Charles A. Platt has been called "the father of the American Renaissance" movement, and not without good reason. Inspired by a trip to Italy in 1892, the architect, a native New Yorker, authored a series of influential articles in Harper's magazine following his intensive photo-documentation of surviving villas and gardens of Europe's most illustrious era, a pivot point both in a career that would help redefine the sensibilities of American country house vernacular.
179 Forest Avenue represents the quintessence of this style, which welcomed features like pergolas, fountains, terraces and courtyards. Sited on more than an acre of level landscape with formal boxwood and flower gardens, the home balances the elegance of yesterday with the convenience and style of today, in a coveted location at the heart of one of Westchester's most storied seaside communities—just a 35-minute ride from Grand Central Terminal.
Have a look: