Brucemore

The Brucemore mansion is located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It is currently listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The mansion has three stories, and contains twenty-one rooms. Notable features of the home are its steeply gabled roof, five chimneys, and several turrets.

History

The Sinclairs (1871-1906)

In 1871, Thomas McElderry and Caroline Soutter Sinclair moved to Cedar Rapids from New York. Thomas started his own meat packing business, the T.M. Sinclair & Co., which became the largest business in Cedar Rapids. Unfortunately, Mr. Sinclair died in 1881 in a fatal accident at the plant. Caroline was left a widow, with six children from her marriage, the youngest was only six months old. Three year later, at age 33, Mrs. Sinclair purchased the land and started work on the home. Originally titled "Fairhome", the Queen Anne-style mansion was completed in 1886. The home cost $55,000 and was the most expensive home or building at that time. At the time of its construction, Brucemore was in the country, as Cedar Rapids had not yet grown to that radius.

The home was designed by Maximillian Allardt, an Indianapolis architect. When his daughter fell ill, Allardt left the job, and Henry Josselyn and Eugene Taylor continued where he left off. The home was described as "the grandest house west of Chicago" to the local paper. The original plan for the house included a great hall, eight bathrooms, nine bedrooms, fourteen fireplaces, and a grand staircase. Mrs. Sinclair also requested a conservatory to be added to the south side of the house.

In 1906, when all her children had grown, Caroline traded homes with George Bruce Douglas, and moved to 800 Second Ave SE.

The Douglases (1906-1937)

George Bruce Douglas was a partner in his father's business, the Quaker Oats Company. George moved into the home with his wife Irene, and daughters Margaret and Ellen and renamed it to Brucemore. Under George's direction, the size of the property was increased to 33 acres, and several new buildings were constructed, including a guesthouse, greenhouse, carriage house, squash court, and servants' quarters. He also had the entrance moved to the south side. The interior was also upgraded, with exposed ceiling beams and butternut paneling added to the great hall. This expansion cost over $30,000 and was designed by Howard van Roren Shaw, a Chicago architect known for his North Shore mansions. In the 1920s, a mural was added that showed the story of "The Ring of the Nibelung" from Richard Wagner. A play organ from the Skinner company that had 678 pipes was also added to the third floor. In 1925, Grant Wood designed a sleeping porch which was added to the house. in 1927, a swimming pool was added.

In 1923 George passed away. Fourteen years later, Irene followed him and willed the home to their oldest daughter Margaret.

The Halls (1937-1981)

Margaret Douglas married Howard Hall in 1924. The couple lived on the Brucemore grounds, residing in the Garden House from the start of their marriage until the death of Margaret's mother. While they lived there, they sold off some of the property, reducing the estate to its current 26 acres. They also enclosed the western porch, and added picture windows to the master bedroom, the library, and the dining room. In two of their more unusual enhancements to the house, the Halls added two basement recreation rooms, "The Tahitian Room", and a "Grizzly Bar". The Tahitian room is designed to resemble a tropical island, including a faux hut roof, and a switch that can create artificial rain. The Grizzly room is decorated like a Wild West or Alaskan saloon.

The Halls had several pets kept on property including two German Shepherds and several birds. But their most famous pets were the three lions, all named Leo. Jackie, the lion that roars at the beginning of MGM movies, is related to one of the Leos. One of the lions, along with 20 dogs, are buried in the pet cemetery near the gardens.

Margaret died in 1981. She willed Brucemore to the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Brucemore today

Today, Brucemore serves as a museum and a cultural center for Cedar Rapids. Each year on Father's Day, an Art Festival takes place on the grounds, and Brucemore also hosts a yearly Jazz festival, "Bluesmore". Also every year, outdoor theatre is performed during "Classics at Brucemore", often a play by Shakespeare or a classic Greek tragedy.

Brushes with fame

Brucemore has many connections to famous people and events. George Douglas' brother died on the Titanic, and Howard Hall had contacts with many famous celebrities. He took behind the scene home movies of "Gone with the Wind", which are the only known candid footage of that film. The home has also played host to at least two Presidents, when Herbert Hoover and Harry Truman visited during the dedication of the Hoover Presidential Library in West Branch.

External links

* [http://www.brucemore.org Brucemore's website]
* [http://www.nps.gov/history/NR/twhp/wwwlps/lessons/105brucemore/105brucemore.htm "Back Stairs at Brucemore:Life as Servants in early 20th-Century America," a National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) lesson plan]