What Will Happen to William Vanderbilt's "Idle Hour" Gilded Age Mansion? 

Thank you for this presentation. For the past 50 years, I have proudly ownd the EASE GATE HOUSE connected with this estate . It is a labor of love to keep it as preserved as possible. I only can hope that the mansion will fall again into a caring enterprise that will cherish its wonderful history!

Ken, thank your for bring these mansions to our attention. Truly was a gilded age where money was no object.

That house is incredible. I'm surprised how few of these mega houses have survived. I'm really enjoying this channel.

Ken, thank you for this video. My grandparents lived on Idle Hour and I grew up playing around the estate buildings that were turned into homes. I remember the stables, pig pens, conservatory, and main house very well. It was a surprise when Dowling College took it over, but it brought such activity to the area. My grandparents have since pasted away and my family moved to Philadelphia, but I always make sure to visit Idle Hour whenever I go back to Oakdale. It is truly a wonderful place. I hope the home finds a new purpose.

Love learning from you, Ken, and getting a glimpse of these old masterpieces. Thank you!

My favorite part of Idle Hour is the paid staff! Imagine how much work to keep up a property like this!

Another beautiful estate! I hope the city/county/state takes over and turns this into a museum. I had taken a "tour" of the Biltmore estate in Ashville, NC nearly 50 years ago. It was awesome but it was still owned by the family and only the first floor and basement (pool area) was open . However, you were allowed to roam the grounds as well. The US equivalent to Europe's castles.

That would be amazing if someone buys and restores or gets use as a protected historical site building/museum. So much history to the plot of land. Another great video 🙂

Can't say I love the house, but I do love the name, 'Idle Hour'.

I wish someone would turn into museum or a hotel, country Inn. Wedding destination and receptions. Anything to keep this piece of artwork from being demolished! I have seen castles and large manors all over Europe. Many of our big estates here in the U.S. The Biltmore and grounds were magnificent. Hope someone takes this project on. I would love to be a part of it.....we are loosing too many!

I think I heard somewhere that this 82,000 sq ft mansion is on the market for around $25 Million (American). Considering the current trend of $50 Million plus, condos in Manhattan N.Y. … it sounds like a steal! Thanks for another interesting video. Cheers!

My husband and I were married here 14 years ago, when Dowling College rented it out as a venue for weddings and events. It was a picture perfect day, and the gorgeous house and surroundings played no small part in that! I’m so saddened to hear it’s fallen into disrepair - I had hoped to take the kids for a drive to see where Mom and Dad got married!

Considering there's probably 3 people in the world that could afford the house and upkeep I'd say it's doomed.

I hope someone buys and restores it! Great architecture like this needs to be saved!

Idle Hour is only a few miles from where I live. Many buildings are associated with the estate, including a train station and St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Islip. One can get an Italian Ice at the Gate House or a fine dinner at the View Restaurant, formerly the Boat House. Another house that might be of interest to you is the Bourne Mansion also in Oakdale, NY. For many years it was an all-boys military school. Today it is a special event venue.

Ken! Thanks man. I'm totally addicted to this channel. My favorite part was the separate rooms for the men and women to congregate. The detail that this house contains are exquisite. Keep these videos coming... you're doing well sir!

I took classes at Dowling in the 80s. It was a fun building to roam around. Even as a school the building was a classic.

I love the history that goes with these old mansions.

Absolutely stunning. This magnificent property needs saving at all costs.

The tennis court room with the viewing balcony is my favourite.

Glad it was never demolished ❣️

Idle Hour was completed in 1882, and 100 years later I arrived as a freshman at Dowling College. I remember the Power House was a performance arts space.

Dowling College closed in 2016 and the property was sold to Mercury International LLC for $26.1 million in 2017. Mercury International let the buildings, including the mansion sit mostly unused and eventually it was all but abandoned. Vandals have broken into the mansion numerous times. The mansion and former college campus is now on sale by Mercury International for $25 million.

I hope it gets restored since far to many wonderful homes, from the past, have been torn down and lost to History.

I'll take the Dining Room or the Gold Room; the others are too much for me. I've read quite a bit about the mansions of the U.S. but I don't recall ever hearing about Idle Hour before. Thank you, Ken, for introducing us to this lesser-known Vanderbilt house!

I could be quite content living in the engineer's house. As far as the main mansion goes, the library was my favorite room. Also, that gargantuan white fireplace (not in the library) at 2:04 was gorgeous. I have never seen anything like it, even in Ken's other videos on mansions, which is really saying something. Lastly, the Marble Palace is a place I'd like to see the interior of.

I did a bike ride around it and love the feel of the area, especially the residences at the original stables. Very cool, eclectic feel. I love the gilded age Long Island mansions and hope this castle is saved. Amazingly I've seen three grand mansions go down in fairly recent times such as Inisfada, so it can happen. I have my fingers crossed on this one.

I hope you cover the mansions on Jekyll Island. Lots of Gilded Age moguls had homes there.

What an estate! I'd love to see a tour of the immense and glorious stable.

All that money can buy...but all left behind. Still, it is an awesome place.

Absolutely beautiful! A masterpiece of architecture! enchanting to see! Congratulations!

I’m amazed that it’s currently abandoned and survived. The house is a behemoth.. the clay indoor tennis court is insane

My favorite part of this mansion is the arches and the stairwell. Also love the Moorish look of the room.

It would be cool if they turned it into something like a museum like Biltmore!

I am surprised you did not mention that in the formal living room (I believe) the large half circular fireplace also contained part of a pipe organ. Some of the pipes are built in.

Used as a college, sounds incredible, seems to be a perfect use for the property. Why is it no longer used for this?

Idle Hour was certainly an opulent product of the guilded age. Hopefully someone will restore it to its former glory!!!! Thanks for sharing another fun video!!! 👍👍🙂

Hopefully someone will buy this property. Newport RI has several mansions that are boarded up and it’s so sad. The Cary mansion where Dark Shadows was filmed in years ago is an example of one.

Another great video of a house I knew very little about. I would love to see you do a longer video about the different people and about their houses. Thank you for only using the colorization along with the original B & W photos. For some reason I like the B & W photos more. Please keep up the great work.

I hope someone buys it and restores it. It looks fabulous!

The conservatory was my fav

I don’t think I could pick one room. They’re all wonderful looking and I do hope it gets restored. Maybe the city could use it for wedding venue our summer camp for kids.

The smell of the servant's quarters was so bad. Every time I had to go to a professor's office, the smell would kill me. The creaky floors were so scary too.

Back when building and designing was a craft not to mention the interior and furniture.

I love the original house, the outbuildings as well. Where are current pics though?

My favorite part? Seeing that picture of William Kissam Vanderbilt! He looks so much like my father!

Just perfect 🤌

I hope this house is restored. It was grand than and still grand now.

Thank You Ken I hope it is Protected and used again.

BRAVO !

Wow! Never saw the interiors of the house before! Great pictures! Love your posts!

It is in the country , that makes it in danger of being abandoned or stripped as the college is defunct.

Idle sounds like Idol, and so it was!

Thanks for sharing this history. I went to Dowling College in the early 1980's and remember the buildings.

There was a lot "Mac Mansion" to see around there- you know, those mansion which have all types of style & architecture together

So many of the "Willie K" homes were in fact the pet projects of is first wife Alva, who is know to have had a hand in the design and construction of Idle Hour and the Marble House in Newport. She went on after their divorce to build several other great homes including Sands Point, a great fantasy of a moreish castle. Also Idle hour itself had a fire in the great room and main hall which resulted in the loss of much of the woodwork in those two areas. To leave Alva out of the story is a mistake. I do enjoy your videos of these great homes, but I suggest a bit more research to accurately reveal their past. In this video, I did get to see some pictures that I hadn't seen before and was thrilled! Thank you for all your videos, I enjoy them all.

First show I've seen....awesome

Ohh they better not knock this home down.

This is a very good episode. You do a great job researching your videos. Grey Gardens of movie and Broadway fame could be an interesting one to do too as it has now been restored. There is a website you can go to where you type in a word and it will give you the correct pronunciation of the word that you might find helpful.

I’m hoping someone buys and restores it like Gary Melius did for Oheka. There are a few mansions here on Long Island that have been repurposed for wedding venues. Unfortunately it costs a small fortune to even live in a house here much less a huge mansion. It’s really a shame

Just goes to show money can not buy happiness or good taste . Why so many fires ?

Yes thanks

Hope Idle Hour is restored & would be perfect to have tour's...........

Please let it be preserved!

Hunt is related to my hubby’s maternal family.

Oooh I need t9 see it today

Thank you for the video!

I always thought Diana was the goddess of the hunt.

I wonder what the main staircase looks like now. I had read that it was destroyed in the 1974 fire. In this same "what will happen to" category is Winfield, the F. W. Woolworth's Long Island mansion.

My mom went to a Vanderbilt wedding in the 70s or something. She said it was at one of their mansions. I'll have to ask her which one. I gave her a call to ask. I guess it was in North Carolina and she went to their house but she said it wasn't a mansion but just a really nice house. She said the family was super nice and down to earth. I thought she went to one of their mansions they were living in because she said she went to the Biltmore Estate but I guess at the time they weren't living there and the wedding was just at a church. You'd think with all that money they'd have the wedding at the Biltmore Estate. She said she wish she would've had a journal as she couldn't remember as much as she'd like too.

Wow loving your videos, thank you.

Could you do some videos about Reading, Pennsylvania? The Luden mansion is there among many others from when it was a booming railroad city! The Vanderbilt's had a large presence there as well!

ANOTHER DAY ANOTHER FIRE. ANOTHER DAY ANOTHER I DON'T KNOW WHAT!!??

Interesting that fire 🔥 destroyed so many of the buildings. Thank you. I enjoy your short videos 😃

Yet another well done story!

At least the place is still in existence. Pray for it.

This is an interesting history of an interesting space, but the story of how this has fallen into abandonment and disrepair is ultimately so sad. What a waste.

The Gold Room! 😍

I'll take it! Thanks, Ken...

Library!

I sincerely hope someone buys this mansion and renovates it instead of building one of the cookie cutter mansions we see now a days. This building is a piece of history!

Sadly, Dowling College went into bankruptcy, and the property has become a eyesore in the community.

Does America have a restoration society who can maintain these houses and open them to the public like the National Trust in the UK? Surely people would want to see them, they’re part of American history.

I wonder if that Diana s sculpture got saved. And where is it today.

Loved this beautiful house but I would prefer the Ice House (giggle)

Just discovered this channel! Love it. Have you done a video of the Winchester house?

Does anyone know if the indoor clay tennis court was one of the buildings that was destroyed by fire?

Went to school here as Dowling college. Knowing long island development they will probably tear it down an put a strip mall no one goes to.

When you said there was a special “Bachelor’s Wing” I immediately thought you were going to explain how there was a secret hidden entrance for the “late night entertainment” that Mr. Vanderbilt graciously provided to his single male guests……😂

Would have liked to seen the basement in something like this.

My favorite part would obviously be the Bachelors’ Wing. A Gay Men’s Wing would have been even better, with jacuzzis instead of a handball court.

Cool beans 💕👵🌺

The old mansions had a lot more style than the "McMansions" of today.

The fireplaces look like church alters

I’d gladly live in the stables. I think the estate will be saved.

I want to stay in the single men’s wing… with all of the other gentlemen bachelors, if you get my drift.

Do you think it's the way all those mansions were equipped to get the power that got them all demolished ?

Hey great channel!

2:05 Was it particularly common to have organ-fireplaces?

Idle Hour is too important to our history to raze.