Facts About the Biltmore Mansion

With more than 4 acres of floor space, Biltmore House in Asheville, North Carolina, is the largest family home in America and is dubbed "America's castle."

Produced by "The Gilded Age"

George W. Vanderbilt's wealth, inherited from his steamship and railroad magnate grandfather, Cornelius Vanderbilt, allowed him to envision the estate in 1888 at age 26.

Design and Construction

Modeled on 16th-century French Renaissance chateaux, the project was given to two distinguished designers of the 19th century: architect Richard Morris Hunt and Central Park's landscape designer Frederick Law Olmsted.

The land and unfinished mansion had almost depleted Vanderbilt's fortune when he died in 1914.

Description

The Biltmore mansion has 250 rooms, 34 bedrooms, 43 bathrooms, 65 fireplaces, a swimming pool, a gymnasium, a bowling alley and 30 work rooms, servants' quarters and kitchens. Technology included electricity, central heating and plumbing, fire alarms, mechanical refrigeration and elevator.

Vanderbilt's favorite room, the library, contains more than 10,000 volumes of his collection. The banquet hall dining table seats 64 guests. Eight-course meals were served with 15-piece utensil settings per person.

Family Home to Museum

Biltmore House, opened on Christmas Eve in 1895 as a country retreat for Vanderbilt family and friends, later became home for George and Edith Vanderbilt and daughter Cornelia.

Restoration and maintenance of original furnishings and fine arts are a family-owned enterprise overseen by great-grandson Bill Cecil. A national historic landmark, the 8,000-acre estate is privately funded.

America's Castle

Featured in films like "Forrest Gump" and "Richie Rich," Biltmore House attracts more tourists annually than Colonial Williamsburg, Mount Vernon, Monticello or Graceland.

References

• Biltmore Estate
• Willow Winds

Resources

• BusinessNC.com
• The Blue Ridge Highlander
• North Carolina