Information
Landmark: Bartow-Pell Mansion MuseumCity: Bronx
Country: USA New York
Continent: North America
Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum, Bronx, USA New York, North America
Overview
Tucked into the northern edge of Pelham Bay Park in the Bronx, the Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum stands as a preserved historic estate, its stone façade catching late-afternoon light.Between 1836 and 1842, builders raised this stately Greek Revival mansion, and today it stands as the Bronx’s last surviving 19th-century estate, its white columns still bright against the weathered stone.Once a grand mansion, it’s now a museum that brings to life the estate’s history, the Bronx’s cultural shifts, and the Pell family’s enduring legacy-down to the creak of its old oak floors.The Bartow-Pell Mansion was first built by Robert Bartow, a descendant of Thomas Pell, who bought the land from the Siwanoy tribe in 1654, when the shore smelled faintly of salt and pine.For generations, the Pell family held on to the estate, its oak-lined drive unchanged, until the Bartows took it over in the 19th century.The mansion was built in the Greek Revival style, a look that swept the United States in the early 1800s and graced courthouses and stately homes with tall white columns and broad porticoes.The mansion’s design features a perfectly balanced facade, sweeping proportions, and classical touches like fluted columns.Inside, you’ll see elegant period furnishings, each piece polished until the wood gleams, restored to look just as it did years ago.The main entryway boasts a striking freestanding spiral staircase, its curve catching the light, while the spacious, refined parlors echo the era’s social and architectural style.Over the years, the mansion’s estate expanded to embrace sweeping lawns dotted with gardens, a weathered carriage house, and the Pell family’s quiet burial plot shaded by old oaks.The Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum isn’t only about the stately old house-its gardens and tree-lined grounds carry their own rich history.From 1915 to 1918, Delano & Aldrich reshaped the estate’s gardens into a formal, terraced design, with steps of pale stone leading from one level to the next.The gardens spill down in a series of terraces, each split into neat quadrants and framed by cool stone walls and dark, gleaming wrought-iron fences.In the middle of the garden sits a square pool, its water rippling beneath a small stone Cupid fountain.The gardens are kept in perfect shape, with roses spilling color along the paths, and they’ve become a quiet haven for visitors.The estate also boasts a shady chestnut grove and the Siwanoy Trail, where visitors can wander beneath rustling leaves, take in the landscape, and discover the history of the native Siwanoy tribe.Inside, the museum has been meticulously restored, down to the polished wood floors, so it feels just as the home would have in the 19th century.Each room holds authentic period furniture and carefully preserved artifacts, offering a vivid peek into how the Bartow and Pell families once lived, down to the worn leather on an old armchair.The furnishings blend 19th-century styles, with standout pieces from the Greek Revival era-a look that was all the rage when the mansion first rose, its columns catching the morning sun.At the Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum, visitors can dive into hands-on programs and explore exhibits that bring the area’s history to life, from colonial maps to creaking old floorboards.The museum’s special exhibitions offer temporary displays that explore the mansion’s history, the lives once lived within its walls, and the stories of the surrounding area-sometimes featuring items like a worn leather-bound diary or a faded map.Visitors can join guided tours through the mansion and its sweeping grounds, where friendly docents bring the estate’s history, architecture, and meaning to life-sometimes pausing beside a creaking oak door to share a story.The museum runs lively programs for school groups and families, inviting visitors to step into the Pell family’s world, admire the mansion’s stately columns, and explore the rich history of its era.The mansion and its gardens stand as a vital piece of Bronx history, inviting visitors to stroll through its halls and feel the legacy of the families who shaped the borough.You’ll find us at 895 Shore Road in Pelham Bay Park, Bronx, NY 10464.Mansion tours run Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m., while the gardens and grounds open daily at 8:30 a.m. and close at dusk, when the air smells faintly of salt from the bay.Admission is $15 for adults and $12 for seniors 65+ or students.Guided tours start at 12:15, 1:15, 2:15, and 3:15 p.m. on days the mansion is open.Call (718) 885-1461 for details, or check the museum’s official website for more information.Getting there’s simple-hop on the 6 train to Pelham Bay Park Station, then enjoy a 15‑minute walk past leafy streets to reach the Bartow‑Pell Mansion Museum.From the subway station, hop on the Bee-Line Bus #45-it’ll drop you off just steps from the museum’s front doors.You can drive straight to the museum, and there’s plenty of parking right out front.In short, the Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum lets you step straight into the 19th-century Bronx-creaking floorboards, grand parlors, and all.The museum, with its stately Greek Revival columns and blooming garden paths, gives visitors a vivid peek into a time long past.Whether you’re drawn to grand arches, centuries-old stories, or the quiet scent of cedar in the garden, this museum offers a calm, enriching escape for visitors of any age.
