Sunnyside (Tarrytown, New York) facts for kids
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Sunnyside
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View from the south (2012)
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 Location in New York
Location in the United States
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| Location | West Sunnyside Lane Tarrytown, New York |
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| Nearest city | White Plains |
| Area | 10 acres (4 ha) |
| Built | 1835 |
| Architect | George Harvey |
| Architectural style | Dutch Colonial Revival, Scottish Gothic, Tudor Revival, Romantic |
| NRHP reference No. | 66000583 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | October 15, 1966 |
| Designated NHL | December 29, 1962 |
Sunnyside is a famous historic house located in Tarrytown, New York. It sits on 10 acres (about 4 hectares) of land right by the Hudson River. This beautiful home was once owned by Washington Irving, a well-known American author. He is famous for his short stories like "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow".
Sunnyside looks like a charming cottage. It mixes different styles of architecture, including Dutch Colonial Revival, Scottish Gothic, and Tudor Revival. You can spot its unique features, like the wisteria vines covering the entrance and its zig-zag shaped roofline, called a crow-stepped gable. In 1962, Sunnyside was recognized as a National Historic Landmark, which means it's a very important place in American history.
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History of Sunnyside
The story of Sunnyside actually began almost 200 years before Washington Irving bought it. It started with a Dutch-American man named Wolfert Acker. His property was called Wolfert's Roost. It was part of a larger estate known as the Philipsburg Manor. On Wolfert's Roost, there was a simple two-room stone farmhouse built around 1650. This old farmhouse became the core of what is now Sunnyside.
Later, the property was owned by the Van Tassel family. They were related to the Eckert family (another spelling of Acker). The Van Tassels owned the land until 1802. That year, about 150 acres (60 hectares) were sold to the family of Benson Ferris. His wife, Maria Acker, was a descendant of Wolfert Acker. Washington Irving later made the Van Tassel family name famous in his story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow".
Washington Irving Buys Sunnyside
In 1832, Washington Irving visited his nephew, Oscar Irving, who lived close to the old stone farmhouse. Irving had just returned from a long trip through the prairies of the Arkansas and Mississippi River areas. He felt sad that he didn't have a home of his own. He had spent most of his adult life staying in other people's houses. Irving really wanted a home and was "willing to pay a little unreasonably for it."
Finally, on June 7, 1835, Irving bought the property for $1,800. Over the years, he bought more land to make his estate larger. Irving even wrote a story called "Wolfert's Roost" about the original owner, Wolfert Acker, and the land.
In a letter to his brother Peter, Irving described the place as "a beautiful spot, capable of being made a little paradise." He planned to build onto the old farmhouse that summer. He wanted to create a cozy home in the Dutch style, which would be unique but not too fancy. He decided to build it with stone.
Irving asked his friend, George Harvey, to help him design and build the house. Harvey was an English painter and neighbor. They worked together to remodel and enlarge the house. They also designed the gardens in a Romantic style. This included building a pond that Irving called "The Little Mediterranean." A waterfall from the pond flowed into a small, winding stream.
The finished "cottage" became very well-known, even back then. It was featured in Harper's Weekly magazine and in travel guidebooks. Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr., a famous writer, said that Sunnyside was "next to Mount Vernon, the best known and most cherished of all the dwellings in our land." Because Irving was America's first literary star, many visitors came to Sunnyside hoping to see him working.
In 1842, Irving became the Ambassador to Spain. He left Sunnyside in the care of his brother Ebenezer and his four daughters. Irving wrote that the hardest part of his new job was leaving "dear little Sunnyside." He returned to New York on September 19, 1846. Soon after, in 1847, he added the "Spanish Tower" to the cottage. This tower was inspired by Spanish monastery buildings and the Alhambra palace in Granada. It added four new bedrooms to the house.
In his later years at Sunnyside, Irving finished what he considered his greatest work. This was a five-volume biography of his namesake, George Washington. Irving finished the book just weeks before he passed away. He died of a heart attack in his bedroom at Sunnyside on November 28, 1859, at the age of 76.
How Sunnyside Got Its Name
According to a book by language expert Laura Wright, Washington Irving found the name "Sunnyside" during a visit to Sir Walter Scott's castle, Abbotsford House, in 1816. Near the castle, there was a farm on a hill called "Sunnyside." Irving liked the name and decided to use it for his own home.
Sunnyside Today: A Museum
The Irving family continued to live at Sunnyside until 1945. That year, Louis Irving sold the house to John D. Rockefeller Jr.. Rockefeller bought it because he wanted to help save historic places. The house was carefully restored, which included removing a Victorian style addition on the north side. Sunnyside then opened to the public as a museum in 1947.
Today, Sunnyside is run by Historic Hudson Valley. Visitors can pay an admission fee to take a tour. Guides dressed in old-fashioned costumes lead the tours. The museum has many of Washington Irving's original furniture and belongings. For example, almost everything in his writing study is original. The study, dining room, parlor, kitchen, and most of the bedrooms are open for visitors to see. They contain many items that belonged to the Irving family, along with other furniture from that time period.
Sunnyside was officially named a National Historic Landmark in 1962.
Gallery
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Irving's study
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The "Spanish Tower," added in 1847, has four bedrooms.
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The house's west side, facing the Hudson River. Irving called the porch his "piazza." It's not clear why Irving put "1656" on the wall, as the original cottage was built in the 1690s.
See also
