Staatsburgh State Historic Site — Attraction in Town of Hyde Park

Today’s Gilded Age adventure took us to Staatsburg.

Along the Hudson in Staatsburg, New York, Mills Mansion tells a story that spans centuries. On land originally granted to the Livingston family by King Charles II, Governor Morgan Lewis built his home in 1792 and later welcomed the Marquis de Lafayette to dine beneath its roof. After fire and rebuilding, the estate passed to Ruth Livingston and Ogden Mills, who in 1895 transformed it into a breathtaking palace of sixty five rooms.

In 1938, their daughter Gladys Mills Phipps gifted the house, complete with every original furnishing, incliding 3000 year old greek vases and a desk ownwd by Louis XVI & Marie Antoinette to New York State. Today, stepping inside feels like slipping back into another world.

This is one of the most impressive homes I have ever seen. Entering the dining room and the sweeping main staircase literally took my breath away. It is shockingly beautiful, rivaling many European houses, and truly an American gem.

The exterior tells another story. As New York’s largest surviving Gilded Age mansion, it is in need of care and funding to preserve its grandeur for future generations.

I’d also like to extend my thanks to our guide, Joe (if I remember his name right). He was wonderful, so knowledgeable, and his genuine passion for the stories he shared made the entire experience even more special.

The only reason I didn’t give a full five stars is because the grounds and exterior are still a work in progress. I sincerely hope they receive the proper funding and attention they deserve to restore this beauty to her...

Hidden gem! The Staatsburgh State Historic Site is a wonderful Gilded Age mansion. Often overlooked by other Gilded Age mansions that are nearby such the Vanderbilt Mansion or the Rockefeller estate, this mansion is comparable to them. The estate was owned by Ogden Mills and Ruth Livingston Mills. The house was one of five that they owned and was more or less considered a Gilded Age "cottage." The mansion had several beautiful and ostentatious rooms. Perhaps, the best room is the dining room. Other rooms in the mansion that are worthy of note are the Louie XVI room and Mrs. Livingston's bedroom. The history of each room and the history of the owners of estate was very well presented on the tour. The tour was about an hour and half and was reasonably priced. Gift shop was well stocked and many items were affordable. The mansion offers many standard tours and also historical character tours. After the tour be sure to take in the walking/hiking trails around the estate that are near the Hudson. It is best to book a tour...

Everything about this visit was perfect. The mansion is up a rolling drive at the top of a hill with stunning views of the valley. The well-appointed rooms, packed with so much history, and a knowledgeable and witty guide to bring the period detail and characters in the portraits to life made for a great tour with fine points on architectural detail that showed the evolution of the original house, built in 1832, to the additions by Stanford White that make it an unrivaled model of gilded age grandeur. Unlike tours of Newport mansions that use audio guides, our guide made the visit so much more enriching and special on that overcast fall Sunday. My husband who is French was impressed with our guide's use of French words to elaborate on interior decor and culinary terms which were the fashion of the time. It was fun. I highly...