Library - Present Day Floor Plan
Library doors today

Library doors 1950's

The Library as it appeared prior to 1953

Many consider the Library to be the most spectacular room in the Butterworth home, built in an octagonal shape in 1917 to accommodate a 25’ x 50’ ceiling painting. Many of the furnishings reflect the Renaissance influence.


The doors leading to the library were crafted to match the Entry Way staircase spindles. Originally, the doors had glass inserts which showcased the intricate wood details of the doors. Wooden inserts were added after Mrs. Butterworth’s death. The linen-fold carvings on the lower sections of the doors are a common Gothic feature.


How did the Butterworths use their new Library?

The Library was a place to entertain, originally housing an incredible collection of furniture, artwork and historic furnishings. When built in 1917, the Library was decorated with 16th century handwoven velvet wallcoverings, an oriental rug, and a variety of paintings and decorative pieces. Three groupings of furniture completed the room —one at each end and one flanking the fireplace. Many of the furnishings were sold after Mrs. Butterworth’s death in 1953. The carved wooden bookshelves around the perimeter of the room are original, along with many of the books.


The Library as it appears today

Ceiling Painting
The 25’ x 50’ painting on canvas was purchased in Venice, Italy, by P. W. French & Company and sold to the Butterworths for $67,000. The painting arrived in several sections and was then applied to the Library ceiling. The painting, commissioned in the 1710s or 20s by the Bernardo family, depicts peace in Venice following the Venetian and Turkish Wars. The Bernardo family lived in a Venetian palazzo, which in the 1820s became a hotel. In the 1950s, after Mrs. Butterworth’s death, art dealers approached Charles Deere Wiman (Mrs. Butterworth's nephew) about purchasing the painting, but he refused, believing that it should remain in the Butterworth home.
Portraits
Katherine Deere Butterworth
Artist John Doctoroff (1893-1970) portraitist of the powerful and wealthy, painted the portrait of Mrs. Butterworth. Her pink dress, still in the collection at Butterworth Center, is adorned with antique Honiton lace inserts under the arms and across the bodice. Honiton
lace-making dates to 16th century England.


William Butterworth
After Mr. Butterworth’s death in 1936, Mrs. Butterworth commissioned Scottish artist Harrington Mann (1864-1937) to paint her husband’s portrait. Mann spent much of his time in his New York studio where he specialized in portraits of children and British dignitaries.


Josiah Little
Artist John Wesley Jarvis (1780? – 1839), a portraitist, miniaturist, sculptor and engraver, painted the portrait of Josiah Little, Mrs. Butterworth’s great-great-grandfather. Little, who was born in 1747 in Newburyport, Massachusetts, fought in the Revolutionary War. (Look for his wife’s portrait in the Second Floor, Orchid Room).


Stonework

The mantel, door, and window stonework reflect the Italian Renaissance. The mantel is an exact copy from a French chateau mantel, now located at Leeds Castle in Kent, England. The stone is believed to be Rouen stone, the same material used in the Leeds Castle mantel. The carvings of heads reflect learned men such as astronomers, philosophers, and mathematicians from the 15th and 16th centuries. All the stonework was completed by New York stone carvers under the  direction of P.W. French & Company, designers of the Library’s interior.

Mr. Butterworth bought the Sans Souci statue while on a trip to Germany. The story goes that while in an antique shop, he was told that the statue’s name means “without a care.” He replied,  “That’s me, without a care,” and bought it.

The mantel, door, and window stonework reflect the Italian Renaissance. The mantel is an exact copy from a French chateau mantel, now located at Leeds Castle in Kent, England. The stone is believed to be Rouen stone, the same material used in the Leeds Castle mantel. The carvings of heads reflect learned men such as astronomers, philosophers, and mathematicians from the 15th and 16th centuries. All the stonework was completed by New York stone carvers under the direction of P.W. French & Company, designers of the Library’s interior.


Special Features

Photos from the 1950s show that the antique sofa, provided by P. W. French & Company, is original to the Library and once displayed a tapestry on its seat back. At some point, the tapestry back was removed and converted into a wall hanging. Today the tapestry hangs above the original sofa in the Library.

The massive round table appears in the 1950 photograph of the Butterworths’ Library 


The long trestle table was used by the Butterworths in the Entry Way. 


The Library still uses many of the graceful lamps from the Butterworths’ time in the home.

The President’s Bowl once resided in the Butterworths’ Washington, D.C. apartment. Mr. Butterworth received the bowl for his service as President of the United States Chamber of Commerce (1928 – 1931).


Return to main menu to view other floors
Share by: