Morris County Mansion IS the Target of Theives
- EsseXploreR
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- NJE
14 years 1 month ago #1
by EsseXploreR
"It's better to regret something you did, then something you didn't do"
abandonednjurbex.blogspot.com/
Morris County Mansion IS the Target of Theives was created by EsseXploreR
Preservationists remain uncertain about the future of a privately held jewel of American architecture in ********** Township.
The Hurstmont estate has been unoccupied for years, and since its May placement on a list of the 10 most endangered historic sites in New Jersey, picked over by scavengers.
“It is a very significant piece of American architectural history,” said Janet Foster, an expert in historic preservation, and a co-chair of the Save Hurstmont committee, “...it’s really a tragedy that it has been allowed to deteriorate to the point that it has.”
Foster will speak Sunday about the 107-year-old mansion at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Florham Park.
Located off Route ***, the 15,000 square-foot building has eight baths and eight chimneys. But, it also has water damage from a leaky roof, ancient wiring and plumbing, eroding wooden columns and broken windows.
The house was placed on the list of endangered historic sites by Preservation New Jersey, a group that highlights pieces of state history with the hopes of saving them from destruction or alteration.
The mansion was designed by McKim, Mead and White, a prolific New York architectural firm responsible for many iconic buildings throughout the tri-state region around the turn of the 20th century, said Foster, a professor at the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation at Columbia University.
The firm’s designs in New York City include Columbia University, and the original Penn Station. Near Morristown, the group designed Willow Hall and the Twombley Estate, now an FDU campus,Foster said.
Hurstmont was constructed with some of the most exotic materials and ornate style of the time and is a near-replica of the Long Island home of Stanford White, the flamboyant lead architect of the architectural firm. White was shot and killed in 1906 atop Madison Square Garden by the husband of his mistress, Foster said.
Having the home listed, “has kind of been a dual-edged sword,” said Barbara Bennett, a historian who initially approached Preservation New Jersey for photographs for a book she was producing on the history of the neighboring Glen Alpin estate.
“It’s gotten a lot more people inquiring into renovating it, but it also has heightened its visibility,” she said.
That has led to trespassers on the property, some of them looting the interior of the home, and neighbors and local police to become vigilant about cars parked nearby, Bennett said.
The house and the surrounding 20-acre property is listed for $1.95 million.
Yesterday, the entrance to the property was blocked by a chain and a lock. Signs prohibit trespassing and alert visitors that they should beware of dogs on the property.
The Hurstmont estate has been unoccupied for years, and since its May placement on a list of the 10 most endangered historic sites in New Jersey, picked over by scavengers.
“It is a very significant piece of American architectural history,” said Janet Foster, an expert in historic preservation, and a co-chair of the Save Hurstmont committee, “...it’s really a tragedy that it has been allowed to deteriorate to the point that it has.”
Foster will speak Sunday about the 107-year-old mansion at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Florham Park.
Located off Route ***, the 15,000 square-foot building has eight baths and eight chimneys. But, it also has water damage from a leaky roof, ancient wiring and plumbing, eroding wooden columns and broken windows.
The house was placed on the list of endangered historic sites by Preservation New Jersey, a group that highlights pieces of state history with the hopes of saving them from destruction or alteration.
The mansion was designed by McKim, Mead and White, a prolific New York architectural firm responsible for many iconic buildings throughout the tri-state region around the turn of the 20th century, said Foster, a professor at the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation at Columbia University.
The firm’s designs in New York City include Columbia University, and the original Penn Station. Near Morristown, the group designed Willow Hall and the Twombley Estate, now an FDU campus,Foster said.
Hurstmont was constructed with some of the most exotic materials and ornate style of the time and is a near-replica of the Long Island home of Stanford White, the flamboyant lead architect of the architectural firm. White was shot and killed in 1906 atop Madison Square Garden by the husband of his mistress, Foster said.
Having the home listed, “has kind of been a dual-edged sword,” said Barbara Bennett, a historian who initially approached Preservation New Jersey for photographs for a book she was producing on the history of the neighboring Glen Alpin estate.
“It’s gotten a lot more people inquiring into renovating it, but it also has heightened its visibility,” she said.
That has led to trespassers on the property, some of them looting the interior of the home, and neighbors and local police to become vigilant about cars parked nearby, Bennett said.
The house and the surrounding 20-acre property is listed for $1.95 million.
Yesterday, the entrance to the property was blocked by a chain and a lock. Signs prohibit trespassing and alert visitors that they should beware of dogs on the property.
"It's better to regret something you did, then something you didn't do"
abandonednjurbex.blogspot.com/
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