WSJ House of the Week: A Newport, R.I., mansion where the Astor family...
The Wall Street Journal, January 4, 2008 by Ben Casselman
Astor's Newport
What: Seven-bedroom, 10 bathroom house, 10,545 square feet, on 5.3 acres
Where: Newport, RI
Amenities: Tennis court, croquet lawn, six-hole putting green, staff quarters, pool
Asking Price: $10.75 million
Property Taxes: about $30,000 last year
Listing Agent: Melanie Delman, Lila Delman Real Estate, an affiliate of Christie's Great Estate, 401-284-4820
Due Diligence: Descendants of fur trader John Jacob Astor owned this 19th-century mansion, known as Oakwood, until 1921. Current owner J.Brian O'Neill--a Philadelphia developer and the owner of the Carnegie Abbey Club, a golf and yacht club in nearby Portsmouth--says he and his wife, Miriam, bought the estate for $4.5 million in 2005 and spent millions more on a 2 1/2-year restoration. The house is one of several in Newport with Astor ties, most notably Beechwood, an 1851 waterfront mansion on the market for $18 million. The more than five-acre O'Neill property, in downtown Newport, has a formal garden with ornamental fountains, a koi pond and walking trails. Designed for entertaining--accounts from 1922 describe a ball with two orchestras for 200 guests--the house has a ballroom, music room and a formal dining room with 56 hand-painted panels imported from China in the 19th century. Mr. O'Neill says he and his wife are selling because they have bought another house in town.
The Wall Street Journal, January 4, 2008
House of the Week, Ben Casselman
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