Perfect Weekend of Mansions, Gardens and Quaint Villages

by Tab Hauser

Delaware and the Brandywine region make an easy, fast and affordable two night trip.  Within a two hours to no more than a half days drive from most of the north east population there is an area where you can visit some of the most majestic mansions and gardens that the United States has to offer.  As an added bonus to this you can take in a true  American art museum as well as stroll the cobble stone streets  of  a quaint colonial era village. All these local activities are close together making getting around easy.   

 Entrance To Museum Where Farmers Markets May Set Up           The Rear Of The Museum Has An Easy Hiking Path

Our getaway had us leave home in the morning after rush hour and arrive at the Brandywine River Museum in Chadds Ford, PA in time for lunch at their river view cafe.  This charming museum is in a renovated three story 19th century grist mill features the works of  R.C. Wyeth and Andrew Wyeth.  The Brandywine River Museum also has as additional galleries reserved for changing exhibits.   We enjoyed viewing the Wyeth's American paintings and illustrations as a look back to that era.  Many of these paintings were used in magazines and books.  We also liked the way the old grist mill was modernized with floor to ceiling windows  giving the museum lots of natural light in the common areas.  

Offered at the Museum from May through mid November is a tour to N.C. Wyeth's Home and Studio as well the Kuerner Farm (which served as an inspiration for almost 1,000 works by Andrew Wyeth).  We recommend allowing 90 minutes to stroll around the museum plus an hour more for the house and studio tour.   We found the studio an interesting way to see how the artist worked and lived.   For up to date exhibit details visit www.brandywinemuseum.org

 Our next stop was ten minutes down the road to the Longwood Gardens.  These 1077 acres that Pierre Samuel du Pont purchased in 1906 had a rather interesting history. It was originally owned by William Penn who sold it in 1700 to George Peirce. His twin sons started an arboretum there, naming it Peirce’s Park which was always open to the public.  After Mr. du Pont purchased the property he spent years making the land into what can be said as one of the best botanical gardens in the country.  While his land was private, he did open it to the public at times continuing the tradition of the Peirce brothers.  In his will he established the Longwood Foundation so that his passion can be enjoyed for future generations.

Samuel du Pont built beautiful trails meant for leisurely viewing  as you walk through twenty different gardens, tree houses, ponds, pools with fountains and long grassy meadows.  Near the center of the property is du Pont's home in where you can watch a short film about his life and understand Longwood's history.  One can then walk about the first floor of the house seeing different displays.  At Longwood, the center of attention is clearly not the mansion as compared to other area du Pont estates.   The main structure on this property is the 4 acre conservatory greenhouse that has different rooms for various plants, produce, bonsai trees and flowers. It is said that walking from room to room is an easy half mile. In the back of the conservatory is the Pipe Organ Gallery.   Here Mr. du Pont installed a 10,010 pipe organ along with the 72 horsepower motor that kept the air flowing to it.  A highlight of a visit to Longwood's conservatory is the fountain show.  Check the times when you get your admission ticket and get a seat on the large veranda in front of the conservatory to enjoy it.  

  There are always pretty flowers on the grounds or in the conservatory at Longwood Gardens   (Nature and Nail Polish Meet?)

We picked Longwood Garden as an afternoon visit because it closes normally at 6PM verse other area attractions that close at 5PM.  Also, it should be noted that during summer Longwood closes at 11PM four days a week.  Details on Longwood Gardens can be found at  www.longwoodgardens.org.

From Longwood Garden having worked up an appetite we headed west about 10 minutes to the village of Kennett Square for dinner.  Mostly everything you need in the way of food or shops are on the Old Baltimore Pike that runs through it.  We settled on the Half Moon Restaurant dining in the airy upstairs room rather than the pubby downstairs.  For a picnic lunch we recommended visiting Talulu's Table down the street.

On our second day in Brandywine we signed up for the 9AM tour at Nemours Mansion and Garden.  After getting our confirmed tickets at the visitors center we watched an introductory film about Alfred and Jessie DuPont's life and the mansion.  Afterwards we were take taken by a mini bus to the mansion where our group was broken down to six people or less. At the entrance of the mansion each person was given a flower as a tribute to Mrs. du Pont who loved having flowers all over her home.

 Entrance To Nemours and Great Lawn Looking From Entrance

Nemours sits on 300 acres of land.  While our visit at Longwood centered on the gardens and not the mansion, Nemours was the opposite.  Here the mansion, modeled on a chateau with its 76 rooms is the center of attention.  It is surrounded by a formal French garden, and a pretty walk down a long grass lawn to a one acre reflecting pool  complete with statues marble statues.

We found our tour intimate because of the small group and our enjoyed the way our guide detailed many of rooms we visited.  For men, there was the ultimate "man cave"  Alfred Du Pont had in the "lower level". ( It is not a basement as I was corrected on tour).  Part of the lower level had Mr. du Pont's office, trophy's, gym and heated sweat chamber, a two lane bowling alley along with his billiard and pool room. There was even a target catch to shoot low caliber rifles.  Mr. du Pont's area of  lower lever was decorated in dark wood and leather. You can almost smell the cigars and fine cognac the men enjoyed while walking through his area.    The other half of the lower level was devoted to affairs of running the mansion which included the kitchen, a room for pumping and filtering their own spring water (with a gas added for bubbled water), as well as ice making room.  After covering this floor we were introduced to the  first two levels of the mansion that included the dining room, library, drawing room as well as a beautiful room in the back of the house with large windows.  Much of the chateau was decorated with French antiques, tapestries and art work.  Near the center of the home was a beautiful stair case where one can make their "grand entrance".

 Nemours Rooms Tastefully Done Including an Immaculate Kitchen.  Beautiful Gardens Adjacent The Chateau

After the house tour we were given 30 minutes on our own to stroll the gardens and walk down the beautiful lawn to the pool complete with fountain and old rowing dory.  From there we boarded the shuttle bus and were driven around the grounds with a stop in the chauffeurs quarters and  garage to view the old cars that Mr. du Pont used to own.  The drive around was informative and pointed out the different sculptures that we had walked by earlier. 

Tours at Nemours  last two hours including free time in the  gardens. If you don't wish to walk around the shuttle will give you a tour of the grounds and you will be done in 90 minutes.  Complete information of Nemours can be found at   www.nemoursmansion.org

  Strolling Around The Gardens and Family Pool At Nemours

Our next stop just 15 minutes away was the former estate of Henry Francis du Pont called  Winterthur.  Winterthur is set on 979 acres with a 175 room, eight story mansion that was converted into the largest collection of "decorative arts" in America.  This collection of Americana is said to have 90,000 pieces dating from 1640 to 1860.   Within the 979 acres preserve is 60 acres set aside as one of the best natural gardens in the country.  There is also an education center adjacent to the mansion for graduate studies. 

  Scenes From Winthur Above Include The Mansion,   Specially Installed Staircase and One of The 175 Decorated  Rooms

To see Winterthur you check in at the visitors building complete with gift store and a nice cafeteria.  Here we picked up our reserved tickets for the for the "Then and Now Tour".  The "Then And Now Tour" is worth upgrading because it includes more of a historical in depth look into the mansion as well as seeing additional floors and additional  rooms not included in the standard tour.  Admission to the upgraded tour includes the standard tour.   We found our guide very detailed in her descriptions on nearly all the furnishings in each room we visited. It was also pointed out which rooms had original the furnishings from when he lived there. The differences between Nemours and Winterthur were very obvious.   Winterthur was set up as a museum after he moved out of mansion and as a result the floors, hallways and former bathrooms are filled with wonderfully preserved antiques. They even went as far as gutting bathrooms to make way for displays.  Nemours is kept up as if the owners were ready to return from there Florida estate and take up residence again while Winterthur is clearly a show case mansion.    Two interesting architectural points worth noting in the mansion was a closed in courtyard as well as a few specific rooms redone.  In the courtyard each of the four walls came from  the outside of a home from four different early American buildings. While it sounds strange, it is interesting to look at. This courtyard was used for family gatherings.  Amongst the rooms we viewed we were told how Mr. du Pont would get a hold of a entire room in an old home that was about to be leveled and then place that room in his mansion because of its features.   Also pointed out  was a in interestingly shaped curved stairway he acquired and had placed into the mansion. There was  a lot to absorb on this tour and after looking at almost 2 dozen rooms we were shuttled to the visitor building where we boarded a tram for the garden tour.  During the garden tour the driver would stop along the way and talk about the various trees, bushes and flowers that make Winterthur's garden special. Details on your visit to Winterthur can be found at www.winterthur.org

 Beautifully Restored Homes Can Seen Through Our New Castle's Historical District 

With the attractions we cared to see behind us in Brandywine, we drove 12 miles south and around Wilmington to  pretty village on the Delaware River called New Castle.  New Castle is a hidden gem when it comes to small towns.  It is rich in architectural history with many homes dating to the early 1700's.  We arrived and had dinner at the Jessop's Tavern which we highly recommend. The food was very good and we liked that servers were dressed in colonial attire.  After dinner we strolled down to the river where William Penn first landed.

 A Cozy Atmosphere and Good Food At Jessop's Tavern                     One of The Many Older Structures In Town

The next day we walked around the red brick sidewalks of New Castle's compact  historical district.  This is an area between four and five square blocks concentrated with nearly 500 historical homes.  We then bought tickets from the New Castle Historical Society to see the Dutch House (c late 1600's) the Amstel House (c1730) and the old library (c1892.). These homes are all renovated with period furniture complete with an open hearth fire place ready to be cooked in.  Events and tickets can be found at www.newcastlehistory.org.  After touring these older structures we walked over to Read House and Gardens to see a 22 room mansion surrounded by pretty gardens. See www.hsd.org/read.htm for any updates on this well preserved home.  From the Read House we walked up and down Delaware Street poking our heads in and out of small shops before our drive home. 

IF YOU GO:

Brandywine Region:  A good place to plan your visit in regards to finding hotels, Bed and Breakfasts and attractions that include wineries, museums and even canoeing down a quiet river would be http://www.brandywinecvb.org/

New Castle:   http://newcastlecity.delaware.gov/visitors-information/ This site had links to the various business and attractions this pretty village has to offer

Please email tab@tabhauser.com if you have any questions.  This page is property of www.tabhauser.com and may not be used with permission