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T he C onceptio n O f A C ountry R esidence : Shelburne H ouse, 1887-1900 by Erica Huyler Donnis A thesis submitted to the Faculty of the University of Delaware in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Early American Culture Spring 1998 Copyright 1998 Erica Huyler Donnis All Rights Reserved Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI N um ber: 1389578 Copyright 1998 by Donnis, Erica Huyler All rights reserved. UMI Microform 1389578 Copyright 1998, by UMI Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. UMI 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, MI 48103 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. T he C o nceptio n O f A C ountry R esid e n c e : Sh elburn e H ouse, 1887-1900 by Erica Huyler Donnis Approved:C t s l j d c — __________________________________________ Neville Thompson, M.S. ^ Librarian In Charge, Printed Book & Periodical Collection, Winterthur Library Professor in charge of thesis on behalf of the Advisory Committee Approved: d. Curtis, Ph.D. r of the Winterthur Program in Early American Culture Approved: JohnCVCavanaugh, Ph.D. Vice(provost for Academic Program!! and Planning Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. A cknowledgments My gratitude extends to many individuals who greatly facilitated my project by providing intellectual support, allowing me access to sources under their jurisdiction, and otherwise entertaining my needs. At Winterthur, my advisor Neville Thompson was available at my convenience for constant guidance and thoughtful criticism. Gretchen Buggeln encouraged my fledgling ideas. Lois F. McNeil’s generous financial sponsorship of myself and my classmates in the Winterthur Program is deeply appreciated. I am especially indebted to Julie Bressor, Historical Collections Consultant at Shelburne Farms, for her continuous enthusiasm and contributions to the project. Indeed, Julie generously shared both her knowledge of the subject and her physical office space with me, pointed me in numerous right directions, spent countless hours discussing the project with me, facilitated endless illustration details, and read drafts of the document. Also at Shelburne Farms, Megan Camp and Alec Webb generously provided me with unlimited access to the grounds and buildings, covered some of my costs, and waived their photographic reproductions fees. James Watson Webb, Jr. graciously allowed me to view his private collection of Shelburne Farms photographs, and Rick Peters facilitated access to them. I would also like to personally thank Katie Camp, Carol Euler, Jane Gross, Karen Polihronakis, and Hiliary Sunderland at Shelburne Farms for their interest and help. iii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. At the Shelburne Museum, Jean Burks, Polly Darnell, Sloane Stephens, and Robyn Woodworth spent a great amount of time discussing the project with me and fulfilled numerous requests. In addition, Mary-Beth Betts at the New-York Historical Society, Paul Eriksson, Robert Groleau, Jane Hackmann at Blantyre, Hal Keiner at Biltmore, and Paul O’Halloran each facilitated and contributed to my research. Finally, I am grateful to a number o f personal friends and relatives for their constant support. My classmates in the Winterthur Program were always available to listen and commiserate. Jill Berry served as my personal sounding-board, thesaurus, scanner, chauffeur, and editor throughout the project. And my parents, Susan and Robert Donnis, put up with my divided attention, gave me a place to live during the course of my research in Vermont, and provided me with the confidence that I could complete the task in the first place. IV Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Table of C ontents List of Figures ........................................................................................................ vi A bstract ................................................................................................................... viii Introduction .......................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1 Social Context ................................................................................................ 3 2 Shelburne Fa r m s ............................................................................................ 8 3 Country House Evolution ........................................................................ 20 4 Country House Resolution ....................................................................... 31 5 The South Piazza ............................................................................................ 41 6 The D ining Ro o m ............................................................................................. 46 Epilogue ...................................................................................................................... 53 End notes ..................................................................................................................... 58 Bibliography .............................................................................................................. 81 Figures .......................................................................................................................... 97 V Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. L ist of Figures Figure 1. William Seward Webb, ca. 1890 ........................................................ 97 Figure 2. Lila Vanderbilt Webb in wedding attire, 1881 ................................. 98 Figure 3. “Small Drawing Room, Levens, Westmoreland”.............................. 99 Figure 4. Shelburne House exterior, ca. 1900.................................................. 100 Figure 5. Aerial view of Shelburne Farms, ca. 1920........................................ 101 Figure 6. Shelburne Farms Farm Bam, ca. 1900............................................ 102 Figure 7. Shelburne House exterior, ca. 1887-1899 ......................................... 103 Figure 8. Shelburne House first floor plan, ca. 1887-1895 ................................ 104 Figures 9 and 10. South Piazza, Shelburne House, ca. 1886-1895 .................. 105 Figure 11. West elevation, “Residence for Dr. W. Seward Webb/ Shelburne Vt,” ca. 1887-1893 .................................................... 106 Figure 12. First floor plan, “Residence for Dr. W. Seward Webb/ Shelburne, Vt,” ca. 1887-1893.................................................. 107 Figure 13. Shelburne House floor plan, ca. 1986-present............................... 108 Figure 14. Main Hall, Shelburne House, ca. 1900.......................................... 109 Figure 15. Library, Shelburne House, ca. 1900.............................................. 110 Figure 16. South Piazza, Shelburne House, ca. 1900..................................... I ll Figure 17. Dining Room, Shelburne House, ca. 1900..................................... 112 vi Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Figure 18. North Room, Shelburne House, ca. 1900......................................... 113 Figure 19. South Piazza with glass windows, Shelburne House, ca. 1900 ....................................................................................... 114 Figure 20. Lila Webb reading on South Piazza, Shelburne House, ca. 1888-1900 ............................................................................ 115 Figure 21. Dining