9. Wodenethe, Beacon
Henry Winthrop Sargent developed a passion for horticulture through caring for his estate in Fishkill Landing (now Beacon). At Wodenethe, as the 20-acre estate was called, he experimented with different garden layouts and sourced trees and plants from around the world. He frequently went on garden scouting trips to find inspiration. He wrote about his travels in “Skeleton Tours,” a guide to the gardens of the British Isles, the Scandinavian Peninsula, Russia, Poland, and Spain. He became fast friends with landscape architect Andrew Jackson Downing.
After Sargent’s death in 1882, his son Winthrop took over the mansion and grounds. Later, the home passed to his niece. The niece ended up selling the estate to Dr. Clarence Slocum in 1921 for use as part of Craig House, the sanatorium that he ran. For decades, some of the patients of Craig House lived in the mansion while receiving treatment, In 1954, the Craig House was downsized and sold off the Wodenethe estate. After emptying the mansion, the structure was set ablaze in a controlled fire that destroyed it.
