In the 1800's some of the country's most wealthy familys built mansions along the Hudson's east bank. Construction on the Beaux-Arts style, Frederick Vanderbilt Mansion, began in 1895 and was completed in 1898. In 1940 it was gifted to the National Park service as a monument to the Gilded Age--the period after the Civil War and up to 1900.
The White Bridge over Crum Elbow Creek, circa 1897, lies between the mansion and the front gate and was one of the first steel and concrete bridges in the US.
Apparently Hyde Park had another, even more famous resident... It's said that a curious 13 year-old, with the initials FDR, repeatedly traveled the two miles between Springwood, his ancestral home, and the burgenoning Vanderbilt mansion, to check on the latter's construction progress.
Springwood, FDR's home (photo credit: Barbara Jones). The FDR Presidential Library and his burial site are adjacent to the home.
It's a bit of an uphill hike between Nellie, the Vanderbilt Mansion and Springwood. But, since succumbing to the battery powered vehicle craze, a bike for Bicki and a OneWheel for me, our range has dramatically expanded.
Our slip at Rogers Point is somewhat exposed.
A whole 9 miles yesterday and 0 today, 751 miles in 2019 and 8987 miles from Naples, FL. DBH
