Stetson Mansion in DeLand is Florida’s first luxury estate. Built in 1886 as a winter retreat for Philadelphia hat manufacturer John B. Stetson and his family, the house, built to last, still wears its legacy of luxury.
Rooms on the first and second floor were laid out with 16 different patterns of parquet floors, many based in 17th and 18th century quilting patterns. Each piece is hand cut, hand installed and even the nails holding them in place are hand made.
These are without doubt the most beautiful parquet floors I’ve ever seen. It was hard to stop staring at the floors and look up to see what Joann, our lively guide, was showing us next in a room.
“The House That Hats Built” contains 10,000 leaded glass windows, many with stained glass patterns. Pretty amazing they are still in place, letting in light, and quite stunning.
When the 10,000 square foot house was built it featured three indoor bathrooms. Don’t laugh. That was a BIG deal in those days. Rich people liked to show off their wealth such as the extravagance of indoor bathrooms. To do this they made a visual announcement. The bathroom plumbing was run along outside walls so people walking or riding by would see just how rich the Stetsons were.
By the way, the mansion now has 13 bathrooms, including the three original ones.
Why have all this opulence without admirers? Indeed. So the Stetsons entertained a lot including the President of the United States (Grover Cleveland) and the future king of England (King Edward). I’m assuming the guests used the bathrooms after dinner.
Stetson wanted to build a 20,000 square foot house but his wife Elizabeth (wife number three) was appalled. They already had a 37,000 square foot house in Philadelphia and well Florida was the boonies. What was there to do here?
So Stetson downsized to 10,000 square feet and made sacrifices, like combining a music room and library into one room instead of two. This is a beautiful room. I could live here.
But he didn’t stint himself. One of those three bathrooms was in his suite.
In those days, before cell phones, before television, heck, even before cars, people had sitting rooms where they actually sat and talked to one another. Imagine! Separate bedrooms were the norm then – Elizabeth and John gathered together in the evenings to sit and talk in a sitting room that sat between their two bedrooms. Later that room became the nursery for their three boys.
Stetson had friends in high places. Henry Flagler, of railroad fame, built a spur railroad right up to the property making it easy to unload building materials. Thomas Edison came to personally oversee the installation of DC (direct current), which he championed. The fuse box he installed still sits right outside the kitchen. Check it out. Direct current needed a power supply nearby, because it did not travel distance. That is why it eventually lost out to AC, which could.
How do I know all this? Because our lively guide Joann shared a vast trove of history and hospitality. She made us feel both welcome and connected to the past glory and present elegance. On every floor we were engaged and enchanted.
My personal favorite was the third floor, available for viewing if you do a full tour. On the third floor the family could kick back and relax, plus there is a lovely rounded balcony where surely a mattress was dragged out for sleeping in the open air.
Tripadvisor® lists taking a guided tour at Stetson Mansion as one of the top ten things to do in Florida, right up there with visiting Disney. Now that is awesome.
But, I hear you asking, how come you haven’t heard of Stetson Mansion before? Good question. I’ve been going to DeLand for years and only recently saw a post on Facebook about guided mansion tours during Legacy Week (July 13-21, 2019). So I signed up for a full Stetson Mansion tour (meaning you get to see all there floors, the regular tour does two floors).
A few things you need to know:
Stetson Mansion is a private home NOT a museum. There is no government funding.
Stetson Mansion is NOT located on the grounds of Stetson University which is situated in downtown historic DeLand. The Stetson Mansion address is: 1031 Camphor Lane, DeLand, Fl. 32720.
Stetson Mansion is NOT open to the public. The gates are closed. Access is by guided tour only. You must buy tickets ahead of time. Prices vary by the tour. No photography allowed inside the house.
So to answer the question why you may not know about the house – this luxury home stood in obscurity for a long time, running through a succession of private owners after Stetson died in 1906 and later his widow sold the house and all the contents.
Thirteen years ago two owners, Michael and JT, bought the home. They began a thoughtful restoration plus much needed modern enhancements (more bathrooms, AC and air conditioning plus landscaping to name a few). With such a large undertaking, some $600,000 for starters (the original house cost $60,000 to build) they must have wondered, and maybe still wonder WHAT HAVE WE GOTTEN OURSELVES INTO?
The first floor rooms are done with period furniture while upstairs master bedrooms show modern individual taste. From time to time historical Stetson family items are on display, loaned from the Stetson University archives.
There is even a secret closet now found on the second floor. In the 1800’s homeowners were taxed by the number of doors in a house. Doors were bad. So a corner would be blocked off with a curtain, or shelves inset 12 inches deep for holding clothes. Twelve inches? Hardly hold a modern wardrobe.
Modern Solution: an opening was cut into Stetson’s master bedroom wall revealing a small room where his manservant slept. The manservant had to enter his room by an outside door along a hallway used only by servants. If called by his master, he’d exit the room, go down the hallway and knock on Stetson’s bedroom door.
By cutting into the wall and revealing the servant’s room, this space became a lovely walk in closet, perfect for modern day clothes hanging, shoe storage and more.
The kitchen got a huge makeover. The floor, when the new owners moved in, had red shag carpet. Ugly. It had to go. The new owners hoped for a surprise underneath – perhaps more parquet floor? Instead they found linoleum. Then another layer of linoleum, seven layers in all and finally pine floor, so disappointing but not surprising.
Rich people back then didn’t spend a lot of money on servant amenities like places to live or work. No Stetson ever went into the kitchen to fix a midnight snack. Instead they rang a bell and a servant appeared to do their bidding.
Now the kitchen has entered a modern luxury phase with exquisite granite counters, top of the line stove, refrigerator and a beautiful wood floor. On the ceiling is a Barcelona fan and it is part of the updated new vibe that permeates the house.
Even $600,000 wasn’t go to do it all, more money needed, so sponsors were sought and 350 signed on to showcase their products. Some companies had a presence when Stetson was active in the 1800s. After the renovation was complete the owners opened the mansion for a three-month Designer’s Showcase where every sponsor got acknowledgements including the fan maker.
The showcase generated a demand for more house tours and so it has come to pass. Stetson Mansion Past and Present Tours are given three times a week, but check carefully for upcoming dates and special events.
If you like historic homes and heritage travel put Stetson Mansion on your bucket list.
They are closed in August. In September Stetson Mansion will have a fine china tableware show September 10-14 of china probably used by the Stetsons including Wedgewood, Lenox, Royal Dalton and Staffordshire.
For Christmas, Michael decorates every room with elaborate designs. The Stetson Mansion has a Christmas Spectacular holiday home tour that lasts from Nov. 15 through January 15 and it is insanely popular.
Mark your calendars.
Note: Photo of the exterior of Stetson Mansion by Lucy Tobias. Parquet floors photo from the Stetson Mansion website.
UPCOMING:
Bookstore1, 12 South Palm Avenue, Sarasota, Florida is having a Suncoast Local Book Fair on Saturday, Aug 10 from 11-5. Great lineup of authors! I will be there from 2-3 p .m. come visit get a free finger labyrinth and a hug.