19 Best Sights in Hudson Valley, New York

The birthplace and home of the country's 32nd president, Springwood is just as it was when the Roosevelts lived here. It contains family furnishings and keepsakes, and Franklin, Eleanor, and their beloved dog Fala are buried in the wonderful rose garden. At the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library and Museum, photographs, letters, speeches, and memorabilia document FDR's life; a multimedia exhibit examines World War II. The first of the presidential libraries, the building was designed by Roosevelt himself.

On a hill surrounded by gardens, stone terraces, and fountains sits the stunning classical-revival mansion that was home to four generations of Rockefellers, one of America's most famous families. From its regal position, Kykuit (pronounced "kie-cut"), which means "lookout" in Dutch, has breathtaking views of the Hudson River. Antiques, ceramics, and famous artworks fill the house, which was finished in 1913; sculptures by Alexander Calder, Constantin Brancusi, Louise Nevelson, and Pablo Picasso adorn the grounds, which encompass 87 acres. You must take a tour to see the estate, which is accessible only by shuttle bus from the visitor center at Philipsburg Manor.

The well-known architectural firm of McKim, Mead, and White was responsible for the beaux arts style of this grand 65-room mansion fronted with mammoth columns. Formerly known as Mills Mansion, the Hudson River estate was a family home of financier Ogden Mills and his wife, Ruth Livingston Mills, in the late 1800s to early 1900s. You may see the mansion's lavish interior by guided tour only. The estate, one of the most beautiful properties in the Hudson Valley, has hiking and cross-country-skiing trails, and a huge hill for sledding in winter.

The imposing 1898 McKim, Mead, and White mansion, built for Cornelius Vanderbilt's grandson Fredrick, makes a striking contrast with its Roosevelt neighbor, Springwood. A fine example of life in the Gilded Age, the house is lavishly furnished and full of paintings. It conveys the wealth and privilege of one of the state's most prominent families. The grounds offer excellent views of the Hudson River and encompass lovely Italian gardens.

The estate includes the Widow Jane Mine, cement kilns, and parts of the D&H Canal. A museum concentrates on the local cement industry and showcases antique sleighs and carriages. It's about 3 miles east of High Falls.

High-style period furniture and collections of crystal, silver, and porcelain fill this restored 1808 mansion, now a museum of Federal-period decorative arts. Built by States Morris Dyckman, a descendant of one of New Amsterdam's early Dutch families, the house originally stood in Montrose, some 15 miles south. It's open by tour only, but the grounds are reason enough to visit.

The house, built between 1783 and 1790, contains the Hurley Heritage Society Museum. It includes a good collection of Revolutionary War materials, and has changing exhibits about local history. Walking- and driving-tour brochures are available in its front lobby.

An unpretentious cottage, Val-Kill was first a retreat and later the full-time residence for Eleanor Roosevelt. A biographical film, First Lady of the World, is shown at the site. The property encompasses 180 acres of trails and gardens. It's also the location of Val-Kill Industries, Eleanor's attempt to prevent farm workers from relocating to the city for employment; reproductions of early American furniture, pewter, and weavings were produced here.

The stone house, parts of which date from the 1720s, serves as the home of the Saugerties Historical Society and a museum. Inside you can see original architectural details, including wide-plank floors and fireplace mantels. The front lawn is the site of summertime concerts, periodic colonial reenactments, and other special events.

After Samuel Morse, the inventor of the telegraph, bought this circa-1830 house, he remodeled it into a Tuscan-style villa. It still contains the possessions and keepsakes of the family that lived here after him. The Morse Gallery, inside the visitor center, has exhibits of telegraph equipment and paintings by Morse. The grounds include gardens and hiking trails.

Josiah Hasbrouck—a lieutenant in the American Revolution and U.S. congressman during the presidential terms of Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe—built the 1814 Federal-style mansion, which has an impressive three-story central hall. The house and its original furniture and paintings remained in the family until Hasbrouck's great-great-granddaughter opened it to the public in 1959. Tours are available by appointment.

The 1737 restored Dutch farmhouse is especially noted for its collection of Hudson Valley paintings. The grounds include the Ichabod Crane Schoolhouse, a one-room schoolhouse that was actually used until the 1940s. It takes its name from the character in The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, by Washington Irving. Irving, who tutored at Lindenwald, purportedly modeled the character after a schoolmaster who taught in the area.

Noted architect Alexander Jackson Davis designed this magnificent marble mansion overlooking the Hudson River. Built in 1838, Lyndhurst is widely considered the premier Gothic Revival home in the United States. You may tour the mansion's elaborate interior and stroll the 67 landscaped acres, which include a conservatory and a rose garden. The estate also includes a turn-of-the-20th-century bowling alley and an original child's playhouse. Kids can walk outside the perimeter of the playhouse and admire it, but are not allowed to enter it. During summer weekends, visitors can pay $5 to roam around the grounds, and then apply that fee to the guided tour price if they wish to learn more about the house.

This 23-room mansion, once the Livingston family estate, sits on 434 acres along the Hudson River north of Rhinebeck. Built in the Federal style, the mansion was remodeled in the mid-19th century by noted American architect Andrew Jackson Davis, who applied a classical revival style. The well-maintained house is closed for restoration, but the grounds alone are worth seeing; they encompass orchards, flower gardens, and ancient trees, and offer plenty of picnic-perfect spots.

On the bank of the Pocantico River sits this 18th-century farm and provisioning plant owned by Frederick Philipse III, whose Dutch family owned most of the land in the region. Guides in period costume conduct tours of the Dutch stone house filled with 17th- and 18th-century antiques. The museum focuses, however, on the lives and stories of the 23 enslaved Africans who lived here and on slavery in the colonial north. Check out the water-powered gristmill, 18th-century New World Dutch barn, slave garden, and reconstructed tenant house.

A guide in period costume escorts you through the 1830s home of Washington Irving, whose writings include classics like The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Rip Van Winkle. The eclectic building, one of the nation's earliest examples of romantic architecture, includes stepped gables that recall Dutch architecture and a curved roof modeled after that of a Spanish monastery. Sunnyside was often called America's Home, because it appeared in many landscape illustrations of the period. Irving's book-lined study is a highlight.

At this living-history museum, costumed guides are strategically placed throughout the estate, which includes an 18th-century stone manor house and an 18th-century tavern. The house includes some of its original Georgian and Federal furnishings. Spinning, weaving, and other demonstrations are held in a tenant house adjacent to the tavern. Admission is by timed tour only.

The late owner, philanthropist Chauncey Stillman, envisioned his property as a grand European estate and fully realized his dream. The Georgian-style brick mansion surveys formal gardens inspired by the Italian Renaissance, complete with resident peacocks, fountains, a sculpture garden, and a dramatic view of the Catskills. The house has an important collection of paintings assembled by the owner. The stable block houses the carriage museum and a collection of coaching memorabilia.

The grand, Queen Anne–style Victorian home with a dramatic five-story circular tower was owned by the Suckley family for more than 140 years. The last family member to occupy the estate was Margaret "Daisy" Suckley, a distant cousin and close confidant of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. (The movie Hyde Park on Hudson was based on their relationship). The main floor interiors were designed by New York City decorator Joseph Burr Tiffany, a cousin of the famed stained glass artist. Noted landscape architect Calvert Vaux designed the grounds, which have Hudson River views. There are weekend house tours around Christmas.