View Naumkeag management plan - The Trustees of Reservations

Naumkeag
Management Plan
2007
©
1- Introduction
2- Executive Summary
3- History
4- Landscapes
5- Natural Resources
6- Cultural Resources
7- Structural Resources
8- The Visitor Experience
9- Current Management
10- Recommended Actions
11- Implementation
12- Appendices
Section 1: Introduction
1.1
Overview of the Planning Process
Since 1891, The Trustees of Reservations has worked to protect special places in
Massachusetts and maintain them to the highest standards. To ensure these standards are
met, a program of careful planning and sound management is essential. While
management of Naumkeag is well-established, The Trustees felt it was important to
affirm the outstanding characteristics of the property and to review current management
practices with a focus on applying newly understood resource protection principles to
ensure the continued preservation of these special qualities. Thus, The Trustees
embarked on a process to develop a comprehensive management plan for Naumkeag.
The planning process included:
o
Describing in detail the site’s natural, scenic, cultural, historical and structural
resources and identifying management issues related to the protection of those
resources.
o
Meeting with several community members and Naumkeag supporters to identify
visitor management issues and to brainstorm ideas for the future of the property.
o
Reviewing past plans and reports and their recommendations and deciding which
uncompleted recommendations should be carried over into this comprehensive
management plan.
o
Developing a list of management recommendations and a schedule for
implementing the actions.
1.2 Planning Framework
In order to ensure that the planning process and recommended future management of its
properties support The Trustees’ mission and meet the organization’s high standards for
resource protection and the visitor experience, an established framework is applied to
guide the planning process for each Trustees’ reservation. This framework outlines
several factors that will guide the management of the property:
First, The Trustees’ mission, as set forth by founder Charles Eliot in 1891:
The Trustees of Reservations preserves, for public use and enjoyment, properties
of exceptional scenic, historic, and ecological value throughout Massachusetts
and protects special places across the state.
Introduction
1- 1
Second, management will support initiatives outlined in The Trustees’ Department of
Field Operations’ 2003 strategic plan, Conservation in Action! This plan highlights
several initiatives, including the expansion of The Trustees’ education and interpretation
program and the elimination of deferred maintenance on all Trustees-owned buildings
and structures.
Third, The Trustees of Reservations will honor Miss Choate’s vision of Naumkeag as a
place for visitors to experience the beauty of the Berkshires and to enjoy the house,
gardens, and farm that meant so much to her family. Miss Choate knew that Naumkeag
was one of the last Berkshire Cottages to survive in excellent physical condition and gave
it to The Trustees knowing that it would be maintained to her high standards of
stewardship.
Finally, several principles will guide The Trustees’ work at Naumkeag. These guiding
principles reflect the general rules that will be applied when carrying out work at all
Trustees’ properties. They are value statements that may also provide a source of criteria
for determining goals and recommended actions.
1. The Trustees will continue to adapt its management based on experience, newly
gained knowledge, and available human and financial resources.
2. We consider resource protection to be The Trustees’ fundamental responsibility.
Only by protecting the significant resources of our properties can we attain our
visitor experience goals – a good visitor experience is derived from our
reservations being in excellent condition.
3. We will apply the best available management practices to preserve Naumkeag’s
outstanding features and to ensure a high quality experience for all visitors.
4. Successful management of the property relies on sound financial management. To
be the best possible stewards of our precious financial and human resources, we
nurture a culture of innovation, financial discipline, and thriftiness.
5. The Trustees is committed to providing a diversity of visitors a wide range of
opportunities to experience the property. We consider Naumkeag to be one of our
96 classrooms where visitors can participate in a variety of enjoyable activities
and life-long learning. By engaging a diversity of constituencies, we will
mobilize broad-based support for land and natural and cultural resource protection
in Massachusetts.
6. Through good communication and collaboration, The Trustees will confirm and
strengthen its partnership with the local community, members, volunteers, and
other conservation partners to achieve its long-term goals for the property. We
view ourselves as a community partner, investing in creative initiatives to build
shared values, perspectives and skills among a diverse constituency.
Introduction
1- 2
7. The Trustees will employ “green practices” to minimize the impact of its
management on the environment.
8. Because the surrounding landscape may impact our resource protection efforts
and/or visitor services, we will evaluate and address management issues and
opportunities beyond the boundary of Naumkeag.
1.3 Acknowledgments
The Trustees are enormously grateful to all of the volunteers, staff, and other
professionals who have worked very hard to produce this management plan. Leading the
way was a Management Planning Committee that consisted of Trustees’ members and
volunteers as well as several staff members. The planning team included:
Staff:
Sean Cowhig, Superintendent, Stockbridge Mgmt. Unit
Edie Dondero, Planner
Barbara Dowling, Historic Site Manager
Susan Edwards, Director of Historic Resources
Will Garrison, Historic Resources Manager
Steve McMahon, Western Regional Director
Volunteers:
Stephanie Bradford
Linda Cysz
Lynn Edelstein
Paula Gimblette
Leo Kavanaugh
Jeff Kontoff
Judy Spencer
Joyce Vorman
In turn, the committee drew upon the assistance of several other individuals. Special
thanks go to Gordon Clark, former Superintendent of the Stockbridge Management Unit;
Lisa Anderson, former Historic Site Administrator; Vin Antil, The Trustees’ GIS
Manager, who prepared the maps included in the plan; Russ Hopping, The Trustees’
Ecology Program Manager for providing the natural resource description and
recommendations; and the seasonal guide staff for providing their valuable input and
recommendations. Thanks to the thoughtful and tireless participation of these
individuals, and their passionate interest and concern for this unique treasure, Naumkeag
will forever remain one of The Commonwealth’s special places.
Introduction
1- 3
Section 2: Executive Summary
“I do miss Stockbridge and every dear thing in it so much – wife, children, friends,
house, garden, lands, horses, cows, pigs, not to speak of the donkey…”1
As soon as we got to Naumkeag, everything looked like its beloved self, the house
and the view and the garden just as lovely as ever, and we were filled with delight.
We soon settled down to our usual quiet life and were thankful to be home again.
Of course, there was lots to be done and Mother had a wonderful time having
overgrown trees cut back, so that we could once more see Monument Mountain and
Tom Ball; replanting the garden, and pulling out forgotten treasures which had
been hidden away for safe keeping.2
2.1 The Significance of Naumkeag
Naumkeag was the summer home of the Choate family from 1886 until it was bequeathed
in 1958 by Mabel Choate to The Trustees of Reservations. Two generations of the
Choate family, with architects, landscape architects, and staff, created a masterpiece in
the Berkshires. This estate provided a place of rest and rejuvenation for the Choate
family for over 70 years.
In the evenings we would drag the reclining chairs to the very edge of the West
terrace and watch the sun go down (one of Margaret’s martinis in hand). Then
we would go in to a heavenly dinner, the simplest and the best; tiny vegetables,
fresh from the garden, butter and cream from the farm. Oh Friendly Comfort!3
Naumkeag was created by New York City attorney Joseph Hodges Choate and his wife,
Caroline Sterling Choate. Mabel Choate, one of their five children, inherited the
property in 1929. At Naumkeag, Miss Choate both honored her parents’ memories and
expressed her own vision of how a summer estate can delight and rejuvenate. In 1958,
Miss Choate bequeathed Naumkeag, with an endowment, to The Trustees of
Reservations “to be operated for the benefit of the public as a country house museum.”
The 47-acre estate consists of cultural and designed landscapes with a shingle style 44room “cottage,” an open-air summer house, and a carriage house, all designed by
McKim, Mead & White in 1885. Inside the house are important collections of ceramics,
furniture, and fine and decorative arts. Below the main house are a working farm, fields,
and a “Jamesway” engineered barn, built in 1928. In 1975 Naumkeag was listed on the
1
Joseph Hodges Choate, letter to his wife Caroline, from Albany, August 24, 1894.
Mabel Choate, Memoirs. Written in the 1950s, Miss Choate recalls the family’s return from England in 1905.
3
Helen Choate Platt (Mabel Choate’s niece), unpublished memoirs, 1973. She is remembering the 1930s to 1950s at
Naumkeag.
2
Executive Summary
2- 1
National Register of Historic Places and, in 2007, was designated a National Historic
Landmark.
The original site plan and formal gardens were designed by Boston landscape architect
Nathan Barrett in the 1880s. The present-day gardens were designed by landscape
architect Fletcher Steele and Mabel Choate between 1926 and 1956. Mabel Choate was
an avid horticulturist and a prominent member of the Garden Club of America. Together,
Steele and Miss Choate created a series of modern designed landscapes that are a
harmony of setting and design. In 1961 the gardens were awarded a Gold Medal by the
Massachusetts Horticultural Society.
2.2 Significant Management Issues and Challenges
Approximately 11,000 people visit Naumkeag and stroll through the gardens each year.
The designed landscapes are meticulously maintained and a recent garden restoration
project received a Landscape Preservation Award from the Massachusetts Historical
Commission. However, as with all properties, there are management issues and
challenges facing property staff. The following are some of the most significant issues:
Collections Management:
• Adequate, secure storage for collections not currently on display is lacking.
Materials are stored in various locations including the attic and basement at
Naumkeag and at The Trustees’ Berkshire Regional Office in Stockbridge. None
of these locations protect the collections from fire, theft, or a number of agents of
deterioration, such as humidity or light.
Renewal Needs and Deferred Maintenance:
• The shingles on the roof of the Main House have reached the end of their
projected life.
• Much of the sewer system and the associated utility corridor needs replacement.
• The property endowment does not produce enough annual income to meet routine
management needs and deferred maintenance is accumulating.
Visitation and Visitor Service Issues:
• The capacity of the parking area is insufficient and is frequently exceeded.
• The entrance and driveway layout is unsafe for pedestrians.
• The ticketing area and museum shop are currently located outdoors in the portcochere. The contents of the museum shop must be moved daily, increasing the
risk of loss or breakage and there is inadequate space to display merchandise.
• Visitation levels have decreased in each of the last three years, following national
trends among historic house museums.
Membership and Volunteerism:
• Despite the high (but slightly deceasing) rate of visitation to Naumkeag, few
memberships are sold at the reservation, thus suggesting that the organizational
goal of converting visitors into members and stewards is not being achieved.
• There are many potential opportunities for volunteers to assist with property
stewardship but a recruitment program is currently lacking.
Executive Summary
2- 2
2.3 A Vision for the Future
Guided by The Trustees’ mission, Mabel Choate’s wishes and a comprehensive study of
the property and its significant resources, in ten years, Naumkeag will be:
• A safe and pleasant environment that evokes in visitors the same sense of delight
the Choates experienced at the property;
• A demonstration of the exemplary stewardship of a National Historic Landmark;
• A site where all features (house, support buildings and structures, gardens, farm)
are used to their fullest potential to engage visitors in the history and beauty of
Naumkeag and in the conservation work of The Trustees of Reservations;
• A place where the layers of history are revealed to visitors and interpreted in a
clear, focused manner;
• A more frequently visited site especially during current non-peak use periods (i.e.,
weekdays);
• Effectively engaging the participation of more local residents in property
stewardship and special events;
• Viewed by the Town of Stockbridge and other local attractions as a valuable
community partner; and
• Fully supported financially and adequately staffed to ensure the continued
preservation of this important landmark.
2.4 Implementing the Management Plan
Section Ten of this document details 82 recommended actions that have been crafted to
achieve the vision for the future of Naumkeag as described above. The following are
some of the primary management goals that these recommendations have been designed
to achieve.
•
•
•
•
•
Continue to use the best management practices available to maintain Naumkeag
to its 1950s appearance and to conserve its collections.
Ensure that all buildings and structures accessible to the public are safe and that
any potential hazards are minimized.
Increase and diversify interpretive programming in order to appeal to a broader
audience.
Utilize active volunteers in the preservation and stewardship of this landmark.
Re-establish an agricultural operation at the property.
The total cost of implementing the 82 specific actions over the next ten years (FY20082016) is estimated to be approximately $1,131,192. This figure includes the annual
expense of operating a Community-Supported Agriculture program beginning in Phase 2
of implementation (i.e., 2010). These funds will be derived from a variety of sources
including the property’s annual operating budget, the organization’s capital budget,
fundraising (e.g., the Garden Party), and other outside sources of income such as grants
or donations.
Executive Summary
2- 3
Section 3: History
3.1
The Choate Family
John Choate, a young man of nineteen years, came to this country in 1643 from
England. The materials from which to construct any considerable sketch of his
life are wanting. We know, however, that he was a pioneer settler in a new
country, whose first work was to clear away the forests, drain the meadows, and
provide for himself a homestead.1
For the next few generations, the Choate family prospered in Ipswich and Salem. (John
Choate acquired Hog Island, also known as Choate Island, now owned by The Trustees
of Reservations.)
Joseph Hodges Choate (1832-1917)
In 1832, Joseph Hodges Choate was born into this family of comfortable means. His
father, George Choate, was a physician in Salem, and with his wife Margaret Manning
Hodges, had six children.
Joseph Hodges Choate attended Harvard University, class of 1854. Choate passed the
Massachusetts bar in 1855, but soon moved from his hometown of Salem, Massachusetts
to New York City. There he joined the firm of Butler, Evarts & Southmayd, and soon
became a partner in the re-named firm of Evarts, Southmayd and Choate. He remained
with this firm for his entire career with the exception of a year or two when he had his
own independent law firm.
The post-Civil War “Gilded Age” provided many opportunities for a talented lawyer, and
Joseph Choate enjoyed tremendous success defending the interests of the new industrial
aristocracy. In addition, he was involved in many important anti-trust cases and worked
to defeat Tammany Hall. But Choate’s impressive career included arguing cases before
the Supreme Court of the United States. For example, in 1895 he argued that a national
income tax was unconstitutional. Winning this case delayed the imposition of the federal
income tax for about 20 years.
Choate was a prominent member of the Republican Party in New York State, becoming
its president in 1894. In that same year, he was a prominent member of the convention to
amend the New York State constitution. In 1896/97, he ran for a U.S. Senate seat, but to
his relief lost to Thomas C. Platt. In 1899, President McKinley appointed Choate to be
the Ambassador to the Court of St. James in London. He continued to serve as
Ambassador under his friend Theodore Roosevelt until 1905. The entire family moved to
1
Jameson, E.O., The Choates in America, 1643-1896, John Choate and His Descendants. Boston: Alfred
Mudge & Son. 1896. page 1.
History
3- 1
London during this time. In early 1907, after only
one year at home, Choate was named the U.S.
representative to the Second Peace Conference at
The Hague. But after October, 1907, the family
stayed in the United States - winters in New York
City and summers in Stockbridge.
Joseph Choate spent his last years working to have
the United States enter WWI on the side of Britain
and France. At age 85, he was made Chairman of
the Committee to welcome the delegates from
Europe: Generals Joffre of France and Viviani of
Italy, and Arthur Balfour of Great Britain. After it
was determined the U.S. would join the Allies,
Mabel Choate remembers her father saying, “At
last, I can hold my head up as high as my eightyfive years will permit.” After a final meeting and
special service for Mr. Balfour held at St. John’s
Cathedral in New York City, Joseph Choate
returned home exhausted. He died the next day,
May 14, 1917.
4th birthday.
Caroline Dutcher Sterling Choate (1837-1929)
Caroline Dutcher Sterling was born in Salisbury, Connecticut and grew up in Cleveland,
Ohio. She was studying art in New York City in the late 1850s when she was introduced
to Joseph Choate by a mutual friend. Mr. Choate, by his own account, had a difficult
time persuading Miss Sterling to give up her career in art to marry him.
She was some five years my junior, and was as earnestly devoted to art as I was to
the law, so that we were both most unfortunately busy, and the worst of it was that
she had made a vow of some sort never to think of anything but art. In fact, she
wore a wedding-ring on which was inscribed the words “Wedded to art.”
However, I followed up our first acquaintance with great persistence, and found
that the more I saw of her the better I liked her….Still, that plaguey wedding-ring
stood in my way, but there is no rock so hard but that a little wave will beat
admission in a thousand years, and after a while I found that she began to
relent…and on the Fourth of July, 1861, the beleaguered fortress yielded, and I
celebrated that anniversary of our national independence by sacrificing my own
independence for life. The old wedding-ring was put aside, and on the 16th of
October, in that year, I put another ring upon her finger, which continues there to
this day.2
2
Edward Stanton Martin, The Life of Joseph Hodges Choate. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1929.
pp. 131-132.
History
3- 2
For the next 56 years, until Mr. Choate’s death, their marriage was a happy one. Mrs.
Choate did continue her interest in art, in part by insisting her children had art lessons
during the long summers at Naumkeag. Several of her paintings and drawings are on
view at Naumkeag.
In addition to being a supportive wife to a busy lawyer and diplomat and the mother to
five children, Mrs. Choate was a strong advocate for the education of women. In 1882,
Mrs. Choate helped organize the Association for Promoting the Higher Education for
Women. By 1883, this group petitioned Columbia University to admit women. The
trustees turned down this request, but agreed to the “Collegiate Course,” under which
women had the right to take Columbia’s exams but continued to be barred from all
classes. Mrs. Choate persevered, and helped found Barnard College in 1888 as an
affiliate with Columbia. Mrs. Choate was named vice-chairman of Barnard’s board,
serving as a trustee until her death.
In 1884, Mrs. Choate was instrumental in founding the Brearley School in New York
City. This preparatory school was created to give girls the training in Greek, Latin, and
mathematics then required for admission to a liberal arts college. The first class
consisted of the Choates’ two daughters, Josephine and Mabel, and two nieces. The
Brearley School is still in business, educating young women to a high standard.3
Caroline Dutcher Sterling Choate was the great-great granddaughter of Colonel John
Ashley of Sheffield. Jane Ashley, one of John Ashley’s daughters, married Captain
Ruloff Dutcher of Lakeville, Connecticut in 1762.
Choate Family Children and Grandchildren
Ruluff Choate (1864-1884)
As noted in Mabel’s memoirs, Ruluff died at home while on break from Harvard
University. In Joseph Choate’s letters to his wife, he never fails to mention Ruluff on the
anniversaries of his birth and death. It was Ruluff’s death that prompted Mabel to start
her memoirs with,
Strange that Naumkeag, a happy house and one which has given pleasure to so
many people, should have been conceived and born in sorrow.
… my father and mother would walk up the hill, go into a lovely field to sit and
watch the sunset. It was a pasture with close clipped grass with occasional
boulders scattered about and bare of trees except for one large oak and a few
thorn apple trees. There was an unbroken view of the semi-circle of hills and to
the South the long vista of the Perugino view. Here in this lovely spot they must
often have talked of their dear boy who had left them; and here came to them the
idea of building a house of their own. Before the year was out this land was
theirs.
3
The paragraphs about Barnard College and the Brearley School are based on research by Rosalind
Rosenberg, Department of History, Barnard College, New York City. From correspondence between
Rosenberg and Historic Site Administrator Lisa Anderson, 2001.
History
3- 3
George Choate (1867-1937)
George suffered a nervous breakdown during his freshman year at Williams College in
1886. To care for George, and to not subject him to further traveling, the Choate family
stayed the winter of 1886-1887 at Naumkeag. This was the only time they did so.
Within a couple of years, George moved to an institution where he received care until his
death. He did travel to visit Naumkeag. We have George, an amateur photographer, to
thank for several of the very few interior photographs taken at Naumkeag.
Josephine Choate (1869-1896)
Effie, as she was known to friends and family, became ill with colitis in her early 20s.
After several years of nursing (her room at Naumkeag was between Mabel’s and Mrs.
Choate’s so they could care for her at night), Josephine died at Naumkeag on July 20,
1896 at the age of 27.
She always loved to look out of her window, and many is the time she would say:
“How grateful I am to Stanford White for making such beautiful details on this
house, I am never tired of looking at them.”4
Mabel Choate (1870-1958)
Mabel had a long and interesting life. Naumkeag was built when she was a teenager, and
she and Josephine were given the responsibility in late 1885 to bring furniture to the new
house. She traveled extensively throughout the world, first with her family and later by
herself or with garden clubs. After Mrs. Choate died in 1929, Mabel Choate purchased
an apartment at 770 Park Avenue in New York City. And she began to transform the
gardens at Naumkeag, working with Fletcher Steele for the next 30 years. She never
married, but was much loved by her nieces and nephews and their children. “Aunt
Mabel” was a great character, and Naumkeag was by all accounts a wonderful place for
adults and children alike to visit. Miss Choate bequeathed Naumkeag to The Trustees of
Reservations “to be operated for the benefit of the public as a country house museum.”
Joseph Hodges Choate, Jr. (1876-1968); wife: Cora Lyman Oliver (1876-1955)
Called “Jo” by his family, Joseph, Jr. was the only one of the five children to marry and
have children of his own. He was a clerk for his father at the London embassy before
receiving his law degree at Harvard University. After marrying Cora Oliver in 1903 they
summered at her family’s place in Murray Bay, Quebec, Canada. But they and their four
children and grandchildren always found time to visit Naumkeag.
Some notes about subsequent generations:
Joseph, Jr. and Cora’s daughter Helen Choate (Platt) recalled,
It was Grandpa Choate’s house when we first went there, every August until 1917,
when he died. We used to get on the train at Mount Kisco and steam off to a place
called “State Line,” which we thought of as a place name, but was actually the
dividing line between New York and Massachusetts. There we would be met by
much loved Grandpa, in a great lumbering covered carriage called a station
4
Mabel Choate, Memoirs. Unpublished, 1952-1956.
History
3- 4
wagon, drawn by two horses, with a fancy old Coachman sitting on the box. He
was named Snellgrove, if you’ll believe it.
The station wagon had 2 plush seats facing each other and it held maybe 8 to 10
people, and in this we made our way, the 5 or 6 miles to Naumkeag. It took a
while, and there was plenty of time for jokes, with which Grandpa was loaded. A
great favorite was “Finding Mabel’s house.” The idea was to spot the most
ramshackle, broken down hut by the roadside, and Grandpa would exclaim “Ah,
there’s Mabel’s house.” “Oh no Grandpa, it isn’t half broken enough” – The
funny thing was that we all adored Aunt Mabel, Grandpa included.
When we reached Naumkeag Aunt Mabel would ride up on her pretty little mare
called “May Morning.” The first thing we did after getting out of the wagon was
the “Rolling Routine.” Naumkeag in those days (before Fletcher Steele), was
teed up on two grass terraces, enormously steep (how did they mow them?) The
thing was to roll down these tall terraces, enormous speed and dizziness. After a
few rolls we would pick ourselves up and stagger down to the farm.
The grandchildren also loved to visit their grand-aunt Mabel. In a 2003 oral history,
great-nephew Nick Platt recalls his great-aunt as a fun-loving, gregarious, and warm lady.
She was a “character” and “children loved her company.” Mabel taught Nick how to
belch, in the Chinese custom of showing appreciation of a good meal. As a teen-ager,
Nick Platt worked at Naumkeag; his boss was Robert Crighton, Miss Choate’s
superintendent.
In 2004, another grand-nephew, Joe Hallowell, visited Naumkeag. Although younger
than his cousin Nick Platt, he also had fond memories of Naumkeag and his great-aunt.
He remembered Miss Choate’s two maids, Rose and Margaret, and how nice they were to
children. Joe raced the water in the brick runnel (connecting the Afternoon Garden and
the Blue Steps), swam in the Chinese Garden’s reservoir, and had fresh butter at
breakfast.
3.1.1 Summer Vacations
By 1870, Mr. Choate was doing very well financially and socially. For example, Mr.
Choate was a member of the committee to form The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The
family began to participate in the pastimes of the newly wealthy of the post-Civil War
era. This included summering in pleasant areas, escaping the heat of the city. The family
tried a number of areas before settling on Stockbridge, Massachusetts.
The summer of 1870 was spent in Newport, Rhode Island. Caroline spent the entire
summer there with three children and a nanny. Mr. Choate visited when possible, but
regretted the seven or eight hours of travel. For the summer holidays of 1871, the family
vacationed in Ridgefield, New Jersey. This was a small town on the Hudson River
opposite New York City, so the family was able to spend more time together.
History
3- 5
But then the Berkshires claimed the Choates’ affections. Berkshire County long had the
reputation as a place for intellectual and literary people such as Nathaniel Hawthorne,
Catherine Sedgwick, Herman Melville, Oliver Wendell Holmes and, later, Edith
Wharton. In the Gilded Age, America’s financial elite joined them, creating a “cottage”
resort of large estates. It was a relatively easy commute from New York City by train.
The Choate family spent the summers of 1872 and 1873 in Lenox. In 1874, the family,
now including five children, spent their first summer in Stockbridge.
Stockbridge offered a more relaxed atmosphere and a less formal setting than Lenox,
which suited the Choates. This was a family who valued a relaxing, family-centered
summer vacation, rather than the rarified social swirl at Newport. In 1883 Mr. Choate
wrote to his daughter Josephine in Europe saying “tomorrow I start for my long promised
vacation. What a luxury it will be to me to escape from the city and to roll on the grass,
ride over the hills, and float in Stockbridge Bowl.” (Stockbridge Bowl is the local lake.)
He asked his daughter to excuse the tardiness of another letter mailed the following week.
“I came up here on Monday and put on my vacation laziness.”
Stockbridge was the summer retreat for one of Mr. Choate’s law partners, Charles F.
Southmayd (this Italianate house still stands across the valley from Naumkeag). Another
law partner, who retired in 1859 shortly before Choate became a partner, also summered
in Stockbridge. Charles Butler’s estate, Linwood, is now part of the Norman Rockwell
Museum.
3.2 The Creation of Naumkeag
Between Prospect Hill Road and Church Street was a sloping field of scrub and rocks,
with one large oak tree. According to Mabel Choate, her parents often walked here for
picnic lunches. Perhaps during these lunches they planned their summer retreat,
complete with a farm. In 1884 the Choates made their dreams come true by buying the
property with its views of Monument Mountain. For the next seven decades, with the
exception of the years in England (1899-spring 1905), a summer taking the “Grand Tour”
around Europe (1892) and a summer at the Peace Conference in The Hague (1907), the
Choate family summered at Naumkeag. It was a family-oriented estate used from April
until November, with everyday pleasures more important than grand balls. There were
certainly sad events, especially Josephine’s death at Naumkeag in 1896, but Naumkeag
was always a place of refuge, of relaxation, and rejuvenation.
The choice of architects to build the main house was determined by the Choates’ close
friendship with Charles McKim. He was a founder of the architectural firm of McKim,
Mead, & White. Because he was busy building a house in Lenox for his fiancée Julia
Appleton, McKim assigned the promising young architect in their practice, Stanford
White, to lead the Choates’ project.
History
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Stanford White was a "genius and a fascinating personality of tremendous
stature...His hair of blond red hue was worn en brosse and with a bristling
mustache, he looked like a Viking of old... he was kindness itself and our whole
family became devoted to him...From the beginning of the building of the house,
Mr. White took my mother shopping and they went all over New York and visited
every antique, decorator and kindred shops.”5
One of the most important architectural firms in American history, McKim, Mead &
White designed a broad range of work, including over three hundred commissions for
single family residences between 1879 and 1912. Approximately one third of these
houses survive. The partnership of McKim, Mead & White was established in 1879 at a
point in American architectural history when house design was becoming more
innovative, both in terms of room arrangements and exterior ornamentation. This was
especially true of summer houses where there was greater flexibility in terms of how a
house was designed and the manner in which it related to the surrounding landscape.
Naumkeag’s exterior design is unusual in McKim, Mead & White’s work for its
playfulness and lack of pretension. Begun in 1885, Naumkeag occupies a critical
transitional period in the work of McKim, Mead & White between the early Shingle Style
designs and the large formal Colonial Revival and Renaissance style houses of the late
nineteenth century. During the first half of the 1880s, the firm designed several
important examples of the Shingle Style, a term used to describe free-flowing
architecture with shingle-covered roofs and walls. Naumkeag, designed in 1885, is not a
pure example of Shingle Style but rather an ambitious and interesting combination of
Shingle Style and French Norman.
The east elevation, which is the formal side of the house visible to approaching visitors,
derives some of its elements from the architecture of Normandy, as well as Stanford
White’s English Sketchbooks. This is expressed through the combination of salmoncolored struck brick laid in a diaper pattern, randomly laid fieldstone, and the addition of
a porte cochere. The west façade is viewed while walking the grounds and enjoying the
views of the Berkshires. This elevation is intended to blend more with the landscape and
is less formal in terms of architectural style. The walls and gable ends are covered with
shingles, as were the roofs as originally installed, and the use of ornament is a secondary
design feature.6
The interior layout reflects the house’s steep, difficult site. Space is organized around the
great vertical gesture of the staircase, an apotheosis of varnished carved oak that connects
all three main floors. Individual room sizes are modest, and space flows across the center
hall without opening up the plan to any significant degree. The first floor may have been
based on the model of a four-square colonial house, but irregularities nudge the plan
5
Mabel Choate, memoirs.
The discussion of McKim, Mead & White is from Naumkeag’s Historic Structure Report, by William
Finch and Carol Rose, 2000. On file in The Trustees of Reservations’ Western Region Office, Stockbridge.
6
History
3- 7
towards picturesque asymmetry. The result is a house of immense charm, designed for
family living rather than large-scale entertaining.7
Construction began in the spring of 1885 and was completed by the fall of 1886 at a total
cost of about $40,000. The two Choate daughters, Mabel and Josephine, accompanied
the movers to Naumkeag to place all of the furniture so that the house would be ready by
the spring of 1887. Other elements of the estate, including the carriage barn, livestock
barn, stables, greenhouse, and summerhouse were soon added. Below the greenhouses,
the land was terraced for large kitchen gardens.
Initially, Joseph Choate asked the Olmsted firm of Brookline, Massachusetts to site the
house. However, the Choates did not like their plan, which proposed cutting down their
favorite oak tree. A new landscape architect was hired, Nathan Barrett of Boston, who
saw things the same way as his new client. It was his design that formed the basis of the
famed Naumkeag gardens that evolved over the years.
3.3 The Choates at Naumkeag, 1887-1899
The first summer (1887) in our new palace was a joy to all. Everyone wanted to
come and see just what it was like and to view the garden, which at that time was
an unusual possession; the tennis court under the oak tree was always in use and
we ourselves had the pleasure of luxuriating in both space and privacy, as well as
the fun of showing off our new treasures.8
The Choate family enjoyed their new estate with gusto. Mr. Choate loved the farm, often
writing about walking down to see the cows, a new litter of pigs, and other livestock.
I do miss Stockbridge and every dear thing in it so much – wife, children, friends,
house, garden, lands, horses, cows, pigs, not to speak of the donkey…9
Mrs. Choate’s interest rested primarily in the flower gardens. According to Mabel
Choate, she and her sister Josephine were often pressed into duty packing up suspect
insects to send away for identification. The entire family visited the local lake called
Stockbridge Bowl most summer afternoons. Mr. Choate had made arrangements with a
farmer who owned land around the Bowl to let him build a little bathhouse there, so that
they had access to the water each summer. But not all was fun and frolic - Mrs. Choate
would hire young artists to come and give the children instruction, feeling that summer
should not be just one long vacation.
The family did spend one winter at Naumkeag. In 1887, George Choate, a freshman at
nearby Williams College, had a nervous breakdown. After doctors determined it wasn’t
safe to move him to New York City, he recuperated at Naumkeag over the winter.
7
Samuel G. White, The Houses of McKim, Mead & White. New York: Rizzoli International Publications,
1998. page 116.
8
Mabel Choate, memoirs.
9
JHC, letter to his wife Caroline, from Albany, August 24, 1894. Martin (Vol. I, page 465)
History
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The estate was named sometime in the 1890s. The family chose Naumkeag out of respect
for Mr. Choate. Naumkeag is an Algonquin word for a Native American Indian tribe that
once occupied the area now known as Ipswich and Salem, Massachusetts, Mr. Choate's
childhood home. Mr. Choate often kidded his family that he would return to live in this
area north of Boston during his sunset years. Supposedly, Naumkeag was chosen to
remind Mr. Choate of where he grew up and allow the family to stay in the Berkshires.
On Saturday, September 25, 1897, President and Mrs. William McKinley came to lunch
with the Choates at Naumkeag. Although still in mourning for Josephine, the Choates
were happy to host the event. A local newspaper report provides valuable information
about the house:
The Choate house is of light-colored brick and rises three stories above the lawn.
The party drove in, and all got down from the carriages and went indoors, where
a party of some thirty friends had been bidden to meet the guests. The interior of
the house is charming. There is a great hall running through from the front door
to the veranda beyond, and the windows afford a charming outlook. On the right
of the hall and near the door, stairs rise entirely out of sight from the hall. On the
further side is the dining-room, finished in mahogany, and the hall in old English
oak, and both handsomely furnished. The fireplace and mantel in the hall are of
dark brown stone. The parlor opens on the left, and is finished and furnished in
light colors. Beyond it, and yet opening from the hall, is the library, a large room
with a bay window and finished in dark wood. It was in this room that the
President signed for himself and his wife in the ‘Guest Book.’
President McKinley appointed Joseph Choate Ambassador to the Court of St. James in
London in 1899. Because the whole family moved to England, Naumkeag was rented for
the next six summers. One of those summers it was occupied by Marshall Field (of
Chicago department store fame) and his family. The Choates returned in June, 1905.
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Choate sisters on the porch of Naumkeag, circa 1890.
3.4 The Choates at Naumkeag, 1905-1929
As soon as we got to Naumkeag [in 1905], everything looked like its beloved self,
the house and the view and the garden just as lovely as ever, and we were filled
with delight. We soon settled down to our usual quiet life and were thankful to be
home again. Of course, there was lots to be done and Mother had a wonderful
time having overgrown trees cut back, so that we could once more see Monument
Mountain and Tom Ball; replanting the garden, and pulling out forgotten
treasures which had been hidden away for safe keeping.
The summer passed happily and quietly with various old friends and members of
the family coming to stay with us and a beautiful new little baby girl only a few
months old, my brother’s first child, to be seen. Father, who loved children, said
he was very indignant to have had to wait until his 74th year to have his first
grandchild, and at last he was satisfied.10
The Choates soon made a major change to the gardens. Annoyed with tourists who
parked their new-fangled automobiles then trampled through the property, a stone wall
was erected along Prospect Hill Road.
Accompanying the Choates on their return home were some additional staff. A butler
named John Osborne, a footman named Frank, coachman Joseph A. Snelgrove, (18661945), and three housemaids, joined the household. All needed accommodations at
10
Mabel Choate, Memoirs
History
3- 10
Naumkeag. A servant’s wing was drawn up for an addition to the north end of the main
residence. This wing contained quarters for the butler and footman, and provide a dining
room and bathroom for all the servants. Additional bathrooms were added throughout the
house to supplement the original three built in 1885.
In 1911 Joseph and Caroline Choate celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary at
Naumkeag. There was dancing on the Terrace (now “Top Lawn”), visits by city visitors
and local residents, and many beautiful gifts. An elaborate dinner was catered by
Sherry’s of New York City. The yellow lusterware still on view in the dining room was
an anniversary gift from Joseph’s brother William Choate.
Mr. Choate continued to be deeply involved at Naumkeag until the end of his life. In
1917, he engaged in a detailed correspondence with contractors who renovated the
carriage house. In a sign of the times, all the horse-related equipment was removed and
replaced with equipment for automobiles.
Joseph Hodges Choate died on May 14, 1917. Miss Choate commented in her memoirs,
“So that was the end of a happy and useful life, but his inspiration still lives on.”
3.5 Mabel Choate takes over, 1929-1958
Mabel Choate took care of her ailing mother until Mrs. Choate’s death in November,
1929. After the death of her mother Mabel Choate received her inheritance, which
included Naumkeag. She invested her money through a capable investment advisor, and
bought and furnished her own apartment on Park Avenue in New York City. She also
began to turn her attention to Naumkeag.
It was after a trip to California that she met Fletcher Steele at a Lenox Garden Club
meeting in 1926 where he was speaking. It was this meeting and their discussion of
Naumkeag’s gardens that began their long association. Her trips to Europe and to Asia
gave her many inspirations for additions to Naumkeag. In collaboration with Steele,
Miss Choate created a masterpiece of designed landscape. This process continued until
1956, when, in Miss Choate’s view, the gardens were complete.
The first project completed by Mabel Choate with Fletcher Steele as architect, was the
service entrance at the north end of the house. Soon afterwards, in 1928, Steele designed
the Garden entrance and the Afternoon Garden. By 1930, Fletcher Steele was a frequent
visitor at Naumkeag, working privately with Mabel Choate on plans for the gardens that
were often revealed as a surprise to other family members when they were complete.
Many guests visited Naumkeag during these decades. Subsequently, bedrooms that may
have once been used by family were redecorated and furnished as guest rooms. But
except for the occasional update of kitchen equipment, flooring, and draperies, the main
house at Naumkeag remained largely unchanged.
Mabel Choate continued to summer at Naumkeag until her death in December, 1958 at
age 87. One can still find laundry receipts and newspapers in the house dated October,
1958. By that time, she had completed her work with Fletcher Steele on the evolution of
History
3- 11
Naumkeag, as visitors know it today. Her decision to give the estate to The Trustees of
Reservations to be “a house museum,“ was a decision she guarded closely until near the
end of her life, and one that initially did not meet with the approval of her younger
brother, Joseph. The Trustees of Reservations and their preservation work had been
recommended by none other than Fletcher Steele, who had been a supporter of the
organization for some time.
3.6 Staff and operations
Naumkeag existed as a place for the Choates to relax and enjoy themselves. But it took a
lot of work to make that happen. We don’t know much about the staff, except what we
learn from the Choates themselves.
In a letter to his wife, written in July, 1891, Joseph Choate describes how seven village
children came up with him to Naumkeag for a visit:
…First we made a raid upon the kitchen, where fortunately Sarah, the cook, had
just turned out a great batch of sponge cakes [which] with a glass of milk made
quite a lunch – then we went on to the front cellar to visit ‘Bayah’ and her four
new black kittens, all in one wine box with a single eye open among them. Of
course we each had to have one in our own hands to see how soft it was. Then on
to the hen house to see a new brood of new chickens, out of the egg that very
morning, where the same process had to be gone through, next to the pig-sty to
see the new litter. Henry went in to try to drive them out, but the old sow flew at
him and he too flew over the fence like a bird…11
Many years later, Helen Choate Platt recalls Miss Choate’s maids:
The chief charm of Naumkeag, aside from Aunt Mabel herself, was its atmosphere
of Friendly Comfort. This wasn’t Newporty, Butlery Comfort, but something
created by Aunt Mabel’s servants, all of whom had been there at least 15 years,
and all of whom were members of the family – Chief among them were Margaret,
the waitress, and Rose the parlormaid. Margaret was a great handsome redfaced Irish Grenadier. Rose was a tiny Irish saint. Margaret appeared to run
things, with quite a lot of bluster, but it was really tiny humorous Rose who made
everything go. 12
From 1886 to 1958, Naumkeag needed a large staff and lots of money to keep it in tip-top
condition. Although smaller than many summer estates, Naumkeag included the main
house, carriage house with apartment, summer house with ice house beneath, a
greenhouse, three staff houses, a barn, and farm – not to mention kittens.
Joseph and Caroline Choate traveled with a cook, butler, footman, and maids. Yearround staff at Naumkeag included several farm workers and a superintendent. Although
11
12
Martin, vol. I, pp 424-425.
Helen Choate Platt, 1973
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the exact numbers are not known, it’s estimated that Naumkeag had a staff of about ten to
run the house and a similar number to tend to the farm and gardens.
As with many wealthy Americans in the early 20th century, Miss Choate kept a smaller
staff than was typical of her parents’ generation. But the tradition of some staff living
permanently in Stockbridge, and others – Rose and Margaret in particular - traveling with
her between New York City and Stockbridge continued. Her staff included several
servants in the Main House, with a few more – perhaps ten - for the outside.
There were two chauffeurs, one who lived there with his wife and children, and the other
a single man. They were quartered in the renovated stable and Carriage Barn that by this
time was the garage and maintenance building for cars. Six vehicles were garaged there,
including three Marmons, Mabel Choate’s Cadillac roadster, a Ford Model T station
wagon, and a REO Speed Truck.
3.6.1 The Farm13
The successful maintenance of the farm required a dedicated team of workers. A yearround superintendent lived on the property and was in charge of all the farm and grounds
workers. Their ranks swelled in the summer months, and diminished to a core group
during the winter. In the earlier years, the core group consisted of about four men and the
superintendent, and grew to about eleven men in the summer months. The specific
numbers changed throughout the years, but the pattern continued until the end of Mabel
Choate’s life. Even today, the Trustees employs a year-round superintendent and three
men, and two or three more workers are hired in the summer.
It is a testament to the kindness and generosity of the Choate family that the farm had
only four superintendents during its long history. The first was Henry Bondorff, who was
hired before the completion of Naumkeag. He is mentioned frequently in the biography
of Joseph Choate (compiled based on his letters). He was married and lived in the
superintendent’s house on the property. He did not remain with the family long:
according to The Valley Gleaner, he left in 1893 to accept “an excellent position as head
gardener with a gentleman residing on the Hudson River.”14 Mabel did not remember his
successor, Charles Russell, fondly:
…A very supercilious grandee named Russell had been employed in
his [Bondorff’s] place. As there was no time to make any change, he
was continued during our entire absence, and although he kept
Naumkeag in wonderful order and looked well after our interests, his
lofty appearance and his manners were such that he went universally
by the name of the Czar or the Lord and was generally feared and
dreaded by all of Stockbridge.15
13
The section about the farm is based on a report written by Kate Mockler, Naumkeag’s 2005 Jeannine
Rioux Intern. Her research materials are on file at Western Region office.
14
The Valley Gleaner, Wednesday, August 23, 1893, from clippings in Western Region archives.
15
Choate, Memoirs, 41-42.
History
3- 13
In April of 1906, Charles Russell was replaced by George Breed. Stanley Smith, who
observed Naumkeag as a young boy in the 1910s and 1920s, described this hardworking
superintendent’s daily routine:
Mr. Breed, an early riser, had breakfast with the grounds workers, then
to the barn to check with the help down there. Then up to the Big
House (Choates) with produce from the gardens and farm – such as
vegetables, milk, fruit, cream, butter, eggs, cut flowers, and the mail.
He would drive to the Post Office before going to the house. In winter
months he had to take milk, cream, butter, eggs to the station for the
early train for delivery in New York City. He did this three or four
times a week, I think.
The rest of the day was spent in the greenhouse or checking on the
men in the gardens and lawns. After supper, he would go into the
dairy and separate the milk, cream, make butter, sort eggs and then
clean up. Everything had to be sterilized so he was always late getting
out of the dairy. Then to bed – always a long day.16
Breed’s salary was $80 a month, the equivalent of $20,000 a year in 2005. He lived in the
superintendent’s house, with his wife Anna, his stepson Art, and his two adopted
daughters. He was friendly with the chauffeur and his family, the Kirkbrides, and
attended church services at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. He retired in 1921 or 1922.
His successor was Robert Crighton, the final superintendent of the property during the
Choates’ time, and the first during the stewardship of The Trustees of Reservations. In
all, he was the superintendent from 1922 to 1970.
Robert Crighton was a native of Scotland who came to this country in 1912. Prior to
coming to Naumkeag, he worked on a large estate in Pennsylvania and also held a
supervisory position on the Morristown, New Jersey estate of James C. Brady. He lived
in the superintendent’s house on the Naumkeag property. He oversaw the operations of
the farm and greenhouses, the maintenance of the lawn and gardens, and occasionally
worked inside the house, for example, carrying out the 1957 renovations to the maid’s
quarters. Occasionally, the Crightons took in summer workers as boarders, and his wife,
Alice Switzer, cooked their meals. Robert and Alice had one child who died in infancy
and is buried in Stockbridge Cemetery.
Mabel Choate treated Robert Crighton with respect and kindness. She trusted and relied
on him when it came to the management of Naumkeag. His niece, Violet Switzer, who
lived with him for several years, remembers:
…she always called him Mr. Crighton. Never by his first name, and
never just Crighton. Her niece and nephew used to come up here for
work and she would send them down here and she would tell my uncle
16
Stanley B. Smith, reminiscences, n.p. 1986, in oral history binder at Trustees of Reservations Western
Regional Office.
History
3- 14
that if they don’t do their job, just fire them…Every year from my
uncle’s anniversary to be here, she wrote him a letter and a check
would come in it, thanking him for another year and hoping that he
would be there the next year. She made him promise that he would
never leave here until she died.17
Violet goes on to recall that her uncle was invited up to the house every day, and that
Mabel had a close relationship with the Crightons. She brought Alice Switzer Crighton
souvenirs from her trips. Although she was unable to get out of the car and would herself
pass on later that year, Mabel went to Alice’s funeral in 1958. Mabel then persuaded
Robert to invite Violet to live with him so that he would not be alone.
Mabel’s fondness and respect for the Crighton family was evident when her will was
read. Robert Crighton received a bequest of $15,000 after Mabel Choate’s death
(approximately $95,000 today). However, he continued to work at Naumkeag. He
remained the superintendent of the property and continued living in the superintendent’s
house until his own death in 1970. He lies buried next to his wife and son in Stockbridge
Cemetery. Violet is still living in Stockbridge.
By the time Mabel Choate died, little remained of the farming operation. Although the
greenhouses and vegetable gardens were still active, she kept fewer types of animals and
reduced the number of farm staff. Her true passion was the designed landscapes. She
focused most of her energy and interest on improving them through her collaboration
with Fletcher Steele, and what was left over went into her travels, her family, and her
charity work. When Mabel died, the only other year-round employee besides the
superintendent was Charles Barnes.
Barnes began working at Naumkeag as late as 1934. Bud Wilcox, who mowed lawns at
Naumkeag during his teenage years in the early 1930s, describes him as a herdsman, but
his duties became more generalized as time went on. Charles married a woman named
Lena in 1951. Both he and Lena were older at the time of their marriage, so they did not
have children together, although Lena had a son from a previous marriage. Like Robert
Crighton, Charles Barnes remained at Naumkeag after Mabel died. In 1973, he suffered a
stroke while at work. He retired, and died shortly afterwards. Lena moved with her son to
one of the southern states.
In 1959, Charles and Lena Barnes moved to 26 Church Street, a house owned by the
Choate family. Over the years, it provided a home to many of the year-round farm staff.
It was originally a duplex, but has been converted to single-family housing. It is still
painted yellow, and has been since the early twentieth century. When Mabel Choate died,
this property also came to The Trustees of Reservations and is currently inhabited by a
Trustees’ staff member.
17
Violet Switzer, interview with Gordon Clark, January 1998.
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Charles Weed began work at Naumkeag in 1930 and was responsible for milking cows
and cutting hay. He lived at 26 Church Street with his wife, Juanita, and his two
daughters, Charlene and Florence. His sister married Juanita’s brother, Herbert Ariail18,
and they lived in the other side of the house with their four daughters. Herbert may also
have worked at Naumkeag. Coincidentally, Charles Weed died of a heart attack in 1958,
the same year as Mabel Choate and Alice Crighton. According to Florence Weed
Andrews, Juanita continued to live at 26 Church Street for a few years after her
husband’s death, then began working for a local family.
Stanley Smith recalls two earlier sets of in-laws who lived at 26 Church Street and
worked at Naumkeag. Harold Gardner and Jim Stevens worked with the animals on the
Naumkeag farm. Harold Gardner was responsible for caring for the team of horses, and
driving them. Jim Stevens cared for the chickens, cows and pigs. He remembers:
Jim would come to work early in the morning, bring cows in from the
field, spray their faces and rears with a creosote spray to rid the
animals of fleas and put them back into their stanchions. All milking
was done by hand and there was always a big black cat waiting for a
squeeze of milk. Jim would wipe off the udders with a damp towel.
Milk was poured from the pails screened into larger milk cans to go
up to the dairy in back of the Breeds’ cottage. Cows were fed while
being milked. Jim then had to clean the stall, feed the chickens and
pigs. Milking was done again in the late afternoon. Cows were put out
in the field for the night.19
There were many more who worked at Naumkeag over the years. Some were casual
workers. Bud Wilcox lived in town and worked as a gardener under the supervision of
Robert Crighton during the summers in the early 1930s. Mabel’s great-nephew, Nick
Platt, worked under a similar arrangement. The farm ledger book records a long list of
men who came and went during the six years the book covers. Some worked only a few
days and never returned. Some worked in the summer and were hired back to harvest ice.
Bud Wilcox remembers a man named Tom Varnable, who lived in South Lee and
mowed the lawns with a hand mower. A man named Matt Mattoon or Matheun is
mentioned in some oral histories as a greenhouse supervisor and co-worker of Nick Platt,
Charles Weed and Charles Barnes. Little is known about him and it’s not even clear if he
lived on the property. John Bodnar worked on the farm in the summers, 1956-1958. He
recently provided an oral history of his time working at Naumkeag.
18
There has been some confusion about the names in this family. Violet Switzer remembers “Chick and
Arial Weed”. Chick is probably a nickname for Charles, and it is possible that Herbert went by his last
name. This information is taken from an oral history with Charles’ daughter, Florence Weed Andrews. The
spelling of Herbert’s last name is taken from Charles and Juanita Weed’s gravestone.
19
Stanley Smith, reminiscences, 1986.
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3.7 Preserving Naumkeag, 1958-2006
Mabel Choate was deeply interested in historic preservation. In the late 1920s, again
with Fletcher Steele, she saved the house of Rev. John Sergeant, the first missionary to
the Mohicans in Stockbridge. Miss Choate had the Mission House, built in 1739 on
Prospect Hill, moved to Main Street. After operating as an independent museum for
twenty years, Miss Choate donated The Mission House to The Trustees in 1948.
Since receiving Naumkeag in late 1958, The Trustees of Reservations have worked to
maintain the estate in a way that justifies the faith Miss Mabel Choate and Fletcher Steele
placed in the organization. It is a remarkably intact example of a late 1800s Berkshire
country estate, complete with furnishings and accoutrements bequeathed with the house
and gardens, all as Miss Mabel Choate had organized them. This great advantage has
been maintained by The Trustees, and they have been able to share this complete vision
of Naumkeag with visitors each year since opening in 1959.
With a few exceptions, all aspects of Naumkeag that were a part of the estate in 1958 still
remain. Only the greenhouses and some out buildings (sheds) that were a part of the
farm complex have been removed. The landscapes and gardens themselves have been
maintained, with some partial losses to the Linden Walk and the Orchard.
Over the years, The Trustees have addressed restoration issues at Naumkeag, making
significant progress. Notably, recent restoration work at the Evergreen Garden and the
Summer / Ice House structure have been completed. Significant, but less visible, work is
underway in the Main House refining the infrastructure to maintain and improve the
safety of the resource. Funds raised by an active volunteer committee have allowed for
the restoration of the dining room and other aspects of the house. Naumkeag has received
additional funding from The Trustees for planning studies and reports that will support
future work.
In 1985, J. Graham and Margaret Parsons gave a 1.7 acre parcel, referred to as “Ivison
Field,” to The Trustees of Reservations. It is located across the ravine just north of
Naumkeag’s entry gate, on the west side of Prospect Hill Road. Mr. Parsons was a
diplomat, serving at one point as U.S. Ambassador to Sweden. The Parsons inherited
property in Stockbridge, including this parcel, from Mr. Parsons’ uncle, Henry Ivison
Parsons. The Ivisons were summer residents of Stockbridge at the same time as the
Choate family. Although historically not part of Naumkeag, Ivison Field provides
protected open space adjoining the reservation.
History
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