All that remains of the mansion where H.J. During excavation, the team unearthed vast quantities of wine bottles and French ceramics, including this earthenware plate. He purchased a 211-acre estate on the Delaware River near Bordentown in Burlington County, New Jersey in 1815 called Point Breeze. Careful mapping of the remaining features of the estate illuminates how Joseph transformed his property into a new private park where he could play the role of king in exile. He moved to London in 1832 and visited Point Breeze regularly until … The Man who had been King: The American Exile of Napoleon’s Brother Joseph. The excavations revealed portions of the first mansion’s cellar and rich artifact deposits. Scene of the crime: Breeze Knoll in Westfield, N.J. I’d hate to see the heating tab for the 19-room mansion that occupied 431 Hillside Avenue in Westfield, New Jersey. After moving into the gatehouse, he had the main house torn down. When he died in Florence, Italy in 1844, Point Breeze was inherited by his grandson Joseph Lucien Bonaparte, who sold the estate and most of its contents at auction three years later. (Historical Society of Pennsylvania). The centerpiece was a palatial, three-story, nearly 38,000-square-foot mansion that contained an extensive wine cellar, an extravagant art collection and a colossal library. Tucked away in the quaint and beautiful neighborhood of Point Breeze in Pittsburgh’s east end, our family home is charming, simple and unpretentious, evoking warmth and comfort. In 1816 Bonaparte - after he had fled Europe following the defeat of his brother at Waterloo - bought the property and the land from American diplomat Stephen Sayre (1736–1818). Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press. Although only traces of the original Point Breeze mansions in Bordentown remain, extensive archaeological deposits survive to reveal their grandeur during Bonaparte’s American sojourn (1815-1839). Joseph was not home at the time. Point Breeze passed through numerous owners during the years after Joseph Bonaparte's death and eventually was purchased by the Divine Word Ministries, the largest missionary organization of the Catholic Church. [7], Bonaparte had the original painting of his brother, Napoleon Crossing the Alps by Jacques-Louis David, prominently displayed in the house. In 1832, Joseph returned to Europe, living in London until 1838, then returning to Point Breeze. The Emperor of Nature: Charles Lucien Bonaparte and His World. Explore. It was the home of Joseph Bonaparte, the brother of Napoleon Bonaparte, from 1816 to 1839.[3][4][5]. He also laid out one of the finest picturesque gardens in North America. Heinz lived is the ornate iron and stone fence that surrounded the estate, known as Greenlawn. [7], Following the fire, Bonaparte had a new mansion built. Upon his death in 1844, the property was auctioned off. Joseph Bonaparte (1768-1844), the elder brother of Napoleon, immigrated to the United States at the close of the Napoleonic Wars and settled in the Delaware Valley. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2005. His home was the subject of numerous artists. Moreover, archaeological deposits associated with the earlier colonial and prehistoric occupations of the site were still present. Clayton is unmistakably a family home. Woodlands, Oakhurst and Breezy Point Mansions 1902 . Adults, ... Archaeological excavations have revealed the remains of Joseph’s first mansion and recovered an intriguing collection of artifacts that provide a unique glimpse of the lifestyles of the rich and famous in … Businessmen and industrialists, such as the Mellons, Scaifes and Hillmans, built large homes and mansions to settle near these well-traveled crossroads.