National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior

Analysis of Historical Significance and Integrity by Resource Type
renovation of the Living Room, Elliptical Hall, and Second Floor Hall, Hyde Park possesses a
high degree of historical integrity and is an important example of McKim's high classical
domestic work in the mature phase of the American Renaissance.
At Hyde Park, the role of Stanford White was that of antique dealer supplying furniture
and decorations based on instructions from McKim. Stanford White was given a budget of
$50,000, an outline of the basic decor of certain rooms and a general list of what McKim
envisioned for furnishings. The bills and correspondence for White's purchases provide
important documentation. The objects that White bought are still in the collection of the
Vanderbilt Mansion. Because White carried out the majority of the interior decoration at the
firm of McKim, Mead & White, Hyde Park exists as a unique documented partnership of
McKim and White.
The interiors by Georges Glaenzer at Hyde Park include the Lobby, the Den, the
Reception Room, and Mr. Vanderbilt's Bedroom. Glaenzer's decoration is eclectic, but of very
high quality. The Louis XV style was very much in vogue during the last quarter of the
nineteenth century, especially for reception rooms. The Reception Room represents a very
good example of its type, furnished with contemporary reproduction furniture and accessories.
The other three rooms decorated by Glaenzer are more eclectic representatives of the
Renaissance Style. This more masculine decor was appropriate for Mr. Vanderbilt's Bedroom,
as well as those spaces which were conceived of as his domain, including the Lobby and Den.
Hyde Park was Glaenzer's most important private commission and the only known surviving
work by this talented interior decorator. The rooms at Hyde Park possess a very high degree of
integrity; the decoration and furnishings are largely intact from the time of the Vanderbilt
occupancy. The most significant loss is the replacement of the draperies in Mr. Vanderbilt's
Bedroom, and the partial removal and transfer of the embroidered elements on a reproduction
velvet ground.
Ogden Codman, a master decorator whose French style interiors were of widespread
influence, decorated two rooms at Hyde Park. Louise Vanderbilt's Bedroom and Boudoir are
among the most regal and lavish interiors that Codman designed. They were decorated
concurrent with Codman's publication of The Decoration of House in collaboration with Edith
Wharton and embody many of the design principles outlined therein. The Bedroom and
Boudoir retain a very high degree of integrity. The architectural shell and furniture are as
designed and built, with the only change being the replacement of the original painted panels,
which were executed in Paris and depict cupids, with those that were copied from works by
Natoire, Boucher, and Lancret. This change was carried out during Mrs. Vanderbilt's lifetime.
The carpet was replaced in 1913. Many of Mrs. Vanderbilt's accessories have been removed,
especially those which were most personal. The draperies were reproduced by the National
Park Service and are very good, although substantially less elaborate than the originals. Viewed
within the context of Ogden Codman's design oeuvre, the Hyde Park interiors are an important
example of his faithful replication of the French Louis XV style, using elements which were
almost entirely fabricated in France. The survival of his working drawings and highly finished
watercolor elevations document his early working method. The Bedroom and Boudoir are
largely unaltered from their original design and execution.
The incorporation of rooms from various historical periods is typical of the American
Renaissance, and illustrates the desire of a wealthy American to possess all that the Old World
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