"Rosemary" 



The House of Foxhall Keene, Esq., Old Westbury, New York 



j|R. KEENE'S house at Old Westbury, Long Island, is finely placed on the summit 

 of a hill, with beautiful rolling country in the foreground, while behind is a thick 

 growth of trees, in which the stable is placed. It stands on a terrace, broad 

 enough to give space to a house garden and to provide a floral setting for the fine 

 Colonial dwelling placed upon it. It is strong and sturdy in its simple lines, all in white, and 

 with a splendid portico which rises to the roof. It is a well-composed front, of dignified 

 proportions, very charmingly placed on the edge of a wood. 



The plan is very direct and straightforward, consisting of a central hall, reaching from 

 front to back, from which four spacious rooms open, two on each side, the drawing-room and 

 library on the front, the dining-room and billiard-room at the back. The hall is entered imme- 

 diately from the main doorway, without the interposition of a vestibule. It is in red and white, 

 each tone very clear and positive. The high paneled wainscoting is continuous with the 

 door trim, which includes decorated pilasters and an ornamental heading. The mantel and 

 chimney piece are elaborately detailed, and over the fireplace is the motto of the house: "Rose- 

 mary, that's for remembrance." The stairs at the end are very cleverly arranged as a decorative 

 feature, and add greatly to the interest of the hall. Beginning in the center, they divide half- 

 way up at a platform below a triple window, and continue reversed on each side to the upper 

 floor. The light, delicate handrail is in keeping with the Colonial character of the house. The 

 spaces beneath the upper flights are enclosed, and serve as pantries and entrances to the kitchen 

 below. 



The rooms that open from the hall are alike in dimensions, and so spacious that the 

 really high ceilings seem somewhat low. Each has its own color scheme, very boldly carried 

 out. The drawing-room is white, paneled in wood throughout, with a white plaster ceiling, with 

 an oval enclosed within a festooned frame. The mantel has an elaborately detailed framing, 

 with a built-in mirror, mullioned and traceried like a window. There are curtains of rich red 

 damask at the windows and doors, and the furniture is in red and gold. The piano, in 

 Italian walnut, was especially made by Steinway for this room, and approximates an old spinet 

 as closely as possible. It is beautifully ornamented inside with an Adams decoration. A wide 

 doorway, with pilasters and columns, opens into the adjoining dining-room, whose deep dark 

 tones are in fine contrast with the more brilliant colors of the drawing-room. It is finished 

 in mahogany, handsomely paneled to a height of about seven feet, with carved figures in the 

 upper piers. The walls above are covered with dark green figured damask, the same material 



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