In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, wealthy New Yorkers established country estates in western Connecticut. One of these was Rock Hall, begun in 1911 for Jerome Alexandre, the heir to a shipping fortune. Alexandre’s architect, Addison Mizner, is best known for luxurious Mediterranean Revival estates in Palm Beach, Florida. For Rock Hall, Mizner employed a simplified version of 16th-century English design, which he called ‘Tudor’ and which reflected the Anglophilia of the American upper class at the time. The exterior is a severe composition of rubble stone and stucco, achieving visual effect from contrasting textures. The interior is more elaborate, and in an eclectic mix of styles—English, French Renaissance, and Georgian—characteristic of Mizner’s work. In the landscape are curving drives, allées of trees, a rustic garden pavilion, and a balustrade terrace, which, before the trees grew up, would have provided scenic views. Rock Hall continued to serve as a summer home until 2007, when it became a bed-and-breakfast.
19 Rock Hall Rd., Colebrook
