Floor Plans for the Spratt House???

[Nancy]

Does anyone have or know how to get the floor plans for the Spratt House/Mansion on the Lyndhurst Estate? A good friend of mine is in search of this item and has gotten no where. Questions at Lyndhurst came up with nothing.

Thanks.

Nancy

[Gerard]

I've always wondered, too, what the outlay of the house was.  My own imagination had to provide for my curiosity, based solely on photos (and film) of the mansion from DS and associated books.  I hope, Nancy, someone can come up with the answer!

Gerard

[ClaudeNorth]

Nancy,

Your friend might get some information by contacting Tarrytown's City Hall or Hall of Records-type place.  I'm sure they must have some record of Spratt House on file, and they might even have information regarding the architect who designed it.  It's entirely possible that the architect's papers were donated to an archive or library somewhere.

Regards,

John

[Nancy]

Nancy,

Your friend might get some information by contacting Tarrytown's City Hall or Hall of Records-type place.  I'm sure they must have some record of Spratt House on file, and they might even have information regarding the architect who designed it.  It's entirely possible that the architect's papers were donated to an archive or library somewhere.

Regards,

John

Thank you, John. Advice like yours and other tips received via email is most appreciated and will be forwarded.  Thanks again.

nancy

[Luciaphile]

Has your friend tried Sanborn maps (maps and architectural plans done for insurance purposes).

They should exist somewhere--historical society maybe? They have an online database but haven't seen that in action yet.

Luciaphil

[Dr. Eric Lang]

I would be interested in seeing it too. Does anyone know how the fire started that destroyed the mansion? Anything about its owners?

If you look closely at the stills, you can see that the house itself isn't really all that big. It is surrounded by towering columns which give the impression of overall width and depth but the house within the columns is square and plain, seems to have two floors, probably with large rooms and high ceilings, but nowhere near the size of Lyndhurst castle or Seaview Terrace.

[Midnite]

Does anyone know how the fire started that destroyed the mansion? Anything about its owners?

This page has some interesting history about the mansion, including that the cause of the fire was arson:

http://www.hudsonvalleyruins.org/yasinsac/spratt/spratt.html

[Nancy]

This page has some interesting history about the mansion, including that the cause of the fire was arson:

So Willie dropped a candle.  Do you really consider that arson??  Could've been smacked out of his hand by the Barney-boo.

Nancy

[Dr. Eric Lang]

This page has some interesting history about the mansion, including that the cause of the fire was arson:

Fascinating! Thanks so much for the link! Funny, because I've heard conflicting stories about the house, including one from (I think) Robert Costello that the Old House wasn't actually all that old, but it appears that it did date back to the 1870's. Also, as I've long suspected, it appears that the house WAS abandoned during the time scenes were filmed there for DS. In the location footage used during the early episodes, you can clearly see the shutters, hanging off their springs at odd angles, and the porch littered with debris. It certainly served its purpose on the show.

[The Ghost of Sarah Collins]

So Willie dropped a candle.  Do you really consider that arson??  Could've been smacked out of his hand by the Barney-boo.

 Of course "Adam" could have come by after his last stay with professor Stokes to let his creator know how he felt... his final take that  B-B-Barna-Barnabas!:D

[MaineGirl]

Thank you for all of your suggestions and to Nancy for helping to start this research. I've started contacting all the historical societies in the area, and we'll see what they have to say.  Thanks, too, for the Sanborn map tip, I'd not known such a thing existed.  

Maine Girl

[Midnite]

Welcome, MaineGirl!  It's great to see you posting.

[jennifer]

Welcome maine girl Too!
good luck with all the research!

jennifer

[Cassandra]

Dr.Eric Lang Wrote:

In the location footage used during the early episodes, you can clearly see the shutters, hanging off their springs at odd angles, and the porch littered with debris. It certainly served its purpose on the show

I remember that too Chris, but I also remember that there were stairs leading up to door to the old house. These were shown in the very early episodes when Vicky would go searching for David.  Could this have been another side to the house then?  After these few episodes, we never saw the stairs again.

[Dr. Eric Lang]

I remember that too Chris, but I also remember that there were stairs leading up to door to the old house. These were shown in the very early episodes when Vicky would go searching for David.  Could this have been another side to the house then?  After these few episodes, we never saw the stairs again.

Yes, it seems that way to me. Actually, in the stock footage, they showed two different sides of the house, presumably the front and one side. We see David and Vicki going up to it, stepping up to the porch then walking around the corner to the front, then going thru the front door.

In the next exterior shot, we see Matthew Morgan going up the front stairs to the front door with his lantern.