Greentree facts for kids

Greentree is a huge estate, about 400 acres (that's like 300 football fields!), located in Manhasset, New York. It's on a part of Long Island called the Gold Coast. This amazing property was built in 1904 for a rich businessman named Payne Whitney. For many years, it was home to members of the famous Whitney family. Today, Greentree is owned by the Greentree Foundation, which is a group that helps people around the world.

A Look Back at Greentree's History

How Greentree Began

Payne Whitney bought the land for Greentree in 1904. He bought it for his wife, Helen Julia Hay. Like many other large homes on the Gold Coast, this estate was created by buying several smaller farms. Five family farms were purchased to create the large Greentree estate. These farms were the Mitchell, Ketchum, Brinkerhoff, Skidmore, and Schenck farms.

Who Lived at Greentree?

Later, John Hay Whitney and his second wife, Betsey, lived in the main house. Mrs. Whitney continued to live there until she passed away in 1998. Famous radio and TV hosts, John Reagan "Tex" McCrary and his wife, Jinx Falkenburg, also lived on the estate with their sons for many years.

Greentree's Gifts to the Community

Over time, parts of the Greentree estate were given away to different organizations.

• The North Shore Unitarian Universalist Society received a piece of land. This group is now called the Unitarian Universalist Congregation at Shelter Rock (UUCSR). They built a large Worship Hall on what used to be an apple orchard. An old clay court for a game called real tennis was removed at that time.
• The North Shore Manhasset Hospital also received land. This land was next to Community Drive.
• John Hay Whitney was an honorary member of the Manhasset Lakeville Fire Department. He donated land along Community Drive East. This land became the site for the M.L.F.D. Company Two fire house. It also became the location for the Nassau County Police Department's 6th Precinct.

The Greentree Foundation Today

The remaining 408 acres of the estate, including the family home, are now managed by the Greentree Foundation. This foundation uses the property as a conference center. It focuses on important international issues like justice and human rights. The Greentree Foundation was started in 1982 by Betsey Cushing Roosevelt Whitney. The foundation has owned the property since the year 2000.

Important Meetings at Greentree

The estate has also been a place for important international discussions. For example, it hosted the Manhasset negotiations from August 10–12, 2007. These talks were between Morocco and the Polisario Front. They were part of meetings led by the United Nations. The discussions focused on the future of Western Sahara.