Hill–Stead Museum Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Significant dates

Hill–Stead Museum
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. National Historic Landmark
U.S. Historic district Contributing property

Hill–Stead Museum
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Location	35 Mountain Road, Farmington, Connecticut
Area	150 acres (0.61 km²)
Built	1901
Architect	Theodate Pope Riddle in association with McKim, Mead and White
Architectural style	Colonial Revival
Website	Hill–Stead Museum
Part of	Farmington Historic District (ID72001331)
NRHP reference No.	91002056
Added to NRHP	July 17, 1991
Designated NHL	July 17, 1991
Designated CP	March 17, 1972

The Hill–Stead Museum is a beautiful house and art museum located at 35 Mountain Road in Farmington, Connecticut. It sits on a large estate and is famous for its amazing French Impressionist paintings. It's also known for its special architecture and lovely gardens.

This property was named a National Historic Landmark. This means it's a very important example of Colonial Revival architecture in the United States. The house was built in 1901. Its design came from a unique partnership between Theodate Pope Riddle and the well-known firm of McKim, Mead & White. Theodate Pope Riddle was one of the first female architects in the United States! The house was built for her father, Alfred Atmore Pope. Both Pope and Riddle collected the impressive art you can see there today.

Exploring the House and Museum
National Historic Landmark Status
Gallery
See also

Exploring the House and Museum

The picturesque Sunken Garden at Hill–Stead

Hill–Stead was first created as a country estate for Alfred Atmore Pope, a rich businessman. His daughter, Theodate Pope Riddle, designed the estate. An architect named Egerton Swartwout helped turn her ideas into building plans. Construction of the house took place from 1898 to 1901.

Theodate inherited the house after her parents passed away. Before she died in 1946, she decided that Hill–Stead Museum should be a memorial to her parents. She wanted it to be "for the benefit and enjoyment of the public." She made sure that the house and everything inside it would stay exactly as it was. Nothing could be moved, loaned, or sold.

What You'll See at Hill–Stead

Today, Hill–Stead covers about 152 acres (0.6 km²). Some land was sold when the museum first opened. The main building is the Pope-Riddle House. It's a huge mansion, about 33,000-square-foot (3,100 m²), built in the Colonial Revival style. The famous writer Henry James once called it "a great new house on a hilltop."

Other buildings on the property include an old 18th-century farm house. There's also a carriage garage with a special Arts and Crafts theater. You can also see a barn and other farm buildings.

American elm and barns located on the property (August 2021)

Nineteen rooms in the house are open for visitors to explore. Everything looks just as it did when Theodate died. The house is filled with paintings, prints, beautiful objects, and fancy furniture and rugs.

Amazing Art Collection

The art collection at Hill–Stead is truly special. It includes major paintings by famous artists like Mary Cassatt, Edgar Degas, Édouard Manet, and Claude Monet. You can also see works by Eugène Carrière and James McNeill Whistler.

Besides paintings, there are many interesting prints. These include three engravings by Albrecht Dürer from 1514. There are also 17 etchings and lithographs by James McNeill Whistler. You'll find Japanese woodblock prints by artists like Katsushika Hokusai and Utagawa Hiroshige. The museum also has eight bronze sculptures by Antoine-Louis Barye.

The museum also keeps about 13,000 letters and postcards. Some of these are from famous people like Mary Cassatt and Henry James. There are also about 2,500 photographs. This includes six art photos by Gertrude Käsebier.

Beautiful Gardens and Grounds

The grounds of Hill–Stead were first designed with help from Warren H. Manning, a landscape architect. They feature a wide lawn with a hidden ditch called a ha-ha and a slate walkway. There's also an artificial pond and a formal, eight-sided flower garden.

Around 1920, the famous landscape gardener Beatrix Farrand redesigned the estate's Sunken Garden. This garden is about 1 acre in size. During World War II, it was hard to find enough workers. So, the garden became overgrown with grass, and only the summerhouse remained. Even though it was replanted later, the Sunken Garden wasn't fully restored to Farrand's original plan until the 1980s.

National Historic Landmark Status

Hill–Stead was officially named a National Historic Landmark in 1991. This recognition highlights its importance to the history and culture of the United States. The Hill–Stead has also hosted one of the longest-running poetry festivals in the country, called the Sunken Garden Festival.