The Vanderbilt Château

Completed in 1894, for Cornelius Vanderbilt II (1843-1899) and his wife Alice Claypoole Gwynne (1845-1934). Dominating the block along Fifth Avenue from 57th to 58th Street, their c.87-room, red-brick and grey limestone chateau stretched 125-feet in each direction. Covering 78,125-square feet of living space, it was - and remains to be - the largest private residence ever built in New York City. That statement sounds less surprising when you consider that this was the townhouse of the same family who summered at The Breakers. It was built in two phases, firstly (1879-83) by George B. Post before he teamed up with Richard Morris Hunt to more than double its size in 1892. Its inspiration throughout was drawn from the Gothic Louis XII wing of the Chateau de Blois and cost $4.65 million - quite affordable for a man worth $75 million...