National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior

Resource History and Description of Existing Conditions
They both have enclosed backs and are attached to the south wall. 592 The carved trim around
the edges of the bookcases is stylistically different than any other carving in the room, but not so
different in character as to create a jarring appearance.
An angled fireplace is located in the southwest corner of the room. This angled wall is
almost exactly as designed in the original Glaenzer drawings. There is a concealed cabinet
behind the overmantel. The panel is hinged on the right side, rather than the left as indicated on
the drawing and opens by pressing a small brass button beside it on the left. The mechanism and
hardware that allow this panel to open are fairly well camouflaged. The original drawing notes
"very fine selected veneer panel."
A heavy door is hung in the western wall section that angles slightly from the adjacent
walls. The angle of the western wall conforms to the curve of the Elliptical Hall. The door is
shown as plain and labeled "very well selected veneer" in the original drawing. It retains ornate
strap hinges that are not depicted in the drawing. It is presumed that the door is original and
changed during the construction process. The original drawing denoted a panel in the lower
dado that is labeled "Supplied by G.A.G." This is currently a furnace grate.
The north wall is very different than originally designed. The drawing shows a doorway
(almost centered on the wall) leading to the front vestibule, with the standard room paneling
and upper plaster on either side. According to Mrs. Van Alen Bruguiere the outside door was
never used. 593 The doorway still retains the ornately carved transom, but the doorknob has been
removed (a wood plug exists in its place) and the hinges do not have the ornate exposed castiron
hinge plates that are evident in the drawing. The extant doorway is blocked by a desk top,
supported on a set of narrow drawers at the east end and a closed double cabinet at the west
end. Another cabinet with double cupboard doors is located at the west end above the desk top,
hung on the wall to the west of the doorway. The desktop, inset with leather, is pieced at the
back in order to fit into the recessed opening of the door. A thin strip of wood is also pieced at
the west end of the top, but is merely perpendicular to the north wall and does not close the gap
between the desktop and the west wall. The piecings reveal the reuse of existing components
from the east wall, as originally designed. The desk had to be relocated and reconfigured when
the toilet room was enlarged. There are minor differences in the size, design, and hardware of
the originally designed components to the ones in situ. The upper double cabinet has two
gargoyle-like carved supports underneath; the left one is a fish and the right one appears to be a
wolf. These are also deviations from the original drawings which reflect simply carved brackets.
The east wall retains only the paneled and plastered wall elements, with a window
opening at its north end. A wood patch is evident at the north end of the east wall,
approximately at desk height, suggesting that an earlier installation was removed. The window
is composed of leaded glass in a design of the art nouveau style, with three roundels situated in
the upper section, as though forming the points of an equilateral triangle. These roundels are
probably reused from dismantled European windows and represent images of knights or
noblemen.
592 This prohibits physical investigation of the wall.
593 Letter, Margaret Bruguiere to Robert Atkinson, Superintendent, December 1, 1961, Resource
Management Records, ROVA Archives.
115