I recently spent a gorgeous New England Saturday touring the amazing Castle Hill at the Crane Estate.   There is nothing more inspiring for a designer than looking at the spectacular details in a house where no expense was spared.

And while this was built as a summer home for a very wealthy family, it has far more of a comfortably elegant English country house feel than the more flashy Newport mansions of the robber barons do.

The Crane Estate is a 2100 acre oceanfront property which includes the Castle Hill buildings, a beach, and a wildlife preserve in Ipswich MA and is now owned and operated by the National Trustees.

The Crane will stipulated that the contents of the house be auctioned for charity, so the Trustees have been slowly reacquiring and/or approximating the original furnishings.  About 50% of the furnishings now are the originals from the house.  

The 3500 acre parcel was originally purchased in 1910 by Chicago industrialist Richard T. Crane Jr. He spotted the for sale sign while sailing along the coast and immediately purchased the property for $120,000.

It is a stunning property with various formal gardens that are still maintained by the Trustees.    

The 59 room main Stewart style mansion house was constructed in 1928 and was designed by architect David Adler, known for his melding of classic styles.  His sister, Frances Adler did much of the interior design for the house.

The original house the Crane’s built on the property was in an Italianate villa style which was never to Mrs. Crane’s liking. It was razed after 10 or so years and the current house built on the same footprint.

The house was used as a summer retreat for the family of four and their many guests and was built with symmetry and decorated in nature colors to imbue a serene atmosphere. Many elements used in the interiors are reclaimed from European houses and villas including some of the paneling, flooring and fireplaces.

A staff of approximately 30 servants worked in the house and another ~70 maintained the gardens.

Richard Crane Jr. made his fortune in the valve and fittings business that touched nearly every industry from railroads to steam engines to plumbing and aviation with the over 40000 products manufactured by the company.

His reputation for innovation, philanthropy, and genuine care for and generosity with his workers and staff is a remarkable legacy.  In 1920 Crane Jr. conceived the idea of the modern bathroom creating the first decorative bathroom essentials.

Tour guides at the estate are costumed and act the part of a 1929 house staff member giving the tour to inited guests of the family (we were each given a card with a guest name and bio - I was Harriett Risley Foote, the famous rosarian who designed the rose gardens at the estate..I was a little jealous I did not get the Frances Adler card…)

The Castle Hill mansion is also a showcase of many of the original Crane plumbing products.

We entered the grounds from the parking lot to the site of the grand brick mansion at the top of a hill and surrounded on 3 sides by views to the marshes, beach and ocean.  Formal cast stone fences and decor define different outdoor areas.

The front crushed stone entry court leads into the foyer. The side patio overlooks terraced lawns that once housed an elaborate hedge maze before it was eaten to the ground by deer. And the rear patio of the house, guarded by a pair of griffin statues, has a long view down a manmade undulating allée (meant to reference waves) to a cliff overlooking the ocean. 

About halfway down the allée is a terraced area below sight lines from the main house that contains twin formal houses - one a large gathering space and the other guest quarters for unmarried men visiting the family?! 

Apparently bachelors were not permitted to stay in the main house. These two buildings were connected by a salt water swimming pool in the middle filled with water piped up from the ocean.  Today, the swimming pool has been replaced with lawn and the buildings are one of many spaces on the property available for event rental.

Beyond the 4th side of the house are paths that meander down to a formal walled garden with a water feature at one end (emptied for the season during my visit), and a trellis covered loggia structure at the other.

Across a driveway and down the hill from the formal garden is another semi-walled garden built around a central round pool - with distant views to the marsh and ocean.

This was originally the rose garden with some 200 species of roses, though now the trees have so grown up around it, much of it is too shady for roses to thrive.  Still, there were a few hardy roses with their last late summer blooms proudly on display. .

Back at the main house let’s walk through the front door into the foyer.

Stunning millwork references a variety of classical motifs,  A central lantern fixture lights the curved space and the marble flooring includes a terrazzo strip with an inlaid brass Greek key pattern.

A small reception room for ladies to one side still contains the original beautiful handpainted Chinese wallpaper and intricately carved chair rail and door casings.

Through the foyer is a 62’ long grand gallery room that connects the two wings of the house and opens to the back patio with a series of doors.

The gallery contains a pair of twin fireplaces, one topped with a large clock and the other with a large wind indicator.  There are several wind indicators throughout the house for this family of avid sailors.

Flooring is reclaimed parquet. Unusual window cornices are topped with fabric covered molding.   

In the east wing is a rotunda space that leads to a drawing room, a paneled library, a hidden spiral staircase, and a paneled gift shop that the proprietor said was originally a guest room suite of the house.

The rotunda is painted using a trompe l'oeil effect to create the illusion of three dimensional carved columns and friezes.  The painted ceiling features the faces of family and select staff as well as Mrs. Crane’s pet Siamese cat. 

The parquet floor is arranged in a starburst pattern and pretty tracery panels fill the arches over the doorways. Painted chairs arranged against the walls and heavy carved library doors with octagonal brass knobs also appear in this space.

The drawing room is at present unfurnished and is used for events, but in the Crane days it was set up with multiple seating areas for entertaining guests before dinner.

Like many of the fireplaces in the house, the drawing room fireplace includes a mirror panel to reflect light and views. Multiple chandeliers light the drawing room with a combination of electric bulbs and wax candles.

The library boasts paneling and carvings reclaimed from Cassiobury Park, a 16th century English house scheduled for demolition. The bay window has spectacular views down the allée and to the ocean beyond.

The main staircase is in the west wing.  The staircase hall includes some furnishings along with a vault discreetly tucked behind a paneled door for safekeeping of valuables for the family and guests. The vault contains shelves and drawers and has a floor covered in leather to cushion the fall of anything accidentally dropped.

The staircase winds to the second floor where the west wing includes a corridor of servant rooms and son Cornelius’s suite.

Cornelius’s bedroom features a large bay window overlooking the allée with a unique leather windowseat that terminates in unusual wing chairs.

His bathroom features Delft tiles, a standing shower - a new feature of the time and only for men, in addition to the tub, sterling silver faucets, and a Crane toilet with a push button flush on the floor.

The central corridor has a classic groin vaulted ceiling, and carved decorative acanthus leaves and Corinthian column motifs.

We passed a guest room with an elaborate canopy bed, and visited another guest room and bath that is currently used as the brides room for weddings on the property.

A guest bath featured pink marble, carved millwork, and green wallpaper.  The glass vanity legs are seen on many of the console sinks throughout the house.

Daughter Florence and her parents all have suites in the east wing.

Florence was reportedly the best sailor in the family, and her bathroom features walls of eglomise tiles (reverse glass painted) with sailing motifs.

Her bedroom mirrors her brothers in the west wing and has the same bay overlooking the allée to the north and a wrought iron balcony overlooking the ocean and marsh views to the east.

Delicate overdoor panels throughout the suite include portraits.

Paneling reclaimed from various European estates features heavily in the east wing. This ladies office has an unusual pediment mantel over the fireplace.

This private second floor sitting room is also paneled giving it a cozy feeling.  The unique sconces with bead covered bulbs were chosen by Mrs. Crane.

An elaborate carved frieze tops the paneling and ionic columns flank the fireplace.

The suite of rooms for Mr. Crane includes a firehose that can extend the length of the house tucked into a hall closet .  After the Iroquois theater fire in Chicago, Mr. Crane was keen to include fire equipment and reportedly housed a fire engine on the property as well.

Mr. Crane’s bedroom includes a marble fireplace in a paneled wall with jib doors that conceal a secret bookcase hidden behind the panels on one side and a dressing room door on the other. 

His bathroom is decorated in black and white marble.  The center tub is flanked by a shower with an arched door on one side and a toilet room with a matching door on the other.  A heated towel bar and console sink vanity on glass legs complete the space,

Mrs. Crane’s suite contains a pickled pine paneled bedroom, a green paneled dressing room, and the prettiest bathroom on the estate.

This bathroom is outfitted in green marble and wood faux painted to look like marble.  It has a an arched alcove for the sink vanity flanked by a storage cabinet and water closet with arrow X detailing on the doors, and an arched alcove for the tub.  The tub itself is a Crane tub in one of their new (in 1929!) green colors.  Fascinating to see green making a big comeback currently in plumbing fixtures!

Back on the first floor we visited the two story butlers pantry.  I have serious pantry envy. The room is two stories high with a mezzanine level above two sides lined with cabinetry to house china. 

A dumbwaiter is built into the wall to transport the dishes between levels. The lower level boasts more cabinetry and perimeter counters. 

Above the back counter is an opening with a multi level lazy susan window.  The kitchen is on the other side of the wall and food is loaded onto the lazy susan to transfer it to the butlers pantry where it is kept hot on the large heated metal table in the center of the room.

Directly off the pantry and screened with a leather folding screen, is the grand dining room.  The main dining room entrance is from the stair hall.

In the bay window at the far end of the room is a more informal breakfast table.  In the center is the formal dining table.  The table and chairs are the originals that have been repurchased by the Trustees.  The pedestal table is shown with two pedestals, but expands to 5 pedestals?!

A marble fireplace has carved decor and a crystal chandelier lights the space.

And the brings us to the end of the tour!

There are other tours that explore some of the other spaces…kitchens, utility spaces, attic rooms, and roof deck. I imagine the views are pretty remarkable from the roof!

The spectacular property is available for rentals for weddings and events, but it also hosts some of its own events. You can find information of those at their website.

Coming up is their Christmas tour and an afternoon tea!  We just might have to check those out!

Other posts you might enjoy:

Sans Souci castle tour

A whirlwind tour to Portland and Cape Elizabeth, ME