History of the Olmsted Manorhouse and the Grounds of the Estate
      
      In 1916, Mr. Olmsted contacted architect Albert Bodker of Philadelphia to design his home in Ludlow, PA.  Arguing that a community like Ludlow would not justify such a mansion, Bodker initially refused.  Mr. Olmsted issued an ultimatum to Bodker to design the house where he worked and lived or return to Philadelphia.  Relenting, Bodker spent the year on site, overseeing the completion of the Tudor mansion in 1917.
The mansion, built by Hyde-Murphy Company of Ridgway, contained such wonders as oak paneling, a Steinway piano, family crests worked in stained glass on the main stairwell, a private two lane bowling alley, plasterwork coats of arms for both the Olmsted and Pendleton families, and a cork-floored game room.
 
            Alling S. DeForest of  Rochester, New York, served as landscape architect.  In 1912, five years before the Manor was completed, DeForest designed the cascade and other stone work to channel water off the spring-laden hillside.  The springs still provide water for the retreat center and 60 other families in Ludlow.  The beautiful gardens appeared in two magazines, “House and Garden” and “Garden Magazine.”  In 1923, “Garden Magazine” depicted the water as “smoothly falling from one level to another in an interestingly designed series of basins.”  The “sunken gardens,” another interesting sight, included 12,000 red, white, and blue tulips along with a myriad of other flowers.  The 325 acre estate also contained lily ponds, cascading fountains, tennis courts, terraced flower gardens, a swimming pool, a stable of thoroughbred horses, a carriage house, a picnic area with outside fireplace, a putting green, and a gazebo used for afternoon tea.
            
            Entering the estate, large iron gates greet the visitor.  Master craftsman Samuel Yellin constructed the gates.  His intricate iron work can be seen at the entrances of the Sterling Memorial Library at Yale and the gateway at Washington’s National Cathedral.  Yellin is know for designing works of art out of a single piece of iron, instead of tacking pieces together.