10 X 12 inches, 354 pp. Over 375 color and duotone photographs and floor plans
Cloth, dust jacket. ISBN 0-926494-44-9 ISBN-13 978-0-926494-44-2 June 2007
The phenomenon we know as "The Hamptons"—the epitome of high society, leisure, and affluence, the place of worldly glamour and every pleasure, natural and unnatural, that money can buy—began as a group of Puritan villages along Long Island's south shore before it was discovered at the end of the 19th century by artists and the fashionably rich. The earliest social Hamptonites, descendents of colonial aristocracy, mingled with the colorful characters of the art colonies. Here the rich built fashionable and expansive summer houses where they enjoyed carefree recreation, artistic endeavors, and elegant social occasions.Houses of the Hamptons, 1880-1930,explores more than 30 houses, many designed by some of America's leading architects. Less enamored with the showy grandeur typical of Newport's golden age, the wealthy Hamptonites built summer places that were an ensemble of exceptional architectural variety and achievement. Here, American Colonial, half-timbered Tudor, and red brick Georgian vied with shingled cottages and Mediterranean fantasy.Authors Gary Lawrance and Anne Surchin lead the reader on a tour of a bygone era when couples in white flannel played tennis or croquet on verdant lawns or when America's aristocracy flocked to watch the students of William Merritt Chase's Shinnecock Art School at their paintings.
Also included are biographical sketches of individual architects, a comprehensive bibliography, and a portfolio of some 40 grand residences of this beautiful and unsurpassed vacation enclave.
FROM THE AUTHOR:
When Gary Lawrance and I began writing our book, Houses of the Hamptons 1880-1930, it didn’t take very long for us to discover that, in the Hamptons, gossip plus folklore equals fact. Reference materials and articles on almost every house held conflicting or suspicious stories that needed to be checked and verified. To our dismay, even the historical archives of the New York Times contained incorrect information.
For Villa Maria in Water Mill we were confronted with multiple owners whose personal histories and genealogy had become local lore. Lombard and Ayres, the first owners were known as dry goods merchants, in Hamptons’ speak. They actually owned a lumber business as well as the Tidewater Oil Corporation, a competitor of Standard Oil. It was only when we researched Standard Oil in conjunction with the names Lombard and Ayres that we were able to ascertain both the personal and professional histories of the two men. “Were they gay?,” was the question that most people asked but our research yielded nothing in that regard.
The second owner, Edward L. Keyes, who bought the house in the early 1890s, also according to local lore, was the medical partner of President Martin Van Buren’s son, Dr. William Home Van Buren. We thought this was odd since Van Buren’s son would have to have been a very old man. After half a day of genealogical research we discovered that the former President had five sons, none of whom were known as Dr. William Home Van Buren.
But real mystery involved Theodore Roosevelt’s reputed horse, General Ruxton, who is buried in the back yard. At the end of the Spanish-American War, Roosevelt and the Rough Riders spent time in quarantine at Camp Wikoff in Montauk. Why would Roosevelt’s horse be buried on a private estate in Water Mill? Jeff Heatley, our architectural photographer and author of “Bully! Colonial Roosevelt, The Rough Riders ; Camp Wikoff,” informed us that there was no mention whatsoever of General Ruxton being Roosevelt’s horse. Marlene Haresign, the editor of “Water Mill Celebrating Community,” pulled her Villa Maria file, which included copious correspondence with Roosevelt scholars on General Ruxton. No one could find a horse by that name although the names of his other horses were well known. The consensus felt that Ruxton, supposedly the best horse Roosevelt ever rode, was the horse used when he visited Villa Maria. While, as authors, we were obligated to find out the truth, we never thought we’d become myth busters as well. —Anne Surchin
FROM THE PRESS:
"If Houses of the Hamptons, 1880-1930, with its slim gold bookmark were only a pretty book, it certainly would attract attention for its glorious archival photos (and occasional water colors), but the book also provides information about those who conceived of, built and lived in these extraordinary resort mansions, and thus augments the History of the East End in a significant way.”— The Independent
"We are mad, mad, mad for this hyperchic look back at the fabled South Fork estates of yore, with its gorgeous images and witty text. Just check out the glam pool house at Wooldon Manor, the gardens at Black Point, and the natatorium at the curiously named Port of Missing Men estate. You must run out and buy dozens of this divine book right now."—Hamptons Magazine
