Mount Vernon Hotel Museum
Encyclopedia
Mount Vernon Hotel Museum is a former carriage house
located at 421 East 61st Street, near the East River
, in Manhattan
, New York City
, New York
, USA. Built in 1799 as a carriage house and stable
, it was a hotel from 1826 to 1833, and then a private residence. It was purchased by a utility company in 1905. The building was purchased by The Colonial Dames of America
in 1924 and opened as a museum in 1939. Although it has undergone extensive alternations, it is one of the few remaining 18th-century buildings in New York City. Until 2000 it was known as the Abigail Adams Smith Museum in honor of one of the early owners of the property.
The museum is open to the public from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesdays through Sundays for tours of the period rooms and garden. The museum focuses on a period when the hotel's location offered a respite from the dirt, noise and bustle of city life. In the early part of the 19th century, New York City extended only as far north as approximately 14th Street, and it was common for members of the upper and middle classes to take day trips to "the country", the then rural setting that is now midtown Manhattan. At day hotels like the Mount Vernon Hotel, guests could enjoy boating trips, carriage rides, and other leisure activities.
Carriage house
A carriage house, also called remise or coach house, is an outbuilding which was originally built to house horse-drawn carriages and the related tack.In Great Britain the farm building was called a Cart Shed...
located at 421 East 61st Street, near the East River
East River
The East River is a tidal strait in New York City. It connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates Long Island from the island of Manhattan and the Bronx on the North American mainland...
, in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, USA. Built in 1799 as a carriage house and stable
Stable
A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals...
, it was a hotel from 1826 to 1833, and then a private residence. It was purchased by a utility company in 1905. The building was purchased by The Colonial Dames of America
The Colonial Dames of America
The Colonial Dames of America is an American organization composed of women who are descended from an ancestor who lived in British-America from 1607–1775, and was of service to the colonies by either holding public office, being in the military, or serving the Colonies in some other "eligible"...
in 1924 and opened as a museum in 1939. Although it has undergone extensive alternations, it is one of the few remaining 18th-century buildings in New York City. Until 2000 it was known as the Abigail Adams Smith Museum in honor of one of the early owners of the property.
The museum is open to the public from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesdays through Sundays for tours of the period rooms and garden. The museum focuses on a period when the hotel's location offered a respite from the dirt, noise and bustle of city life. In the early part of the 19th century, New York City extended only as far north as approximately 14th Street, and it was common for members of the upper and middle classes to take day trips to "the country", the then rural setting that is now midtown Manhattan. At day hotels like the Mount Vernon Hotel, guests could enjoy boating trips, carriage rides, and other leisure activities.