How to Use the Images

Table of
Contents

Photo 1: Huggins' Folly.

Photo 2: Aspet today.

Photo 1 depicts the house prior to occupancy by the Saint-Gaudenses, when it was called "Huggins' Folly." Photo 2 shows the house after it restoration by the National Park Service in 1980.

Questions for Photos 1 & 2

1. Does the first photo look the way you thought it would based on the description in Reading 2? Why or why not?

2. Do you agree with Saint-Gaudens that the house as it appears in Photo 1 looks "bleak, gaunt, austere and forbidding"? Why or why not? What does Saint-Gaudens' opinion tell you about expectations for the lifestyle of successful people during the Gilded Age?

3. What are the major changes that have taken place with the structure between Photos 1 and 2? Why would a friend of Saint-Gaudens have said that the house looked like it had false teeth?

4. Do you think these changes accomplished what Saint-Gaudens wanted? What can these photos tell you about the taste of the Saint-Gaudenses?

5. Does Photo 2 look like the home of an important artist? What would have been your reaction as a client driving up to this house?

* The photos on this screen have a resolution of 72 dots per inch (dpi), and therefore will print poorly. You can obtain a high quality version of Photo 1 and Photo 2, but be aware that each file will take as much as 30 seconds to load with a 28.8K modem.