Our Top 10 Memories from 2015

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We hope you enjoy this short video highlighting our “Top 10” memories from 2015. It was certainly a milestone year for Biltmore, marking the success and growth of our company as we continue to protect George Vanderbilt’s legacy and preserve the art of hospitality.

  1. We partnered with Cosprop for our first feature costume exhibition to display over 40 costumes from the hit PBS mini-series “Downton Abbey.” Due to overwhelming positive feedback, we have decided to showcase more costumes and historic fashion in our 2016 exhibition “Fashionable Romance: Wedding Gowns in Film.”
  2. Biltmore Blooms featured a gorgeous display throughout our 75 acres of landscaped gardens, this year including over 74,000 tulips and 15,000 daffodils.
  3. Six Summer Concerts spanned the month of August, with each artist performing on Biltmore’s South Terrace overlooking the gorgeous Blue Ridge Mountains. Our team is already working on a spectacular lineup for next year!
  4. Biltmore’s Sporting Clays Club opened their new location on the West Side of the estate, restoring a home estimated to be built between 1879-1889 that had remained on the estate from the pre-Vanderbilt era. The project received the 2015 Griffin Award from The Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County in the Adaptive Re-Use category.
  5. Biltmore For Your Home celebrated their 25th Anniversary, with their licensed partners and extensive line of home decor products continuing to draw inspiration from Biltmore and uphold the standard of excellence set by the Vanderbilt family.
  6. Biltmore’s North Tower Ridge Cap project spanned nearly the entire year, coming to completion in early November and showcasing our commitment to authenticity and preservation of the estate.
  7. We celebrated North Carolina Wine Month with the “Taste of Biltmore” in September, featuring numerous culinary events and demos of our estate-grown wines and field-to-table cuisine.
  8. Biltmore Winery celebrated its 30th Anniversary and continues to be the most-visited winery in the country, with distribution expanding to 21 states.
  9. Village Hotel on Biltmore Estate officially opened on December 1. This new lodging property offers a casual and convenient way to stay on the estate, with dining, shopping, our Winery just steps away.
  10. “Christmas at Biltmore” continues to be an amazing tribute to George Vanderbilt’s favorite holiday, and allows us to relive the excitement that he must have felt when he opened his home to family and friends for the first time on Christmas Eve 1895.

Thank you to all of our guests who visited Biltmore during 2015, and we look forward to seeing you again soon. Happy new year!

Preparing for a new exhibition

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The Biltmore Legacy will be closed January 4 – February 11, 2016 to prepare for a new exhibition in conjunction with our Fashionable Romance: Wedding Gowns in Film exhibition that will be displayed throughout Biltmore House February 12 – July 4.

While the costumes on display in Biltmore House will showcase changing styles in wedding fashions for more than 300 years, from the 1700s through the 1930s, as captured in classic feature films such as Sense and Sensibility and The Duchess, the exhibition at The Biltmore Legacy will feature 60 years of Vanderbilt family wedding fashion including Cornelia Vanderbilt Cecil’s 1924 wedding gown and veil re-created by noted costume designers Cosprop, Ltd. of London

Jacqueline Bouvier and John F. Kennedy on their wedding day; photo credit: Toni Frissell. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. In addition, guests visiting The Biltmore Legacy will have an opportunity to view the first-ever display of the Lee family veil worn by Mary Lee Ryan for her marriage to George Vanderbilt’s grandson, William A.V. Cecil, and also by her first cousin Jacqueline Lee Bouvier for her marriage to future U.S. President John F. Kennedy.  

In both Biltmore House and The Biltmore Legacy, the exhibition will be complemented by gorgeous floral arrangements carefully researched and inspired by the wedding customs of the time period in which the film or the authentic story was set.

In the Tapestry Gallery, for example, three fresh arrangements on pedestals will provide a beautiful backdrop for costume groupings from Wallis and Edward and several other films. In the first arrangement, the floral creation of blue delphinium and lilacs with white roses, hydrangeas, and lilies is a reproduction of the piece designed for the real 1937 wedding of Wallis Simpson and Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor.

For The Biltmore Legacy, our floral staff reproduced Mrs. William Cecil's bouquet of white roses and stephanotis in silk to accompany her classic 1950s wedding gown that will be on display along with her family veil.

We hope you will join us beginning February 12 to enjoy learning more about wedding fashion as well as the Vanderbilt family.

Remembering our Christmas past

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Christmas has always been celebrated in grand style at Biltmore, beginning with the opening of Biltmore House on Christmas Eve 1895 and continuing today with Christmas at Biltmore. The festivities have always included friends and family, plus a special party for employees of the estate.

Creating traditions

While George Vanderbilt was still a bachelor, he enlisted the help of Mrs. Charles McNamee, the wife of his friend who assisted in purchasing land for the estate, to provide Christmas gifts for 300–500 guests, including estate workers and their families. Mr. Vanderbilt greeted everyone in the Banquet Hall on Christmas afternoon, and members of his own family helped distribute the gifts which included Christmas trees and trimmings for estate employees to decorate their own homes.

In 1897, Biltmore’s Christmas celebration took place at All Souls Parish in Biltmore Village because George Vanderbilt was away from home. According to a report in the Semi-Weekly Citizen, there were “toys and candy and cakes and oranges for the little ones, and books and articles useful and ornamental, dress goods and jerseys, ties and gloves, for the older folk. As in previous and future celebrations, refreshments were served, including ice cream, cake, and bananas.”

Cornelia Vanderbilt and her cousin John Nicholas Brown in 1905

Cornelia Vanderbilt and her cousin John Nicholas Brown, 1905

Celebrating with friends and family

George Vanderbilt married Edith Stuyvesant Dresser in 1898, and she took an immediate and active interest in the estate’s annual Christmas festivities. In 1905, when George and Edith Vanderbilt’s only child Cornelia would have been five years old, the New York Times reported the following details about the holiday cheer at Biltmore:

“Mr. and Mrs. George W. Vanderbilt this afternoon provided for nearly a thousand children of Biltmore estate employees a big tree in the banquet hall of the chateau. The little ones were loaded with useful gifts and toys…bought in Asheville in the last week…Mr. and Mrs. Vanderbilt welcomed each of the little guests, many of whom came twenty miles from the coves and mountain tops of the Vanderbilt forest domain, some walking, some by ox team and some mule back…. Mr. and Mrs. Vanderbilt…personally distributed all the gifts, aided by Mrs. Edith Wharton, Mr. Wharton, and Mrs. Ernesto G. Fabbri (George Vanderbilt’s niece].”

In her oral history, Edith Cauble, whose parents worked on the estate, recalls:

“Christmas parties where Mr. Vanderbilt stood on one side of the front door of the House in tails, and Edith stood on the other side wearing a long velvet dress giving out oranges and candy. In the Banquet Hall there was music and Cornelia would run around with the other children.”
 
Biltmore Employee Christmas party in 1916Employee Christmas party at Antler Hall, ca. 1916

Edith and Cornelia Vanderbilt continued the employee Christmas parties even after George Vanderbilt passed away in 1914. In 1916, the event took place outdoors at Antler Hall—a large home originally located where The Inn on Biltmore Estate™ now sits. In the archival photograph featured here, you can see Edith Vanderbilt just to the right of center wearing a dark hat, and Cornelia to her left in a white hat.

Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus at the entrance to Biltmore HouseSanta and Mrs. Claus welcome guests to Biltmore

The tradition continues

Today, more than a century after the first holiday festivities at Biltmore, we continue to host our annual Christmas party for employees. It is still a grand occasion with gifts for the children, visits with Santa and Mrs. Claus, and delicious refreshments—and a wonderful opportunity to see America’s Largest Home® lit by the glow of candles and firelight during Candlelight Christmas Evenings.

Featured blog image: Photographs of George Vanderbilt’s parents (William Henry Vanderbilt and Maria Louisa Kissam Vanderbilt) 

A towering tribute to Christmas

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Our magical Candlelight Christmas Evenings bring the season to life with flickering candlelight and cozy flames, plus the sounds of choirs and musicians to create an intimate atmosphere in Biltmore House. On the Front Lawn, a 55-foot Norway spruce tree, lit by 45,000 tiny bright lights and surrounded by hundreds of hand-lit luminaries, welcomes guests and sets a charming holiday mood. 

Big tree being set on Front Lawn of Biltmore House“For Christmas decorations outside Biltmore House,” said Cathy Barnhardt, Floral Displays Manager, “we need a tree that's tall enough to show up in front of America's largest home!”

Each year, our Floral team works with Andrews Nursery–the same nursery that provides our magnificent Banquet Hall Christmas trees–to find a towering evergreen that will work for the Front Lawn. Their preference is for a tree that already needs to be removed because of its proximity to homes or power lines. In 2012, for example, the Front Lawn tree came from Roan Mountain on the North Carolina/Tennessee state line.

“It started out as a live inside Christmas tree that was planted outside after the holiday,” Cathy said. “It grew for nearly 50 years until it just got too big for the yard and had to come down. We were very excited to bring it to Biltmore.”

Norway spruce for the Front Lawn arrives at Biltmore HouseAs for lighting the massive Front Lawn tree each year, our engineering team spends several nights creating the glowing display.

“This year's Norway spruce weighs in at 11,000 pounds, is 55-feet tall and 34 years old,” said Brent Merrell, Director of Engineering Services. “We use three boom lifts to decorate it and most of the lights are placed after dark so we know they are evenly distributed.” 

Time to Light the Luminaries

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Late in the afternoon just before sunset, a small crew of Biltmore staff members hops out of a pick-up truck in front of Biltmore House to begin a long-standing holiday tradition: the lighting of the luminaries.

Single luminary overlooking Biltmore HouseThe glow of 300 luminaries lining the front lawn and Rampe Douce help set a yuletide tone for our guests as they prepare to enter Biltmore House for Candlelight Christmas Evenings, taking place nightly, now through January 8, 2016.

Each luminary contains a white votive candle, held in place with a generous scoop of sand. It takes about two hours for a 4-person team from our Housekeeping staff to hand-light each one.

The number 7 is an important one for Nell Swan, Facility Services Supervisor and a member of the luminary team for the last 15 years. Seven is the number of steps she takes to place each bag on the lawn to ensure that perfect symmetry for which this light display is known. Some areas require eight steps, she says, but the edge she was working, near the Stable Courtyard, calls for seven.

Luminaries in front of Biltmore HouseWhen it comes to “behind-the-scenes” activities, guests seem to be endlessly fascinated with how we do what we do at Biltmore. According to Vince Helton, Director of Facility Services, while the larger team lights the luminaries, one staff member enters Biltmore House to set up chairs, music stands, and lights for musicians, turn on all fireplaces on first and second floors, polish the brass threshold at the Front Door, and turn on the lights for the large outdoor Christmas tree. “Once the evening activities end around 11 p.m.,” said Vince, “the team starts picking up the luminaries so that everything is ready for our daytime guests.”

The luminaries, combined with the forest of lit trees in the middle of the lawn – including a 60-foot-tall Norway Spruce – create a magical welcome for our guests arriving to tour through Biltmore House. Kudos to Nell and team for making it happen every night!

How a first-timer helps deck Biltmore’s halls

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For the past decade, Tracy Ross has enjoyed Christmas at Biltmore from the sidelines, first as a host in Biltmore House and then as a member of the Reception & Ticketing Sales Center team. This year, however, Tracy has stepped into a new role with Biltmore’s Floral department, and she’s got her hands full of Christmas—literally!

Tracy Ross holds the tip of Biltmore's biggest tree“I’ve helped Floral over the years with things like fluffing trees,” Tracy said, “but this is the first time I have a personal stake in it, and I can say ‘I did that.’”

Tracy joined the team just a month before Floral began decorating for Biltmore’s most-anticipated season of the year. The theme—A Gilded Age Christmas—had already been decided and plans made for the decorative style featured in each room. That meant that Tracy jumped in wherever she was most needed, assisting her new co-workers in bringing holiday magic to life in America’s largest home and all across the estate.

“They are so incredibly organized,” said Tracy of her teammates. “Day-by-day, step-by-step, they’ve worked out all the details so that nothing falls through the cracks. And even though everything is planned, individual personalities shine through in the decorations!”

One aspect of decorating Biltmore that surprised Tracy is the research Floral conducts to ensure that their designs are historically accurate and connected to Vanderbilt stories and traditions. “A member of Floral wanted to include vintage ice skates in her room decorations,” Tracy said, “so she went through archival material until she discovered a photograph of Cornelia Vanderbilt skating on the ice-covered fountain pool on the Front Lawn of Biltmore House.”

Vintage ice skates with garlandThe photograph gave her the historic tie with Biltmore and the Vanderbilts that she needed to feature ice skates. “Her effort makes the décor in the Music Room that much more special and meaningful,” said Tracy.

Another thing that surprised Tracy? How much behind-the-scenes preparation work it takes to create the decorative elements for each room. “The garland for the Winter Garden took eight separate steps to complete,” Tracy explained. “We started with a thick garland that was beautiful on its own, and then we added layers of permanent botanicals like ivy, dusty miller, and pine branches. Then more layers of icy sparkles to achieve a true Gilded Age look and feel. When it was finished, it was unbelievably rich and luxurious—exactly what you’d expect the Vanderbilts to have in their home!”

While Tracy works with this season’s Christmas at Biltmore decorations, she’s already planning ahead for next year. “I feel very blessed and very lucky to be around all these talented people,” she said. “They’ve welcomed me to the team, and they trust me to begin putting my creative personality and ideas into the mix. I’ve always loved Biltmore and the holidays, but this year, that love has really been revitalized!”

Celebrating a Gilded Age Christmas

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Each year, our floral department selects a theme inspired by the Vanderbilt era, and they interpret it throughout the entire estate, from Biltmore House to Antler Hill Village & Winery, plus The Inn on Biltmore Estate, our new Village Hotel on Biltmore Estate, and all our shops restaurants. For 2015, the theme reflects all the style and splendor associated with ‘A Gilded Age Christmas.’

But what does “Gilded Age” really mean? We turned to Laura Overbey, Collections Manager, for a helpful definition.

“Gilded Age refers to the time period in which the Vanderbilts and their peers lived,” said Laura. “It is a unique time in American history that included the construction of grand and elegantly decorated estates filled with high society and glittering parties.”

Chandelier detailTo reflect the shimmering splendor of a Gilded Age Christmas inside Biltmore House, Floral concentrated on highlighting the stunning interior details like mantels, carvings, and light fixtures complemented by dozens of beautifully decorated trees, miles of fresh greenery and wreaths, and ornaments.

“We’ve created an elegant holiday statement that reflects the luxury of that time,” said Cathy Barnhardt, Floral Displays Manager. “The emphasis is on rich layers of color accented with metallic touches of gold, silver, and platinum.”

The Banquet Hall is always a guest favorite during Christmas. This year, the traditional 40’ fresh-cut Fraser fir is decorated with Edison-style white lights, tinsel, brightly-wrapped gift boxes, vintage toys tied on with bows, and enormous, colorful ornaments in keeping with the size of the tree. Also included in the charming display is a bright red, child-sized one-horse sleigh that dates from the turn of the century.

Decorations and wrapped packages on the Christmas treeThe tree and the packages are reminiscent of the first Biltmore Christmas when the children of estate workers gathered in the hall to receive presents chosen especially for them. In December 1895 the Asheville Citizen noted that “A beautiful Christmas tree that stood in the Banquet Hall causing the loveliest anticipation of the little folks was then stripped of its heavy trimming of gifts. Each guest was remembered.”

In the Salon, a stately tree decorated with feminine details that suggest ladies hats, feathers, and jeweled pieces was inspired by Edith Vanderbilt’s use of the space as a sitting room where she entertained her friends with afternoon tea.

A quartet of trees in the Tapestry Gallery feature dozens of cherubs peeping out from the branches in honor of the Nativity, the centerpiece of the longest room in Biltmore House. The Tapestry Gallery trees and those in the Third Floor Living Hall also feature globe-shaped German wax ornaments decorated with floral patterns.

“These are my favorite ornaments, and ones I used to decorate during my first Christmas here nearly 40 years ago,” said Cathy. “They are very traditional and so fitting for this year’s Gilded Age theme.”

Sparkling Christmas ornamentsThere’s nothing quite as special celebrating the holidays at Biltmore, and since George Vanderbilt chose to open his home to his friends and family at Christmas 1895, it’s only fitting that we continue that tradition today. We hope you’ll join us for both our Christmas at Biltmore daytime celebration and our magical Candlelight Christmas Evenings.

A good life for wildlife

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Biltmore welcomes more than a million guests each year—and those are just the ones who come through the gates!

In addition to our visitors and passholders, our 8,000-acre backyard is also home to a wide variety of wildlife and birds, including deer, rabbits, turkeys, and migratory waterfowl.

Corn growing on a hillGrounds Maintenance Supervisor Curt Horn and his crew are responsible for our Wildlife Management Program which helps Biltmore’s wild “guests” find food and shelter on the estate.

“We average about 300 acres of field crops each year,” said Curt, “and almost half of that is designated for wildlife food plots.”

In addition to the colorful sunflowers that bloom in the summer, Curt and his team plant corn, soybeans, wheat, legumes, and millet in the rich fields along the river. While the majority of these crops are harvested to support Biltmore’s herds of cattle, sheep, and other farm animals, there’s still more than enough to share with wildlife and birds.

Some areas of the estate feature smaller plantings of radishes, canola, soybeans, corn, and sorghum—a delightful feast for our four-legged and feathered friends to enjoy even into the winter, when other food sources may become more scarce. Meadow grasses and other plantings in cleared spaces provide welcome shelter for animals and nesting sites for a variety of birds.

Meadow grass and forest“We are continuing George Vanderbilt’s legacy of caring for Biltmore’s wildlife by providing food and habitats,” Curt said. “And it’s also an important aspect of keeping the estate healthy.”

As always, our guests’ safety is of paramount concern, and we remind you not to approach estate wildlife or birds. In addition, while dogs are welcomed on estate grounds as long as they are securely leashed, state law prohibits pets from entering fenced enclosures protecting farm animals. Visit our complete wildlife viewing policy here.

A legacy of loving care

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When George Vanderbilt moved into Biltmore House in October 1895, he wasn’t alone—a stately pair of lions were already there, flanking the entrance to his new home.

While the lions may appear to be made of terra cotta, closer inspection reveals the unique and beautiful color patterns of Italian rose marble (Rosso di Verona) ranging from beige to orange to red. Today’s visitors may notice some areas where the surface has been polished to a high sheen.

“For more than a century, these friendly beasts have greeted guests as they enter Biltmore House,” said Kara Warren, Preventive Conservation Specialist. “So that sheen is actually the result of millions of hands rubbing the marble away through the years.”

Kara oversees the care for the lions and 37 other outdoor statues and historic plaques through the implementation of the estate’s ongoing preventive conservation program. The job requires a combined knowledge of material science and artistic skill in order to properly analyze, treat, and restore the sculptures.

According to Kara, the longevity of any outdoor statue depends on the nature of its construction, environmental exposure, and the maintenance it receives. Records in our archives indicate restoration to the garden statuary began as early as 1934.The descriptions of repair work have become part of the history of each piece, documenting the care it received over the years.

Staff cleans an outdoor statue of PanTo help preserve our collection of outdoor statuary, each piece is examined, photographed, cleaned, and stabilized as needed every six months. Sometimes the statues simply need a gentle spray of water and an antimicrobial wash to reduce biological growth. Other times, patching or repair is required.

“Outdoor sculptures are vulnerable because they are exposed to so many types of deterioration,” said Kara. “Our preventive maintenance program is important because pollution, biological growth, and even repeated touching can damage these vulnerable objects. Cyclical maintenance allows us to gently clean, repair, and stabilize the original material before severe damage occurs.”

Most of Biltmore’s outdoor sculptures were purchased from France and Italy in the late 1800s, and some date to earlier times. The collection includes bronze, marble, limestone, granite, and terra cotta sculptures. As with all our efforts to preserve Biltmore, the loving care our statuary receives allows these sculptures to be enjoyed by today's guests, our Annual Passholders, and future generations.

Archival image: The marble lions out of their shipping crates and awaiting placement in front of Biltmore House, circa 1895


Modern image: Museum Services staff Genevieve Bieniosek (left) and Kara Warren (right) work together to clean an outdoor statue on the South Terrace

Local Teen Inspires Pisgah Monument Restoration

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Photo (left to right): Jack Leary, Rory Mullen, Owen Koppe, Moultrie Dangerfield, Levi Smith

An enterprising young man recently pioneered a project to preserve a piece of history that wasn’t necessarily forgotten, but just hidden.

This young man is Levi Smith. The West Asheville resident and Eagle Scout candidate completed work with fellow scouts to preserve a historic monument honoring Biltmore’s founder, George Vanderbilt, for establishing Pisgah National Forest. Vines and brush growing in that very forest had overtaken the monument to the point the plaque’s inscription was almost completely camouflaged.

Smith, a member of Troop 58 in West Asheville, discovered the monument near the Stony Fork Picnic Area on Pisgah Highway near the town of Candler on a hike up to the Blue Ridge Parkway. Also nearby is the entrance into the Forest, which at one time was also the entrance of Vanderbilt’s auto road to Mount Pisgah and Buckspring Lodge, his mountaintop retreat.

Upon reading the inscription on the monument’s bronze plaque, Smith decided such a piece of history needed to be spruced up so that hikers and passers-by would be able to learn about the surrounding forest. Pisgah National Forest, it describes, was dedicated to the memory of Vanderbilt who died in 1914. Vanderbilt’s widow, Edith Vanderbilt, sold more than 83,000 acres of Biltmore land to the federal government that same year, thus carrying out her late husband’s desire to establish it as a forest preserve.

Smith sent a proposal to William Cecil Jr., president and CEO of Biltmore (and the great-grandson of George Vanderbilt), asking for support and assistance with the project, which upon completion will serve as his Eagle Scout Service project. It’s the final step before Smith will receive the coveted rank of Eagle.

Biltmore made a donation to Smith for his project. In addition, Biltmore Landscape and Forest Historian Bill Alexander met with Smith and his mother, Robin Smith, to discuss the renovation and the area’s history. Smith also met with officials with the U. S. Forest Service who approved his project.

Kara Warren, Biltmore Preventive Conservation Specialist, was on hand when Smith and his fellow troop members started the work. She demonstrated how to properly clean and protect the bronze plaque to best preserve it for future generations.

The project also included landscaping around the monument, re-grading the Stony Fork Picnic Area parking lot, outlining it in timbers and re-graveling the area in order to ensure that it is a safe and attractive stopping point for those accessing the Parkway. Members of the Upper Hominy Fire Department also assisted in the project.

Biltmore’s archives contain a photograph taken on Oct. 28, 1920, when Pisgah National Forest was officially dedicated to Vanderbilt at a ceremony at the monument site. Edith Vanderbilt and her daughter, Cornelia, are in the photo, taken at the monument along with Governor of North Carolina Locke Craig and secretary of the Appalachian Park Association George S. Powell. 

The inscription reads:

Pisgah National Forest
This portion 83,398 acres was formerly PISGAH FOREST
Established by George W. Vanderbilt in 1891
and the earliest example of forestry on a
large scale on private lands in America
Acquired by the United States on
21 May 1914