Whitehall (Narragansett, Rhode Island)

Last updated
Whitehall, Narragansett Pier Whitehall, Narragansett Pier, Rhode Island Postcard.jpg
Whitehall, Narragansett Pier

Whitehall was the palatial summer estate at Narragansett Pier built by Captain Isaac Edward Emerson, inventor of the headache remedy Bromo-Seltzer. The architect was Joseph Evans Sperry of Baltimore. [1]

Contents

Summer villa

Built in 1917, the estate was situated on peninsula overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. It occupied 12 acres of park-like grounds on the ocean side of Ocean Road and included a large rose garden, stable and music gazebo/bandstand. The main building of brick and stucco had 7 bedrooms each with fireplaces and private baths. It had several large open porches, a winding staircase and dining and living rooms for entertaining. The north wing held 10 servant's rooms and a separate building held a 6 car garage and additional servant's quarters. [2] [3] [4]

Lavish entertainers

Emerson and his second wife, Anne Preston McCormack Emerson, were widely known in American and European society and were considered lavish entertainers. They used their yachts and summer villa Whitehall to host parties and social gatherings of the wealthy and prominent persons of the era. [5]

Demise

Upon Captain Emerson's death in 1931, the estate was passed to his wife, Anne Preston McCormack Emerson. Anne spent many summers at the estate until her death in the mid-1940s, when it was passed to her son from a previous marriage, Frederick C. McCormack, with the stipulation that upon his death it would be sold and the proceeds invested for Frederick's daughter Margaret. In December 1947, Frederick put a bullet in his head, reportedly over an unrequited love affair with Princess Desiree Windisch-Gratez. [6] [7] The estate was then purchased at auction by an ex-immigrant and liquor dealer Antonio F. Rotelli. Mr. Rotelli used it as a summer home for his large family for many years. Upon his death in 1969, the main house was deemed too expensive to keep up and too large to live in. It was demolished in 1971. [2] [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blairgowrie, Victoria</span> Town in Victoria, Australia

Blairgowrie is a seaside town on the Mornington Peninsula in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, approximately 63 km (39 mi) south of Melbourne's central business district, located within the Shire of Mornington Peninsula local government area. Blairgowrie recorded population of 2,786 at the 2021 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Self-Reliance</span> 1841 essay by Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Self-Reliance" is an 1841 essay written by American transcendentalist philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson. It contains the most thorough statement of one of Emerson's recurrent themes: the need for each individual to avoid conformity and false consistency, and follow his own instincts and ideas. It is the source of one of Emerson's most famous quotations:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt Jr.</span> British-American businessman and racehorse owner (1912–1999)

Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt Jr. was a British-born member of the prominent Vanderbilt railroad family, and a noted figure of American thoroughbred horse racing. He was the youngest-ever member of The Jockey Club, President of Belmont Racetrack, New York, and Pimlico Race Course, Baltimore, and Chairman of the Board of the New York Racing Association. In World War II, he was decorated for bravery in the South Pacific.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oatlands Palace</span> Former royal palace in Surrey, UK

Oatlands Palace is a former Tudor and Stuart royal palace which took the place of the former manor of the village of Oatlands near Weybridge, Surrey. Little remains of the original building, so excavations of the palace took place in 1964 to rediscover its extent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles D. Barney</span> American stockbroker

Charles Dennis Barney was an American stockbroker and founder of Charles D. Barney & Co., one of the predecessors of the brokerage and securities firm Smith Barney.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">E. W. Pugin</span> English architect

Edward Welby Pugin was an English architect, the eldest son of architect Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin and Louisa Barton and part of the Pugin & Pugin family of church architects. His father was an architect and designer of Neo-Gothic architecture, and after his death in 1852 Edward took up his successful practice. At the time of his own early death in 1875, Pugin had designed and completed more than one hundred Catholic churches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hill Court Manor</span>

Hill Court Manor is a country house built in 1700 at Hom Green, Walford near Ross-on-Wye in Herefordshire. The house is a Grade I listed building. It is currently owned and occupied by the Rehau Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Horatio Sharpe</span> Colonial Governor of Maryland

Horatio Sharpe was the 22nd proprietary governor of Maryland from 1753 to 1768 under the restored proprietary government of Maryland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rough Point</span>

Rough Point is one of the Gilded Age mansions of Newport, Rhode Island, now open to the public as a museum. It is an English Manorial style home designed by architectural firm Peabody & Stearns for Frederick William Vanderbilt. Construction on the red sandstone and granite began in 1887 and was completed 1892. It is located on Bellevue Avenue and borders the Cliff Walk and overlooks the Atlantic Ocean. The original gardens were designed by Frederick Law Olmsted’s firm. The home's last owner was Doris Duke and it is currently owned and operated by the Newport Restoration Foundation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emerson Bromo-Seltzer Tower</span> Clocktower-office building in Baltimore, Maryland

The Emerson Tower is a 15-story, 88 m (289 ft) clock tower erected in 1907–1911 at 21 South Eutaw Street, at the northeast corner of Eutaw and West Lombard Streets in downtown Baltimore, Maryland. It was the tallest building in the city from 1911 to 1923, until supplanted by the Citizens National Bank building at the southeast corner of Light and Redwood (German) Streets. It was designed by local architect Joseph Evans Sperry (1854-1930) for Isaac Edward Emerson (1859-1931), who invented the Bromo-Seltzer headache remedy.

John Steadman was an American sportswriter for The Baltimore Sun. His career spanned seven decades and he attended and reported on every Super Bowl from its inception until his death.

The Bank of Baltimore was a bank based in Baltimore, Maryland, that was chartered in 1795 and failed during the Panic of 1857. It was the seventh American bank to begin business in the United States and the second bank in Maryland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Bulkley</span>

Peter Bulkley was an influential early Puritan minister who left England for greater religious freedom in the American colony of Massachusetts. He was a founder of Concord, and was named by descendant Ralph Waldo Emerson in his poem about Concord, "Hamatreya".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belton Court</span> Historic house in Rhode Island, United States

Belton Court is a historic estate on Middle Highway in Barrington, Rhode Island. The mansion was built for Frederick Stanhope Peck, a businessman, socialite, and Rhode Island political figure. Later in the twentieth century, the mansion and surrounding property served as the campus for Barrington College and the Zion Bible Institute.

Joan Fitzgerald, Countess of Ormond, Countess of Desmond, was an Irish noblewoman and heiress, a member of the Old English FitzGerald family, who were also known as the "Geraldines".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raymond T. Baker</span> Director of the US Mint (1917–1922)

Raymond Thomas Baker was a wealthy United States businessman who was Director of the United States Mint from 1917 to 1922.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isaac Edward Emerson</span>

Captain Isaac Edward Emerson (1859–1931) was a wealthy American businessman, socialite, and seaman. He is most notable for having created the headache remedy Bromo-Seltzer upon which his great wealth was based and the reason he was known as the "Bromo-Seltzer King".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henry Hetherington Emmerson</span> English painter

Henry Hetherington Emmerson, commonly known by his initials H. H. Emmerson, was an English painter and illustrator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lytham Pier</span> Pier in Lytham, Lancashire, England

Lytham Pier, a pleasure and working pier, was opened in the seaside town of Lytham, Lancashire, England in 1865, in the face of reservations from local residents. The pier underwent several renovations during the 1890s and early 1900s before being badly damaged by a storm in 1903, during which two barges collided with the structure and split it in two. A fire in 1928 resulted in extensive damage to the pavilion, which was not rebuilt, although the pier itself was reopened several months later. Following a period of decline it was closed to the public shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War. The pier was demolished in 1960 despite the protests of thousands of local residents.

References

  1. Architectural Record. April 1918.{{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  2. 1 2 "EX-IMMIGRANT BUYS OLD EMERSON ESTATE". New York Times. July 11, 1948.
  3. 1 2 "Emerson Estate, Pier Showplace, Sold For $60,000". Providence Evening Bulletin. July 7, 1948. p. Front Page.
  4. Whitehall Auction Brochure. Joseph P. Day, Inc, Auctioneer.
  5. "Isaac E. Emerson Papers, 1894-1947". UNC.
  6. "Bromo Seltzer Heir Kills Self". St. Joseph Gazette. Dec 5, 1947.
  7. Randolph, Norris (July 1992). "Behind Closed Doors". Rhode Island Monthly.

Coordinates: 41°24′28″N71°27′32″W / 41.4078°N 71.4588°W / 41.4078; -71.4588