Visiting This Christmas Season: Know Before You Go
Discover the many ways to save on Biltmore tickets!
Which of our splendid overnight options meets your specific needs?
Embrace the joy and the wonder: our beloved holiday tradition and Chihuly at Biltmore.
Discover Biltmore’s rare and beautiful objets d’art—furnishings, paintings, tapestries, and more.
After their visit to Biltmore in March 2016, Horizons fourth and fifth graders of Euchee Creek and South Columbia Elementary Schools in Columbia County, Georgia, created a book titled The Age of the Biltmore. The book includes impressive writing and illustrations by the inspired students.
As George Vanderbilt intended for his home to be an inviting and comfortable place to visit and study, we think he would be proud that students of all ages can still come to Biltmore to learn about the past and apply those lessons to their current courses.
We couldn't help but share the amazing work of these students. Here are some excerpts and illustrations from The Age of the Biltmore:
Biltmore has 250 Rooms, 65 fireplaces, and 34 bedrooms. The inside of the house has four acres of floor space, and the walls contain more than 11 million bricks. – From “Richard Morris Hunt” by Wesley
The gardens were being designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, the man who designed Central Park in New York, and Richard Morris Hunt, the man who built the base of the Statue of Liberty, drew up the plans for the Biltmore. – From “President Cleveland” by Utsab
Did you know the Biltmore had the first passenger elevator in North Carolina? The carriage cost $250 at the time it was built… When I saw the elevators at the Biltmore, I was really surprised that they still had the original elevators in use. – From “The Amazing Technological Features of the Biltmore” by Drew
Amazingly, in 1895 when the doors of the Biltmore were open to guests on Christmas Eve, it had five refrigerators, which all were electrically-powered. The original model held up to fifty gallons of liquids and five hundred pounds of meat and vegetables. – From “Chilling at the Biltmore” by Gabe
On the Vanderbilts Who was the person who planned to build the biggest house in US history? It was George Washington Vanderbilt. You might have heard his name in history books or maybe in an old newspaper. His grandfather was Cornelius 'The Commodore' Vanderbilt. – From “George Washington Vanderbilt” by Gage
He was a man who made an empire out of nothing but a dream and one hundred dollars. – From “The Commodore” by Roman
He was in charge for eight short years, but during that time he doubled the family fortune from 100 million to 200 million. – From “William Henry Vanderbilt” by Andrew
The Vanderbilt family is a very famous and historical family. They were also a wealthy and powerful family. The Vanderbilt family tree still exists today. – From “The Famous Vanderbilt Family” by Emma
On the estate Dr. Carl Schenck founded the Biltmore Forest School in 1908… The conservation techniques that were taught at the school are still influential today! – From “The Biltmore Estate Forestry” by Jayden
Frederick Law Olmsted, the person in charge of the landscape, told George Washington Vanderbilt that he needed a dairy farm so that the soil could be richer from the manure and Biltmore could use the milk for food. – From “The Elegant Biltmore Dairy Farm” by Quinn
The dairy farm at the Biltmore served many purposes, it supplies the estate with milk and other dairy products, it gave the estate some income to help it sustain itself, and the manure from the cows helped plants stand tall. – From “Dairy Farming” by William
Ladies were not supposed to refer to another adult by his or her first name in public. For instance, a man named George Vanderbilt would be called Mr. Vanderbilt in public and never George. – From “Etiquette Rules for Ladies” by Kyra
– From “Cosmetics at the Turn of the Century” by Ruby
When a slow dance would come on men were supposed to ask a lady to dance, not sit on the side and watch. Gentlemen were encouraged to always thank a lady after every dance. Another rule was that ladies should never refuse a gentlemen for one dance and say yes to another unless it was promised before the dancing started. – From “Etiquette” by Aeriel
Feature: Biltmore House by Landen, “The History of the French Chateau”
Top right: Richard Morris Hunt by Levi, “Building the Biltmore”
Top left: Biltmore Elevator by Gabe, “Chilling at the Biltmore”
Mid right: The Commodore's Ship by Roman, “The Commodore”
Bottom left: Biltmore Dairy by Quinn, “The Elegant Biltmore Dairy Farm”
Bottom right: Cocktail Dress by Talia, “1920's Evening Wear”
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