Sunday, February 9, 2020

American Castles ~ the mansion looks good in snow @americancastles on Instagram
americancastles is in Hunting Valley, Ohio.Follow
22 hrs
Yesterday I had the immense pleasure to visit Roundwood Manor in Hunting Valley, Ohio. The Colonial Revival style mansion was built in 1923 by architect Philip Small for businessmen Oris Paxton and Mantis James Van Sweringen. "The Vans", as they were known, are credited with the development of the garden suburb of Shaker Heights, Ohio. They soon also developed the Shaker Heights Rapid Transit, an interurban light rail, giving the residents of the new community easy access to downtown Cleveland. They eventually realized the necessity of a terminus at Public Square and opened the Terminal Tower in 1930 after four years of building. They also accumulated a slew of railroads and other companies and they ran it all from their country estate, Roundwood Manor, in Daisy Hill. The mansion was originally nothing more than a dairy barn located on a large piece of property, Daisy Hill, owned by the Vans. In order to build the new house quickly, Small converted the barn into the red brick, stone, and wood mansion we, mostly, see today. Originally capping at 90,000 sqft, the house was used as a business retreat, equiped with 24 guest suites. Interiors (to come) were decorated by Cleveland interior design firm Rorimer-Brooks. The Vans fortune declined during the Great Depression and after their deaths the house was sold to Gordon Stouffer (like the really good mac and cheese) who removed 35,000 sqft, see the protruding wall in pic 8, leaving the mansion at the 55,000 sqft it is today, making it the same size as the White House, Belle Grove, Elm Court, and Rockwood Hall. Stouffer died in 1956 and the house was purchased by James A. Bohannon, the president of the Peerless Motor Car Company, among other accomplishments. Upon his death in 1968 he left the house to John Carroll University, who sold it on to John and Anita Fazio, of Fisher Foods. In 1978 it was purchased by Joseph F. Hrudka of the Mr. Gasket Company, who owned the home for a decade. In 1988 it was purchaed by Samir and Sylvia Korey. Significant restoration was completed by Sylvia Korey, who still lives in the home and was gracious enough to show me around.
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MUCH more to come! And see @roundwoodmanor for more. @ Hunting Valley, Ohio




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