This morning we learn that a mansion out in Rochester Hills that goes by the name Meadow Brook Hall was designated a National Historical Landmark. You may know it as that place that hosts fancy weddings from time to time. So here are a few facts to catch you up on the building's importance:
It was built by Matilda Dodge Wilson, widow of automobile pioneer John Dodge, and her second husband, lumber broker Alfred Wilson. When John died in 1920, he made Matilda one of the world's wealthiest women.
The mansion was built between 1926 and 1929 for $4 million.
This whopper is 88,000 square feet with 110 rooms!
The exterior and most of the interior rooms were designed in the Tudor-revival style. Rooms that demonstrate other period-revival style include the dining room and Matilda's study which are 18th-century Neo-classical. Matilda's room and the French bedroom are 18th-century French Rococo, and another bedroom is American Colonial.
In 1957, the Wilsons donated their residence, its collections, the estate's 1,500 acres and $2 million to found what would become Oakland University. Meadow Brook Hall was opened to the public in 1971. So there you have it, a few things to make you sound smart next time you are out there hitting on your college buddies' wife's bridesmaid.
· Meadow Brook Hall among 13 new national historic landmarks [Freep]
· Meadow Brook Hall History [Official]
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