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Photos: Vanderbilt's Western Mass 'Cottage' Listed For $12.5M

A “cottage” with 46 bedrooms that was built by American royalty, the Vanderbilts, has been listed for $12.5 million in Western Massachusetts.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

Elm Court, a former summer home of the Vanderbilt family, is on the market for $12.5 million.

 Photo Credit: Courtesy Berkshire Property Agents
Kristin Palpini

The Gilded Age mansion known as Elm Court was constructed in 1886 and sits on 86 acres straddling Stockbridge and Lenox in the Berkshires. It is on the National Register of Historic Places. 

Plans were scrapped in late-October to spend $50 million to turn the mansion into a resort. The property was then promptly put on the market, according to The Berkshire Eagle.

The 55,000-square-foot complex was considered a summer home for the Vanderbilts and it includes outdoor amenities such as gardens, trails, and a giant fountain. The outbuildings include butler and gardener cottages, carriage house and stable, greenhouses, caretaker’s house, and two barns, according to its listing on Berkshire Property Agents. Significant renovations were done to the home in the early 2000s and continued work is necessary, according to the listing.

The home may also have historic significance beyond its famous first-owners. Around the Berkshires, there’s a story about the “Elm Court Talks” - a summit of powerful men that eventually led to the Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations (the precursor to the United Nations).

Patriarch Cornelius Vanderbilt made the family’s fortune in the steam and railroad industries, though it is debatable whether Vanderbilt was a captain of industry or a robber baron. 

To see the full listing and more photos, visit Berkshire Property Agents.

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