The Door Is Open For You at These 17 Amazing Upstate NY Mansions!

All history buffs should take notice of this gallery. It will be the first in a series. This post shows 17 of Upstate New York's most magnificent mansions and all are open for public tours!

These houses are stunners. Because almost all of the owners and builders of these homes were fabulously wealthy people, no expense was spared for these grand living quarters. They are opulent, over the top extravagant, sometimes a little weird, and always totally fascinating.

Since money was no object to these homeowners, you can be assured of seeing some priceless furniture and antiques inside, some famous paintings on the walls, and gorgeous professional landscaping surrounding the properties.

The mansions in this gallery cover a wide area from the New York State Capital Region all the way out and through to western New York. The houses are great, and the stories of the founding families of each also offers up some incredible tales. One mansion's owner is the "Father of Photographer," another was one of the "Big Three" of the women's rights movement, another was one of America's premier landscape painters, and still another made his fortune to be able to build his castle-like mansion by founding a company that made wire popcorn poppers and baskets!

This list contains seventeen homes. Watch for more famous homes in future posts. As you well know, New York State has no shortage of incredible historic houses!

You Must Take a Tour of These 17 Amazing and Famous Upstate NY Homes!

This gallery highlights some of Upstate New York's most magnificent mansions. But, for the most part, several of these homes are not on the average roadtripper's radar. And they should be.

These homes rival those of the rich and famous in the lower Hudson Valley, as well as being comparable to the wealthy estates in Newport, Rhode Island.

The mansions are great, and so are the back stories of the owners who built them. Each famous home listed has a link to their official social media pages so you can plan a trip. A few years back this author wrote a popular book "Open House: 35 Upstate New York Homes" (Syracuse University Press) which highlights famous (or little known) homes in the region such as these.

If I have to pick a favorite among all these incredible homes, take a look at the one in Geneseo. If you take a tour of this mansion more than likely the tour guide will be a 7th generation member of the founding family!

And all homes in this gallery give tours to the public!

Gallery Credit: Chuck D'Imperio

These Nine Communities Along the Susquehanna River in NYS Hold Much History!

This gallery looks at several (9) communities along the Susquehanna River n Upstate New York. The river is one of America's most historic, and it winds from Cooperstown, NY to the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland, some 444 miles. In this gallery you will find footnotes of history of these cities, towns, and villages. They range from the largest, Binghamton, to the next largest, Oneonta, and then to seven much smaller places along the river (one village with a population of under 500). We try and give some pertinent data about each, maybe a business memory or two, maybe we note a famous person who was born there, and other interesting tidbits.

Gallery Credit: Chuck DImperio

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