Peapack, NJ’s iconic Blairsden estate is considered by many to be one of the finest examples of Beaux-Arts architecture in America. Built for financier and railroad magnate C. Ledyard Blair (1867-1949), the Gilded Age mansion was designed by renowned architectural firm Carrère and Hastings, designers of the iconic New York Public Library building and Henry Clay Frick mansion, now the Frick Collection, on Fifth Avenue. James Leal Greenleaf, landscape architect of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., was enlisted to design the magnificent grounds, which offer breathtaking views that extend toward Blair’s Princeton Alma Mater.
In its prime, Blairsden regularly hosted large-scale Gatsby-like social gatherings, equestrian “Four-in-Hand” coaching runs, coming-out celebrations, and wedding receptions engaging Manhattan’s most elite families. The mansion has hosted renown guests such as the Morgans, the Vanderbilts, and a variety of senators, statesmen and other notables of the day.
Although clearly built to withstand the test of time, historic mansions such as Blairsden remain highly vulnerable to financial decline, decay, and demolition – as was recently experienced by the nearby “Hillandale” estate. As Blairsden’s newest owners, we fully intend to protect this culturally and historically significant property from a similar fate, to focus on proper preservation of its remaining 34 acres of land, and to carry on the exemplary restorative work begun by local architect William Welch and former owner T. Eric Galloway – for the benefit of not just a single family, but for the community overall.
Recommended reading offering a comprehensive history of Blairsden:
Thomson, W. Barry. “Blairsden and the Blair Family: Wealth, Architecture, and Lifestyle,” 2024.
Hewitt, Mark A. “Carrère & Hastings Architects: Country houses, Vol. 2.” Acanthus Press, 2006.
Turpin, John K. and Thomson, W. Barry. “New Jersey Country Houses: The Somerset Hills, Vol.1.” Mountain Colony Press, Inc., 2004.
