The Mount, Edith Wharton's Home

We made another stop along the way to Vermont at the gorgeous home of Edith Wharton, the house is known as The Mount. Edith bought the 113 acres and then designed and built The Mount, a home that would meet her needs as designer, gardener, hostess, and above all, writer. Every aspect of the estate—including its gardens, architecture, and interior design—evokes the spirit of its creator.

The Whartons would live at The Mount a short ten years. It was a transformational decade for Wharton, full of professional triumphs and emotional turmoil. Here she would write some of her greatest works, including The House of Mirth (1905) and Ethan Frome (1911). All while her marriage disintegrated under the weight of Teddy Wharton’s mental instability. The Whartons sold The Mount in 1911, they divorced in 1913. Edith Wharton moved permanently to France.

"We have to make things beautiful; they do not grow so of themselves." - Edith Wharton

The Mount is indeed a very beautiful estate, the main house was inspired by the 17th-century Belton House in England, with additional influences from classical Italian and French architecture. Edith Wharton used the principles described in her first book, The Decoration of Houses, when she designed the house. She thought that good architectural expression included order, scale, and harmony.

Edith was a passionate animal lover, she supported many animal charities, including helping to set up the S.P.C.A. in its early days in the United States. She owned many dogs throughout her life, and treated them like her children. Throughout her house, which is now purely a museum and a historic landmark, there are little stuffed animal dogs tucked away in the luxurious dog beds Edith had acquired for her canines which I found to be so adorable.

Edith Wharton (1862-1937) was born into a tightly controlled society at a time when women were discouraged from achieving anything beyond a proper marriage. Wharton broke through these strictures to become one of America’s greatest writers. Author of The Age of Innocence, Ethan Frome, and The House of Mirth, she wrote over 40 books in 40 years, including authoritative works on architecture, gardens, interior design, and travel. She was the first woman awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, an honorary Doctorate of Letters from Yale University, and a full membership in the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

After our visit to The Mount, we spent some time in the little gift store where I bought a beautiful copy of one of Wharton's most well known works, The House of Mirth which is such a fun, meaningful souvenir from our afternoon spent at The Mount.