leadingestates.com/201/02


best. These houses are filled with antique furniture, paintings and other decorative arts, much of it original to the houses.


During a long career on Wall Street, I was involved in bringing many companies “public,” including our own firm, Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, which became the first NYSE member firm to sell its shares to the public. So now, at age 85, it’s time to go public with all these houses and their related collections. That is why, in 1993, I formed Classical American Homes Preservation Trust, a not-for-profit foundation that will eventually own all of these houses and open them to the public. Three of the houses are already owned by the Trust, and the others will be given to the Foundation as my personal circumstances dictate. Meanwhile, the houses that I still own are also open for special group tours by museums, garden clubs, and various preservation organizations. All proceeds from these tours are donated to either the sponsoring organization or the Trust, as are the proceeds from the sale of our publications such as my book Adventures with Old Houses, which describes my 45-year odyssey in collecting and restoring old houses and antiques.


There are quite a few things that are different or contrarian about Classical American Homes Preservation Trust vis- à-vis other preservation organizations, which I would like you to know about before you consider participating in our activities. Unlike many museums or preservation groups, we are not trying to be “all things to all people.” Our collection of old houses and decorative


arts is tightly focused – first half of the 19th Century, residential, classical, and American. When it comes to antique furniture we are even more focused. Exceptions to the Americana rule are imported luxury items, used but not made in the U.S. at the time.


Another distinguishing feature is that the collection is very “personal” – not just to me, but to the previous owners of the houses. The houses and their contents obviously are very personal since they have been “home” to me for many years. But a strange thing happened along the way – the longer I lived in the houses, the more I became aware of the families who had preceded me, either in building or owning the houses. Many of the original furnishings, including family portraits, porcelain, silverware, etc. began to show up almost miraculously. Once the process of seemingly returning the house to the original owners started, I happily joined the search. While the houses were home to me, I never felt that I was anything more than a custodian, and now these houses have become far more interesting, not only to me, but to visitors, because so many of the original furnishings have returned to their home. The houses tell a fascinating tale of changing life in America over hundreds of years.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132  |  Page 133  |  Page 134  |  Page 135  |  Page 136  |  Page 137  |  Page 138  |  Page 139  |  Page 140  |  Page 141  |  Page 142  |  Page 143  |  Page 144  |  Page 145  |  Page 146  |  Page 147  |  Page 148  |  Page 149  |  Page 150  |  Page 151  |  Page 152  |  Page 153  |  Page 154  |  Page 155  |  Page 156  |  Page 157  |  Page 158  |  Page 159  |  Page 160  |  Page 161  |  Page 162  |  Page 163  |  Page 164  |  Page 165  |  Page 166  |  Page 167  |  Page 168  |  Page 169  |  Page 170  |  Page 171  |  Page 172  |  Page 173  |  Page 174  |  Page 175  |  Page 176  |  Page 177  |  Page 178  |  Page 179  |  Page 180  |  Page 181  |  Page 182  |  Page 183  |  Page 184  |  Page 185  |  Page 186  |  Page 187  |  Page 188