National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior

Resource History and Description of Existing Conditions
Alfred Martin, third man, noted that, "The kitchen was a very cold room in
appearance." 866 The Kitchen walls are tiled with white, 8 ¾" x 2 ¾" tiles laid in garden bond
with no trim at the floor and ceiling. The door lintels are white marble. At the jambs, the tiles
are quarter-round. The ceiling currently is painted a high-gloss cream; however, the original
ceiling paint may survive in the two closets which have dark mustard ceilings. The floor is a
single pour of terrazzo with white marble chips in gray mortar. A 6 ½" tile border of ¾" squares
set in yellow, white, and black stripes lines the room. The border runs along the footprint of the
range, but disappears under the built-in china dresser, which was on McKim's plan, and a small
cupboard under the north window.
The French firm of DuParquet, Huot, and Moneuse Company, with offices in New
York, Boston, and Chicago, equipped the Kitchen. 867 The range is marked with the company
name, a patent date of June 1, 1880, and "No. 3." It was ordered by McKim, Mead & White in
December 1898 at a cost of $400. 868 Its cook surface measures 9' x 3'4". The range area includes
a 12' x 4'6" iron hood, air vent, pot rack discussed below, and shelf above the cook surface. The
small oven displayed to the right of the range was salvaged by park staff from a trash pit and
restored. It is believed to have been in the Pavilion kitchen. There is no period lighting above
the range, but a capped pipe may indicate a former fixture. The sink is a "Monel" sink which
replaced an earlier heavy white porcelain sink. 869 Wooden nailers under the sink indicate the
location of the earlier model. A call bell is installed south of the hall door. Its mechanicals have
been removed. A speaking tube is located on the pier between the closets.
The original pot rack was likely removed during the scrap metal drives of World War
II. 870 The current rack was supplied by H. Friedman & Sons and installed in 1971. The original
anchors for the rack remained at the ceiling and were used as a guide for the size of the new
rack. 871 Tom Morgan, a Vanderbilt houseman, noted, "copper pots and pans hanging from a
rack in the ceiling." 872
A wall shelf was installed on the west wall between the door and the range. Molly bolts
and discoloration in the tile indicate that the shelf was mounted on brackets 4'10" from the floor
and was approximately 7' long. Discoloration in the tile below the shelf at the exact height of
the mortar in the room, indicate that the mortar was situated below the shelf. Two hooks with
pokers are still mounted to the right of the mortar location near the range. A similar shelf
survives on the east wall north of the sink. It is mounted 5'7 ¼" above the floor and measures 6'
x 6 ½". Its underside has holes for ten small hooks at approximately 7" intervals. Divets in the
wood indicate heavy use of the hooks. Behind this row of holes is another row of seven holes
with lighter evidence of use. The wall above the shelf has six additional molly bolt holes, and
below the shelf three "L" hooks and two holes indicate more hanging storage. Shelves are also
mounted at the same height over the sink drain-boards. These measure 2'6" x 13 ¼". The left
866
Martin, Letter, October 1, 1970.
867
Snell, "Master Plan Development Outline," 33. Snell cites an interview with J. B. Clermont, October
14, 1954.
868
McKim, Mead & White Billbook #6, 437.
869
Tom Morgan.
870
2,800 lbs. of copper and 50,215 lbs. of steel were donated by Superintendent Cooper to the American
Red Cross in 1942. See "World War II Use of Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site," VAMA
General File, "VAMA Operations," ROVA Curatorial Division.
871
Todd Koenig, Letter, April 9, 1971, VAMA General File, "VAMA Kitchen," ROVA Curatorial Division.
872 Tom Morgan.
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