Epping Forest, Mediterranean Revival mansion in Jacksonville, US
Epping Forest is a Mediterranean Revival mansion on the banks of the St. Johns River in Jacksonville, Florida, set on a large wooded plot with formal gardens running down to the water. The building features arched openings, terracotta roof tiles, stucco walls, and open loggias that look out over the river.
Alfred I. du Pont left the DuPont company in 1917 and moved to Jacksonville in 1925, after his cousin Pierre became Delaware's tax commissioner. In 1926 he bought the Christopher Point tract from the San Jose Estates Company and had Marsh & Saxelbye design a 15,000-square-foot, 25-room mansion. The estate was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. Gate Petroleum bought it in 1984 and restored the mansion, gardens, boathouse and riverfront as a yacht club.
The estate is named after Mary Ball Washington, George Washington's mother and an ancestor of Jessie Ball du Pont, whose Virginia plantation bore the same name. The du Ponts hosted U.S. presidents, industrialists such as Vanderbilt and Carnegie, and kings. Since 1984 the mansion and gardens have served as the Epping Forest Yacht & Country Club.
The property operates as a private club, so access is not open to the general public. Anyone hoping to visit the building or grounds should check in advance about membership, guest access, or any special events that may open the site to outside visitors.
Alfred I. du Pont kept his 125 ft 5 in yacht Nenemoosha, built in 1922, at Christopher Point, the widest spot on the St. Johns River, which drew him to the site for yachting. The estate's name honors Mary Ball Washington, George Washington's mother and Jessie Ball du Pont's ancestor, whose Virginia plantation carried the same name.
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