What Happened to William Clark's Mansion in Manhattan?

[@ericspencer8093]

Some more history: Clark was an outsider in Manhattan and hoped that his new palace would impress society, and break him into their elite ranks (just like the Vanderbilts had done twenty years earlier). He was wrong. Instead, both New York society and the art world universally panned his monstrosity as a tasteless eyesore, and Clark was never accepted into their gilded ranks. This is why, as soon as he passed away, his wife promptly moved out and sold what she considered an embarrassment. It was immediately demolished, and the house's lifespan lasted almost exactly as long as it took to build it in the first place. 14 years.

[@ThisHouse]

Thank you for sharing!

[@lindajohnson7675]

In the book Empty Mansions, it's stated that the beautiful winding staircase in the house ended up in. Body of water. I think it was the ocean off of NYC. But, I suppose it could have been the Hudson River. Such a shame. His life was so amazing and he got so much done in the US. All after the age of 60!

[@paulinebrew9886]

@@lindajohnson7675 pp

[@laurelmalinowski1676]

Such an incredible waste.

[@andrewaway]

Such a tragedy.

[@k_a_y_l_e_e]

i think one of the more depressing things about these homes is that not only is the craftsmanship lost when they are torn down, but also the precious materials used to build the house. the trees used for the oak paneling can never be sourced again. the marble, same. these homes cost so much more than just money and i wish that was something that more understood and appreciated.

[@apabloisforever]

I live in Santa Barbara where Bellosguardo is…i hope one day it truly opens to the public. It’s an impressive and fascinating estate.

[@stephaniemize321]

W.A. Was a short lil man at just 5’5” tall. He set out for gold mining at the start of the Civil War. He was a lousy gold miner but went back to college to study minerals. He made his fortune in copper at the time of telegraphs and invention of the telephone. He would buy tobacco, flour and staples cheap and then travel back to Montana and sell his wares at a big markup. He definitely had a mind for making money. He married his 2nd wife when he was 62 and she was 24.

[@ThisHouse]

Thank you for the information, how fascinating!

[@lindajohnson7675]

He actually was not a lousy gold miner....according to the book, Empty Mansions. He arrived at the Gold Rush just as all the gold was running out. So, he decided to try for Copper. Believe me, as the daughter of an incredibly successful geologist who's specialty was copper, he never would have been so successful if he was a lousy miner.

[@narmale]

he was a douche

[@narmale]

@@lindajohnson7675 it was because he was a cheat and a shrewd buisnessman, aka... a thief

[@litamtondy]

@@lindajohnson7675 Are you Rod's daughter?

[@theresawilson2647]

I just found this channel and I love it. It's sad what happened to all these beautiful homes.

[@workoutmom2b1g]

So sad we torn this all down! Love your content. ✌🏽💗

[@Jack-eo5fn]

Interesting house and characters. His daughter was the mysterious “hermit” Hughette Clark who never appeared in public or even appeared to her family. She kept 3 mansions almost identical to this in NYC, Santa Barbara, and Connecticut, but never lived in them. In fact she never once visited the “castle” in Santa Barbara but kept it fully staffed with 31 servants “just in case” she wanted to visit. She actually lived in a very plain hospital room at Mt Sinai hospital in NYC, and the hospital admitted she was never sick. She said she felt safe there and refused to leave. She loved playing with dolls so she amassed a world class doll collection in her room. After her death her heirs sued each other and it was revealed in court that they had never met her. You would thoroughly enjoy her biography, both in hard cover and on Audible. You can also Google her or find her story on KZbin. Thanks!

[@JudeCooper]

Just read the book about her life.

[@Jack-eo5fn]

@@JudeCooper, so what did you think?

[@JudeCooper]

@@Jack-eo5fn Wealth can support eccentricity to the detriment of the person.

[@avichristiaans9058]

Some of this info is actually not true. My uncle worked for her as a driver, and she was not as reclusive as is being reported. She permanently lived in a private hospital room at Beth Israel Medical Center since 1999. She was sick, and she had multiple surgeries. And she did in fact visit each of her estates at one point in her life. All her employees knew her and adored her. She stayed at her New Canaan Connecticut estate before she moved into her private wing at Beth Israel. She was very private, but she didn't lock herself away from the world as is being reported by the media. She was driven around by her drivers in her Mercedes Benz.

[@Jack-eo5fn]

@@avichristiaans9058, very glad to hear this. I liked a lot of things I read about her. The biographies about her said she was reclusive and some speculated it was due to prior surgery on her jaw. Do you know if that surgery left her disfigured?

[@johnvonundzu2170]

Many thanks for shedding some light on this extravagant place! It was too extravagant to last long.There is a slight mix-up with one pic; the eighteenth century Salon Dore shown @2:50 was never part of the Clark mansion. During the Clark mansion's short life, this room was part of Otto Kahn's mansion on E. 91st Street. Currently it's in a museum in San Francisco. The eighteenth century Salon Dore' that WAS in the Clark mansion, is now part of the Corcoran Gallery collection in Washington DC. Some of the other rooms were kept by the Clarks and are now part of their Bellosguardo house in Santa Barbara, including the antique Louis XVI room @2:00.

[@michaelburgess9707]

Beautiful mansion. I am currently reading the book by Liz Brown, "The Twilight Man." It's about his son, Will Clark Jr. and his male lover, Harrison Post. Huguette's half brother. He started the LA Philharmonic and Hollywood Bowl. I always wondered who was interred in the Mausoleum on the island at the Hollywood Memorial (Hollywood Forever) cemetery. He is. He had several properties in the Old West Adams district which have been deeded over to UCLA that house the Oscar Wilde collection. Thanks for this, love your channel, such losses to our heritage.

[@logandodson7191]

That house was hardly old when it was demolished - what a colossal waste of resources. Marble, old growth forest, bronze - ick x_x

[@erinufo]

What a lovely place!

[@BelleOfAmherst]

Thank you for a glimpse of this bygone era! Can you imagine if such an architectural wonder STILL existed today?! Heartbreaking to know the extravagance & exquisite details are lost for all time. Clark’s Manhattan mansion could’ve been a FABULOUS treasure, a tangible teaching tool for new generations to learn of history & traditions of the world. 🤔🙌🏼🌃⏳💫

[@RADIUMGLASS]

His daughter Huguette Marcelle Clark died in 2011 at the age of 104. At one point Clark's Fortune was second to Rockefellers and he has been basically described as the Jed Clampett of the gilded age millionaires.

[@BankruptHeir]

I always thought this was the most beautiful house ever built in New York, I would like to see the floor plans of all floors, but I never found it on the internet.

[@Waitingforthemetro]

LOVE this house! My favourite in the tales of lost mansions. I read somewhere that the central tower was actually a quarantine apartment, accessed through one door. The Spanish Flu was present whilst Clarke was alive and living there. Also, that the stairs could not be sold so they barged it out to the sea and dumped it, one one piece!

[@388Caroline]

That’s sad 😞

[@randen1smith858]

In Kansas City, Kansas, there is an interesting house still standing. The home is called Sauer Castle at 935 Shawnee Dr.. Built in the 2nd empire style, the home is now in ruin by current owner and supposedly related to the original owner. Definitely deserves a video on this channel.

[@bethbartlett5692]

Thanks for sharing this. I've a special place in my heart for KC.

[@ezandman6804]

WOW yes interesting house for sure. I hope someone will fix it.

[@davidhennen7045]

thanks💘💘

[@bobbyspapercraft]

I love your channel and I just found it several days back. I have many pictures of this mansion being torn down. What a loss

[@gwtwvivien]

It's painfull to loose such a mansion. New buildings can never be as beautiful as those real Palaces.

[@grantfarragher]

It is incredible such a large instrument was in a house. That is larger than most organs in churches.

[@nicklemen]

It’s amazing that they put so much thought and effort into these Manhattan houses only for them to be unceremoniously razed to make way for future buildings within a short time. I wonder if they figured that would happen or did they build it thinking it would be there for ages?

[@eddihaskell]

They did not care. They wanted to be accepted by old money (headed by Mrs. Astor and the rather creepy Ward McCallister) and through that copious displayed of architecture would get them accepted.

[@juniorsir9521]

It’s tragic that people don’t seem to care about a work of art. For profit they would demolish a grand mansion to make parking spaces.

[@christosvoskresye]

@@juniorsir9521 I agree. Sure, some thought it was a monstrosity; remember, the same was true of the Eiffel Tower. In this case, though, what strikes me most is that it is an odd, idiosyncratic mix -- probably what created some of the distaste -- that has its charm precisely in that. It could easily have been a model for Disney's Haunted Mansion. Somehow the Amber Room is never criticized as being gaudy, but it's hard to imagine a gaudier room ever having existed.

[@Jim-Tuner]

Clark was a weird guy. When he was in his 60s, he married a women in her early 20s who had been his "ward". The house lasted for so short a time because Clark's wife hated it and never wanted to live there. She quickly moved out and sold it after he died. It was a house built for parties rather than a house to live in. The problem with these houses is that they were typically built for architectural and entertainment reasons. Almost no consideration was given to them as places where people and families would live. I think these houses often tended to reflect the thought and effort of the architects who built them rather than the people who paid for them. To the people who paid for them, they were only a means to an end (social prestige in the city). People like Clark tended to be uninterested in anything but themselves and what they wanted.

[@christosvoskresye]

@@Jim-Tuner My great-great-grandfather, I think it was, likewise married a woman 51 years younger than he was. This seems to have happened fairly often in both the North and the South, since veterans of the Civil War were eligible for state pensions that were good for the lifetime of a surviving wife. A 26 year old woman marrying a 77 year old man would not expect him to last for long, but she would always have an income from that pension. "People like Clark tended to be uninterested in anything but themselves and what they wanted." I'm not sure why you put that in the past tense.

[@greatdaneacdc]

3:42 Speaking of .....what a waste of a magnificent building is more like it! Who ever got the salvage I hope a lot of stuff got repurposed! Great Presentation again! Thanks 😊

[@lila6117]

I am pleased Mr. Clark got to enjoy his beautiful home. Thank you

[@seattlebeard]

Thanks for posting photos of some of the home's interiors. They were all new to me. William Clark was a nasty man, but his daughter has a fascinating story. It you haven't heard Huguette Clark's story, you're in for a treat.

[@stevefranks1711]

One of the rooms in the house that was imported from France was relocated to the Corcoran Gallery in D.C. when the house was demolished.

[@bethbartlett5692]

That is nice to know, as the house did incorporate vast efforts and major material subjects. Amazing the potentials of amassing wealth, prior to Income Tax, and Laws around Monopolies. But that story is way different than it appears on the surface, the original tax was only for Corporations, based on a "Gains Tax". That changed 8n conjunction with the "Federal Reserve Act" which is the now (Privately Owned) "Federal Reserve Bank CORPORATION" Thanks for sharing this.

[@peachluck1050]

Love your videos. Please slow down so your content can be savored!

[@tUiDo4]

Wow these videos are so amazing. Sad to see a house that could have been a historic treasure nowadays gone to waste just because society could not accept him but, I understand it was a different world back then. I suppose I can't say what had happened to his house, as well as many other homes from that time, was something they felt was wrong at the time.

[@youdeservethis]

The daughter, Huegette, is fascinating and owned several houses that she maintained but never visited

[@apabloisforever]

Still waiting for Bellosguardo to offer tours. I see it practically every day and wonder “wow…when?!” 😅 So much history. One day it’ll be open to the public. 😃

[@erikh9991]

Is that the one that lived in a hospital for 20 years?

[@lauraguida8482]

@@erikh9991 Yes, she was an interesting person and was a reclusive after she was divorced from her husband, William MacDonald Gower. If you haven't already read it, I recommend the book, Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune.

[@youdeservethis]

@@erikh9991 YES! She had tons of dolls and bought them the latest haute couture and had several mansions. The one in CA cost $40,000 a moth for upkeep.

[@jeanniemesserschmidtz1954]

Just found your channel this past weekend. What a delight. Have you ever did a video on The Lemps of St Louis MO? Interesting history, interesting houses both city and house in the “ country” . Thank you for the wonderful videos.

[@ThisHouse]

I'm glad you found us, Cheers! We have not covered the Lemps yet, but we are thinking about doing something special about the Lemp Mansion around Halloween this year. Stay tuned!

[@samanthab1923]

@@ThisHouse Good idea. Very haunted 👻

[@jeanniemesserschmidtz1954]

@@ThisHouse thank you for the reply….. As a teenager from the ‘70’s , we spent many a time trying to find “ Chinaman’s castle” which was rumored to be the Lemp’s summer cottage near Sunset Hills. Looking forward to binging on more of the history you are providing. Again thank you. Cheers 🥂

[@ThisHouse]

@@jeanniemesserschmidtz1954 I would love to tour it on this channel! That house sits in the center of a private neighborhood behind a gate at 12720 Alswell Ln, Sunset Hills, MO 63128. You might be able to catch a glimpse of it from outside the gate before the trees fill in with leaves.

[@jeanniemesserschmidtz1954]

@@ThisHouse YES that’s it!!!!!! ❤️

[@yettobseen]

I’ve been fascinated with this mansion since H. Clarks death. And sadly there just aren’t that many photos of it, inside or out. But what a magnificent structure it was. I have some photos of it from across the park. And even at a distance it’s still impressive.

[@ThisHouse]

I saw a photo of it from across the park, however, we were not able to get permission to use it in this video. It really would have been an impressive sight!

[@samanthab1923]

@@ThisHouse Wow, shame

[@samanthab1923]

I thought this sounded familiar. I have that book written about her.

[@yettobseen]

@@ThisHouse I just checked and I have two different shots and angles. So many grand houses lost. Love your channel keep up the great work.

[@twistoffate4791]

@@ThisHouse I do not know a reason reasonable enough to deny permission to use a photo of this house. I just don't. Thank you for this video. I think out of all the amazing features, that art gallery would've been my favorite place to hang out.

[@rustybearden1800]

My guilty pleasure is learning about these extraordinary homes built with no care about the cost or practicality - they were ironic paradoxes - inside out, upside down extravagant follies that served no purpose other than pleasure and possibility, built to show off wealth, power and exclusivity. Your attention to detail and history should be commended, as there is a dwindling interest in these fairy tale castles. These are examples of the excess and disconnect of massive wealth to the everyday world of regular people who walked by daily with no realistic comprehension of what they really were. I am endlessly fascinated by the stories behind these creations. You do an excellent job presenting this material - I'm a fan!

[@EmilyTienne]

Guilty pleasure?

[@rustybearden1800]

@@EmilyTienne yes

[@EmilyTienne]

@@rustybearden1800 It’s not like you’re eating chocolate mousse and clogging your arteries. No need for guilt. Enjoy your interests in architecture!

[@ahchitz]

Please do a segment on the Winchester Mystery House. It's still standing but not to It's prime glory. There's so much history behind it. I'll be on the lookout for it!

[@markothwriter]

Clark made most of his money early by owning a bank in Deer Lodge, MT. And he would lend money to miners, and when they could not pay, he would take their mine. One of the mines turned out to be a bonanza copper mine in Butte, and then he developed more and more mines. Then he started mines in Arizona which were even better than the Butte mines. And he prospected around what is now Las Vegas, NV, and had the first big mine in that area. The county around Las Vegas is named for him.

[@bethbartlett5692]

This gives rise to several major Questions around the subject. A mere 2 years, or less, post his transition, the home he put so much energy into was eradicated. This too offers a sense of "journey cycle".

[@janedee6488]

Wonderful video. Thanks. Love seeing these grand houses.

[@mikeschumacher9715]

An absolute SHAME this place was demolished for an apartment complex. WOW! This seemed very common in NYC.

[@ravenzyblack]

Clark was known as the “Copper King,” and had a mansion in Butte, Montana. I was lucky enough to stay there when it was a Bed & Breakfast. It was beautiful and so ornate.

[@tammywyche3755]

That mansion was beautiful so sad it was demolished

[@christians.7019]

Tuesday just got a whole lot better😍

[@ThisHouse]

Cheers!

[@dennisberry9518]

For those interested in the Clark family I recommend reading "Twilight Man" - Love & Ruin in the Shadows of Hollywood and The Clark Empire.

[@baffledanderanged2101]

Thank you for this most informative tour of this gorgeous mansion ❤ the architecture is fantastic and one can only imagine all the entertainment that took place 😀

[@ThisHouse]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@randyhebbebusche3644]

Sad to lose such a mansion. Can imagine how much it would cost for the upkeep.

[@MrDuran9000]

Thank you for your good work. A pleasure to learn about such treasures. Extraordinary¡

[@mariashelly6392]

OMG I can almost see the ghosts floating through those old photos! Spooky house!

[@highfalutinman]

Probably the greatest of New York's lost Gilded Age mansions, a monument to both grand opulence and nonchalant excess.

[@lecavaliere]

demolished this house in 1927 is a real crime against western civilization

[@SpanishEclectic]

Gilded Age, indeed! The place was incredible. Sad it was demolished, after all the work and expense. I believe Clark County, Nevada, is named after this Mr. Clark. The private rail line to bring in coal sounded familiar, but the unusual name, Huguette Clark, set bells ringing. She was an heiress, who lived much of her life as a recluse, and died at age 104 amidst a scandal, with an estate worth many millions. But getting back to houses; her father bought a property in Santa Barbara, CA, and built a house which is purported to house an incredible art collection. I imagine some of the works from the NY house ended up there. There is a book called Empty Mansions, about her life, fortune, homes, and eccentricities. She and her mother apparently just missed sailing on the Titanic! Fascinating stuff!

[@davidhall8874]

Oh wow! That was too exciting for me. All of that to find out it was demolished? CRAP!

[@markanthonymarla]

I WISH '' WE'' future generations could have been privy, to see these MAGNIFICENT MASIONS IN PERSON !!! .... I wish some one of that day ... could have seen the future implication from a Historical view point .... These treasures are lost for ever ... if only they could have been endowed to the city, or placed under the Monuments protective clause ... Thank goodness for this Amazing info channel ....

[@chinoman7234]

I saw this house before it was demolished. Quite a sight

[@jared1870]

Thank you for sharing the history of the Clark House. It is cool that you found some construction photos that showed some of its interior space before it became cluttered.

[@badbiker666]

I have a recommendation for a 'This House' episode. Henry Ford moved into his house, Fair Lane in Dearborn, Michigan, in 1916. The house still stands. It belongs to the University of Michigan which uses it for ceremonies and as office space. It is quite a nice place and I'll bet you will enjoy researching its history as much as your viewers will enjoy hearing about it. What I like about it is that Ford never intended it to be a showcase designed to rival other houses built by automotive millionaires. It was quite small, by comparison, which is how UofM can afford to maintain it. I hope you look into this, I think it will make a great segment.

[@ThisHouse]

Uncanny you should mention this. Our next video (this Sunday) is about Henry Ford’s 3 houses.

[@badbiker666]

@@ThisHouse That's great! I am really looking forward to watching that episode. I already know a lot about Fair Lane, but it will be wonderful seeing your take on it. Also, I didn't know he had two other houses, so I will be learning a great deal as well. Thank you!

[@gwenyoung7789]

Have you featured any of the Tiffany's houses? If not could you please?

[@ThisHouse]

I will look into them, thank you for the suggestion, cheers!

[@rutheliz75]

I wonder if there are still copies of all the floor plans including the top most floors ? Thanks for posting .

[@thinktonka]

You should cover Anna Thompson Dodge's house, Rose Terrace, in Grosse Point Michigan.

[@thanasistama3943]

William A. Clark started his fortune in gold mining but went on to make the bulk of his fortune in copper mining. His daughter, Huguette was as colorful.

[@RyCarter2]

You should do Innis Arden in Old Greenwich, CT - there are a lot in LI, Westchester & CT

[@bevygaines]

Another book about Huguette Clark, is The Phantom of Fifth Avenue.

[@Larry-208]

Loved this! I knew what the mansion looked like, but knew much more about his widow & daughter & their peculiar life after he died. He's actually my distant cousin, so this was SO exciting to hear & see his home. I've seen pics of his house in Butte, MT. ❤👍👍

[@XdavidXdearX]

You should do Morton Plant’s house. Happy to help if you do.

[@ThisHouse]

Thank you for the suggestion!

[@UncaDave]

Plant made contributions to start Morton Plant Hospital in Clearwater, FL, still a wonderful and thriving place. They do 700 by-pass surgeries there a year. His story is interesting too.

[@Lucky3horse]

The Pickwick Arms Hotel in Greenwich Connecticut 👍💕💕💕😢

[@jimurrata6785]

Was quite impressive, with beautiful views of the Sound. But didn't seem nearly as guilded and ornate as this mansion.

[@anthonymitchell2354]

You should do a video on White Marsh Hall, ET Stotesbury's 100,000 sq ft mansion on the outskirts of Philadelphia.

[@karlwillycollins]

did they salvage all the panels?

[@ThisHouse]

Great question! Salon Dore was saved and reassembled at a college, here is the link: corcoran.gwu.edu/salon-dor%C3%A9-0

[@lj5585]

As additions were created, the Clark Mansion became a mess of different styles that clashed. which of course New Yorker's thought was an abomination. His home in Montana was clearly focused as a country home and so much more appealing.

[@james5460]

I'm not revealing any secrets here, but if you've ever been to Las Vegas, you likely have heard a lot about Clark County. He's gone, but not forgotten. What's amazing to me is how, no matter how much these barons of industry wasted on their mansions, they inevitably became worth less than the dirt they sat on.

[@billmcmahon5454]

Wow, so much work and fine materials were put into this house only to have it last for 14 years or so. I would hate to think all that marble (among other things) was demolished with the house.

[@creativo4ever564]

They tried selling the staircase but it was too specialized. It ended up on a barge and duped at sea.

[@creativo4ever564]

Dumped, not duped.

[@billmcmahon5454]

@@creativo4ever564 What a shame. I wonder if today, would something like that be reused.

[@creativo4ever564]

@@billmcmahon5454 I'm sure there would be a strong effort to reuse it but the cost of fabricating it would likely be so prohibitive it would not be a available.

[@billmcmahon5454]

@@creativo4ever564 Well I hope the marine life got good use out of it.

[@frankpizzolato4468]

Belle Grove plantation...on the Mississippi River in the town of White Castle La. abandoned for some time, it burned in the early 1950's the ruins were demolished some years later. It is said to have been the largest plantation home on the river...

[@hortenseplaceg9740]

Hi Ken, please do Vandeventer Place mansions if it possible, thank you.

[@susprime7018]

Staircase looks hazardous, not even a silk rope handrail. My sister enjoyed the biography of Clark's daughter.

[@ThisHouse]

H. Clark was a very interesting person, we are considering covering her story in an upcoming video. We thought about including her in this one, but the more we learned about her, the more we realized that she needed her own story.

[@lauraguida8482]

@@ThisHouse Her story is almost hard to believe. She was too generous with her money even until the end of her life.

[@mikeday62]

It appears Versace did some of the decorating.

[@kentlaxfors421]

Hi what an amasing house, what happened with the yúnderground railway ? is it still there ? any thing left of it ? where did it start ?any photos of it ??

[@DanielMaltbie]

Have you done a video of his house in Montana?

[@blueagle-di6is]

This should have been made a historical site and not allowed to demolish it. What a loss

[@shirleynitka5030]

so sad. Then the insanity of his lone daughter Huguette. Little girl who had everything but love.

[@edcomedian357]

I don't c that you've done the Harold McCormick mansion previously at 1000 lake shore drive chicago

[@ThisHouse]

Thank you for the suggestion!

[@mileshigh1321]

So was there a big auction of all the items and art work? The marble and the woodwork alone was spectacular, I wonder if it was saved too, Hopefully the rooms from the Chateau's ! Maybe the MOMA has them I remember seeing some, that had been taken from some NYC mansions.

[@johnvonundzu2170]

Don't worry about the rooms from the French chateaus, they have always been VERY sought after. Many 18th century rooms were dismantled and reassembled elsewhere - often over and over again in different houses and museums.

[@deadcorpert619]

Do the Brush mansion or the Samuel Andrews mansion (known as Andrews folly) on Euclid Ave in Cleveland ohio! Two of the largest mansions ever built in Cleveland during the height of Millionaires Row.

[@henrygardner8418]

Great content, but Beaux Arts is pronounced, "Bo-ZAR" with the second consonant emphasized.

[@DementedDistraction]

At this point I go into each of these videos knowing there's a roughly 90% chance of the featured mansion being demolished and replaced with an apartment building, but it's no less disheartening or irritating when my assumption is confirmed, lol.

[@hamburgerdan1963]

When they demolished this and other homes were there any efforts to salvage any off it? what happened to the furnishings/art collection?

[@patriciajrs46]

What extravagence! Geez! Nine stories, and a turkish bath. Dang. Thank goodness there are still pictures of it. Wow!

[@twilightpurpleglow]

Well my 2 cents here; a Mansion for an old man his wife and one daughter (Huguette ), it took 14 years to build, 7 million (200 million of today's) he needed 121 bedrooms (?) and 31 bathrooms forget mentioning the rest. Clearly he had the money as he had the vision to make that money, but in reality when you stop and think what he did? what did Mr. Clark wanted to prove? He might have been the richest man on the planet for all I care.......was he happy? did all the showing off pay in the end? I might be a poor humble soul but I have a million ideas of what I would ave done with the money and leave this world smiling with content and satisfaction. His Santa Barbara Mansion was demolished and a new one built as soon as he passed away by his wife. The new Mansion not lived in for 70 years. Oh well...to each his own.

[@hansove1980]

Was it finished in 1911 and demolished in 1927? 😳

[@BlokFinance]

Are there any homes in ny that still exist from the gilded age or prior? It’s sad to hear of these beautiful places all getting demolished

[@ThisHouse]

They are few and far between, but there are still a handful left.

[@lj5801]

For "missing" houses: Ned Stotesbury's Whitemarsh Hall (Wyndmoor, PA)- H.C. Frick's Eagle Rock (Beverly, MA)- Clarence Mackay's Harbor Hill (Roslyn, NY) & Anson Phelps Stokes' Shadowbrook (Lenox, MA). The Metropolitan Museum in NYC wouldn't accept Clark's art without a large endowment: bad move. The Corcoran Gallery in Washington D.C. got it instead.

[@jamesclendon4811]

My first thought of a house to suggest was Whitemarsh.

[@leslieswibes7577]

Where did all the contents & great detail ho from the home? I hope a lot was salvaged?

[@OpenRoader]

But what happened to the actual house? Certainly, the panels from the French Chateau, Italian Marble and other materials went somewhere???

[@ThisHouse]

Some of it survives in Corcoran, here is a link to that: corcoran.gwu.edu/salon-dor%C3%A9-0

[@Amiisunique]

Looks a lot like a Tartarian remenence, hence the incredible build, the organ and all the features. Also would explain the need for its distruction. Research Tartaria, know your true past

[@Wanamaker1946]

What about all the 18th century paneling, and light fixtures, the bronze work, where did that go?

[@socksal]

It reminds me a little of the Cracker Castle that you did a great video on.

[@j1st633]

The mansions on 5th should have been preserved as those in Newport.

[@towada1066]

how about the house featured in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?

[@danielmoraga6474]

What would Mrs. Astor have said about a mansion like this? new money?

[@SpanishEclectic]

I kept thinking about episode 1 of The Gilded Age.

[@danielponder690]

Neat! Sadly the organ was demolished with the house and deemed to much a part of the structure to remove and re-locate

[@michaelstoltz4745]

What happened to the rail line underneath it? Is it still there l?

[@sergpie]

Is there any information as to what became of the interiors? Surely, not all of them could have just been left affixed to the walls as the wrecking ball came along…

[@chathamcrescent]

Whoa, whoa, whoa!…what happened to all of the interior rooms, the organ, etc.? Surely, those were removed before demolition?

[@lauraguida8482]

Sad, isn't it.

[@johnvonundzu2170]

Don't worry, all the antique interiors had value and would have been carefully dismantled and sold to other millionaires.

[@arslongavitabrevis5136]

I had enough of this channel, although all the videos are beautifully done and full of interesting information, is really heart-breaking for someone like me, a person with a deep love and appreciation for classical art and architecture, to watch this endless series of artistic and cultural atrocities. The USA was (and is) all about money and its vulgar display. That is why 99% of all these beautiful buildings were destroyed and NOBODY said a word. Because NOBODY CARED, as simple as that.

[@buzzkincaid5521]

New York would , today be so much more layered, interesting, and image some swanky high rise built behind this Clark mansion. The towers using the mansion as the common area’s for the high rise tower.

[@constructioneerful]

What happened to all those interior fittings??

[@eily_b]

The house was demolished? And all the marble and the interior from French castles? The art? I hope this was saved...

[@ThisHouse]

Some of it still survives at Corcoran, here is a link to that: corcoran.gwu.edu/salon-dor%C3%A9-0