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R A P I D R I V E R A R T S
youth culture
JOSEPH RATHBONE RECOMMENDS
Hello, it’s Joseph with the Biltmore
House review I promised in
January’s issue. However, things
didn’t go exactly as planned. You
see, because of the huge snowstorm,
school was not only cancelled but
sadly so was our eagerly awaited field trip to
the Biltmore House. Luckily I found a way
to get a ticket. After making a few calls, the
Biltmore House staff graciously gave me two
complimentary tickets (one for me and one
for my mom). Yes, writing has its perks.
Photo courtesy of the Biltmore Estate.
Like everyone else, we drove through
the awesome gated entrance to the Biltmore
estate, which is like something out of an old
time movie. At the visitor’s center we picked
up our complimentary tickets. While we
were there we watched a neat, short video I
recommend everyone see before taking the
tour. The video gives a short overview of the
Vanderbilt family and the Biltmore House.
From there, we got back on the main
road and drove to the Biltmore House. The
scenery, even in the middle of winter, is
amazing. Once we had parked, we only had
to wait a matter of seconds before a shuttle
bus arrived and took us directly to the front
doors of the Biltmore House. The building
(can it honestly be called a house?) took my
breath away. I had forgotten how huge it is.
Our self-guided tour began with the
winter garden and I pictured Cornelia Vanderbilt
(daughter of George and Edith) playing
there. If I had grown-up in the Biltmore
House, I would have had the most fun in the
billiard room, the bowling room, and in the
indoor swimming pool. When we got to the
banquet hall, we could hear the 1916 Skinner
pipe organ playing classical music and we
saw the Vanderbilt coat of arms.
The library holds over 10,000 books
in eight different languages and an original
Napoleon Bonaparte’s chess set, which is
displayed on the Vanderbilt’s gaming table.
Amazing art hangs from most of the walls,
but none as impressive as those displayed in
the tapestry room.
When you first arrive on the second
floor there will be a room full of pictures
BY JOSEPH RATHBONE, AGE 11
and videos titled “If These
Walls Could Talk”. They
give you a lot of information
about the history, and are definitely
worth taking the time to read and watch. The
three other rooms on your way up are the
fancy and enormous bedrooms of Mr. and
Mrs. Vanderbilt, plus the oak sitting room.
As I walked through the house, I kept wondering
what was behind each of the closed
doors we passed. Treasures? Forgotten toys?
The third floor mainly contains wellrestored
guest bedrooms and sitting rooms.
These rooms were for their close friends
and relatives when they came and stayed
awhile. The Vanderbilts named these rooms
according to the works of art displayed in
each room. The Raphael Room had detailed
engravings of the Italian Renaissance artist
Raphael Sanzio d’Urbino.
On the fourth floor we got to see several
servants’ bedrooms and a very detailed
model of the Biltmore House that the original
architects made in 1889. The observatory
room is unique because you can access the
roof from there. The tour then takes you
down to the basement. On your way you get
to see more grand guestrooms and the room
where Cornelia Vanderbilt and then her two
sons were all born.
The basement houses the servant
quarters and also a few pantries. It also holds
the kitchen and laundry room that at first
seems primitive but when it was built it
was actually top of the line. The 70,000-gallon
indoor-pool, and the bowling alley are
equally awesome. The Halloween room has
many unusual paintings on the walls but in
the middle of the room are lots of pictures
and information giving detailed histories
about the Biltmore House and those who
lived here.
When we exited the house, we were
famished and the mouth-watering smells
coming from the courtyard and stables (horses
no longer live there) made us decide to try
some of their food. I highly recommend the
hot chocolate, the hamburger stand, and the
bakery. After we ate we decided to get some
souvenirs. I hope everyone gets a chance to
look through all the shops to take a piece of
Biltmore home with them.
Well that’s pretty much it, but before I
end I would like to recommend also going to
the winery to take the neat little tour and to
try their grape juice and/or their red raspberry
juice, which are both very, very good.
Well that really is it, so bye until next month
when I’ll be reviewing the film The Lightening
Thief. Here’s hoping that it’s at least half
as good as the book.
Your friend, Joseph
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Vol. 13, No. 6 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — February 2010 23