Gore Vidal at Edgewater

Ava Alice Astor Bouverie (1902-1956), daughter of John Jacob Astor IV and owner of another Dutchess county estate, Marienruh, was responsible for introducing Gore Vidal to Edgewater in 1950. “One winter day Alice drove several of us north along with river road to a deserted house called Edgewater, so named as the lawn ended at river’s edge; three acres of locust trees, willows, and copper beach provided a miniature park.”

Vidal was enchanted by the house and purchased it in 1950.  From the attic of Marienruh, Ms. Bouverie provided surplus furniture and carpets that Vidal used to furnish Edgewater.  He made the octagon library his writing room and soon set to work, later crediting the room and Edgewater with providing him a burst of creative energy.   

However, Vidal soon found that in addition to providing creative energy, the house required constant maintenance and costly repairs. “I soon realized that I had acquired a white elephant and would have to go into television and movies to maintain it,” he wrote. To provide the additional income, Vidal accepted a role as a contract screenwriter, first for television and later for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios where he worked on motion picture screenplays.  

For Vidal, the purchase of Edgewater was also a return to his birthplace—the Hudson River Valley. Born at the United States Military Academy’s Cadet Hospital where his father was serving as an instructor, Vidal spent his childhood and youth in Washington, D.C.   His autobiography is filled with nostalgic recollections of the time he spent at Edgewater.  Upon learning that his book Julian, was number one on the New York Times bestseller list, he dove into the Hudson and swam out to the island that is part of the property.  He fondly recalled playing croquet on the lawn, throwing dinner parties in the dining room, and making Edgewater a home with his partner, Howard Austen.   

 One constant at Edgewater since the mid-19th century has been the frequently passing passenger and freight trains.  The tracks, first laid in 1852 as part of a route from New York City and Albany, are located less than sixty feet from the front door. As Mr. Jenrette recounted in his book, Adventures With Old Houses, Vidal used the roar of the trains to his advantage during dinner parties. Always preferring to dominate dinner table conversations, when he heard a train approaching, Vidal would turn to the guest next to him and say, “Now, tell me about your life.” No sooner had the person began to speak when the train roared by, drowning out their response.   

After selling Edgewater, Vidal made his home in Rome and later at La Rondinana, his cliff-side villa on the Amalfi Coast in Ravello. He also maintained a house in the Hollywood Hills, where he lived for the final decade of his life.