15. Wilderstein
Thomas Suckley, a descendant of the Livingston and Beekman families, commissioned an Italianate villa, designed by architect John Warren Ritch, in 1852. The estate was named Wilderstein, meaning wild man’s stone in reference to a nearby Indian petroglyph, which can still be visited.
Thirty years later, Suckley’s son transformed the two story villa into an elaborate Queen Anne style country house complete with a dramatic five story circular tower. Wilderstein’s final resident was Margaret (Daisy) Suckley, a cousin and confidante of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. It was Suckley who gave Roosevelt his famous black Scottish terrier Fala. Calvert Vaux and Joseph Burr Tiffany helped make Wilderstein a must see.