When it comes to lavish scenic design and stunning backdrops, few television shows can compete with The Gilded Age. This HBO drama transports viewers to 1880s Manhattan, where socialites and heirs to elite American families rub elbows in gold-plated ballrooms under the glow of massive crystal chandeliers.
Showrunner Julian Fellowes is no stranger to creating an historically accurate virtual world for his characters. The details in Downton Abbey and The Gilded Age are impeccable, right down to what kind of pen George Russell (Morgan Spector) uses to sign documents in his office. Downton was set in a real mansion, Highclere Castle in Hampshire, England, leaving many viewers wondering whether the gorgeous mansions pictured in The Gilded Age are also real, and if so, where they’re located.
The answer is yes! Many of the locations in The Gilded Age are real, and you can even go explore them for yourself. As usual, the real filmmaking takes place far from the hustle and bustle of Manhattan, where the show is set. Seasons 1 and 2 were shot upstate in and around the Hudson River Valley in historic homes and museums. Other locations include the mansions of Newport, Rhode Island, where American royalty like the Vanderbilts and the Carnegies escaped the city heat each summer.
Lyndhurst Mansion
Tarrytown, New York
This Gothic Revival home was built in 1838 and originally belonged to Jay Gould, the real-life inspiration for George Russell. The mansion’s interior has been featured in The Gilded Age as the home of Charles (Ward Horton) and Aurora Fane (Kelli O’Hara). An in-house bowling alley built in 1894 was transformed into the ferry terminal where Marian Brook (Louisa Jacobson) and Peggy Scott (Denée Benton) meet in the very first episode of the first season. Plus, The New York Globe office scenes are filmed in the carriage house.
Many of the scenes from “Central Park” were actually shot on this mansion’s grounds, as well as on the grounds of the Belvedere Estate in Tarrytown.
Glenview Mansion in Yonkers, NY is an 1876 luxury mansion used as a set for Mrs. Caroline Astor’s (Donna Murphy) residence.
Sleepy Hollow Country Club in Briarcliff Manor, New York was used to film scenes in Sylvia Chamberlain’s (Jeanne Tripplehorn) drawing room.
Hart Cluett Museum in Troy, NY was used for many of the exterior shots of Brooklyn and Manhattan. The Troy Townhouse served as the Scott family residence.
The Rock Hall Museum in Lawrence, NY was Marian’s home before the death of her father.
Hempstead House in Sands Point, NY was used for scenes inside George Russell’s office. Many of these historic homes and museums are open to the public for tours!
The Breakers
Newport, Rhode Island
Only the grandest of the Newport mansions could serve as the exterior of the extravagant home owned by George and Bertha Russell. This magnificent “summer” home was completed in 1895 for Cornelius Vanderbilt II. The Great Hall and Music Room have been used as Bertha’s ballroom. Scenes in George’s bedroom and billiard room were also shot here.
There were several other Newport mansions featured in seasons 1 and 2:
The Marble House, built in 1892 as a present for Ava Vanderbilt’s 39th birthday from her husband, William Vanderbilt, this palatial home inspired Bertha’s bedroom, George’s bedroom, and the Russells’ incredible staircase, but though these sets were reproduced and shot on a soundstage in Bethpage, NY. The dining room in The Marble House was also the setting for the dinner Bertha held for the Duke of Buckingham.
Meanwhile, Rosecliff served as the exterior for Sylvia Chamberlain’s home in Manhattan.
The Elms exterior is used for the Russell’s new summer home in Newport. Interior rooms are also home to the servants’ kitchens and parts of the Russell’s Manhattan home. Original owner Mrs. Sarah Berwind’s bedroom was used as Gladys Russell’s (Taissa Farmiga) bedroom.
Château-sur-Mer was used as the exterior for the Astors’ Beechwood house. Parts of Agnes van Rhijn’s bedroom are also found here. Scenes in Oscar van Rhijn’s (Blake Ritson) apartment were filmed in the home’s Butternut Bedroom.
Belcourt was used for interior shots of Beechwood, the Astor family summer home.
Hunter House served as the office of Brook family lawyer (and cad!) Tom Raikes (Thomas Cocquerel).
Kingscote was used to film scenes in widow Susan Blane (Laura Benanti)’s house.
The Ledges provided the stunning seaside backdrop for the scene where Caroline Astor and George Russell first meet.
Honorable mentions: The Colony House, The Newport Casino, Newport Art Museum, and the International Tennis Hall of Fame & Museum were also featured, albeit less prominently than the mansions above.
Many of these incredible mansions offer daily tours (when filming isn’t happening, that is). There’s also the magnificent Newport Cliff Walk, which allows you one to stroll along the surging Atlantic and admire these architectural feats, perhaps while holding a parasol in one gloved hand.
The Gilded Age is now streaming on Max.
(featured image: HBO)
