- \n
- Has a two lane bowling alley<\/li>\n
- Has a 70,000 gallon indoor swimming pool<\/li>\n
- An elevator that STILL WORKS!!!<\/li>\n
- 2,152,782 Square Feet!!<\/li>\n
- Boasts 250 rooms<\/li>\n
- Has over 40 bathrooms<\/li>\n
- Much, much, more<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
![\"amazing](\"https:\/\/worldwanderlusting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/IMG_0068.jpg\" "\\"Biltmore")
<\/a><\/div>\nThe entrance fee is pretty steep at an amazing $60 per person.\u00a0\u00a0 I would try to plan ahead because you can get in for much cheaper if you can plan in advance.\u00a0 It is amazing because The Biltmore Mansion has over 1,000,000 visitors a year.\u00a0 That means that they probably revenue about 50,000,000 in visitors from entrance fees alone.\u00a0 Keep in mind that they also have a luxurious hotel, vineyard, winery, food, and more.\u00a0 I’m pretty sure that they are still turning a profit. \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n
History behind the Vanderbilt Family<\/h2>\n
Seeing the huge house has inspired me to do more research.\u00a0 Essentially his grandfather, Corneilus Vanderbilt, started business after business.\u00a0 He was a cutthroat business man who allowed nothing to stop his progress.\u00a0 Legend has it that he borrowed $100 from his mother to start a ferry business in New York when he was 16.\u00a0 He was then hired by a man who had a large ferry business in the area to be his personal assistant.\u00a0 Working alongside a businessman who taught him the ropes allowed him to gain vision.<\/p>\n
Mr. Gibbons, his employer, was filing a lawsuit against another ferry operator who had been given a monopoly.\u00a0 Corneilius learned so much about this business from his research that he performed as he prepared to present to their case to the courts.\u00a0 This knowledge proved to be very useful to him.\u00a0 He then broke off and began building his empire.<\/p>\n
It was small at first, but gained steam.\u00a0 He would choke out compeitition by lowering prices until the compeitition went out of business.\u00a0 As he learned more about the ferrys and steam boats he saw a great opportunity in the railroad industry.\u00a0 His business skills he had learned earlier made the transition smooth to building his empire.<\/p>\n
Corneilius decided to give the majority of his business to his oldest son, William Henry Vanderbilt<\/a> (95%).\u00a0 At the time of Cornelius’ death he had amassed a net worth of $100 Million Dollars.\u00a0 At that given time it was 1\/87th of the US GNP.\u00a0 Wow!<\/p>\n
![\"amazing](\"https:\/\/worldwanderlusting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/IMG_0071-493x370-custom.jpg\" "\\"Family")
<\/a><\/p>\nPassing on to the next generation<\/strong><\/p>\n
Incredibly William was a smart businessman and he turned the 100 talents into 200 talents within 10 years!\u00a0 He was able to double the value of the family within a very short period of time.<\/p>\n
![\"English:](\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/d\/dc\/William_Henry_Vanderbilt.jpg\" "\\"English:")
<\/a>English: William Henry Vanderbilt (May 8, 1821 \u2013 December 8, 1885) was a businessman and a member of the prominent United States Vanderbilt family. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)<\/p><\/div>\n
William had eight children, and his youngest was named George Washington Vanderbilt.\u00a0 He inherited a ton of money from his father, and decided to build a masterpiece with that money.<\/p>\n
Being a part of a very affluent family he had some connections to some of the world’s best architects and designers.\u00a0 He tapped into Richard Morris Hunt<\/a> as the architect and Frederick Law Olmsted as the landscaper.\u00a0 Construction lasted only six years and his masterpiece was completed. It was equipped with the latest of technology including indoor lighting, a swimming pool, an elevator, a dumb waiter, a refrigerator, and more.<\/p>\n
At one point the estate amassed 228 square miles!\u00a0 Most of it was later sold, but they still have a large chunk of land left.\u00a0 The descendents of George still own the land and employ approximately 1700 people!\u00a0 It was first opened in 1930 during the great depression and people stopped living there in 1956.<\/p>\n
Today the Biltmore is the largest privately owned home in America. \u00a0It is a sight to be seen, and I recommend visiting when they have Christmas at the Biltmore, as it enhances the experience, and helps you to remember what it might have been like when they opened the home for the first time Christmas eve in 1895. \u00a0This place was incredible. \u00a0It is totally worth the visit. \u00a0They have worked really hard to restore the home and make it look as it did then. \u00a0We also did the audio tour, which was recommended as well.<\/p>\n
Make the trip one day. \u00a0You will not regret it.<\/p>\n
![\"Enhanced](\"http:\/\/img.zemanta.com\/zemified_e.png?x-id=d8af497d-3469-4314-a7e6-572d90f3615d\")
<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Wow. I’ve visited some elegant places in my life. NEVER have I experienced the luxury of living until today. George Washington Vanderbilt knew how to build a chateau. Let me tell you some facts about the Biltmore Mansion. It was … Continue reading