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from his hotels), such as central heating, gas lighting, hot and cold running water, and a servant call system. As part of a new and unique design, the water for the house was provided by gutters in the tower and third floor, which ran down through pipes into all the rooms, with separate pipes for heated water, which was heated using coal, and another for cold water.
396:. After this, the house became abandoned and its fate was uncertain. There were plans by an oil company to buy the dilapidated home, and then demolish it to build a gas station. However, it was saved by William H. Holmes who bought the house in order to preserve it as a museum. In 1941, Holmes opened the house as the Victoria Mansion (named for Britain's
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in the United States; carved marble fireplaces; and a flying staircase. When designing the home, Morse incorporated features from his luxury hotels, including the large and tall entryway, and wall-to-wall carpeting. The house used some of the latest technologies of the era (some of which he also took
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Morse lived in the house until his death in 1893. A year later, the house and its contents were sold by his wife to Joseph Ralph Libby, a
Portland merchant and department store owner. The Libby family occupied the house for over 30 more years, until 1928, without making significant changes to it.
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created the interiors in a range of styles, and this house is his earliest known and only intact commission. Due to donations by the Libby family, 97 percent of the original contents survive, including Herter furniture, elaborate wall paintings, artworks, carpets, gas lighting fixtures, stained
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exterior, elaborate interior design, opulent furnishings and early technological conveniences provide a detailed portrait of lavish living in nineteenth-century
America. It was declared a
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However, one significant change made was the repainting of the green room in white, which restorationists were unable to restore once it became a museum.
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villa was completed in 1860 as a summer home for hotelier
Ruggles Sylvester Morse. Morse had left Maine to make his fortune in hotels in
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346:. Its distinctive asymmetric form includes a four-story tower, overhanging eaves, verandas, and ornate windows. The frescoes and
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The house has twin sinks in the guest bedroom on the second floor; a
Turkish smoking room, which is one of the first example of
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400:), later being added to the National Historic Register, and continues to be open as a museum every day from 10am-3:45pm.
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526:"National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Victoria Mansion / Morse-Libby House"
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in 1971 for its architectural significance as a particularly well-preserved
Italianate mansion.
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The building is recognized as one of the finest, and least-altered examples of a large
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University and college buildings listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
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a year later, the home was repossessed in 1939 due to back taxes soon after the
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Morse-Libby
Mansion, National Historic Landmarks Program, National Park Service
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wall decorations were created by the artist and decorator
Giuseppe Guidicini.
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The last of the Libbys moved out of the home in 1928. Due in part to the
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List of jails and prisons on the
National Register of Historic Places
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National
Register of Historic Places listings in Portland, Maine
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Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Maine
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National Register of Historic Places in Portland, Maine
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History of the National Register of Historic Places
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706:List of U.S. National Historic Landmarks by state
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484:. Victoria Society of Maine. September 29, 2007.
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410:List of National Historic Landmarks in Maine
19:For the New Zealand apartment building, see
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535:Accompanying 3 photos, exterior, from 1970
503:National Historic Landmark summary listing
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368:glass, porcelain, silver, and glassware.
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524:Snell, Charles W. (July 29, 1970).
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1061:National Historic Preservation Act
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557:"The Height of Victorian Panache"
16:Historic house in Portland, Maine
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338:. The house was designed by the
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1144:Historic house museums in Maine
237:Spring Street Historic District
56:U.S. National Historic Landmark
1014:Federated States of Micronesia
660:Architectural style categories
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555:Stephen May (July 13, 1997).
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138:Show map of the United States
1174:1860 establishments in Maine
579:"A Rough-Hewn Maine Seaport"
28:United States historic place
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181:43.651500°N 70.2607000°W
505:. National Park Service
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680:Keeper of the Register
186:43.651500; -70.2607000
65:U.S. Historic district
685:National Park Service
665:Contributing property
499:"Morse-Libby Mansion"
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373:Islamic architecture
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300:Morse-Libby Mansion
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482:"Victoria Mansion"
282:Designated CP
200:less than one acre
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217:Henry Austin
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1033:Other areas
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827:Mississippi
742:Connecticut
336:New Orleans
184: /
169:43°39′5.4″N
160:Coordinates
1123:Categories
942:Washington
862:New Mexico
857:New Jersey
732:California
509:October 3,
426:References
361:brownstone
357:Italianate
342:architect
324:Italianate
308:brownstone
241:ID70000043
227:Italianate
952:Wisconsin
917:Tennessee
822:Minnesota
797:Louisiana
340:New Haven
213:Architect
208:1858-1860
1108:Category
937:Virginia
887:Oklahoma
867:New York
842:Nebraska
832:Missouri
817:Michigan
807:Maryland
792:Kentucky
772:Illinois
747:Delaware
737:Colorado
727:Arkansas
404:See also
328:New York
255:70000074
148:Location
1054:Related
957:Wyoming
932:Vermont
837:Montana
777:Indiana
757:Georgia
752:Florida
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712:Alabama
233:Part of
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762:Hawaii
717:Alaska
653:Topics
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533:, and
384:Museum
359:brick/
332:Boston
1024:Palau
922:Texas
802:Maine
767:Idaho
529:(pdf)
318:House
205:Built
978:Guam
927:Utah
882:Ohio
782:Iowa
511:2007
334:and
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298:or
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