Lillian Sefton Dodge Estate

Lillian Sefton Dodge Estate, also known as Sefton Manor and Mill Neck Manor Lutheran School for the Deaf, is a historic estate located at Mill Neck in Nassau County, New York. It has 34 rooms and is 60,000 square feet.[2]

Lillian Sefton Dodge Estate
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
The Formal Gardens
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Location	Frost Mill Rd., Mill Neck, New York
Coordinates	40°52′39″N 73°33′34″W
Area	86 acres (35 ha)
Built	1922-1925
Architect	Clinton & Russell
Architectural style	Tudor Revival
NRHP reference No.	79001595[1]
Added to NRHP	July 22, 1979

History

View of the front of Mill Neck Manor, former estate of Lillian Sefton Dodge.

It was designed in 1922 by the architectural firm Clinton and Russell for cosmetics executive Lillian Sefton Dodge. It was inspired by St. Catherine's Court in Somersetshire, England.[3]

The manor house is a Tudor Revival style dwelling. It is two and one half stories high with a full basement, of steel frame construction and faced with brown Westchester granite and trimmed in tawny limestone. It has a gray slate roof perforated by granite dormers and chimneys.

One distinguishing feature of the house is its four large stained glass windows that depict five Shakespeare plays. Done by Charles Connick of Boston, in 1927 when Mr. Dodge had them put in they cost around $10,000 each. Below it is a 15th-century cathedral pew. Many of the sandstone fireplaces originated in Europe. Almost all of the interior iron work, from the door handles, to other accent pieces, were done by famed iron worker Samuel Yellin. Other interior features include: 400-year old entry doors, a 9-foot tall silverware safe, hand-sculpted patterned plaster ceilings, oak paneled walls and Renaissance chandeliers.[2][4]

Also on the property is a Tudor style, half timber farm complex. The property also has a contributing formal garden designed by Charles Wellford Leavitt (1871–1928), garage, and greenhouse.[5] The gardens feature boxwood shaped to resemble a sundial and is scatted with urns and stone temples.[4] Plantings in the gardens featured tulips, azaleas, mountain laurels, magnolias and Japanese cherry trees. Large, multi-tiered fountains were imported from Venice but the water to the fountains were turned off after the property became a school.[6]

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.[1][7]

Current use

In 1949, Lutheran Friends of the Deaf purchased "Sefton Manor." The school was officially the Eastern Branch of the Lutheran School for the Deaf in Detroit of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.[8] On September 23, 1951, there was a dedication ceremony with over 3,000 in attendance. Melvine Luebke was named the headmaster for the school. He previously had worked for the Lutheran Institute for the Deaf in Detroit.[9] The school officially opened on September 25, 1951 to 50 deaf children from as far away as Maryland.[9][10] By 1956, Mill Neck Manor was fully accredited by New York State.

The manor was used for classes until 2002 when a new building was constructed for that purpose. Now, after undergoing an extensive restoration to return the home to as close to its original look as possible, starting in 2016 and ongoing today, the home is open for tours once a month, or by reservation. The Mill Neck Foundation also holds special events in the Manor.[2] The Mill Neck school's enrollment for the 2015-16 school year was more than 106.[11]

Today, the living room is used as the chapel for the Mill Neck School for the Deaf. The room still has the original wall sconces, ornamental plaster ceiling, fireplace and wood carvings over the mantle. It became the school's chapel in 1958. Stained glass windows surround the chapel.[12]

Lillian Sefton Dodge

Lillian Sefton Dodge was the former president of Harriet Hubbard Ayer, Inc. a cosmetics manufacturing company. She began running the company after the death of her first husband, Vincent B. Thomas, in 1918. She sold the company to Lever Brothers in 1947 for over $5 million.[13][14]

Lillian Dodge died on July 20, 1960 in New York City, New York.[14] She was married twice. Her first husband, Vincent B. Thomas, died in 1918.[13] Her second husband, Robert L. Dodge, a stained glass artist, died on July 16, 1940. He was 68 years old.[15]

In popular culture

Mill Neck Manor has been used as a movie set for seven films and as a setting for television shows such as Royal Pains and Homeland. It has also been featured in several commercials and in still photography pieces.[16][2][17]

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
2. King-Cohen, Sylvia E. (August 3, 2011). "Back in Time: Peek Behind Stone Walls of a 34-Room Manor". Newsday. ProQuest 881483477.
3. AIA Architectural Guide to Nassau and Suffolk Counties, Long Island. New York: Dover Publications. 1992. p. 36. ISBN 978-0486269467.
4. Randall, Monica (1979). The Mansions of Long Island's Gold Coast. New York: Hastings House. pp. 233–34.
5. Austin N. O'Brien (February 1979). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Lillian Sefton Dodge Estate". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Retrieved 2010-11-20. See also: "Accompanying 17 photos".
6. "History: A Look Back at the Formal Gardens". Mill Neck Family of Organizations Newsletter. LXVII (IV): 7. 2018.
7. "North Shore Sites Listed as 'Historic'". Newsday. October 2, 1979. ProQuest 965385009.
8. "Mansion Purchased by Lutherans as School for Deaf". New York Times. November 21, 1949. ProQuest 105619454.
9. "New World Beckons Kids in LI Deaf School". Newsday. September 27, 1951. ProQuest 871705053.
10. "Deaf School Dedicated". The New York Times. September 24, 1951. ProQuest 112177637.
11. Tyrrel, Joie (September 8, 2017). "Mill Neck Manor School for the Deaf Sues State". Newsday. ProQuest 1936439296.
12. "A Look Back: The History of the Mill Neck Manor Chapel". Mill Neck Family of Organizations Newsletter. LXVII (III): 7. 2018.
13. "Mrs. Dodge Dies; A Manufacturer". The New York Times. July 19, 1960. ProQuest 115186785.
14. "Lillian S. Dodge". Newsday. July 20, 1960. ProQuest 898212954.
15. "Robert L. Dodge: Retired Artist Dies at Summer Home in Mill Neck, L.I.". The New York Times. July 17, 1940. ProQuest 105247001.
16. "Location Shoots". Mill Neck Family of Organizations. Retrieved February 6, 2018.
17. "Manor House Tours & Events". Mill Neck Family of Organizations. Retrieved January 29, 2018.

External links

• Mill Neck Manor - official site
• The Mill Neck Family of Organizations website