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 After Louise Vanderbilt died in 1926, Frederick
lived out his days here amid his trees and gardens. Louise's
niece Margaret Van Alen inherited the estate upon Frederick's
death in 1938; the next year she told President Franklin Roosevelt
she wished to "keep my place as it is-a memorial to Uncle
Fred and a national monument."
Since 1940 the 211 acres Margaret Van Alen donated to the
federal government has been open to the public. Except for some
of the owners' belongings, the mansion and its contents remain
unchanged from the time the Vanderbilts lived here, as if their
country retreat were ready for a weekend visit.
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