Mount Washington, New York Island, the Residence of Samuel Thomson

In 1840, Samuel Thomson (1784–1850), a builder/architect of several churches and the initial designer of the old U.S. Customs House in New York City, bought a large tract of woodland on the northern end of Manhattan—a rural area then called "Tubby Hook" (today, this is Inwood). Thomson named his new estate Mount Washington in honor of its being once a Revolutionary War outpost. Shortly after the completion of the construction of his splendid residence, the building caught fire and was destroyed. This print shows Thomson’s second house (built on the same site) for his wife and family of ten children -- a magnificent neoclassical house and its grounds. As seen through a grove of trees, this view presents the side of a large white house with a doric colonnade facade. In the foreground greenery (lower center), a couple stands beside a seated man sketching with another person seated nearby. At the right, there is a multi-story gothic-style summerhouse pavillion, which permits views of the scenery. The print's background provides glimpses of the Hudson River and New York City beyond.