On Saturday, April 14, at 4 pm, Dr. Giraud Vernam Foster of Baltimore will visit Ventfort Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum to present slides and vivid personal memories of his grandfather’s magnificent country house, Bellefontaine, today’s Canyon Ranch located in Lenox. This is a rare opportunity to reach back in time 70-plus years and hear Dr. Foster’s firsthand accounts of an era gone by – an unbroken thread to the Gilded Age.
Built in 1898, the palatial brick and marble-trimmed Bellefontaine was designed for Jean Van Nest and Giraud Foster by Carrère and Hastings, architects for Groton Place (1905), the Grenville Winthrop estate in Lenox, and the New York Public Library among other major buildings.
Bellefontaine was one of the most formal of Lenox’s country houses inspired by that other elegant getaway, the royal Grand Trianon at Versailles. Several times a year in the 1930s until his death in 1945, Mr. Foster would invite his young namesake to Bellefontaine, which he continued to maintain in the grand style.
With the sharp eye of a youthful observer, Dr. Foster will reminisce about life at Bellefontaine – its staff, its spaces, its routines. This is a special not-to-be missed event for anyone familiar with Canyon Ranch today or interested in Berkshire country houses of the Gilded Age.
Admission is $15 per person and $12 for members and includes a Victorian Tea. Reservations are strongly recommended. Please call 413-637-3206. Ventfort Hall is located at 104 Walker Street in Lenox, and is online at www.gildedage.org
An Official Project of Save America's Treasure's, Ventfort Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum offers tours of the historic mansion, as well as lectures, concerts, teas, theater and other programs. This elegant Berkshire "cottage," listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is open to the public year-round and is available for private rental. Built in 1893 for George and Sarah Morgan (sister of the financier J.P. Morgan), Ventfort Hall has undergone substantial restoration, which continues.
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Berkshire Natural Resources Council Receives Grant To Improve Trailheads
LENOX, Mass. — Berkshire Natural Resources Council (BNRC) has been awarded $180,000 from the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism's (MOTT) Destination Development Capital (DDC) Grant Program to enhance the visitor access and wayfinding at several of the most-visited BNRC reserves across the Berkshires.
The MOTT award requires a 1:1 match, and the Jane and Jack Fitzpatrick Trust recently provided BNRC with a $75,000 grant to support the project and help meet the match.
The project will upgrade trailhead infrastructure, improve accessibility at selected sites and enhance wayfinding so residents and visitors can more easily and comfortably enjoy the region's conserved lands year-round.
"This project reflects exactly what the Destination Development Capital Grant Program is designed to do, which is to strengthen the places that matter most to our communities while preparing them for the future," said Kate Fox, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism. "BNRC's thoughtful approach enhances access to some of the Berkshires' most beloved trails while incorporating climate-resilient features that protect these landscapes for years to come. Investments like this help ensure that residents and visitors can enjoy safe, welcoming, and sustainable outdoor experiences across the region."
The grant funds will support targeted improvements:
More welcoming and informative trailhead kiosks and signage
Accessibility improvements at selected trail entrances
Parking changes at busy trailheads
Incorporating climate-smart features like permeable parking surfaces, native plant rain gardens, and usage of durable, sustainable materials
"In the Berkshires, outdoor recreation is increasingly a key reason people come, and a key reason they stay," said Jenny Hansell, BNRC president. "We are grateful to the Healey-Driscoll administration and the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism for recognizing that conserved lands are central to the Berkshires' visitor experience and our local quality of life."
The award is part of a broader investment by the Healey-Driscoll administration to strengthen tourism infrastructure across Massachusetts. Through the DDC program, MOTT funds capital projects that expand, restore, or enhance destinations such as museums, historic sites, and outdoor recreation areas that support local economies.
"With this funding, we can make it easier for people to get outside, whether they're seasoned hikers, families with young kids, or someone visiting the Berkshires for the first time," said Doug Brown, BNRC's Director of Stewardship. "Improved parking, clearer signage, and accessibility improvements may seem like small details, but they can be the difference between someone turning around or feeling confident enough to explore."
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