Castles of "United States" MEADOW BROOK HALL vs MELROSE

Meadow Brook Hall is a Tudor revival style mansion located at 350 Estate Drive in Rochester Hills, Michigan. It was built between 1926 and 1929 by the heiress to the Dodge automaker fortune, Matilda Dodge Wilson and her second husband, lumber baron, Alfred Wilson. Covering 88,000 square feet (8,200 m2) with 110 rooms, the structure is the fourth largest historic mansion museum in the United States, and is classified as one of America's Castles. In 1957, the mansion and the surrounding property and buildings were donated to the state of Michigan in order to fund Michigan State University–Oakland, now known as Oakland University. The structure was named a National Historic Landmark in 2012. Meadow Brook Farms originally belonged to Matilda's first husband, automotive tycoon John F. Dodge. He purchased the property along with the large white farmhouse off Adams Road as a holiday retreat for his family. The mansion is located on a 1,443-acre (5.84 km2) estate off South Adams Road; Dodge added a nine-hole golf course, some of the holes of which still follow the current Katke-Cousins 18-hole course on the property. Meadow Brook Hall was constructed between 1926 and 1929 by Matilda Dodge Wilson and her second husband, Alfred Wilson at a cost of $4 million. Throughout her lifetime, Matilda resided in the hall for nearly forty years. Some of the family's time was spent vacationing at their summer home in Bar Harbor, Maine and winter home in Scottsdale, Arizona. The hall was also partially closed for a brief time during the depth of the Depression. Covering 88,000 square feet (8,200 m2) and with 110 rooms, the mansion is the fourth largest historic house museum in the United States. It was designed by William Kapp of the firm Smith, Hinchman & Grylls in a Tudor-revival style. The building features stonework and a plaster dining room ceiling created by Corrado Parducci. Much of the original artwork collected by the Wilsons is still found at Meadow Brook including paintings by Anthony van Dyck, Rosa Bonheur, Joshua Reynolds, John Constable and Thomas Gainsborough, as well as Tiffany glass, Stickley furniture, Meissen porcelain, and Rookwood pottery. The estate was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979 and National Historic Landmark in 2012.

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Melrose, also known as Melrose Castle, is a historic home located near Casanova, Fauquier County, Virginia. The house was built between 1856 and 1860, and is a two-story, five bay,"L"-shaped Gothic Revival style dwelling. It features a three-story-octagonal tower in the center bay and castellation along the parapet. The house was enlarged considerably around 1920 through a large addition to the west end for expanded service areas. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. Built between 1856 and 1860, Melrose was built by Dr. James H. Murray and his brother Edward Murray. They named the castle after Melrose Abbey, a castle in their ancestral home of Scotland. In April 1862, Melrose was occupied by Union soldiers during the American Civil War, and later served as a hospital. The property was first sold in December 1863 and then changed hands many times. In 2017 the 9,000-square-foot house and 50-acre wooded lot was listed for sale at $2.2 million.

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