One of the most magnificent estates to grace the North Shore, Pemrboke was built for Joseph Raphael DeLamar, Louis Comfort Tiffany's most important patron. De Lamar had commissioned Tiffany to Make this magnificent monumental Wisteria Ceiling For his breakfast room in his 53 room Mansion on 48 acres, in 1910 Captain De Lamar spent 15 million dollars building his massive estate.
Tiffany Wisteria Ceiling
One side of the house contained the "tropical house", or winter garden. Encased in glass, this building featured an abundance of wildlife, rare birds that flew freely around the interior, and one of the most impressive swimming pools on the East Coast.Captain De Lamar had many Tiffany windows in his home De Lamar was considered Louis Comfort Tiffany's most important patron. Pemproke's entertainment portion of the house, which included a rifle range and a movie theatre.
Below is an old picture of the interior of the tropical house. The gazebo is out in the middle of the pool with a bridge that connects it to the rest of the walkways inside the conservatory.
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Tiffany Ceiling Re-assembled in our Museum Gallery
Captain De Lamar's Monumental Tiffany skylite has more than 60 clusters of wisteria on trellis with birds including an exotic Parrot perched on Wisteria Branch measuring 30 ft long x 15 ft wide x 30" curve from top. This hidden treasure has been in crates for years and now Architectural Archive has re-assembled this masterwork of Louis Comfort Tiffany for museum showing.
TIFFANY WINDOW SECTION FROM PRICELESS CEILING
above: a cartoon drawing of the Wisteria Ceiling. section of a parrot perched on a branch
Right: close up of the same section as drawing
Left: The Wisteria Tiffany Ceiling Re-assembled with original bowed steel frame supported on 8 fluted columns in our Museum Gallery Filmstage
CAPTAIN JOSEPH RAPHAEL DE LAMAR'S HOME "PEMPROKE"
Captain De lamar spent 15 million dollars building his magnificent estate in 1910
Joseph Raphael De Lamar Tiffany's most important patron was born in Amsterdam, Holland, September 2, 1843. His father, a banker in Amsterdam, died when he was six years of age, and the lad in love of adventure went aboard a Dutch vessel that plied to the West Indies. When the young stowaway was discovered, he was put to work as assistant to the cook without wages.
He worked as a seaman until he was twenty, when he became master of a ship, and three years later received a captain's command. He visited almost every port in the world and acquired a wonderful education through his observations in foreign countries.
In 1878 he came to New York, and when the gold fever struck Leadville, Colorado, he went West and bought several claims, and the same year took a private course in chemistry and metallurgy under a professor from Chicago University. He returned to the mining fields and purchased the Terrible lead mine in Custer County, Colorado, which he sold to the Omaha & Grant Smelting and Refining Company at a handsome profit. He then obtained control of a mountain six miles west of Silver City, Idaho. Many large veins of gold and silver were discovered on the property and he set up De Lamar Mining company,
In 1891 he served as State Senator in the first Legislature of Idaho, and occupied the Chairmanship on Finance, Railroads and Constitutional Amendments. He was offered the highest honours in the gift of the State, but declined to continue in politics and moved to New York.
He was known on Wall Street as "the man of mystery." He never talked much, his intimate friends say, but was uniformly successful in his transactions. He made millions out of his deal in the Nipissing Gold Mine in 1906.
[edit]Marriage, Family and Death
Joseph Raphael De Lamar House, at the corner at Madison Avenue and 37th Street
He married, May 8, 1893, Nellie Virginia Sands, a direct descendant of John Quincy Adams, and had one daughter, Alice A. De Lamar. Captain De Lamar was a member of the Lotus, and the New York Yacht, Larchmont and Columbia Yacht Clubs. He was the owner of the yacht "May" and "Sagitta," the fastest power boat on the Sound. He was a great believer in aerial navigation and devoted considerable time to the study of the subject.
He was also an art connoisseur, a collector of fine paintings, statuary and other art objects. He was also a great lover of music, but his greatest delight was in the gathering of rare plants and flowers, of which he possessed a wonderful collection. He left a large sum to the Harvard University Medical School, Johns Hopkins University, and the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University for research into the causes of disease and for the promulgation through lectures, publications, and otherwise of the principles of correct living.
His house on Madison Avenue is a New York landmark building today. De lamar commissioned louis Comfort Tiffany to build him many extraordinary stained glass Tiffany windows including the famous "Bathers".
De Lamar died December 1, 1918. His life was full of well directed energy and splendid achievement. A man of large vision, nothing was too vast for him to undertake to perform.
Joseph and Alice De Lamar's lives were the subject of the In Search of... season 4 episode,"The Missing Heirs.".[6]
Marcus Loew in his office,. circa 1910
Pemproke was later purchased by Marcus Loew (who would pass it on to his son Arthur Loew 1905, Marcus Loew was on his own and his success eventually necessitated that he secure a steady flow of product for his theaters.
Captain De Lamar commissioned Louis Comfort Tiffany to design and build him many Stained glass Tiffany windows for his Pembroke estate.
Above: De Lamar commission Tiffany to make this of his wife in a wisteria setting for his Pembroke Estate, it is believed that this window replaced the Bathers, his young wife was embarresed by the nudes, now on display at the Corning Glass Museum
The Famous Tiffany window of "The Bathesr" commissioned by Captain De Lamar for His country Estate Pembroke" was later given Back to Tiffany by De La mar and was installed in Laurelton Hall Tiffany's estate. Captain De Lamar was considered Tiffany's most important patron.
Above: showing the location of the Wisteria Ceiling off the dinning room
'Pembroke', the Captain Joseph Raphael De Lamar estate designed by C.P.H. Gilbert c. 1916 in Glen Cove. De Lamar, who was born in Amsterdam, made his fortune in mining out west and served as a State Senator in Idaho. He was known on Wall Street as "The Man of Mystery" and was president or vice-president of a host of companies. De Lamar died in 1918 and the house was later purchased by Marcus Loew (who would pass it on to his son Arthur Loew 1905, Marcus Loew was on his own and his success eventually necessitated that he secure a steady flow of product for his theaters. In 1904, he founded the People's Vaudeville Company, a theatre chain which showcased one-reeler films as well as live variety shows. In 1910, the company had considerably expanded and got the name Loew's Consolidated Enterprises. His associates included Adolph Zukor, Joseph Schenck, and Nicholas Schenck. In 1919, Loew reorganized the company under the name Loew's, Inc. [1]
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Right a Famous Tiffany window of Parrots and a Peacock with wisteria Commissioned by Captain Delamar for his massive country estate later brought to his city mansion that still stands on Madison ave in Manhattan
Below: De Lamars city Mansion on Madison ave New York