Bartow–Pell Mansion facts for kids

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Bartow–Pell Mansion and Carriage House
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. National Historic Landmark


Location in New York City
Location	895 Shore Road North, Pelham Bay Park, Bronx, New York
Built	1836
Architectural style	Greek Revival
NRHP reference No.	74001220
Added to NRHP	December 30, 1974
Designated NHL	December 8, 1976

The Bartow–Pell Mansion is a historic house museum in Pelham Bay Park in the Bronx, New York. It's a two-story building designed in the mid-1800s. The mansion looks like a Greek Revival building from the outside. Inside, it has Federal style rooms. It is the last old manor house left in the Pelham Bay Park area. The mansion sits on about 9 acres of land. This land includes a three-story carriage house, pretty gardens, and a small burial spot for the Pell family. The gardens look out over Long Island Sound.

The land was first bought by Thomas Pell from the native Siwanoy people in 1654. The Pell family built two earlier homes here in 1675 and 1790. Robert Bartow, a relative of the Pells, built the current house between 1836 and 1842. The Bartow and Pell families owned the house until 1888. Then, the government of New York City bought it. The house was empty until 1914. That year, the International Garden Club (IGC) leased it. The IGC, started by Zelia Hoffman and Alice Martineau, made it their clubhouse in 1915. Mayor Fiorello La Guardia used the mansion as his summer home in 1936. In May 1946, the IGC opened part of the house as a museum. The mansion's carriage house was fixed up between 1987 and 1993.

The house faces north and south, with extra parts on each side. It has stone walls, balconies, and big windows. Inside, the first floor has a central hall with a round staircase. It also has two parlors, a sitting room, and a small dining room. The second floor has bedrooms. The basement was used for storing wine. The carriage house used to hold a stable hand's home, vehicles, and hay. Since 1993, it has been used for exhibits and learning. Some furniture inside includes a desk that belonged to Aaron Burr and a special bed by Charles-Honoré Lannuier. The mansion's outside, inside, and gardens are protected as a New York City designated landmark and a National Historic Landmark.

Exploring the Mansion's Location

The Bartow–Pell Mansion is in the northern part of Pelham Bay Park in the Bronx, New York City. Its address is 895 Shore Road. But you can only reach it by a 200-yard driveway off Shore Road. There is a parking lot in front of the house. In the mid-1900s, Rhododendrons and lilacs were planted along the driveway.

The Bartow-Pell Woods and Pelham Bay Park's lagoon are to the east. The Pelham Golf Course is to the northwest. Orchard Beach is across the lagoon. A walking path called the Siwanoy Trail goes around the estate. The closest subway station is the Pelham Bay Park station. The Bee-Line Bus's 45 route also stops near the estate.

Gardens and Grounds

The mansion and its garden cover about 9 acres of Pelham Bay Park. To the northeast of the mansion is its carriage house. East of the mansion is a beautiful terraced garden. This garden slopes down towards the lagoon and Long Island Sound. The garden has several levels. In the middle is a square fountain. Steps are on either side of the fountain. In spring and fall, roses and tulips grew around the fountain. Other parts of the garden had petunias, yew trees, dahlias, zinnias, asters, and chrysanthemums.

A 7-foot-tall stone wall surrounds the garden. This wall was made from local stone and covered with wisteria vines. There are iron gates in the wall. An iron fence is above the wall on the east side. East of the fence was a lawn overlooking the water. The Mary Ludington Herb Garden is next to the terraced garden.

Pell Family Burial Plot

Just south of the mansion was a tree called Treaty Oak. In 1654, the Siwanoy chief Wampage and English colonist Thomas Pell signed a treaty under this tree. Pell bought all the land east of the Bronx River. This land was then in Westchester County, New York. The oak tree was destroyed in 1906 and replanted in 1915.

About 100 yards south of the house is a burial plot for the Pell family. This plot has gravestones from 1748 to 1790. Four granite posts with pelican designs surround the plot. Pelicans are a symbol from the Pell family's coat of arms. A path lined with chestnut trees connects the house to the burial plot and Long Island Sound.

History of the Mansion

In 1654, Thomas Pell bought about 50,000 acres from the Siwanoy people. This land included what is now Pelham Bay Park and the town of Pelham, New York. Pell made his estate on 9,188 acres of this land. Pell's land became known as Pelham Manor in 1666. In the 1600s and 1700s, many important families built homes in Pelham Manor. These included the Bartow and Pell families. By the 1700s, some Pell family members had married Bartow family members.

Thomas's nephew, John Pell, built a house near Long Island Sound around 1675. This house was in an English style. It was made of Holland brick. This first house was used by three of Pelham Manor's lords before it burned down in the American Revolutionary War.

The second house was built around 1790. John Bartow and his wife, Ann Pell Bartow, lived there. This second house might have used the foundation of John Pell's first house. It was common to reuse foundations back then. The Bartows sold the estate in 1813 to Herman Leroy. The second house was probably torn down when the Leroys owned the land.

The Bartow Family Home

Robert Bartow, a relative of the Pell family, bought 30 acres of his ancestor's old estate in 1836. Robert Bartow and his wife, Maria Lorillard Bartow, built the current mansion there. This was the third house on the estate. The Bartow Mansion and a nearby carriage building were finished by 1842. The exact date of construction is not known. A book from 1842 said Robert Bartow "lately" built the mansion. The house cost $60,000. When it was finished, the house was in Westchester County, New York, in the town of Pelham, New York. The new mansion was built southwest of the first manor house.

The Bartow and Pell families owned the building for the next 40 years. Robert, Maria, and their seven children lived there first. Robert Bartow died in 1868. The mansion then went to his wife, then to his sons. The Bartow family lived there until at least 1883.

In 1884, Governor Grover Cleveland signed a law to create parks in the Bronx. Pelham Bay Park was one of them. The Bartows wanted $467,953 for their property. But the city thought it was worth only $131,000.

In 1887, the New York City government bought the land for Pelham Bay Park. It became a park in 1888. The city bought the house from the Bartow family descendants that same year. The city paid $63,000 for the land around the mansion, $33,000 for the mansion, and $94,625 for other land. The total was $190,625.

The mansion was empty for over 20 years. It became very run down, and the grounds grew wild. Even though the city owned it, the house was still in Westchester County until 1894 or 1895. Then, the border moved north to the Bronx. A group called the Home for Crippled Children used the mansion for a short time. The carriage house was used for storage.

Becoming a Clubhouse

Fixing Up and Opening Again

The mansion's terraced garden was added in the 1910s.

In 1914, the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks) leased the building to the International Garden Club (IGC). The IGC wanted to create an educational garden. They also wanted to host exhibits, lectures, and have a library in the mansion. The IGC agreed to lease the house for three years. They would pay for the landscaping and then return the property to the city.

The company Delano & Aldrich was hired to restore the home. The outside was fixed, and the formal gardens were built from 1914 to 1917. The inside was also changed for the clubhouse. But the original design details were kept. It cost either $25,000 or $100,000 for the renovations.

The mansion opened as the IGC's headquarters on May 1, 1915. New York governor Charles Whitman attended the ceremony. The club had to open the gardens to the public. In its first three years, the IGC spent over $70,000 on the house. They often held public speeches. The house was usually free to enter. But on two days, they charged a fee to pay for upkeep. The IGC took care of the inside and the garden. The city government took care of the outside and the rest of the grounds. All other mansions nearby were destroyed over time. This left the Bartow Mansion as the only one in Pelham Bay Park.

From the 1910s to 1940s

The IGC started hosting outdoor flower shows in June 1916. The club renewed its contract with the city in 1917 for five years. In the 1920s and 1930s, the IGC continued to host "garden parties" at the mansion. They also hosted important visitors from other countries. The mansion's driveway was changed in the 1930s. A parking lot was added in front of the mansion.

In June 1936, New York City mayor Fiorello La Guardia announced the mansion would be the city's first "Summer City Hall." This let him be close to his family. La Guardia and his helpers moved into the house on July 2, 1936. A temporary phone line and a teleprinter were added. This helped them talk to City Hall in Manhattan. A temporary bus service to the subway station was set up. Policemen on motorcycles traveled between the mansion and City Hall daily. La Guardia liked the house so much that he stayed longer than planned. He and his staff left on September 4.

La Guardia only used the mansion as a summer City Hall in 1936. He moved his summer offices to Queens in later years. The IGC continued to use the building. In 1937, the Manville family held a party to raise money for the mansion. In 1941, the club gave tours to raise money for the British during World War II.

Becoming a Museum

From the 1940s to 1970s

The orangery at the south end of the house

After World War II, the IGC could no longer import plants. So, they focused on fixing up the house. The club turned the mansion into a historic house museum. It opened in May 1946. NYC Parks and other museums helped with the renovation. At first, the museum had only four rooms: the entrance hall, dining room, parlor, and a bedroom. The IGC furnished the house with help from larger museums. The house was open as a museum only on Tuesdays and Saturdays.

The house was renamed the Bartow–Pell Mansion in 1959. This honored the original landowners. By the 1960s, the house was open three days a week. The garden was open every day. The IGC continued to lease the house from the city for $1 a year. They were responsible for its upkeep. In 1963, the club updated the kitchen and pantry for $14,000. In the late 1900s, the mansion had 10 to 12 rooms.

The Bartow–Pell Mansion Museum was still open three days a week in the 1970s. Not many people visited because it was far away. But its location made it open to trespassers. The IGC still used the mansion as its main office. In 1977, the museum got $6,000 to fix the carriage house. The next year, the New York state government gave $1.3 million for repairs to 58 historic buildings. This included the Bartow–Pell Mansion. The museum started buying its own furniture instead of borrowing it.

From the 1980s and 1990s

The museum started hosting learning programs around 1984. These programs attracted 1,500 students each year. The brickwork and wooden floors of the carriage house were damaged. Work on fixing it began in 1986. Jan Hird Pokorny was hired for the renovation. The state gave $110,000 in 1987 for the carriage house. The museum also had to raise the same amount. They raised $110,000 from NYC Parks and $150,000 from donors. The total cost for the carriage house renovation was expected to be $875,000.

By 1989, the carriage house was stable. The Bartow–Pell Mansion was still not well-known. The New York Daily News called it "possibly the least-known" historic house in the Bronx. The Bartow–Pell Mansion was one of the first members of the Historic House Trust, started in 1989. The main house's roof needed to be replaced. Students from Brooklyn College dug around the house from 1990 to 1992. Hundreds of trees were planted north of the mansion in 1992. The carriage house was officially reopened in 1993 after its renovation. The IGC still supported the museum, but the Bartow Pell Landmark Fund ran it.

From the 2000s to Today

The IGC repainted rooms in the late 1990s and early 2000s. They also added to their collection. By 2002, the new director, Robert Engel, planned to fix the entrance. He also wanted to remove the parking lot. In 2004, The History Channel donated money to help preserve the mansion. Adventures in Preservation started funding the mansion's preservation in 2008. That same year, the IGC became the Bartow-Pell Conservancy.

Between 2008 and 2011, the Bartow-Pell Conservancy replanted the garden. NYC Parks planted native plants north of the mansion. The museum also made a plan to restore the view from the house to Long Island Sound. NYC Parks started looking for bids in 2009 to fix the mansion's outside.

The Bartow–Pell Mansion Museum joined a competition in 2012. After a social media campaign, they won $155,000. This money was for fixing the terraced garden and chestnut-tree walkway. Mark K. Morrison Associates was hired to rebuild the garden. The gardens were redesigned using old photos. The roof was also repaired in 2012 after Hurricane Sandy. A $1.7 million renovation of the mansion's exterior began in April 2015 and finished the next year.

The attic was opened to the public in June 2018. The museum had 20,000 visitors each year by 2019. The mansion closed temporarily in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City. But caretakers who lived there kept maintaining the property.

How the Mansion Looks

Mansion's Design

It is not known who designed the Bartow–Pell Mansion. Some people thought it was John Bolton, an engineer. The outside is in the Greek Revival style. Some decorations are like those by architect Minard Lafever. There are unproven claims that Lafever designed it. Other possible architects were A. J. Davis and Martin E. Thompson. The inside rooms are in the Federal style. The Bartow–Pell Mansion is one of only two manor houses left in the Bronx.

Outside Features

The house faces north and south, with parts on each side. The outside is made of plain cut stone from the local area. The outer walls are at least 2 feet thick. This helps the mansion stay cool in summer. There is a painted trim at the top of the outside. There are also beveled quoins at each corner.

The west side, facing Shore Road, has iron balconies, shutters, and window trims. The main entrance is on the west side. It has double doors with an iron railing. There is an empty space above the doors. The east side, facing Long Island Sound, has iron balconies on the first and second floors. Windows open onto these balconies. All the balconies are made of fancy iron and are painted black. The large windows and stonework were common for buildings from the late 1830s and early 1840s.

Inside Features

View of one of the first-floor rooms

The first floor inside is set up evenly. The entrance leads to a square central hall. In this hall is a curving staircase that goes up to the attic and down to the basement. The staircase has a railing with wooden posts. It is lit by a window at the attic level. The hallway has a plaster trim and a rosette on the ceiling. On the walls are windows and doorways. Each doorway has flat columns (pilasters) and a wooden triangle shape (pediment) on top. Decorations like eagles and Cupid are on the pilasters. The tops of the pilasters show honeysuckles and acanthus leaves. When the house was fixed in 1915, the halls had white wood and mahogany doors.

At the east end of the central hall is a space with doorways on either side. These lead to two fancy, matching parlors on the east side of the first floor. These rooms are about 30 by 20 feet. The drawing room is on the left (north), and the dining room is on the right (south). The doorways to these rooms have pilasters with anthemion designs and Corinthian-style tops. A pediment is above each doorway. The pediment above the drawing room shows an eagle. The one above the dining room shows a cherub. Both rooms have fireplaces with marble mantelpieces. The center of each room's ceiling has a rosette. Sliding doors are between the parlors. French doors lead from each parlor to the terraced garden.

To the right of the central hall, one door leads to a small sitting room. Both doorways have pilasters and wooden pediments like those in the central hall. The sitting room has a black marble mantelpiece. To the left of the central hall, similar doorways lead to a smaller dining room. This room was used for lunches and breakfasts. There is also a kitchen shared by the museum and a caretaker's apartment.

The second floor has four bedrooms. These bedrooms have simpler designs than the first-floor rooms. They have white-marble mantelpieces. Each bedroom had a high ceiling for large wardrobes and beds. One bedroom, "Clarina's Room," was used by one of the Bartows' daughters. Another bedroom, the nursery, is not open to the public. There is also a two-bedroom apartment for the live-in caretaker. The third floor, or attic, was for servants. The basement had a wine cellar.

When the IGC fixed the house in 1915, the right (south) wing had an "orangery" for serving tea. This room had French windows, white walls, cement floors, and a domed ceiling. One of the smaller rooms in the north wing became a reception room. Another room became a boardroom. Stairs led to the IGC's writing room and library on the north wing's second floor.

Carriage House

Carriage house

The carriage house was built by 1842. It is the last remaining outbuilding at the Bartow–Pell Mansion. It is also the last stone carriage house in New York City that still looks original. The three-story building was built into the side of a hill. This makes it look two stories tall on one side. The carriage house was built from the same local stone as the mansion. On the front (west) side, there is a brick arch. Next to it is a rectangular window with a brick frame.

Inside the carriage house was the stable hand's home, a place for vehicles, and a hayloft. The main level had a carriage room, horse stalls, and a harness room. The stalls were separated from the other rooms. Each stall was about 5 feet wide. It had a gutter to drain horse urine into the cellar. The attic held the hayloft. You could only reach it by a ladder from the stall area. The attic likely had a small tower (cupola) and air gaps for fresh air. The cellar had a water tank (cistern) and two separate rooms.

How the Museum Works

The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation owns the house. The Bartow-Pell Conservancy runs the mansion and garden. The museum itself is run by the Bartow Pell Landmark Fund, a nonprofit group since 1975. As of 2023, the mansion is open as a museum three days a week. The gardens are free to visit, but there is a fee to enter the mansion. The house is not wheelchair-accessible. It has steps at the entrance and no elevator. As of 2023, Alison McKay is the museum's executive director.

What You Can See and Learn

In the mid-1900s, many of the mansion's furnishings were borrowed from bigger museums. The house had fancy carpets and tapestries. It also had furniture in the Empire, Federal, and Regency styles. A real Lannuier bed was there. By the 1970s, the furniture was made of dark wood. It had white marble, carvings, or gold paint. The bedrooms included the "Pell room" and the "red" room. Also on display was a piece of the Treaty Oak. The dining and drawing rooms had satin curtains, lamps, and chandeliers.

In the 1970s, the museum started collecting its own items. By the 1980s, the rooms were painted green, blue, and pink. They had Italian and Greek decorations. The front hall had a marble statue of Julius Caesar. The parlors had urns. A statue of Venus was at the top of the main stairway. In the 2000s, the house still showed borrowed items. But it also showed items from the Bartow family.

Today, some furnishings include the desk of Aaron Burr. The Lannuier bed, with its white and orange canopy, is still there. Other items include 19th-century wooden tables and a fire screen with a desk. The three rooms on the carriage house's main floor have exhibits. The lower level has an education gallery and a transportation gallery. There have also been temporary exhibits, like gardening tools in 2012.

Events and Programs

Since 1984, the museum has hosted learning programs. When the carriage house reopened in 1993, students could act out coachmen's lives. Videos were shown in the carriage room's education gallery. As of 2023, the museum has several programs for school classes. These include gardening, woodland habitats, Lenape history, and the lives of the Bartow family. The programs are mostly for elementary school students. The museum also has after-school programs and a summer camp for children. Visitors can see the museum without booking ahead. Staff also give guided tours.

In the museum's early years, the Garden Club hosted many events to raise money. These included tours, autumn festivals, and fashion shows. The mansion also hosted fancy dances, weddings, and Christmas sales. The club had an active planting program. The house continued to host events like debutante balls and Christmas sales through the 1970s. In recent years, the house has hosted lunches, architectural tours, St. Nicholas Day Festivals, and Halloween tours. It also hosts events like the Friends of Pelham Bay Park's autumn galas and movie nights.

Why the Mansion is Important

In the 1880s, the New-York Tribune newspaper said the mansion "has the solid and substantial appearance of an English country-house." They called it one of the best country estates in Pelham Bay Park. After it became a clubhouse in 1915, a writer said it "will no longer be a reproach to the City of New York." Another critic wrote that the house "is full of interest and charm." A 1944 book said the house was "the product of a designer of great skill." A reporter in 1975 wrote that the fancy rooms "provided a fitting setting for the life of" its residents.

In 1947, a year after it became a museum, a writer praised the Garden Club for restoring the mansion. A critic for The New York Times said in 1970 that the house's design made it "grand." A writer from the same newspaper called the mansion "almost buried treasure" in 1987. The Washington Post called it "an exquisite enclave of peace and history." In the 2000s, a writer described the house as a "challenge to the hard-boiled reputation of the Bronx."

The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) made the mansion's exterior a New York City landmark in 1966. In 1975, the LPC also made the mansion's first-floor interior a landmark. The mansion became a National Historic Landmark on December 8, 1976. The exterior landmark status was expanded in 1978. It now covers the carriage house, gardens, and Pell family graveyard. This expanded area covers 60 acres of the park.