Homes were as much a place of reprieve as they were a celebration of individual personality and success. One such example that exemplifies the Beaux-Arts ideas is the now-demolished Black Point estate in Southampton. The home belonged to the son of Henry Huddleston Rogers, one of the last great robber barons of the nineteenth century. Rogerssenior found success in multiple enterprises. He was instrumental in the formation of Anaconda Copper and as a founding member of Standard Oil. Despite tales of his ruthlessness, his philanthropy flourished in his hometown of Fairhaven, Massachusetts. The Millicent Library there was dedicated to his late daughter and H. H. Rogers saw to it that the library was well-endowed. His son’s Beaux-Arts inspired home evinced the delicate balance between the family’s history as community patrons in both the charitable and industrial spheres. Black Point was an Italian villa unearthed and replanted on Eastern Long Island. Architects Walker and Gillette worked closely with the Olmstead brothers[3] to ensure that the garden and architecture designs were seamlessly integrated, and the layout of the grounds formed a natural progression through the estate from landscape to interior. Of course the demesne was put to good use for many a lavish gathering. The exterior consisted of unadorned, stucco walls uncharacteristic of Beaux-Arts, but also boasted grand Ionic pillars and fantastic sculpture work, evidencing the stature of the family. Inside, however, the home became the portal it was meant to be. The richly ornate tapestries, artwork, and furniture offset the austere formality and symmetry, making it seem as if the property were really on the shores of theMediterranean.
Eastern Long Islandhomes, even a century ago, were built as spaces for people to come and unburden themselves. While the mansions of that day and age are dwindling, some are still being created, if in a slightly more modern form. However, the unique architecture of the Hamptons as a whole—the cedar shingle, beach house look that combines the paired windows, side porches, and incorporation of landscape reminiscent of the Colonial Revival style with the half-timbered, asymmetrical exteriors and hipped roofs of the Elizabethan and French Rural styles—maintains this idea today. It is emphatically evident to any visitor to the land beyond exit forty-nine that great pains were taken in unifying the architecture of Eastern Long Island, simplifying it, and giving the area its own identity. Even if the styles have changed, the homes still remain, some in body and some in spirit. Indeed, throughEastern Long Islandarchitecture, we are “borne back ceaselessly into the past,” sucked through time with the rare chance to relive a glorious age.
[1] Beaux-Arts translates to “fine arts.”
[2] There was often a hierarchy of space present in the design, so that rooms were proportional to their importance in the home and frequency of use.
[3] The Olmsted brothers were the sons of Frederick Law Olmsted, the famed landscaper ofCentral Park.
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