National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior

Resource History and Description of Existing Conditions
On returning to New York yesterday we immediately sent men to measure the house. They
left last night and are now at work, and will remain upon it until sufficient data is gained to
set it up on paper. Probably three or four days will be required effecting these measurements
and a week more in drawing them out. As soon as this is done we will notify you, and can
then arrange for such improvements and alterations as [you] may [deem] desirable, and will
keep you posted. 463
Eight days later McKim wrote to Thomas Newbold, Franklin Delano Roosevelt's Hyde
Park next-door neighbor and McKim's relative:
I met Mrs. Morgan on the road and had a pleasant talk with her, but this was all. I shall
probably stop there when the Vanderbilt drawings are ready a fortnight hence. . . . Howard
came in to-day on his way to Newport and appeared much surprised at the progress made.
Indeed we have done pretty well considering the time. The whole house has been measured
and drawn out at a quarter scale, and we are now struggling over the alterations, which you
will either like or dislike extremely. I am sure you will be glad to hear that our men found the
walls of the old house in good condition and that we shall therefore have no excuse for
tearing them down. In another week I hope to have the drawings sufficiently advanced to
meet Mr. Vanderbilt and have asked Howard to suggest that he come here to see them as
well as the stable, sketches for which will be ready by that time. To my mind the wings are
going to greatly improve the house without disturbing its character. Whether I am making a
mistake in the planning of the Madams quarters I don't know, but tell Sallie that besides her
bedroom, I am giving her a sitting room, a room to contain her night gowns and other linen,
a maid's room opening into the wardrobe, a bathroom and a loggia giving a south view from
her sitting room. She didn't tell me what she wanted, but she has sent me a lot of books on
the Nile and called at the Taylors' before my arrival to inquire when I was expected. The
Hunts and Taylors seem to think her likely to be an easy person to get on with, as Sallie
predicted.
I do hope Sarah is making great progress on her wheel and that we shall certainly be able to
ride up to the postoffice [sic] when I come, which I intend shall be soon. I want to study the
house more thoroughly, and I should also like to see a little more of my niece than was the
case the last time. . . . 464
This correspondence sheds light on several aspects of the project. First, the "Howard"
mentioned is apparently Thomas H. Howard, the husband of Mrs. Vanderbilt's niece, who
acted as Mr. Vanderbilt's agent or coordinator, at least in the beginning stages of the project.
Second, a problem with the stability of the existing house was not recognized this early in the
planning process; in fact it was not discovered until many months after the date of this letter.
The letter also poses two possibilities: that either McKim, Mead & White originally intended to
design the new Stable/Coach House, or originally had employed R.H. Robertson as the designer
as early as August 1895. 465 Robertson's office was in the same building as McKim, Mead &
White's in 1895, and McKim or the other partners would sometimes collaborate with former
underlings or building associates, as they did prior to their formalized partnership. 466 Last,
463 Letter to F.W. Vanderbilt from C.F. McKim, June 18, 1895, Folder "McKim, Mead & White," VAMA
General File, ROVA Curatorial Division. From The Library of Congress, Letters of Charles F. McKim.
464 Letter to Thomas Newbold from C.F. McKim, June 26, 1895, Folder "McKim, Mead & White," VAMA
General File, ROVA Curatorial Division. From The Library of Congress, Letters of Charles F. McKim.
Newbold was born in Poughkeepsie, NY, and married Sarah Coolidge of Boston. While McKim's second
wife was Julia Appleton of Boston, the McKims' exact relationship to Newbold is not known at this time.
465 The N-YHS drawings, no notations. Copies stored at NPS Northeast Cultural Resources Center,
Lowell, MA. Robertson was the architect for the estate for Vanderbilt's sister, Lila, at Shelburne Falls, VT.
466 Roth, 40-8; 169; 196; 216; and 304.
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