Hyde Hall

Hyde Hall is a stunning reminder of a bygone American era, when powerful English families established vast estates in their former colonies. The house itself is considered the finest example of neoclassic country mansions anywhere in the United States.Painting by B. de Claviere Roger Kennedy of the Smithsonian Institution has hailed Hyde Hall as "a great house, architecturally, and a social document of the first importance." The late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan called Hyde Hall "one of the most remarkable buildings in America," and Brendan Gill, long-time architecture critic for The New Yorker magazine and an early champion for Hyde Hall's restoration, declared it one of the "three or four great buildings in America of its time." Photo by Richard S. DuncanToday Hyde Hall is a house museum and regional cultural center offering visitors the unique opportunity to tour a true restoration in progress and to see, feel and understand where English patriarchy met American individualism. Hyde Hall was the unusually large home—a neoclassical country mansion—of George Clarke, 1768–1835, heir of George Clarke (Governor). One of the finest American houses, it combines the architectural traditions of England and America. It is one of the few surviving works of the architect Philip Hooker. It is located on Otsego Lake, within Glimmerglass State Park. Step back in time with a visit to Hyde Hall. Begin your tour with an introductory orientation in our newly remodeled visitor center located in the estate's carriage barn. Explore the house with its nearly 50 rooms and stunning architectural details, under the guidance of a skilled interpreter. See firsthand our ongoing restoration process, and perhaps talk to a craftsman at work. Bring your picnic lunch to enjoy on the lawn as you take in the unspoiled view of Otsego Lake that inspired George Clarke to choose this site for his country house nearly two hundred years ago. You are invited to spend the day as you experience grandeur in the country. Hyde Hall was featured on an episode of Ghost Hunters. The building is said to be haunted by a woman who was thrown out of the house by her son and swore she would haunt it forever.