Announcing Mr. & Mrs. Henry Carnegie Phipps...

Ruth Livingston Mills held countless functions at Staatsburgh during her lifetime, but one of the grandest affairs to happen at Staatsburgh was the wedding between the Millses' daughter Gladys and Henry Carnegie Phipps on December 7, 1907.  It was very important for young women to find a suitable match and Ruth Mills would have devoted considerable time to securing the best match possible for her daughters.  The engagement  between Gladys and Henry was rumored in October 1907 after they spent time together in Long Island and it was announced in the New York Times in November.  Family and friends tried to persuade the couple to have the wedding in New York, but both preferred the quiet pastoral setting at her family's Staatsburgh estate.

The Portico Project: Part II - Stanford White's Influences

This post is the second in a series about Staatsburgh's portico, which was restored to its original glory in 2014.  In December 2014 we first posted a blog that explored the history of portico design and the stylistic architectural developments of McKim, Mead & White.  This post will explore some of the potential portico models that likely influenced Stanford White when he was designing Staatsburgh's remodel in 1895.  Unfortunately, no records from the commission or actual construction process survive, but White's work from the same era can give us some insight about Staatsburgh's design.

Portico Inspirations: The English Country Home

By the 1890s, the firm of McKim, Mead & White was transitioning stylistically towards plans that were classical in scope. Since a portico was a prominent feature of neo-classical architecture, it is not uncommon that Stanford White would design one for the Millses. He did, however, have familiarity with several examples of porticos in architecture that could have potentially influenced his design.