Weatleigh mansion in the Berkshires has been listed for $15 million. The 21.25-acre property was formerly a hotel but could be converted to a private residence or venue, depending on the buyer.
The 25,478 square foot mansion at 11 Hawthorne Road was converted into a hotel forty years ago. It has nineteen beds and twenty-three baths (twenty-one full and two half). Out of the five-bedroom suites on the first floor, two open to porticos. The Gilded Age-era architecture has been kept in excellent condition according to listing agent Cindy Welch of LandVest Christie’s International Real Estate. This opulence is most on display in the 1,292-square-foot great hall, which boasts Tiffany windows, towering arches, and a fireplace complete with intricate carvings. The hall was redecorated as part of an update by architects Tsao and McKown. “They updated it while maintaining its Gilded Age grandeur,” Welch said. “They made it truly luxurious accommodations.”
Aside from the grand entrance hall, the first floor features a 440-square-foot library, several offices, and an 855-square-foot dining room with a 527-square-foot portico. Facilities include a large kitchen, a separate pastry kitchen, and a pantry. The second floor is equally impressive, hosting the remaining fourteen-bedroom suites, which have been outfitted with high-speed internet and Bang and Olufsen televisions, and a 234-square-foot balcony overlooking the grounds.
A terrace designed by Frederick Law Olmsted gives guests premiere views of the rolling lawn and surrounding town. The grounds are filled with paths lined with mountain laurels, azaleas, and rhododendrons, and overlook Lake Mahkeenac, also known as the Stockbridge Bowl. A spacious circular driveway sits at the front of the property with a large fountain in the middle, welcoming guests to the elegant home. Amenities added to the property include a massage room, fitness center, heated pool, and tennis court.
Originally constructed in 1893 by Peabody and Sterns, Weatleigh was commissioned by Henry Harvey Cook as his private residence. Cook made a fortune in banking and railroads and owned a mansion in Newport, Rhode Island as well as an entire city block in Manhattan, still known as The Cook Block. The Berkshires home was named after Cook’s homeland in Wheatley, England. The luxurious property is now on the National Register of Historic Places, and sits in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, close to Tanglewood and the rest of Lenox.
Weatleigh’s future is yet to be determined. Interested parties have several ideas for what to do with the estate. “I’ve had a convention center. I’ve had somebody who wanted to do a museum there, a corporate retreat, or a wedding venue,” Welch said. “And, of course, a hotel.”
The mansion has a rich history of being used for different purposes. It transitioned out of the Cook family’s ownership in 1943 when it was purchased by real estate developer Joseph Lutske. Lutske sold the property to the Boston Symphony Orchestra, which used the mansion to house students enrolled at the nearby Berkshire Music Center, based at Tanglewood. Later, the property was transformed into the Music Inn, where the Lenox Arts Center put on plays in the grand hall until 1976. Since the 70s, Weatleigh has been a “Country Inn,” maintained by Linfield and Susan Simons.
