Vernon Court - A Newport Estate

Vernon Court is generally considered to be one of the grandest "cottages" in Newport. The estate, which occupies one entire block, was built for Mrs. Richard van Nest Gambrill, Anna, of Peacock New Jersey in 1898 as an adaption of a french 17th century chateau. The mansion was built and designed by the famed architects Carrere & Hastings, who had just recently built a mansion in Lenox, Massachusetts for Anna's sister, Jane Foster (wife of Giraud Foster) named "Bellefontaine". The estate remained in the Gambrill family until 1956, when it was sold. The mansion passed through several hands until 1998, when it was purchased by Laurence and Judy Cutler, who turned the mansion into the National Museum of American Literature. It survives as that today.