March 27, 2004
NPS Site Visited: 9 of 353
Second Visit: Sometime Soon
NPS Website
The Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site was among our first site visits. The day we arrived, tours of the mansion were free!
Unfortunately, they were free because the Mansion’s boiler had started spewing black soot throughout the house. Walls, furniture and antiques were draped with heavy cloth to minimize damage. The free tour would have been a tour of shrouded objects and narrative filled with adjectives attempting to describe the hidden treasures.
We decided to give our imaginations a rest and spend the day like everyone else, relaxing and picnicking on the grassy lawn, watching the Hudson River flow and strolling through the Italian Garden. There were a lot of people here!
Our memories of Vanderbilt Mansion NHS resemble a busy city park more so than a static piece of preserved history. The Mansion serves as a backdrop for events throughout the year, like outdoor concerts and performances in the summer and photography workshops in the fall. We hope that this Site is as lively the second time around. Another visit is scheduled for summer 2007.
|