4. Craftsmanship Meets Opulence

All of the woodwork on the first floor is hand carved from native woods. This includes the staircase, the doors, and the mouldings. The rooms of the first floor are finished with walnut except the breakfast room/Long Gallery which is finished in maple (wainscot in that room is not original). The pocket doors are finished with differing types of wood on each side. As you examine the woodwork, you'll notice the brass knobs, plates, hinges and window lifts, which have a Moorish design and Arabic script. The script is roughly translated as, "There is no victor except God." When you visit the second floor, you'll see intricate wood parquet in the flooring of the residential portion of the mansion. In contrast, the rooms in the rear part of the second floor are plain. We don't know why that is, but some have speculated that those rooms were for housekeeping staff. Note: The lamp on the newel post at base of the stairs is the only light that is original to the house. It was rescued by a caring neighbor while the mansion stood vacant after 1965. He returned it to the society when restoration started in 1972.