Gilded Age Estate on the Golden Coast NJ

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Glynallyn is one of the few remaining "Millionaires Row" Mansions that lined Madison Avenue in the Morristown area during "The Gilded Age" - (1890-1929). Based on the design and atmosphere of the 1481 manor house of Compton Wynyates in Warwickshire, England, Glynallyn ably exemplifies the desire of the new American wealthy class, whose overwhelming accumulation of money, allowed them to try to "outbuild" Europe in their quest for prominence.

Glynallyn was conceived by George Marshall Allen (1863-1941) who amassed his wealth through several varied business opportunities. These included pioneering in color printing through the Allen Publishing Co., the Bermuda Electric Light, Heat and Power Company, the National Starch Trust (an early conglomerate) and the W.A. Gaines Company, operator of the "Old Crow" Whiskey Distillery, now National Distillers Company.

During trips to Europe and England in particular, Allen became interested in and fascinated by Tudor-style architecture. He examined many English houses of the period, and one of them, Compton Wynyates, appealed most to him. Determined to build a "like house" in the United States, he made several trips back to Warwickshire to study and sketch the Manor.

The Convent Station site was well chosen, as in 1913 the area resembled the rolling English country site of Warwickshire. The wooded ravine echoes the timbered hollow in which Compton Wynyates stands. In that year, (1913), the landscaping firm of Brinkley and Holbrook started work on the grounds. First dependent buildings (a gardener's lodge, and garages for equipment) were erected by Sturgis Brothers, Morristown Builders. These buildings are now private residences and still retain their English look with thatched roofs and leaded windows.

In August 1914, Mr. Allen hired Charles I. Berg, a noted New York architect of the day and member of the New York Architectural League, to design Glynallyn. Berg went to England and spent several weeks studying Compton Wynyates and other Tudor-style manor houses.

By the end of 1914, the foundation of Glynallyn was complete, but the start of World War I created a scarcity of materials and work was suspended until 1917 when it again resumed in earnest. During this time the Allens lived in the gardener's house. This "work" became a "labor of love" for Mr. Allen, who virtually lived at the job and personally supervised all building operations. He became a stickler for detail; i.e. having the bricks laid irregularly to suggest age. The sixteen chimney groups (some groups consist of several chimneys) were put up "dry" on the ground, with no two being alike. When Allen approved, they were then taken apart (each brick being numbered) and then built in place. After the front tower was finished, a large "crack" was chiseled into it. Many of these idiosyncrasies can still be seen.

In the years prior to the building of Glynallyn, Mr. Allen spent much time abroad buying many decorative and historical materials from old homes. Thus his mansion now contains many carvings, woodworks, paneling, decorative arches, windows and other items of interesting and historical value. Once Glynallyn was completed in August 1917, Allen reputedly said, "This is the sorriest day of my life. I only wish I could do it all over again."

Mrs. Allen was a noted party-giver. At one of her famous teas, there were 400 guests enjoying a carousel, a sideshow, and other circus-type features on the front lawn. Forty waiters served cocktails and canapes. She also gave music and dance recitals in the Great Hall, and every New Year's Day there was an Eggnog Party.

Though Glynallyn has some elements copied directly from Compton Wynyates, such as the main entrance tower and foyer, it is rather a composite of early English "Manor House" styles. Here, actual pieces, as well as authentic reproductions were used to create a Millionaires Estate that now offers a glimpse into our past "Gilded Age".

Glynallyn was purchased by General Drafting in 1952, shortly after the death of Mrs. Allen. It was converted into office use with only minor interior alterations to the original design, and whenever possible these have been kept in the Tudor style.

Charles I. Berg (1856-1926) began his career in partnership with J. Cleveland Cady and Milton See. Berg, Cady, and See designed such monumental Romanesque Revival structures as the American Museum of Natural History, the old Metropolitan Opera and many buildings for Presbyterian Hospital in New York.

Berg was born in Philadelphia and trained in architecture at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts where he was a member of the Atelier Andre. In returning to New York in 1880 his partnership with Cady was formed. Berg also designed a number of buildings independently, both while with the firm and after Cady's death in 1919. Berg designed numerous commercial buildings in New York; the most important of which was the Gillerder Building (1887), an important 20 story early skyscraper. Other works include the Charles Building, the Windsor Arcade, and Hotel Tauraine. His last major commission was as consulting architect for design of the Presidential Palace in Havana, Cuba. Glynallyn in Convent Station, New Jersey is certainly one of Berg's most pretentious domestic commissions. (Two other residences in Montclair attributed to him pale in comparison.)

Site Description

Glynallen is a 3 story stone and brick manor house based on the 1481 country manor house of Compton Wynyates in Warwickshire, England. It is situated off Route 24 on Canfield Road in Convent Station, N.J. The parcel presently consists of about 9 acres of well-maintained grounds with many specimen trees and plantings in a prime residential zone and two related outbuildings, a cottage a garage.

The manor house built by noted New York architect Charles I. Berg, measures overall approximately 204' x 60'. It is in one unit with an attached servants wing. The building's outline is broken by many overhangs, bays, towers, turrets, chimneys (14 groups, originally 16) and various roof and window treatments. The main entrance was copied directly from Compton Wynyates, differing only in the use of Mr. Allen's coat-of-arms instead of Henry VIII's.

Glynallen is 3 stories high with a full basement. The massive roofs (there are several) hide a large center skylight area. The roofs are of heavy slate (some over 3/4" thick) laid in the old English manner. The many gables are of half timber construction, with the brickwork plastered over. These gables contrast with the stone and brick crenellations of the entry way. The many windows are framed in stone or wood; all are either leaded glass or stained glass. The composition of the 5 windows of the Great Hall in the entrance facade is another motif copied from Compton Wynyates, complete with segmental arches and gothic stone tracery. An unusual open loggia with gothic tracery extends outwards from the garden facade of the house, partially enclosing a slate terrace.

Complimentary to the exterior, the interior of Glynallen is a composite of Tudor motifs taken from Compton Wynyates and other examples of English architecture of the early fifteen hundreds. As a residence, the mansion contained 42 rooms (there are now 36). All rooms except those in the servants wing contain fireplaces. The main floor consists of a paneled entrance hall (the "Little Hall"), the Great Hall, a chapel, the dining room, a large paneled drawing room plus the kitchen, laundry and other service rooms. The Great Hall is 2½ stories high (25') and measures 28' x 42'. Across the front are two-story stained glass windows made on site from fragments obtained from old English buildings, the huge supporting timbers were taken from old barns in the area and from an old New York City shipyard. There is a minstrel's gallery overlooking the hall and a recess for an organ on one wall. The east wall of the Great Hall consists of a huge fireplace and a leaded glass door leading to the chapel. The north wall contains a "hidden" staircase leading down to the refectory. The wall adjacent to the main stairway is made up of 400-year-old Tudor Linen-fold paneling.

In the wall near the chapel is a hidden phone booth, on another wall is a beautifully carved wine cask head that conceals a fire hose. The drawing or living room is a large (25' x 43') oak-paneled room with an intricately carved oak mantle that extends to the ceiling. The 9-foot ceiling is flat but made of molded plaster showing a beautiful design of roses and other floral motifs. It was patterned after one at Oxford University. The chapel (14' x 14') has 2 large leaded glass doors and oak-carved "Misericordia" benches (the benches are now in the refectory). The morning room (14' x 19') was oak paneled with stained glass casement windows, the ceiling is an unusual shallow vault of molded plaster with a floral design.

The refectory in the basement is a large (30' x 27') room with an irregular system of gothic stone groin vaults, designed to resemble a crypt; with numerous stone carvings and moldings. On one side is a large open hearth. On the other side is a stage.

The main staircase consists of intricately carved newel posts with removable tops and carved banisters. There are two landings.

The Entrance Hall or Little Hall has a carved plaster ceiling done by Italian craftsmen. The hooded fireplace on the north wall is a duplicate of one in Ann Hathaway's cottage.

The dining room (24' x 27" feet) faces east and is in a Georgian style. It has a large "secret" vault in one wall for silver and china storage.

The immediate grounds are landscaped to provoke and accentuate an English Manor atmosphere. The approach is through stone pillars and down a Linden lined drive. To the left is a Taxus hedge enclosing a formal rose garden (now lawn and flowers). Situated at the building's rear or east is a large slate terrace bordered by a balustrade wall overlooking several tiers leading down to a dell.

The south side of the terrace is covered by a stone loggia and continues through an iron gate to bridges across a moat, now filled. Beyond the bridges is a long stone stairway descending to an Italian influenced water garden (also filled) and a pergola, originally planted with ornamental shrubbery. There are many specimen plantings throughout the grounds still in existence including two large Cyptomeria trees and huge Atlas Cedar (Cedras attantica glauca).