Documenting Lynnewood Hall

In June 2024, I documented Lynnewood Hall, one of America’s last surviving Gilded Age mansions, during a rare visit granted by the Lynnewood Hall Preservation Foundation, Inc., the nonprofit now overseeing its restoration. Located in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, Lynnewood was completed in 1900 for industrialist Peter A. B. Widener and designed by renowned architect Horace Trumbauer. Spanning over 110 rooms and once filled with priceless art, it was a symbol of unimaginable wealth and opulence.

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Over time, the mansion fell into disuse and decay. For decades, it remained hidden behind locked gates—its grandeur fading beneath layers of dust, peeling paint, and an all-consuming hush. In recent years, the Lynnewood Hall Preservation Foundation, Inc. stepped in to protect the property, secure its future, and begin the careful planning needed for its revival.

Now, with restoration efforts gaining traction under the Foundation’s stewardship, Lynnewood Hall stands at a pivotal moment: a once-forgotten icon slowly stepping back into the light. The photos below capture spaces still untouched by restoration—ornate ceilings, decaying ballrooms, and echoing halls—each resonating with history, atmosphere, and the promise of renewal.