Newport Villas: The Revival Styles 1885–1935

Michael C. Kathrens

Overview

A survey of the Gilded Age mansions of Newport, RI, for all who love grand houses.

Newport Villas describes the architectural and social development of this summer resort town, the nexus of wealth and fashion at the end of the nineteenth century. All the accouterments were the best that money could buy, whether it was Parisian frocks, meticulously groomed thoroughbred horses, or meals prepared by imported French chefs. To properly mount their entertainments, Newport's elite built "cottages" that ranged in size from thirty to seventy rooms. The country's most accomplished architects designed these seaside villas, many of them rivaling the great houses of Europe. Pictured here in abundant archival and new photographs, with accompanying floor plans, the houses cover the gamut of revival styles from Colonial Revival to Stick Style, from French Baroque to Tuscan villa.

About the Author

Michael C. Kathrens, an independent scholar specializing in late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century American residential architecture and interior decoration, wrote ,The Great Houses of New York 1880-1930. He lives in New York City.

ISBN 13: 978-0-393-73270-2
January 2009 / 350 black-and-white photos and plans, 25 color photos / 384 pages/ Hardcover