kingscote - newport mansion

This was a very interesting house to visit. We toured the major mansions last visit so this visit was wanted to tour the smaller seasonal mansions. If you have the time to visit these mansions are well worth the time and tell other family stories and perspectives. Everything in this house is from the last owners and is full of their collectibles. The Architecture of the house is very interesting and you can see that both inside and outside.

This is more of a lived in home than the mansions on this block. The tour guides are full of interesting facts about the family who built this place; the sea captain owner who brought back and filled his home with so many Chinese trading object d'arts and the interesting additions to the house. I'm just glad that I don't have to dust all those rooms, furniture, paintings, rugs etc.

Though Kingscote isn't so big and plush as Vanderbilt's Marble House or The Breakers,in my humble opinion it's the most interesting mansion in Newport.The difference is that Kingscote wasn't a summer residence or a house for special occasions,that was a house in which several generations of owners really lived,so it's cozy,it has lots of everyday life objects which really belonged to the family.Do not miss the collection of silver and Tiffany window panels,as well as small oriental objects,the porcelain and so on.Would be a great omission not to mention the very knowledgeable and enthusiastic guide.

This was funny there was a convention of politicians & I was given 2 tickets by the Senator of a New Jersey Borough She seemed to follow me around as I am sort of the curious type person in another mansion looking at the rusted chain link to get down in those days with the shoes they wore. My fiancee asked if he could take a picture of us together & I thought her husband was the senator it was " her" the lady following me- so she told me I had to sign her name to get in the Kingscote with the 2 tickets. Kingscote was so large I had to take 2 pictures of them & place them side by side. ingscote is a landmark of the Gothic Revival style in American architecture. Its appearance in Newport marked the beginning of the "cottage boom" that would distinguish the town as a veritable laboratory for the design of picturesque houses throughout the 19th century. In 1839 Southern planter George Noble Jones commissioned architect Richard Upjohn to design a summer cottage along a country road, known as Bellevue Avenue, on the outskirts of town. Upjohn created a highly original "cottage orne," or ornamental cottage, in the Gothic Revival style. The general effect was romantic- a fanciful composition of towers, windows, Gothic arches and Kingscote dining roomporch roofs inspired by medieval tournament tents

These are the houses we saw (all of them) and they are listed in the order that we enjoyed them. The Breakers, Marble House, Kingscote, The Elms, Chepstow, Rosecliff, Hunter House, Green Animals Topiary Garden, Chateau-sur-Mer, Isaac Bell House . I thought Kingscote was a solid number three because I LOVED that it was not crowded. I liked the personal tour. I loved the wall with glass that is pictured in the brochure. I loved the tables with the little inlays and all the other artifacts and stuff everywhere. There was so much to look at an it was all just really neat. I love that umbrella stand too. If you go to the house, you will see what I mean. If you take the time to look around, you will likely love it as much as me.

The architecture, interior and furnishings of Kingscote are a beautiful diversion and contrast to those of Gilded mansions in Newport. Beautiful woodwork and spectacular Tiffany glass blocks. If possible, visit on sunny day to fully appreciate. Note, this mansion has a docent guided tour, not self guided audio.

We started our mansion tour with The Breakers and thought it would be nice to "downsize" to a smaller tour after lunch. We were right! This one is a personal guided tour of the King family home with its beautiful Tiffany glass and cork ceiling. There are 2 levels to the house with a steep staircase. Our guide was very informative and we spent about 1 hour inside the house. There is a parking lot adjacent to the home for easy access. *We had purchased a Groupon for $55 for a 1 year membership so we only did 2 mansions this day. We plan on returning to see them all. Our choices today were wonderful! Please don't miss this one!

Visited this mansion/house with the family and had a 45 minute personal tour. We bought a combined ticket of $90 which allowed the family access to the mansions (membership rate) which worked out far cheaper than individual tickets for each house. You can upgrade at each house if you wish. The house itself is a very odd thing to look at from the outside, gothic indeed! A strange witch in the woods affair with weeping trees everywhere adding to the odd, spooky feel of the place, those Victorians were crazy! However the inside was glorious. We were particularly taken with the dining room and the bathroom. The light inside was amazing and it was easy to imagine the previous owners walking down the stairs in their glamorous dresses. Took us back to the 30s era and gave an interesting insight into how a Southern family built and lived in the North. The windows and dressings are straight to of Gone with the Wind. Well worth the visit just remember to buy a combined ticket or take out the membership.

This house is older than most of the other "cottages" in Newport that are open to the public. The owner was an eclectic collector and the tour was informative about the time period.

We very much enjoyed the guided tour of this interesting home. It is true that there are more impressive Newport Mansions but the home and family histories really make the tour. Our guide, Tony, was well educated on each and the Q&A throughout the tour really added to the experience. So many works of art and personal pieces from Asia made this tour especially interesting.

The design of the house is not as interesting as the tour guide wanted me to believe, but the contents were amazing! I really found the dining room fascinating. The details of the decor!

This was the first of 5 mansions we toured while in Newport. We thought it would not be too grand, but we were wrong. Beautiful woodwork and amazing dining room. Includes a live tour guide. Really impressed with the home and stables.

This was an old school cottage before people started trying to outdo each other and just came here for the cool summer breezes. It's rooms were smaller. I especially thought the cork ceiling in the dining room was interesting and unique. This one did not have an audio tour and that makes it more crowded but we were glad we took the time.

This mansion has a guided tour, which allows you to get a tour more tailored to your interests if you ask questions. Our guide was very knowledgeable. This house is furnished as it was when the last family member was living there (1972), before it became part of the Newport Preservation tour. It is also described as the first of the Newport summer 'cottage' mansions built.Different from the other 'cottages' this house was lived in year round before it was donated. I think that gives this house a unique presentation, which I enjoyed. The other mansions are grand, but it was easier for me to picture this structure as a home, where a family lived.

This is one of the few mansions that has a tour guide, as opposed to a tour with a headset. The house is quite small compared to the other mansions, and every room is filled with knick knacks. If you are interested in antique furniture, then the tour will hold your attention; however, an hour and ten minutes (we were told the tour would be 40 minutes) was quite long and a little too detailed for me. Would not recommend if you have children (teens and younger) with you.