Old Westbury Gardens by Clive Aslet

Old Westbury Gardens by Clive Aslet

Old Westbury Gardens: Days of Grace on Long Island honours the life and legacy of the house that Jay Phipps built to woo his English love, Dita Grace. In his efforts to secure her hand in marriage, he promised to recreate the world of elegance, gardens, and dogs that she had known in Sussex. She said "Yes"-and the rest is Westbury.

Designed in 1906 by English connoisseur and family friend George Crawley, the house was furnished with British antiques and craftsmanship, with gardens planted under Dita's discerning eye. Of the hundreds of mansions built on Long Island around the turn of the twentieth century, Old Westbury Gardens is now unique-the only one preserved in its original condition.

In 1959, Peggie Phipps Boegner generously placed Old Westbury Gardens in trust, in memory of her mother, Dita, so that the public could enjoy the place where she herself had been so happy. Maintained to the highest standards of authenticity, it is now a showcase of architecture, horticulture and the decorative arts.

"Old Westbury Gardens is one of Long Island's great treasures, where architecture, interiors, and landscape meet in perfect balanceA timeless source of inspiration." Tham Kannalikham, Interior Designer

"This book beautifully captures Old Westbury Gardens, which ignited my love of gardening. Each visit, in every season, still teaches me something new." Bunny Williams, Interior Designer and Gardener

"This exquisitely produced book captures the ineffable connection of architecture and landscape in one of the greatest American country houses of the early twentieth century." Peter Pennoyer, Architect and Author

Clive Aslet is a visiting professor of Architecture at the University of Cambridge and the publisher of Triglyph Books. For many years he worked at the magazine Country Life, where he was editor from 1993 until 2006. Since publishing The American Country House with Yale University Press in 1990 he has written widely about American architecture. In 2025 he was awarded the Board of Directors Honor by the Institute of Classical Architecture and Art as part of its Arthur Ross Awards.

Clive has authored more than thirty books, including The Story of the Country House (Yale) and Sir Edwin Lutyens: Britain's Greatest Architect? (Triglyph Books).