Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum
|
Lockwood–Mathews Mansion
|
|
South side of the mansion
|
|
 
|
|
| Location | 295 West Avenue, Norwalk, Connecticut |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 41°6′31.68″N 73°25′1.56″W / 41.1088000°N 73.4171000°WCoordinates: 41°6′31.68″N 73°25′1.56″W / 41.1088000°N 73.4171000°W |
| Built | 1864 |
| Architect | Detlef Lienau |
| Architectural style | Renaissance, Other |
| NRHP reference # | 70000836 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | December 30, 1970 |
| Designated NHL | December 30, 1970 |
The Lockwood–Mathews Mansion is a Second Empire style country house, now a museum, at 295 West Avenue in Norwalk, Connecticut. It was built in 1864-68 by railroad and banking magnate LeGrand Lockwood. The 62-room 44,000 square feet (4,100 m2) (26,402 square feet (2,452.8 m2) of living space)mansion was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1978.
It has been described as "one of the earliest and finest surviving Second Empire style country houses ever built in the United States." It sits at 295 West Ave., in Mathews Park, where the Stepping Stones Museum for Children is also located.
The estate, then called "Elm Park," was built by LeGrand Lockwood, who made his fortune in banking and the railroad industry. Construction began in 1864 just west of the Norwalk River in Norwalk and was completed four years later. Designed by European-trained, New York-based architect Detlef Lienau, the mansion "is considered his most significant surviving work," according to the association. Both American and immigrant artisans worked to construct and decorate the house. Prominent New York decorating firms, including Herter Brothers and Leon Marcotte were contracted to furnish the mansion's interiors. Financial reversals in 1869 and Lockwood's death in 1872 resulted in loss of the estate by Lockwood's heirs.
In 1874 the family lost the mansion and grounds through foreclosure. Charles D. Mathews, described in his New York Times obituary as "a very wealthy retired New-York provision dealer", and his wife, Rebecca Thompson Mathews, bought the property in 1876. The mansion was a residence and suburban retreat for the Mathews family, with their Thompson and Martin relatives, until the death of Charles's daughter Florence in 1938.
In 1941 the estate was sold to the City of Norwalk, which designated it a public park. In the 1950s, the building was threatened with demolition, but local preservationists succeeded in saving it. They formed Lockwood–Mathews Mansion Museum, Inc. to run the site, which was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1971.
...
Wikipedia