Top Cottage facts for kids
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Top Cottage
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| Location | Hyde Park, NY |
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| Nearest city | Poughkeepsie |
| Built | 1938-1939 |
| Architect | Henry Toombs and Franklin Delano Roosevelt |
| Architectural style | Dutch Colonial Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 97001679 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | December 9, 1997 |
| Designated NHL | December 9, 1997 |
Top Cottage, also called Hill-Top Cottage, is a special house in Hyde Park, New York. It was a private getaway designed by and for Franklin D. Roosevelt. He was the President of the United States at the time. The cottage was built between 1938 and 1939. It was made to be easy for him to use, especially since he used a wheelchair. This made it one of the first buildings in the country designed for someone with a disability. It was also the first important building designed by a person with a disability.
Even though it was a private spot, President Roosevelt welcomed important guests here. These guests included Britain's King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. For about 50 years, the cottage was privately owned. Then, it was fixed up and given to the National Park Service. Today, it is part of the nearby Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site. Top Cottage was named a National Historic Landmark in 1997. You can take guided tours from the main site, but you cannot drive your own car there.
This building is unique because it is the only one designed by a sitting U.S. president, besides Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson designed several buildings at his homes, like Monticello and Poplar Forest. He also designed parts of the University of Virginia and the Virginia State Capitol.
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About Top Cottage
The cottage is built in the Dutch Colonial Revival style. It is made of fieldstone, which is a type of natural rock. President Roosevelt wanted many buildings in the Hyde Park area to be in this style. He hoped to bring back this type of architecture to the region.
The cottage is at the end of Potters Bend Road. This road is in a quiet, country part of Hyde Park. It sits on top of a 500-foot (152 m) hill, sometimes called Dutchess Hill. Roosevelt played on this hill when he was a child. When FDR lived there, you could see amazing views of the Hudson River and the Catskill Mountains. Today, trees block some of those views.
How the Cottage Was Built
President Roosevelt had a vacation home in Georgia. But he never owned a year-round home of his own. He lived in his mother's house in Hyde Park. He also lived in family homes in New York City and rented houses in Albany and Washington, D.C.. When he was president, he lived in the White House.
In 1933, Roosevelt felt he needed a place away from the busy life of being president. He wanted a more private spot, "a small place to go to escape the mob..."
Two years later, Roosevelt and his cousin Margaret Suckley visited the top of the hill. They loved the view of the Hudson River and the Catskill Mountains. He called it "Our Hill," and she called it "the nicest Hill in Dutchess County." In October of that year, he thought it would be perfect for "a one-story fieldstone two-room house ... one with very thick walls." Margaret was excited and drew a sketch that looks much like the finished house.
Roosevelt first imagined living there after his presidency. He bought the 118-acre (48 ha) hillside land in 1937, after he was re-elected. By this time, he often used a wheelchair because of his illness. He could only walk short distances with great effort. He designed the cottage to be easy for a wheelchair user. It had one flat floor, and everything was easy to reach from a sitting position.
Top Cottage is the only presidential home, besides Thomas Jefferson's Monticello and Poplar Forest, designed by a president. It is also the first important building designed by a disabled person to be easily accessible.
Roosevelt started sending his sketches to architects in 1938. He asked architect Henry Toombs to help finish the design. Toombs suggested that Roosevelt should be given credit as the architect. This made some people upset when an article in Life magazine gave Roosevelt the credit.
The cottage cost $16,599 to build. At that time, many houses cost only $1,000. It is believed that Roosevelt never spent a night at the cottage. Even though it was designed for his disability, his mother's larger home was more suitable for him. The cottage also had some problems. The air flow was not good, the bedrooms were too small, and it only had one bathroom and no closets. Still, when guests came to Hyde Park, Roosevelt always showed them Top Cottage first.
Famous Visitors and Later Years
In 1939, Top Cottage hosted a famous picnic. President Roosevelt cooked and served hot dogs to King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. This was the first time a British king and queen visited the United States. During their visit, Roosevelt broke royal rules by making a toast to the Queen. She was reportedly surprised and drank to herself.
Roosevelt had planned to use the cottage for his retirement. But he won an amazing third term as president the next year. He continued to use Top Cottage as a quiet place. He brought important visitors there, like British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. They even discussed the atomic bomb there. He also brought close friends, like Margaret Suckley. She took the only two published photos of him in his wheelchair on the cottage's porch.
After Roosevelt passed away, his son Elliott Roosevelt lived there for a while. He made some changes, like adding dormer windows and a mud room. Later, he sold the house to the Potter family. The street leading to the home is named after them. The Potters owned it until 1996. Then, it was sold to the Open Space Institute (OSI).
In 1997, Top Cottage was recognized as a National Historic Landmark. The OSI began fixing it up. They removed Elliott Roosevelt's additions and trimmed some trees to bring back the views. In 2001, it was given to the National Park Service. It became part of the existing historic site. The house opened to the public for the first time in 2001. It is now used as a place for meetings and is also open for visitors to explore.
Visiting Top Cottage
Top Cottage is in Hyde Park, New York. You can only visit if you have a reservation. The original furniture was lost over time. But in 2011, the Park Service furnished the main area with new items. These new pieces are copies or old items that look like the original ones.
A book called The President as Architect: Franklin D. Roosevelt's Top Cottage was written about the cottage. It was put together by an architectural firm that works on restoring old buildings. The cottage is also shown in the 2012 movie, Hyde Park on Hudson.
