In the Fall of 2020, the Newport Restoration Foundation (NRF) embarked on a historic structures report (HSR) at the William Vernon House (46 Clarke Street). The process has literally taken NRF behind the walls, and beneath the floorboards, to gain a deeper understanding of the building’s history.
Before the HSR, the history of the Vernon House was largely limited to what could be learned from archival research or gleaned through observations of the house’s extant conditions. Through the combined efforts of techniques such as building archeology, paint analysis, and dendrochronology, a much richer history has been uncovered.
Take the northwest attic room as an example. By carefully removing floorboards, the HSR team uncovered original carpenter’s marks. In Colonial timber-frame construction, each joint is custom cut and these carpenter’s marks, or marriage marks, ensure that the timbers prepared for the house are assembled in the correct locations when brought on site. These marks are seen throughout the Vernon House, but not always intact. In the northwest attic room, however, they are still in numerical order (i.e. I, II, III, etc.), meaning they are in their original location and therefore likely representative of the earliest iteration of the house (c. 1708), before it was expanded to its present size.
Just down the hall, the removal of additional floorboards revealed whitewash and black paint that appears to delineate an earlier staircase. The function of this staircase is still unknown. Could it have served as a passageway for servants or enslaved people from the attic to a lean-to kitchen addition, no longer extant? Or, did it run alongside a chimney that once existed in the center of the house? No matter what conclusion is drawn by the HSR team, the scar of this staircase provides insight into the original floorplan and how the occupants moved within the house.
Traveling downstairs to the second floor, selective removal of wooden baseboards demonstrated that there was once a black mopboard (or, plaster painted black to depict a faux baseboard). This finish is seen throughout the house, even on top of the chinoiserie panels in the northwest parlor on the first floor. This indicates that before the installation of the elaborate millwork seen today, there was a period of time in which the house was finished with much simpler details.
Finally, in the northwest parlor on the first floor, where the famous painted chinoiserie murals are located, untouched mural remnants were found below the windows, behind the window seats. This evidence indicates that the murals were more extensive than what exists today, helping one envision what the room may have looked like in the early-eighteenth century.
These examples provide just a quick glimpse into the discoveries being made at the Vernon House, and the immense value that careful research and investigation bring to preservation and stewardship efforts.
When someone asks me what some of the more interesting things in Doris Duke’s fashion collection are my usual answer is how many lesser-known designers are in it. This is a bit misleading because Doris Duke did have a fair amount of high-end, couture, and custom fashions in her Rough Point closets from big name designers that you would think of like Christian Dior and Balenciaga. I think the diverse range of designers in her wardrobe speak to Doris’s independence and her interest in supporting up and coming artists, both in the fashion world and as she did through her philanthropy within the music and dance world.
For a 1981 Met Gala (before Anna Wintour made it THE fashion event of the year), Duke chose to wear a relatively unknown designer, Dimitri Kritsas (born late 1930s), a fashion designer from Greece with only a small New York boutique. We don’t know how Doris Duke came upon the designer, but she made a big decision to wear his gown that evening and chose to be photographed wearing it.
Tina Leser (1910-1986), an American designer who is becoming more recognized in scholarly fashion history circles in the last decade or so, was clearly one of Doris Duke’s favorites. There are over a dozen items from Leser in the collection that span the range of her career and Doris’s life. It is possible the two women knew each other as they both spent considerable time in Honolulu prior to World War II; Leser and Duke likely would have been a part of the same social circles. There is still more research to be conducted on the extent of their relationship, including how long Doris was a client of the designer (much of Leser’s company archives are housed at the FIDM Museum in Los Angeles). Leser’s design aesthetic fits well into Doris’s jet set lifestyle, interest in Eastern aesthetics, and the casual elegance of caftans, robes, and sundresses.
Some of the lesser-known designers in the Doris Duke fashion collection are items purchased on her world travels. Many of these items represent traditional dress of countries she visited, especially in Southeast Asia where Doris Duke spent considerable time in the 1960s and 1970s to build a collection of Southeast Asian art. Star of Siam (founded 1955 by Americans Vera & Lewis Cykman) was a Bangkok, Thailand-based silk company that specialized in custom tailored clothing in the Thai style. There are close to twenty pieces of fashion from this company, as well as many yards of Thai silk used in upholstery around Doris Duke’s homes, including the curtains in Doris’s bedroom at Rough Point.
Taj of India (founded 1950) is perhaps one of the most fascinating lesser-known designers in Doris Duke’s closet—a maker of a pair of shoes so beloved by Doris, she owned over 20 pairs of the pointy-toe flats in almost every color available! Taj Tajerie, a female designer from India, created the brand. Doris purchased them from small boutiques and well-known department stores both in Hawaii and in New York like M. M. Merry, Ltd. and Nordstrom. A fun fact about this brand- the designer created all the shoes for the show I Dream of Jeannie!
There’s an old adage that you can learn a lot about people of the past through looking at their clothes. If you look at the many items of Doris Duke’s clothing collection, you would learn that her clothing is almost as eccentric as the woman herself – and these pieces hold many memories and stories we are still learning about today.
By Kristen Costa, Senior Curator at Newport Restoration Foundation
Keeping programming at Prescott Farm free. Providing virtual learning opportunities. Preserving important historic buildings along the streetscapes of Newport.
These are just a few of the activities that our dedicated Restoration Partners support with their ongoing, monthly gifts. By joining Restoration Partners, your monthly gift will provide consistent support to the work we do every day to preserve Newport’s architectural and cultural heritage.
Will you help us meet our goal of welcoming 20 new monthly donors?
In honor of Historic Preservation Month this May, we invite you to become part of this community of individuals who care deeply about protecting historic resources in Newport and beyond. As a Restoration Partner, your monthly contribution is immediately directed toward NRF’s ongoing work.
There are many advantages to joining the program. Your monthly gift is fully tax-deductible and automatically charged to your credit card or bank account. Partners receive special benefits and invitations to private events. We send a year-end tax statement outlining your cumulative giving.
Please visit our website at www.newportrestoration.org/donate to learn more about the program and to make your gift. Thank you for supporting NRF and for caring about preservation in Newport.
This Earth Day head out to Prescott Farm for Nature Bingo! Practice your observation skills and see how many items you can find in nature.
People who study things in nature are called biologists. When you study nature, you should be careful to “Leave No Trace”—be respectful and considerate of the people and wildlife you encounter, and leave whatever you find. After all, you wouldn’t want someone taking anything from your home without permission!
Find as many items as you can on your Nature Bingo sheet—five in a row means Bingo!
Nature Bingo worksheets will be available outside Hicks House on the Prescott Farm site (the red building right next to the herb garden when you enter the site), and also available to download below and print. Pencils are also available at Prescott Farm.
Don’t forget! – Take a photo of your Nature Bingo sheet and your favorite item you found, and post it to social media tagged @nptrestoration for a chance to win a pair of adult and child gardening gloves! Photos must be posted and tagged between April 17, 2021 and Monday, April 26, 2021 for entry. Winners will be notified via social media.
This April, nonprofit organizations across Rhode Island are participating in the statewide giving day known as #401Gives. Starting at 6:00 a.m. on April 1, you can visit 401Gives.org and donate to one or more of the many participating nonprofits in the Rhode Island community.
What is 401Gives?
401Gives is an initiative of United Way of Rhode Island. Its purpose is to bring a collective voice to Rhode Island’s nonprofit community and deepen the state’s culture of philanthropy.
As a local nonprofit organization, NRF is proud to participate in 401Gives as a way to educate our neighbors on the wide range of activities we engage in within our community, our state, and beyond. Many of the programs and experiences we offer are possible thanks to you – our generous neighbors and friends on Aquidneck Island – and those statewide who visit our museum properties annually.
How can you make a difference on 401Gives Day?
Whether you decide to make a gift to NRF on April 1, or another organization, we hope you will participate if you’re able.
Check out NRF’s microsite site to learn more about what we do and to make your gift.
Like and share our posts on Facebook and Instagram to spread the word to others who can join the 401Gives movement and support local nonprofits
Questions? Comments?
If you have any questions, or would like more information, please contact Development Coordinator Alicia Cipriano at 401-849-7300, Ext. 117.
Thank you in advance for your generosity, for participating in this greater community effort, and for caring about the well-being of all Rhode Islanders!
As we get ready to welcome visitors to a new season at Rough Point, we looked back to how former residents used to prepare for Doris Duke’s arrival at Rough Point for the season.
We spoke with Linda Knierim, who remembers arriving at Rough Point on a February evening as a young girl. This year marks the 50th anniversary of when she first came to Rough Point to live with her parents, who were the new caretakers of the estate, and her younger brother.
Listen as Linda shares her story.
LK: And then we came here and it just seemed like such a long drive to come up. And then that ferry – I didn’t know there was a ferry that we had to take either.
While Linda was excited about living in a grand summer cottage on Newport’s famous Bellevue Avenue, she did not expect it to be so, well, haunting.
LK: We must have got here and it was maybe five, six o’clock at nighttime, so it was dark. So all I knew [was] we were coming to a summer cottage. I had no idea what the summer cottage was like, and we were greeted by a painter [at the] back door and came in… He opened up the Dining Room door, and everything was covered in white. It was like different size ghosts greeting us. And I was like, “Oh my gosh,” because I had it in my head that we were going to see real thick carpeting [and] all this beautiful furniture, not ghosts. And then we saw each room and everything. It wasn’t until the next day when my brother and I went outside that you saw how big the house really was. Then we thought, “Hmm. I think we’re gonna like it.”
Linda also recounts what it was like to prepare for Doris’s arrival each year.
LK: Well, I think my mom was busy, I guess probably like in March, getting the house ready, taking some of the cloths off and putting things away, folding them up. But then my dad was busy outside getting the gardens ready and then my brother and I had kind of like control of the house, like on this side [the public spaces in the house beyond the servant spaces] and then, then everything was so different in June when Miss Duke came.
Today, we still continue the tradition of covering furnishings and putting away decorative objects during the winter months.
And Linda’s first impressions of Doris Duke did not meet her expectations of a grand, stylish, larger-than-life woman.
LK: I know she came up in May. It was because Duke Farms called and said the lady of the house will be coming, and just to keep the front gate open. And they didn’t know what time she was coming, so my brother and I went to friends’ houses. I couldn’t wait to get home to find out what kind of car she came in, how she was dressed. My mom said she just came in an old car, and she didn’t have that fur coat on or those gold jewels or anything. She just had on jeans and a t-shirt.
Linda does have some lasting impressions from her time at Rough Point.
LK: The crash of the water against the rocks and the smells of geraniums. My father had those real tall geraniums in the Solarium. They were in big pots and they were almost as tall as I am. So the smells of geraniums always bring [it] up… [Also] when I see those little oyster crackers because [the kitchen] stove had big long shelves always filled with them.
While we no longer have oyster crackers in the Kitchen, you can still experience the sound of the waves breaking dramatically on the rocks and enjoy the scent of the geraniums in the Solarium.
We hope you will visit us this upcoming season and discover (or re-discover) Rough Point for yourself.
