View source for Schuyler Mansion

{{short description|Historic house in New York, United States}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}

{{Infobox NRHP
| name = Philip Schuyler Mansion
| nrhp_type = nhl
| nrhp_type2 = cp
| nocat = yes
| image = Schuyler Mansion Panorama Left.jpg
| alt = A two-story brick house with white window shutters, a wooden balustrade on top and an octagonal projecting front entrance pavilion, seen looking slightly upslope towards its right corner
| caption = South profile and east elevation, 2011
| location = 32 Catherine Street, [[Albany, New York|Albany]], [[New York (state)|New York]], United States
| coordinates = {{coord|42|38|23|N|73|45|38|W|display=inline,title}}
| locmapin = New York#USA
| area =
| architect = [[John Gaborial]]
| architecture = [[Georgian architecture|Georgian]]
| designated_nrhp_type = December 24, 1967<ref name="nhlsum">{{cite web|url=http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=738&ResourceType=Building|title=Philip Schuyler Mansion|date=2007-09-18|work=National Historic Landmark summary listing|publisher=National Park Service|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606005950/http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=738&ResourceType=Building|archive-date=2011-06-06}}</ref>
| added = December 24, 1967
| built = 1761–1765
| partof = [[South End–Groesbeckville Historic District]]
| refnum = 67000008
}}

'''Schuyler Mansion''' is a historic house at 32 Catherine Street in [[Albany, New York|Albany]], [[New York (state)|New York]]. The brick mansion is now a museum and an official [[List of National Historic Landmarks in New York|National Historic Landmark]]. It was constructed from 1761 to 1765 for [[Philip Schuyler]], later a [[General officer|general]] in the [[Continental Army]] and early [[U.S. Senator]], who resided there from 1763 until his death in 1804. It was declared a National Historic Landmark on December 24, 1967.<ref name="nhlsum"/><ref name="nrhpinv">{{NHLS url|id=67000008|title=Schuyler Mansion National Historic Landmark}}&nbsp;{{small|(791&nbsp;KB)}}, July 26, 1985, by Constance M. Greiff, National Park Service</ref><ref name="nrhpphotos">{{NHLS url|id=67000008|title=Schuyler Mansion National Historic Landmark{{snd}}Accompanying 11 photos, exterior and interior, from 1967–1985.|photos=y}}&nbsp;{{small|(4.12&nbsp;MB)}}, July 26, 1985, National Park Service</ref> It is also a [[contributing property]] to the [[South End–Groesbeckville Historic District|South End–Groesbeckville]] [[historic district (United States)|Historic District]], listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1984.

==History==
[[File:Schuyler Mansion Plaque.jpeg|thumb|200px|left|Dedication Plaque (1917)]]
Revolutionary War General [[Philip Schuyler]] began construction on his Georgian-style estate near Albany, New York in 1761. Prior to that time, due to the outbreak of the [[French and Indian War]], it was considered inadvisable to build outside of the City of Albany. Therefore, the construction of the family's mansion occurred from 1761 to 1765, during the tail end of that war. The mansion was built on {{convert|80|acre|spell=in}} of land, located approximately {{convert|1/2|mi|spell=in}} from the city. At the time that the Schuylers moved into their new home, Philip and his wife, Catherine Van Rensselaer Schuyler, already had three daughters: [[Angelica Schuyler Church|Angelica]], [[Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton|Elizabeth]], and [[Peggy Schuyler|Margarita]]. Margarita was also known as Peggy. During Philip and Catherine's lifetime, Catherine gave birth to fifteen children. However, only eight survived infancy. The seven that did not survive included one set of twins and one set of triplets. Of the eight surviving children, the Schuyler family had their three aforementioned daughters, born in 1756, 1757, and 1758, respectively. These three daughters, born within two and a half years and very much alike, were known as the Schuyler sisters. After the family had settled into the mansion, Catherine gave birth to three boys; John Bradstreet (1765), [[Philip Jeremiah Schuyler|Philip Jeremiah]] (1768), and Rensselaer (1773), and then two more girls, Cornelia (1775) and Catherine (1781). During the Schuyler family's occupancy of the mansion, the house served as a center of military, business, and family affairs, including the wedding of Philip and Catherine's second daughter, Elizabeth, to famed [[Federalist]], [[Alexander Hamilton]]. The latter portion of the [[American Revolution]] saw Philip Schuyler in the position of an intelligence officer for the American side, operating a network of spies out of his home. These activities led to the infiltration of the mansion and failed attempt to kidnap Schuyler on the evening of August 7, 1781. Additionally, the Schuyler family was well known for their hospitality, and the mansion hosted guests such as [[George Washington|George]] and Martha Washington, [[Benjamin Franklin]], the [[François-Jean de Chastellux|Marquis de Chastellux]], and [[James Madison]]. The family also hosted the British general during the [[Battle of Saratoga]], [[John Burgoyne]], who stayed at the mansion as a "prisoner guest" in 1777.

===Death of Philip Schuyler=== 
After Philip Schuyler's death in 1804, the land comprised over one hundred building lots which were divided among his six living children. The house itself, however, was wanted by none of Schuyler's offspring, as they had already established themselves elsewhere with spouses and children of their own. Therefore, in 1815, Schuyler's mansion was sold to a furrier named John Bryan. During Bryan's approximately 29 years living in the mansion, he made a number of changes to the house, including the addition of a vestibule, constructed by local architect, [[Philip Hooker]], which still exists today. In 1844, the mansion was purchased by Ezekiel C. McIntosh, the president of the [[Mohawk and Hudson Railroad Company]]. After McIntosh's death in 1855, his widow, Caroline Carmichael, remarried former U.S. President [[Millard Fillmore]]. Their wedding took place in the same parlor as the wedding of Alexander Hamilton and Elizabeth Schuyler. The newlywed couple left the mansion to live at Fillmore's estate in [[Buffalo, New York]]. The mansion was then leased to a man named John Tracey and his family. The Tracey family were responsible for the removal of any remaining outbuildings that had existed on the property during Philip Schuyler's time. In 1882, following the death of Caroline Fillmore, the Traceys vacated the mansion. The next owner of the mansion was Lansing Pendleton Jr., a watchman at the local jail. His tenancy was short-lived and, in 1886, he sold the house to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany for $7,000. The mansion was repurposed as an orphanage for infants through children seven years of age that was operated by the [[Sisters of Charity]] and called St. Francis de Sales Infant Asylum. Under the ownership of the Diocese, the mansion's main parlor was converted into a chapel, and many of the fireplaces were bricked up. The orphanage soon ran out of space in the mansion, even after constructing a second building (which was demolished shortly after the orphanage vacated the site). It was clear that the Diocese either had to demolish the mansion, or sell it and use the money to buy and build on another site. The sisters in charge of the asylum were enthusiastic about the notion of preservation, so refused to sell the mansion to anyone besides the state or a "patriotic society.”

===Acquisition by New York State===
On March 22, 1911, the mansion was sold to the state of New York, which planned to turn it into an historic site that would be open to the public. The museum's first board of directors consisted of Philip Schuyler's great-granddaughter, [[Georgina Schuyler]], as well as the son of John Tracey, who had lived in the house in the nineteenth century. The orphanage built their new site over the next few years, and vacated the mansion on January 30, 1914. After over three years of restoration, Schuyler Mansion was opened to the public as a state historic site on October 17, 1917, the 140th anniversary of the Battle of Saratoga.

==Structure==
[[File:Schuyler Mansion Rear.jpg|thumb|right|Rear of the Schuyler Mansion]]
Schuyler Mansion is a large ({{convert|67.5|ft|disp=sqbr}} wide by {{convert|47.5|ft|disp=sqbr}} deep) two-and-one-half-story [[Georgian architecture|Georgian]] house, built between 1761 and 1765. It occupies a sloping site in southern Albany, facing east toward the [[Hudson River]]. The walls are brick, laid in English bond with tooled joints, over a stone foundation. The building is covered by a double-pitched [[hip roof]]. A wooden [[balustrade]] with Chinese fret panels and posts topped by urns surrounds the roof directly above the cornice. This balustrade was not part of the original structure, but was installed in the early years of the 19th century. Two brick interior chimneys rise above the roof.

Construction of the mansion was supervised by master carpenter John Gaborial of Boston, Massachusetts. At the time of the house's construction, two detached wings were erected to the rear of the house. The building on the southwest corner was used as an office and the one on the northwest corner served as the kitchen. These wings were removed during the 19th century, and the space that they once occupied is now landscaped as a garden. The house is built on the center-hall plan typical of Georgian homes. Both the first and second floors have two rooms, each about {{convert|18|by|19|ft}}, on either side of the wide corridors. The entrance hall, {{convert|48|ft}} long by {{convert|20|ft}} wide and {{convert|12|ft}} high, is divided towards the rear by a pilaster-supported doorway.

The interior of the mansion is considerably decorated. The deep brick walls permit the use on every window, of inside or [[wainscot]] shutters which fold against the [[jamb]]s. The walls of the central hall were plastered and then hung with a set of scenic wallpaper imported from France. The center hall stairway is decorated with spiral balusters of three different profiles on each step.

==Photo gallery==
<gallery mode="packed" heights="170px">
File:Schuyler Mansion.jpg|Watercolor drawing of the Schuyler Mansion made by [[Philip Hooker]] in 1818.
File:Old Schuyler Mansion, Albany, N.Y (NYPL b12647398-69490).tiff|Old Schuyler Mansion in 1898.
File:Historic American Buildings Survey, Thos. T. Waterman, Photographer. - Schuyler Mansion (Ironwork), Albany, Albany County, NY HABS NY,1-ALB,2-4.tif|Detail of ironwork on the Mansion.
File:Schuyler Mansion Historical Marker.jpg|New York State historical marker, erected in 1940.
File:Schuyler Mansion Visitor Center.jpg|Visitor Center on the Mansion grounds (2011)
</gallery>

==See also==
* [[History of Albany, New York]]
* [[List of National Historic Landmarks in New York]]
* [[List of New York State Historic Sites]]
* [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Albany, New York]]
* [[Ten Broeck Mansion]]
* [[General Schuyler House]]

==References==
;Notes
{{Reflist}}

;Sources
* ''Great Houses of the Hudson River'', [[Michael Middleton Dwyer]], editor, with preface by [[Mark Rockefeller]], Boston, MA: [[Little, Brown and Company]], published in association with [[Historic Hudson Valley]], 2001. {{ISBN|0-8212-2767-X}}.

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
* [http://parks.ny.gov/historic-sites/33/details.aspx Schuyler Mansion State Historic Site]
* [https://www.friendsofschuylermansion.org Friends of Schuyler Mansion]
* [http://www.nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com/ny/Albany/state3.html Albany County listings] at [http://www.nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com National Register of Historic Places]
* {{HABS |survey=NY-6256 |id=ny1244 |title=Schuyler Mansion (ironwork), Albany, Albany County, NY |photos=1 |supp=yes}}

{{National Register of Historic Places in New York}}
{{Protected areas of New York}}
{{Albany, New York}}
{{authority control}}

[[Category:Schuyler family residences]]
[[Category:Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state)]]
[[Category:National Historic Landmarks in New York (state)]]
[[Category:Historic American Buildings Survey in New York (state)]]
[[Category:New York (state) historic sites]]
[[Category:Houses completed in 1762]]
[[Category:1762 establishments in the Province of New York]]
[[Category:Historic house museums in New York (state)]]
[[Category:Biographical museums in New York (state)]]
[[Category:History of Albany, New York]]
[[Category:Museums in Albany, New York]]
[[Category:Historic district contributing properties in New York (state)]]
[[Category:National Register of Historic Places in Albany, New York]]
[[Category:Schuyler family]]