Ruins of Laurelton Hall (Estate of Louis Comfort Tiffany)

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

Among Long Island's famed Gold Coast mansions, one of the most beautiful was the estate of Louis Comfort Tiffany. Known as Laurelton, the home was built between 1902 and 1905 and overlooked Cold Spring Harbor. Tiffany designed much of the home himself, and was shaped by the architecture he came to admire during his travels through Europe as a young man. The home also featured the stained glass for which he would become famous, as well as other elements of the Tiffany design aesthetic. Unfortunately, most of the home was destroyed by a fire in 1957, and much of what remained was salvaged by collectors. On the site of the estate, however, there are a few remaining elements of Tiffany's grand home.

Images

Laurelton Hall's minaret

Louis Comfort Tiffany

The remains of Laurelton Hall shortly after the fire

Clara Driscoll at work at the Tiffany factory

Backstory and Context

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Louis Comfort Tiffany, who would became renowned throughout the world for his artistry with stained glass, was born in New York City, in 1848. He was the son of Charles Lewis Tiffany, the founder of Tiffany & Co. Though he began his career as a painter, Tiffany became interested in glass relatively early in adulthood and began to focus his creativity toward glass design. He eventually opened his own glass factory in Queens where his works, as well as those of his designers, would become renowned around the world.

Tiffany first established himself on Long Island in 1890, when he built a home known as The Briars. That home was eventually destroyed in a fire. He replaced it with an even larger and grander home, known as Laurelton Hall, which was constructed between 1902 and 1905. Overlooking Cold Spring Harbor and perched on almost 600 acres, Tiffany's second home was arguably his greatest work, a home he envisioned as his personal Xanadu. His travels around Europe as a young man exposed him to a multitude of styles and design elements, many of which he would incorporate in Laurelton Hall. He was particularly inspired by the magnificent Alhambra in southern Spain, particularly its Moorish design and opulent gardens, which spread out over more than 600 acres. The home also included elements of Indian, Oriental, and Islamic design.

Laurelton Hall was, in the words of Tiffany, "a place for dreams." Like Thomas Jefferson at Monticello, Tiffany continually made additions and improvements in the home, filling it with what he deemed his best works. The result was a home that also served as a sort of laboratory and museum. The palatial home featured 82 rooms, 25 baths, and a fountain in an interior courtyard. From Laurelton Hall, it was an easy commute back to his glass factory at Corona, Queens.

But Laurelton Hall was more than just Tiffany's home. He established the Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation, which operated the estate as a retreat for artists. A select number of young adult students were chosen each year to come to Laurelton Hall and learn their craft from Tiffany. The estate's stables were converted into a dormitory for the students and another building was used as a gallery to house their works. This included a number of women artists employed by the company, such as Clara Driscoll, who designed the famed Tiffany Dragonfly Lamp, which won a bronze medal in the 1900 Paris World's Fair. It was the so-called "Tiffany girls" who had the idea to use leftover bits of glass from the famous Tiffany windows to make lamps, an area in which Driscoll excelled.

Tiffany's grand home burned to the ground in 1957. Some remnants of the home, including its magnificent, daffodil-topped columns, were salvaged and have been displayed over the years. Other bits were scavenged by neighbors and curious locals. Today, the only significant remaining elements of Laurelton Hall are a minaret Tiffany had built to hide a smokestack from the estate's power station, a glass-enclosed bridge, and a few outbuildings. The minaret, topped with colored glass designed by Tiffany, is visible from the beach.

Sources

Kastner, Jeffrey . Out of Tiffany's Shadow, a Woman of Light , New York Times . February 25th 2007. Accessed May 15th 2021. https://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/25/arts/design/25kast.html?pagewanted=print.

Jeweled Tiffany Glow Lingers on LI, New York Times . July 18th 1971. Accessed May 15th 2021. https://www.nytimes.com/1971/07/18/archives/jeweled-tiffany-glow-lingers-on-li.html.

Tiffany Laurelton Hall Wing Recreation Opens at the Morse Museum of Art, Antiques and the Arts. January 25th 2011. Accessed May 15th 2021. https://www.antiquesandthearts.com/tiffany-laurelton-hall-wing-re-creation-opens-at-the-morse-museum-of-art/.

Smith, Roberta . Treasures From the Ashes of Tiffany's Glorious Estate , New York Times . May 23rd 2006. Accessed May 15th 2021. https://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/23/arts/design/23laur.html.