Westbrook, a large rambling house of many gables and tall chimneys on the South Shore of

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

, lies on the west bank of the

Connetquot River The Connetquot River (also known as Great River) is a river in Islip, New York. It is one of the four longest rivers on Long Island and is recognized by the state as a Wild, Scenic and Recreational River. It is particularly known for its broo ...

. The estate has been listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

since 1973 as a national

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from c ...

House

Westbrook was designed in 1886 for

William Bayard Cutting William Bayard Cutting (January 12, 1850 – March 1, 1912), a member of New York's merchant aristocracy, was an attorney, financier, real estate developer, sugar beet refiner and philanthropist. Cutting and his brother Fulton started the sugar ...

(1850–1912) by the architect

Charles C. Haight Charles Coolidge Haight (March 17, 1841 – February 9, 1917) was an American architect who practiced in New York City. He designed most of the buildings at Columbia College's now-demolished old campus on Madison Avenue, and designed numerou ...

in the

Tudor Revival style Tudor Revival architecture (also known as mock Tudor in the UK) first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture ...

. Cutting had bought the estate for building his house on from

George L. Lorillard George Lyndes Lorillard (March 26, 1843 – February 3, 1886) was an American tobacco manufacturer, yachtsman, and a prominent Thoroughbred racehorse owner. Early life He was born in Westchester, New York, the son of Pierre Lorillard III (1796-1 ...

in 1884. Scottish heather was shipped to provide thatch for the gate house, which remains at the corner of Montauk Highway and Great River Road. In 1895 Cutting and his brother laid out a

golf course A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". Th ...

at Westbrook, known to be the first private golf course in the United States. ''See also:'' The house and its extensive landscaped grounds, now a state park called the Bayard-Cutting Arboretum, are open to the public, having been given to the people of Long Island by Bayard Cutting's widow and daughter "to provide an oasis of beauty and quiet for the pleasure, rest, and refreshment of those who delight in outdoor beauty; and to bring about a greater appreciation and understanding of the value and importance of informal planting." An early trustee of the Bayard-Cutting Arboretum was Lady Lindsay, born Elizabeth Sherman Hoyt, on Centre Island, Long Island. She was a lifelong friend of the Cuttings and a professionally trained landscape architect who worked for a time for the great American gardener

Beatrix Farrand Beatrix Cadwalader Farrand (née Jones; June 19, 1872 – February 28, 1959) was an American landscape gardener and landscape architect. Her career included commissions to design about 110 gardens for private residences, estates and country ho ...

, who had a commission at Westbrook at the beginning of her career. Cutting's daughter, Olivia James, published in 1960, “The Letters of Elizabeth Sherman Lindsay.” Lindsay was married to the British Ambassador to the United States (1930–39), Sir Ronald Lindsay.

Activities and services

At Westbook there is a restaurant, a gift shop, nature trails, and recreational programs.

Films with scenes shot at Westbrook

* 1993: ''

The Age of Innocence ''The Age of Innocence'' is a 1920 novel by American author Edith Wharton. It was her twelfth novel, and was initially serialized in 1920 in four parts, in the magazine ''Pictorial Review''. Later that year, it was released as a book by D. Apple ...

'', directed by

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...

and starring

Daniel Day-Lewis Sir Daniel Michael Blake Day-Lewis (born 29 April 1957) is an English retired actor. Often described as one of the preeminent actors of his generation, he received numerous accolades throughout his career which spanned over four decades, incl ...

Winona Ryder Winona Laura Horowitz (born October 29, 1971), professionally known as Winona Ryder, is an American actress. Originally playing quirky roles, she rose to prominence for her more diverse performances in various genres in the 1990s. She has recei ...

Michelle Pfeiffer Michelle Marie Pfeiffer (; born April 29, 1958) is an American actress and producer. A prolific performer whose List of Michelle Pfeiffer performances, screen work spans over four decades, she became one of Hollywood's most bankable stars and ...

and

Joanne Woodward Joanne Gignilliat Trimmier Woodward (born February 27, 1930) is an American actress. A star since the Golden Age of Hollywood, Woodward made her career breakthrough in the 1950s and earned esteem and respect playing complex women with a charact ...

. Based on the 1920

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

Edith Wharton Edith Wharton (; born Edith Newbold Jones; January 24, 1862 – August 11, 1937) was an American novelist, short story writer, and interior designer. Wharton drew upon her insider's knowledge of the upper-class New York "aristocracy" to portray ...

. (Archery/Lawn Party scene.)

Notes

External links

Bayard Cutting Arboretum

New York State Parks: Bayard Cutting Arboretum State Park

By gone L.I. Westbrook "Bayard Cutting Arboretum "
{{National Register of Historic Places in New York Islip (town), New York Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) Robert Moses projects Houses in Suffolk County, New York National Register of Historic Places in Suffolk County, New York Cutting family